This report shows that Trump is no better than China’s Xi, Jinping when it comes to telling public the truth. In fact, Trump is worse because after ten months of virus spreading he is at a better position of knowing how dangerous the virus could hurt people, while Xi had no previous cases to teach him that. Despite that, Trump (and his lousy doctor Sean Conley who acted more like a politician than a medical professional) chose to hide the truth from the public — just to project an image of personal strength with a cavalier attitude.
But let’s give Trump some benefit of doubt and just say that it is a part of human nature to hide the truth — nothing but the truth — from others. This could happen for various reasons. Leaders may want to show that they do not panic (so the public would not, either), or they want to prove they are smarter or braver than others.
Whatever the reason, the case of Trump hospitalization and his behaviors since then prove that there is no need to demonize China for intentionally spreading the virus to damage the US. Even the “lighter” charge that China intentionally lied to the world does not hold up well. Like Trump, it is simpler and fairer to just blame human nature — shared by leaders in China and US — whether you like it or not, that when facing uncertainty or when they can get away safely, humans tend not to reveal to others anything that may damage their images or interests.
It makes a big difference however whether the leaders can learn and then lead by the learning. Trump claimed to have learned a lot from the virus, but his behaviors say otherwise. Instead of staying in the hospital, he decided to show up on the streets and wave to his supporters from a motorcade. This puts the secret service men in danger. The only visible change is that he was finally wearing a mask and in his tweets and talks he stopped referring covid-19 as China virus, at least for now.
By hiding his real medical conditions, Trump does not seem to understand that his health is not affair of his own but in public interest. China on the other hand has already moved on with lessons learned from covid-19. The latest evidence that I see no western media covered: They have published the latest revision of the Law of the PRC on Treatment and Prevention of Infectious Diseases that is currently at the stage of soliciting public opinions. According to the highlight by the government officers, all medical institutions inside China must report — within 2 hours — any suspicious cases unheard of before. The law also lists reward for whistleblowers and penalty for any covering up behaviors. It further spells out that even if the case turns out to be mistaken or false alarming, there would be no penalty.
I am not biased against US and for China. I like this country more than China, where people try to rip each other off anyway possible. If there can only be one winner, I wish it would be the US, because the world is better off with the US leadership and China simply has little to offer when it comes to universal values. On the other hand, I truly believe win-win for multiple parties. Guys like Pompeo and Gordon Chang are eager to see China defeated. They should ask themselves this question: “Then what?” That is, if China collapsed, is it in the best interest of the US? The world will be much worse off than better off. Just imagine 1.4 billion people going hungry with no money to buy foods or clothes. It is much harder to build than to destroy. For that reason alone, the US should work with China to make the world a better place to live.