The Useless Tree

Sam Crane

  • Daoist Thoughts on Newtown

    When confronted with horrible, senseless crimes like the massacre of innocent children in Connecticut last week, I find myself turning back to the Daoist classics for reflection. It is not that I find answers in the Daodejing and Zhuangzi.  There… Continue reading

  • Yang Jisheng is a Confucian Sage, and Mao Zedong was an Inhumane Qin Shihuangdi Wannabe

    We hear a lot these days about the revival of Confucianism in China.  Some argue that it will bring something like political meritocracy and moral leadership to the PRC.  But these outcomes are fairly remote, obstructed as they are by… Continue reading

  • Thinking of Snowflakes, again

    This morning started out in classic New England November fashion: dusting of snow on the ground; chilly temperature; gray overcast; a few flurries floating in the air.  Sitting in my office, gazing out the window, I found myself following the… Continue reading

  • Another Daoist Thanksgiving

    Been very busy of late, with little time to blog.  But here is one from the archives on my favorite holiday: It is a perfect Thanksgiving morning here [2005] in Northwestern Massachusetts: a light snow, about 2 inches on the… Continue reading

  • America’s Flawed Democracy and China’s Opaque Authoritarianism

    Obama's victory last night has got me to thinking, again, about democracy and authoritarianism.  This contrast is constantly in my mind, as a student of Chinese politics, and it is infused with greater prominence when ill-founded arguments, like those of… Continue reading

  • When Martin Jacques Fools the World

    Couldn't resist the title, which came to mind after I read this recent BBC commentary by Martin Jacques: "Is China more legitimate than the West?" (his book is entiteld When China Rules the World) There are many problems with the… Continue reading

  • Confucianism and Corruption in the PRC

    My recent post on how a Confucian might understand the corruption surrounding Wen Jiabao sparked a couple of comments that have pushed me to think a bit more about the topic.  But I am thinking more broadly about both Confucianism… Continue reading

  • “Wild Winds Never Last All Morning”

    That line from passage 23 of the Daodejing came to mind today, as I saw the terrible damage wrought by Hurricane Sandy.  New Jersey seems to have borne the brunt of the destruction.  The images of Seaside Heights, devastated and… Continue reading

  • Has Wen Jiabao Failed the Confucius Test?

    Everyone's talking about the big NYT piece on the vast wealth of the family of China's Prime Minister, Wen Jiabao. At one level this is utterly unsurprising.  This is how the PRC's political economy works. Those people who stand at… Continue reading

  • Romney Fails the Confucian Test

    First, let me stipulate: all politicians evade and dissemble and lie.  And that happens in all regime types: democratic and authoritarian. But within that broad reality, and focusing here on the American political experience, Mitt Romney is setting a new… Continue reading