Singapore is an island-city nation consisting of multi-ethnic races living in an area of 277.3 square miles, about 2/3 of New York City, half of Los Angeles and 2/3 of Hong Kong. She gained independence from Malaysia in 1965 and has grown in GDP and prosperity continuously for over three decades since independence and sustained her growth till today except a dip during world recessions in 2001 and 2009. No doubt, many of Singapore's success should be credited to her founding president, Lee Kuan Yew, who, though appeared to be a dictator to some, had set up a unique Singapore democratic governing system under one dominant party, People’s Action Party, co-founded by Lee. The ultimate success in Singapore, of course, belonged to the Singaporeans. Singapore is a strict law-abiding nation perhaps with laws more on the conservative principles, but under the Singapore laws, the citizens are given freedom and opportunities to obtain education, serve the country, and practice capitalism. The government servants are well paid to eliminate graft and corruption and the brightest are given education scholarships and encouraged to serve in the public sectors. Therefore, in general, the Singapore government has capable and efficient employees especially in the areas of setting economic and foreign policies and managing Singapore's economy.

Professor Kishore Mahbubain, currently the Dean and Professor of Practice of Public Policy at the Singapore University, is one shining example of a well educated and successful Singaporean. He was born in Singapore in 1948, a Sindhi and was awarded a scholarship and then graduated from the University of Singapore (NSU) with a degree in philosophy and later obtained a MA degree from Dalhousie University in Canada. He joined Singapore foreign services in 1971 and eventually became the permanent representative to the United Nation for Singapore. While at UN, he met and married Ann King Markey, an American lawyer, and served as the President of the UN Security Council. Professor Mahbubani has written several books, Can Asians Think?, Beyond the Age of Innocence, Rebuilding Trust between America and the World, The New Asian Hemisphere, The Great Convergence: Asia, the West and the Logic of One World and his latest book, Can Singapore Survive?. Professor Mahbubani was selected as one of the top 100 global thinkers by Foreign Policy in 2010 and 2011 and as Prospect's top 50 world thinkers.

There is a good reason that I am presenting such details about Professor Mahbubani. Mahbubani has been an observer of the changing tide in Asian and Western politics. In my opinion, he has correctly criticized the West that their practice of the value they are pressing on to the rest of the world such as democracy, the rule of law and social justice including American culture unfortunately anchored on 'money' and 'sex' is corrupted in many ways. The system of global politics and international institutions such as the United Nations and IMF are created to benefit the West not fair to the rising Asian powers. He claims that though the West may be fearful of Asia's rise, it should accept them and co-operate. Prof. Mahbubani is largely supportive of China like Lee Kuan Yew (a Chinese Singaporean) but he is a Sindhi Singaporean with a life-time diplomatic career associated with the UN. Lee and Mahbubani both understood China's method of globalization and implied that China is doing everything right to become an even more powerful nation. Prof. Mahbubani has given many lectures including a recent one, entitled, What Happens When China Becomes Number One (4-9-2015), at the Kennedy School of Government Institute of Politics, where he discussed the future US-China relation. His views inspire and resonate with mine thus I will summarize and comment on them here.

First, he points out there is a public perception gap (foreign elites versus American public including American intellect). Even though the US media is the best in the world, a traveler in the U.S. will feel being cut off from the rest of the world; self inflicted, the American public do not understand the rest of the world in contrast to elites in other countries who have far better understanding of the world. Americans are too hung up with being number one in the world. President Clinton once said in 2003 something in essence like:  if you believe in maintaining power and control and you are number one, you can act unilaterally, but if you are number two, you can't do that. Clinton never repeated this kind of speech since it was suicidal to say U.S. to be number two to the American public. Listening to Presidential candidates every four years, you would wonder why Americans felt so entitled to be number one without thinking deeper how the U.S. achieved and other great nations could achieve to be number one as well. China's economy may very well continue to rise to be number one; Goldman Sachs even predicted that India may become number two, but in reality, the three economies will be all very close in size. There is no big deal for the U.S. to accept a number two position. Japan one time was approaching the number 1 economy of the world, but never did. It is conceivable that China will not become number one either, but China has 1.3 billion people one billion more over Americans. If every Chinese performed 25% more in productivity, every American would have to double his or her productivity to keep the two countries' economy at par. 

