This is the Friends and Mystery Debating Society.

I'm John Batswab, Professor H. J. McIner, six capital, six points of view.

Beijing, deeply, deeply damaged the economy, the pandemic, the confidence in the leadership.

All of that, plus it is said to be at the eve of reopening the factories and the manufacturing

and the shipments and the trade, or not, depending upon how the virus has damaged the workforce.

Professor, I can't answer the reopen question, nor whether it will bring us again a supply

chain mystery that will create inflation.

But right now, there is the general observation that China is finding a way to avoid secondary

sanctions while seeking profit with dealing with Russia, energy for tools, energy for technology.

There's also talk at the Treasury Department about closing down or punishing those in

China who are trading with Russia through Kazakhstan, through Turkey.

There are many ways around this so that it doesn't look like direct trade.

However, what is your measure of Beijing now, 11 months into the war?

My reading of China right now is they are in the worst crisis that they have encountered

since the death of Chairman Mao.

China was in disaster shape when Mao died in 1976.

Interestingly enough, it was thought in the West that the country would continue to follow

Mao's policies, but the military struck.

It would have been a month, all of Mao's administration had been detained and put in jail.

And then there was a remarkable change and we had more than 30 years of economic growth.

Well, when she first came to power 10 years ago or 12 years ago, whatever it was, he began

dismantling that.

...