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Thank you for your support and respect of my wishes.
For your info, I really don't live in China, but if I did and cared for the opinion of my new MSS overlords, I'd probably tone it down with political commentary of any kind. Americans and other Free Worlders seem to often have a naive theory of preferences of authoritarian states. Peak Stalinism, Cultural Revolution, Khmer Rouge – those make a mark in the media but are abnormal conditions of power consolidation (or reconsolidation). Mature regimes seek apolitical quiescence, not fervor, and suppress overzealous and aggressive Patriots just the same as open enemies, if not harder, because Patriots can deliberately or inadvertently challenge the regime's legitimacy by exposing its flaws by its own standards and constraining strategic flexibility.* Strelkov/Girkin is a good (if extreme) case in point; China is no exception (see their crackdown on Western Pseudohistory Theory – for what it's worth, General Secretary I approve, please continue crushing low-IQ kanging on Chinese social media).
If I really were, as accused, a kneejerk America hater in China, I'd probably run some risk of getting (mildly) disciplined for "Picking Quarrels and Provoking Trouble".
Though I don't think they monitor this place in any case. But I do greatly appreciate American doctrine of free speech, and unfortunately the Chinese are not on board. Accordingly there won't be a Chinese TheMotte.
*P.S. That's another reason I get so triggered by Patriotism of @Shakes. It seems there's no consistent belief behind it, it's pure "Let's go Dodgers!" loyal cheerleading for America or even personally for Trump; no matter what Trump/America do it's good and based, even if it's contradictory. He refuses to hold his team to any internal standard at all, can pose no danger to the regime at all, and risks nothing at all (except going down with the ship).
There's personal bitterness too, I guess. I used to call myself a Russian ethnonationalist, and that project, as in, people with the same identification, has on net spectacularly discredited itself by choosing bootlicking, (delusional) prejudice against Ukrainans and the conquest of Konstantinyvka and other ruined shithole villages over the entire space of timelines where Russia was a strong nation and a positive influence on the world. Would be nice if other people took similar risks.
"Based."
My consistent belief is American Exceptionalism, that America is the greatest nation on Earth, and that Donald Trump is the avatar of American Exceptionalism. I'm willing to take criticism as it comes and I know that sometimes I look ridiculous. I don't mind. I think it's a necessary position to take. I'm even happy to criticize America and it's failures (which is, after all, the entire reason for supporting Donald Trump). But I'm not interested in criticizing America simply so that everyone knows that I'm reasonable -- I may as well as just get to the point and tell you what I really believe and not worry about how it comes across to people who will never agree with me anyways.
There was a mean reply here but it's really adding nothing of value, so let's just say that I appreciate the honesty, and "Donald Trump is the avatar of American Exceptionalism" is very true, more true perhaps than you understand. "American Exceptionalism" is a belief, a vibe, not the quality of greatness attributable to the nation itself. Trump definitely channels that. We mostly disagree on whether it is anything more than parasitic exploitation of the underlying factors of greatness.
I'll add also because it occurred to me during lunch:
I'm also a Christian and I believe in Jesus. And I can actually marshal lots of arguments and reasons for why I believe in Christ, but I ultimately can't stop somebody from sneering that, well, that's a belief, belief can't be justified, every argument is only a rationalization. Fair enough. So let me at least state outright exactly what I believe, because I think everybody believes in something. And I do think my beliefs are better, and I also think my reasons are better. So "belief" is the exact idea I want to evoke.
That you put your belief in Christ and in Trump in the same discussion is beyond the reach of any sneer, honestly.
Though much of American Christianity is this kind of bullshit religion, like Russian Orthodoxy or State Shinto, nothing more than morally and theologically vacuous justification of imperial legitimacy. Naturally it's compatible with venerating a Czar.
Now we’re just debating the semantics of the word “belief”. But I hope you understand, that when I say that I “believe” the Donald Trump is a hero, I am not purporting a religious or irrational thought. Rather, that word communicates an extremely high level of confidence.
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