In Prof. Mahbubani's view, the ASEAN nations and the U.S. don't have reasons to fear the rising China. Overall, China is rising peacefully. The Chinese leader Xi is fulfilling the Chinese Dream, rejuvenating progress both in material and cultural lives for the Chinese citizens. China is more focused on her internal problems than replicating the U.S. foreign actions such as interfering in the Middle East. Whether from traditional Chinese philosophy or from reality, China believes all people in the world live on the same boat. China has more respect to the United Nation than other great powers. In answering questions to his audience about the future of Hong Kong and Taiwan with the rising China, his answer was very profound that both would do well, perhaps, with short term issues in learning and developing methods for resolving disputes as exhibited by some current events. As to the reform or transforming to a more democratic society, his observation was also very prudent. The United States is very generous in offering education opportunities (such as Harvard) to all foreign students including the Chinese. This has had and will continue to have a great effect on China. The fact that there are 100 million Chinese going overseas as well as like many coming back to China provides high hope that China will evolve into a more free and open society. They have moved a society with bicycles being the principal mobility tool to a modern world their citizens can move about in their country and the world with far more freedom than many other people in the world.  
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Asia as a whole has come a long way in its economic development since WW II thanks to the generosity and the leadership of the United States in guiding the non-communist world to recover from the ruins of the war. The recovery of the Western Europe and Japan are most notable, but their stagnant economy is also obvious and understandable. The future of Asia will be bright because the changes the Asians have made. The world will be a better place for mankind if the West and the East will gain better understanding of each other rather than living in fear of each other or worse by scheming to destroy one another.
 
Ifay Chang. Ph.D. Producer/Host, Community Education - Scrammble Game Show, Weekly TV Columnist, www.us-chinaforum.org . Trustee, Somers Central School District
 

​Dreams are made by stimulated brain waves, more people thinking alike, more intense the brain waves are generated. Yesterday (Editor's Note: This article was written on 11/3/15) a breaking international news reported that the leaders of Mainland China, Xi Jinping, and Taiwan, Ma Ying-Jeou are going to meet on November 7, 2015 in Singapore. This will be the first time since 1949 that the leaders of the two sides of the Taiwan Strait will meet. This news not only was reported in all Chinese news media but also in world news media in the United States, United Kingdom and other EU nations, Russia and Asian countries. One could imagine the amount of brain waves generated had to be tremendous. Indeed, it was and it affected me last night. I had a dream. While it was still fresh in my mind in the morning, I am jotting down the bits and pieces of my dream in this column. The bits and pieces were images and sceneries but they did suggest some concrete notions. By publishing in this column, I hope to get other people to respond, particularly if they were stimulated by the same brain waves created by this significant news - potentially one of the three most important news fro, China since 1900, first, the news of the toppling of Qing Dynasty by the Chinese people's revolution in 1911 and second, the news of the surrender of the Imperial Japan in 1945, ending the WW II.

In my dream, the first image was a flag, a flag with red, green, blue, yellow and white color. It was a national flag waved by crowds of Chinese people. The scene was exciting, but it was not clear whether it was a celebration or a demonstration. The chanting were not clear until later many other images appeared in my dream. This first image seemed to bring my brain gradually to live and I could begin to see signs and writings, eventually with such clarity that I could recall them.

The next image appeared in my dream was a line of writing in Chinese but my brain seemed to try to make a translation of it to English. The image was not steady but I could definitely make out the phrases as they flicker in and out of focus. The line appeared to be: （中華） (愛國)（親民）（民主）(聯合)（共和）國, with some of the words coming into and out of focus, but the last word 國 was clear all the time. My brain seems to tell me this line of words represents a nation's name and I was busy trying to translate it into English in words such as: Chinese, China, Patriotic, Nationalistic, United, Democratic, and Republic. Piecing them together seemed to show: 
(1) Patriotic and Democratic People's Republic of China or
(2) People's Democratic Republic of China or
(3) Chinese United Democratic Republic or
(4) United Democratic People's Republic of China

My dream seemed to change from Chinese words to people image. The first figure appeared was not a Chinese but American, Dr. Henry Alfred Kissinger, sitting in a traditional Chinese chair with body leaning towards left and face smiling in a conversational mood with someone sitting at his left with a tea table in between. Then many Chinese figures seemed to rush in my head, Xi Jinping, Li Keqiang, Ma Ying Jeou, James Soong, Shi Ming-teh, Lien Chan, Wang Jin-Pyng, Yok Mu-ming, ...; there were no speeches nor conversations until the image of Lee Kuan Yew appeared, accompanied by Lee Hsien Loong. Senior Lee seemed to be making a speech and others engaged in but trying as hard as I did, I could not recall their conversations. However, the facial expressions were clear, mostly in a serious mood.

With difficulty of following the conversations among the vivid images, my brain seemed to be tired. People's images seemed to fade and audio sounds became quiet. Then appeared in my head was documents, pages flipping all in Chinese. I was struggling to decipher the writings on the documents and all of a sudden, a clear page emerged. I was excited to capture this page and store it in my memory. This page was the last I could recall before I was awakened not by any alarm clock but naturally as if I was given the chance to record my dream, particularly the last documental page. The following is my recollection of the page with English translation added later.

