Who is Robert Wu?
1-year birthday Q&A
Hi folks, in 2 weeks, this personal newsletter will be 1 year old. Because of your strong support, by the end of this first year, it will be all but certain to have over 2500 subscribers with more than 100 paying subscribers (including comp access I gave to Baiguan’s paying subs).
For me, it has been an incredible journey. I got to express ideas long simmering in my mind but which have not found the right medium only until now. It’s also my delight to have chatted and debated with many of you, which is always an inspiration for further thoughts.
I have 2 plans to celebrate this anniversary.
Although the main format of this newsletter is a “weekly review”, I actually have an agenda in mind. So far, I have probably filled in ~20% of that agenda. So I think it will be helpful for you to have a place where you can locate key contents of the past as well as to have a taste of what the remaining 80% would look like. This is why I will publish a “Master Plan and Table of Core Contents” about this newsletter and pin it on my homepage.
My second plan will need your participation. As my subscribers (as well as Baiguan’s) grow, it’s inevitable that some people will get confused about who I am, what interests I represent, and what axe I have to grind. Naturally, I have got haters too.
But fulfilling my stated mission of this newsletter, which is to translate for China for the sake of peace and understanding between China and the outside world, requires me not to turn a blind eye to misunderstanding, criticism, suspicion, and even hate of me. I almost never block or cancel views that are diametrically opposed to mine, a practice I found common in many accounts that I have tried to follow. I will lose all my credibility if I can’t face up to your questions and challenges.
So, in the spirit of full transparency, I will answer all your questions about me in an upcoming post.
Some of the questions that I have already got and will try to answer in that post include:
Can you criticize Xi Jinping? Do you self-censor? Can I trust you if there are things you can’t say?
Do you get paid by the Chinese state? What are your commercial interests in doing this?
Why do you pick fights with Noah Smith?
You are a China shill. Prove to me you are not.
Why do you hate Wei Lingling so much?
What else do you want to ask me about? Write to me, DM me, or simply comment down below to let me know. My promise is to answer all of your questions with full transparency. (The only condition is that it’s asked in a civil, non-vulgar way.)
Rest assured, these two terrifying enforcers from the state security service will stare at me until I finish this job in time.
Stay tuned!
Some ideas:
1. As China continues its rise as a world power and global influencer, (1) what are your greatest hopes for how China can be a positive influence (culturally, materially, ethically, spiritually, scientifically, etc.? and (2) what are your greatest fears or concerns for how China’s influence in the same respects could be negative or detrimental?
2. How can America (both parties) get past their demonization of China, and view it more as a partner and friendly rival, rather than as a challenger and enemy?
3. Spiritually, how do you see China developing over time: will traditional Confucian (and other indigenous) thought exert a stronger influence? Materialistic philosophies such as socialism, communism and capitalism? How about the role of Christianity in China in the future?
1. Have you ever written a blog or similar publication in Chinese? How did you come to see your primary interest as being writing in English rather than in Chinese?
2. A bit of a devil’s advocate question: Why when I read Chinese talking about “westernisation” or “western incidences” do they focus on issues such as democracy, human rights and the spread of Christianity but I rarely if ever see them consider Marxist Leninism as a Western influence?