Third Saturday Seminar 2017-2018
Return of the Elders, Unleash your Wisdom
Session 7
“China”
“The Sleeping Dragon starts to stretch”
Don’t (be) Panic(ked)
Saturday, 21 April 2018 9:30AM to 12:00 NOON (3d Saturday)
Room B-102, Lone Star College – Montgomery
3200 College Park Drive – Conroe, TX – 77384 – 936.273.7000
In Memorium
Barbara Pierce Bush
June 8, 1925 – April 17, 2018
This is the Seventh Session of the Third Saturday Seminar for the 2017-18 Academic Year.
INTRO
As a relief from the 24/7 cable news cycle; this Saturday I offer you some that we will be affecting us all and the World, It is time we talk about China.
The Take-Away: China is obviously shaking itself awake. It is encouraged by the Chaos in our White House and Government, America backing away from its leadership role leaves a vacuum that China feels itself well-prepared to fill. China continues to have it’s problems but for decades it has been developing relationships and making investments for infrastructure in Third World Countries in Asia and the Middle East. It also increasing it’s investment in First World Counties.
Perhaps China’s greatest hurdle is CORRUPTION. Many years ago the Chinese President visited the city-state of Singapore and its ruler Lee Kuan Yew. The Chinese president was impressed by Singapore’s prosperity. Supposedly this was the inspiration for China’s “Managed Economy” According to www.transparency.org (2017) Singapore’s Corruption rating is very low at 6/180 is whereas China’s is 77/180. The US is 16/180 (I find that hard to believe). (Russia is 135/180)
For those who like to read ahead, I suggest the following links to get started:
From investing in Pakistan to deploying peacekeepers in South Sudan, China’s growing clout is being felt around the globe. But does the country’s influence come with a price?
In little more than three decades, China has transformed itself from a closed-off Asian nation mired in poverty to an emerging superpower that rivals the United States. Now, the tendrils of Chinese influence are gradually wrapping themselves around the world, upending roles and relationships that have dominated the global order for half a century. The latest step in China’s evolution as a global power is President Xi Jinping’s grand plan for the world economy that draws on the millennia-old tradition of the Silk Road trading route. We explore five ways China is changing communities and lives across the globe – with its financial clout and its influence on culture, education, travel and the military balance of power
This site has 6 sections. When you first open the site and start to scroll down you will see a map of the world showing countries with Chinese investment exceeding $100,000,000 marked with pink circles which increase in number as you scroll through years 2005 to 2014.
If you continue to scroll down you will see FIVE separate parts: INVESTMENT, EDUCATION, INFRASTRUCTURE, TRAVEL and MILITARY. If you want to jump around you look in the upper left corner of the page you will see a drop down menu with links that will take you directly to any section of the article .
Just what is this One Belt, One Road thing anyway?
By James Griffiths, CNN, Updated 10:16 PM ET, Thu May 11, 2017
Hong Kong (CNN)Spanning more than 68 countries and encompassing 4.4 billion people and up to 40% of the global GDP, China’s One Belt, One Road project is not short on ambition. Its boosters tout its massive economic promise and claim it could benefit the entire world and lift millions out of poverty. But no one can say for sure what exactly the plan encompasses, and detractors warn it could be an expensive boondoggle at best or a massive expansion of Chinese imperial power at worst.
As usual, our world is still in “interesting times” We will start the session with Current Events (Distractions
Think about this: How much wrong do we have to watch until we decide, that we have seen enough, and, decide something must be done
President Donald J. Trump will have been in office for 456 days by Saturday. There are 199 days to the next mid-term Congressional General election, 6 Nov 2018. The Run Off Elections will be 22 May 2018 in 31 days. Early voting for the Primary Runoffs starts Monday,14 May and will end Friday 18 May. Note Early Voting will be available only for five weekdays. Polls will be open 7 AM to 7 PM. The number of polling places will be reduced as a reduced turnout is expected.
- Stormy Daniels goes very public. Michael Cohen can’t remember why he wrote her a check for $130,000.
- Michael Cohen’s offices are raided by the FBI.
- President Trump Ordered the Bombing of three Syrian, “chemical warfare sites” in response to the chemical weapons dropped on the people of a suburb of Damascus.
- Nicky Haley, our Ambassador to the UN announced during an appearance on “Face the Nation” that Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin would be announcing new sanctions directed at companies associated with Syria’s chemical weapons program on Monday, “if he hasn’t already.” But Monday came and went without an announcement. (Time.com)
- President Trump walked it back Monday.
- On Tuesday, in a statement to Fox News, she said, “With all due respect, I don’t get confused.” (Time.com)
- Somehow barrel bombs don’t count. By the end of 2017, over 97% of barrel bomb deaths were civilians, and more than 25% were children.[5][6] According to the Syrian Network for Human Rights, since the start of the war through to December 2017, at least 68,334 barrel bombs have been used.[7] Since the start of 2018 at least 1627 more barrel bombs some with chlorine have been dropped by the Syrian government forces. Three attacks
- James Comey wrote a book. Those who expected to find a smoking gun will be disappointed. There is little that would apply to the Russia investigation, except for the repetition of the exchanges between Comey and Trump. Most news junkies like myself had heard these dialogs repeated ad nauseum to the houses of Congress. He is very critical about Trump’s qualifications to be president as well as his physical attributes. Surprisingly, he promotes citizens showing their displeasure in the mid-term elections to create a rejuvenated Congress that will represent the interests of We the People, instead of the rich campaign funders.
- The then CIA Director Mike Pompeo made a secret visit to North Korea over Easter. Apparently plans are being made for a may meeting.
- And whatever comes up … You can always get a quick Current Events briefing here
Bring your insights and your concerns to Third Saturday Seminar on Saturday and we will share.
LSC-Montgomery
3200 College Park Drive, Conroe, TX 77384
ALL- Montgomery Links:
Academy for Lifelong Learning: LSC-Montgomery
Registration
Download a registration form and submit it to ALL:
· In person: LSC-Montgomery (3200 College Park Dr., Conroe, TX 77384), Continuing Education/ALL Office Building E (Room 205)
· Phone: 936.273.7446
Course Description: Third Saturday Seminars – Fall 2017- 3 Sessions
To refer to an ancient Chinese saying, “our world is in interesting times” and individual citizens are assaulted with a blinding array of propaganda from every conceivable source. The Third Saturday Seminar is about demystification of what is going on around us. Time will also be spent on current events.
Meets 9/16, 10/21, and 11/18 in B-102.
14972 Sa 9/16-11/18 9:30 a.m.-12 p.m. B 102 Gibby
Schedule for other ALL Courses
Downloadable Course book PDF
Montgomery Courses start on page 36.
You can attend ALL courses on all the other campuses by registering for global membership ($55).
ALL Website: http://www.lonestar.edu/all-montgomery.htm
Registration Form
“Some part of our being knows this (the universe) is where we came from. We long to return. And we can. Because the cosmos is also within us; We’re made of star-stuff. We are a way for the cosmos to know itself.” Carl Sagan