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Debbie Liu's avatar

Thank you Ruby for this careful, analytic and comprehensive article. You point out many important issues and facts that the mainstream media simply does not cover. I hadn't known that Britain, too, had slashed aid funding. Something else that didn't make the msm. the final part about recognising the importance of traditional medicine is a very important factor, considering how China has successfully integrated TCM into treatment protocol across the country.

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Ruby Wang's avatar

Thank you Debbie for such kind words, I am keen to write about TCM specifically in a future post, the intersection and paradox is fascinating

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Anna Chen's avatar

Thanks, Ruby. Bookmarked.

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Peter Singer's avatar

Excellent blog. A must read for folks interested in global health.

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Ruby Wang's avatar

Thanks so much for your support Dr Singer!

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Everyman's avatar

Excellent summary. I feel the cross-border diseases is the Achilles heel, especially given China’s reticence to investigate the origins of Covid. To me, it’s very clear there is a national and strategic interest in surveilling diseases, famines, and droughts. These western-led model acknowledges this reality in a way I do not see the Chinese leadership doing.

China of course has its own contradictions with this given the death of Li Wenliang and its scientists who published the genome of COVID within days on public sites.

Raising this to a broad view and getting a bit philosophical, the four horseman in Revelation were war, pestilence, famine, and disease. International aid and health address 3 of those. It would be foolish to underinvest in programs that monitor this.

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Ruby Wang's avatar

Thanks for your perspective!

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Anna Chen's avatar

Regurgitation of the US narrative which is never investigated by mainstream media. Over 1.5 million Americans and a quarter of a million Brits dead under questionable mishandling.

A comprehensive covid timeline you won't have seen in the MSM.

https://annachenwrites.substack.com/p/covid-timeline-vs-trump-spin-110

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Ruby Wang's avatar

Thanks for sharing your piece Anna!

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Paul Dotta's avatar

"A huge part of the problem in understanding what China wants, as my policy friend and I discussed with each other, is that most China watchers do not spend enough (or any) time in China." - fantastic statement.

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Ruby Wang's avatar

Thanks so much Paul!

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Diogo Calado's avatar

Interesting text. In my perspective, it's important to consider that Tradicional Chinese Medicine has been integrated into the higher education system since 1956 and has been modernizing since, at least, 1986. Nowadays, it uses research tools such as OMICS, systems biology, network pharmacology and nanopharmacology. In conclusion, in China, tradition is compatible with modernity and modernization is not the same as westernization. This can also serve as model for other developing countries.

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Ruby Wang's avatar

Thanks for your thoughts Diogo. I will be writing about TCM in a later post - as you say, a fundamental part of China’s health

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J M Hatch's avatar

Have read earlier today that Trump regime is now going hard after Cuba’s Medical Doctors overseas programs. I’m wondering how this is going to ripple through the whole world system along with the loss of funding, particularly in Africa and South America.

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