re: Perry Link, it appears he's now teaching at University of California-Riverside. See this recent editorial (about shunkouliu 顺口流) at Washington Post online (may require registration though)

link

This is interesting. Is there anyone on this earth that makes judgement from an entirely neutral, other-worldly perspective? It pays defenders to defend, and it pays critics to criticize. Link, as an academic, should know better that there is no such thing as a value-free perspective.

And, is there any policy/political elite in the US or any other country, whether it's foreign policy or domestic policy, that doesn't have a stake on the policy that they're advocating?

Obama threatens to stop America outsourcing jobs and factories to China, and MaCain is similarly harsh on China. How is that helping China or the China hands?

Huh? I'm confused, is Thomas Crampton agreeing with Ken Silverstein that "Constructive engagement isn't working well for the United States or the Chinese people"? It sure seems like it. What's the alternative? Destructive engagement? Non-engagement? Hardball? Those all sound like a lot more trouble than they're worth.

If this is more a complaint that privately employed people are giving political advice, what's the alternative? Academics are often woefully unqualified to render this sort of advice, and anybody who has knowledge on Sino-US relations is probably already biased or has an axe to grind, such as Perry Link. If I'm Obama or McCain and I'm wise enough to know that everyone carries internal biases, I'm going to try and surround myself with advisers who are invested in building closer ties to other nations, not ones who will stir up animosity.

@Will Lewis

No, I don't agree with Ken Silverstein's statement that "Constructive engagement isn't working well for the United States or the Chinese people".

I should have been more clear on that.

@on the other hand

Yes, clearly every human has a viewpoint and you will never reach an ideal "Neutrality".

I do, however, think that Silverstein's thesis - that many of these China advisors have a financial stake in China - is an issue worth highlighting.

One approach to this issue is to have a diplomatic corps more in line with the European model, where ambassador posts are appointed to those who rise through the ranks. The US system of using the posts to return political favors or patronage.

There's actually an American ambassador in some tiny African nation that was a "clearing house" gatherer of financial donations for "W", who was a used car salesman in Texas.

But he's African-American so I guess that's ok ;^)

Is there any American politician that don't have business ties? You have to take the best that you can get, lol.

Lu Xun once said (& I'm paraphrasing): "Those who say they're totally fair & unbiased are already half-drunk".

I am not half drunk...I'm half sober! ;^)

~something W.C. Fields would have said

sorry for being pedantic, but i believe it's 顺口溜

Corporate control over US foreign Policy towards China is weakening the national security of the United States. These corporate puppets like those advising McCain and Obama (Bader, Liberthal et al) are traitors. Their primary concern is corporate profit, not the national security of the United States. These tails need to quit wagging the dog. Perry Link is pointing our THE most critical issue when it comes to US Foreign Policy towards China. Our top ChinaPolicy forumlators are all in bed with the Corporations and are not offering advice in the best interests of the US. No one wants to see war with China. But American Foreign policy must be directed now towards undermining the dictatorship of the Chinese Communist Party, not empowering it. The Chinese people, once they throw this foreign comprador (the party makes its money enslaving the people for the foreign corporations) off their back, will remember that the foreign coporations helped to keep them enslaved. If Americans want to support China, then their foreign policy needs to help dis-empower the party. Right now they are in bed with the party, to enslave Chinese. This will end--and we will remember these traitors like Bader, Kissinger, et al. Perry Link is a hero of the Chinese and American People.

Right on. I used to like everything Obama says and is supposed to "represent." But the fact is that just by digging a little bit deeper, you find that his backers are all CFRs, and Bildersburgers (the truth is, most people are blinded by his charisma only, they don't care about his politics. The "common" man can become the president, yeah, I got a 40 foot Owl I want to sell you.). And we all know that the Brzeninskis are behind both Obama and Mccain. Those of you that think Obama is going to some how turn around U.S's policies (all geared towards making maxiumum profits for their buddies and games on the "Grand Chessboard"), think again. They are simply playing the left versus right paradigm game, and I'm not buying it. No matter who 'wnis' the election, it's going to be a wild after party.

I agree with everything Fang Xui is saying. However, I just don't know enough of the facts to draw any conclusions about the connections between the NWO and the Chinese 'people's' party. But I do know the multi-nationals are making record profits while sucking the U.S dry.

And why do I believe in all this? 911, basically; you can't really argue with physics. You also can't deny that 'they' have engaged in false flag operations in the past. Hell, when this term is out on the table of options (like recent leaked info on Cheney false flag statment. Russian general talking about false flag operation), you know something is not right. Yet most sheeple shrug it off like it's nothing! Plus we know the government loves to run drugs into the country. how come they get to break the laws? I thought it was just say no. The rabbit hole started on 9/11 (for me) and just kept on going.

Just like G.W.B is acting all dumb when in fact he knows exactly what he is doing and is making his buddies (the Military Industrial Complex, the elite bankers, skull-bones buddies, etc...) all rich as fuck (don't start. Look at war profiteering in Iraq), Obama is also acting the part of the 'common' man running for president. Oh yes, 'change' is coming!

So what do I believe in? I don't believe in evil, that much I can tell you. And what have they been doing? Nothing but pure evil. So I don't believe in them.