Chun Han Wong > Quotes

“For a Leninist party, organizational integrity means the competence to sustain a combat ethos among political office holders who act as disciplined, deployable agents,” wrote the Berkeley political scientist Ken Jowitt, who argued that Leninist parties must constantly inspire members with a compelling vision to fight for, or risk decaying toward potential doom.”
― Chun Han Wong, Party of One: The Rise of Xi Jinping and China's Superpower Future

“Fired by historical grievances and a sense of civilizational destiny, Xi’s China is brash but brittle, intrepid yet insecure. It is a would-be superpower in a hurry, eager to take on the world while wary of what may come. It demands to be seen, heard, and respected, but obstructs outsiders who try to peer past the pomp and propaganda. It exerts a global reach with economic and military might, even as its ruling party retreats into an ideological cocoon. Its choices are reshaping the world, and it behooves us to grasp why and how. Understanding this powerful, opaque, and restless China has become harder than ever, but this is why we must try.”
― Chun Han Wong, Party of One: The Rise of Xi Jinping and China's Superpower Future

“The future is certain; it is only the past that is unpredictable.”—Old Soviet joke”
― Chun Han Wong, Party of One: The Rise of Xi Jinping and China's Superpower Future