China

Heaven Is High

In the mouth of an old man fishing on the Oujiang River, it carries the authority of ancient wisdom: “Heaven is high; the Emperor is far away.” This Chinese aphorism, used since time immemorial to emphasize the distance between China’s government and the local, quotidian life of its people, encapsulates the challenges facing any attempt to understand the country’s future.

The world’s most populous state and the World Trade Organization’s... (More)