The Chinese page was written in vertical lines, I captured the main lines and transposed them to horizontal lines to facilitate comparison with the English translation to follow:
中國國民親民民主均富共產黨 黨章
目的 - 統一中國，維護自立自強， 民主均富的自由中國
目標 - 聯合全國各黨各派，推行改革，建立民主法治制度，為全民謀福
以下共有九章 未能記住。
署名的為一個團體， 有數十人之多， 團體名稱是
中國國民親民民主均富共產黨
義務黨章起草榮譽主席團 （簽名者包括許多上述進入我腦海的政治人物）
Translation:
Principal By-Laws of Chinese United People's Democratic Communist Party
Goals: Unite China, Maintain Her Sovereignty and Independence and Provide All Chinese People with Opportunities and Freedom to Pursue Good Lives
Objectives: Work with All Parties and Groups to Make Progressive Reform to Establish Democratic and Proper Legal System to Enrich the Welfare of the Chinese People
Detailed nine Chapters not captured.
There are as many as several dozens of signees who contributed to this document under a group title, Honorable Presiding Leaders of the Voluntary By-Law Committee.

If a dream can be stimulated by brain waves received, then there are perhaps many people who are thinking about this Ma-Xi meeting. Although, neither side is making any comment leading to any expectation, but I must say, the Chinese people all over the world are probably thinking otherwise. Therefore, I am documenting the above dream as the result of one school of brain waves generated by the news of the upcoming Ma-Xi meet. 

The title of this column is a bold prediction, but I have some good reasons to stand behind it. World affairs are not easily predictable, however, matters can only get better or get worse, a fifty to fifty probability with no data analysis. When I was considering writing a column to kick off the 2016 New Year, I began to review the major news about international affairs in 2015, especially news about the world leaders. I came away with some statistics about the world leaders’ travelling record in 2015 that stroke a chord in my mind which tilted the 50:50 probability of future outlook of the world to a more positive picture as we entering into the New Year. Before I tell you in the following why I stick my neck out to say The World Will Be Better Off in 2016 And Possibly Beyond, let me first wish you, my readers, with a bit of confidence, A Happy New Year!

No doubt peace is not on the entire Earth. The turmoil in 2015 was ominous enough to spell continued trouble in 2016. Will the world get worse than 2015? Let’s do a brief review and a guarded assessment on each troubled area or issue then cast my optimistic view based on a simple reason I will reveal at the end of this article.

The annexation of Crimea by Russia is certainly troublesome to the U.S. and NATO. The doubling down of Russian involvement in Syria of course does not simplify the Middle East situation. The ISIS’s stay and expansion strategy and the increased terrorists-activities highlighted by the Paris bombing and San Bernardino killing heightens the tension in the Middle East and worldwide. But these developments also have created complex dynamics that offer opportunities for the stakeholders to ponder. The refugees forced out of the Middle East and potential more terrorists attacks have induced a hidden desire for the power players to collaborate in containing the ME crisis, to tame the terrorists and to avoid Islamic social unrest spreading elsewhere in the world. A new sanction against Russia executed differently may just get Russia to temper her behavior for the better in 2016. The Iraq and Afghanistan may also move to more stability as an Afghanistan-Pakistan-US-China conference is brewing to take place in 2016.

On the nuclear threat, Iran may meet the terms with a roll-back of sanctions. North Korea may be still unpredictable but most likely no one will pay more attention to her. South Korea has improved her relation with China bonded by their trade and shared perspective on history as the two presidents reviewed the 70th WW II Anniversary military parade together on Tian-An-Men. The recent admission of the ‘comfort women’ issue by the Japanese Prime Minister Abe Shinzo is a good sign of Japan to tone down her militaristic foreign policy. Abe formally and officially apologized to the South Koreans and promised to set up a fund for compensating the ‘comfort women’ victimized by the Imperial Japanese Army. The international efforts condemning the Japanese Imperial Army on the ‘comfort women’ issue finally began to pay off.

South China Sea has become a new hot spot in 2015. China has persisted in her claims regarding the disputed islands in the South China Sea and also increased effort in infrastructure construction on her islands with the same goal of maintaining freedom of navigation in the South China Sea so declared by the U.S. There was never any trouble in maritime traffic in the South China Sea region, thus any presence of external naval powers cannot be justified based on maritime security concern. China will continue her island construction unless stopped by force. However, no one would want to use force for lack of justification, hence, ASEAN and China will, most likely, develop a code of conduct for the South China Sea to dose out any flare there.

From the Greece debt crisis to China stock market plunge, it does spell uncertainty for the global economy. However, the U.S. economy is gaining stability and strength with a reasonable good outlook for 2016. Although there is competition and maneuver in the international currency war, there is no advantage to anyone to see China collapsing in her economy. The efforts China is pushing on the “One Belt and One Road” are principally accepted by the Eurasian world anticipating a positive impact on the world economy. Accepting the Chinese RMB as the fifth currency into the special drawing rights (SDR) in the IMF currency reserve basket has more positive effects for the economic growth of the world as recognized by UK and Germany. The U.S. and Japan probably will make appropriate adjustment in policies to participate in the Eurasian investment arena for their own benefits. The competition in infrastructure development, for example, in the rival of building high speed rails between China and Japan, is a healthy situation for Asia and beyond.

Cyber crisis and Internet management have evolved into an international concern after Snowden’s disclosure on snooping in the name of national security. However, the movement of prevention of cyber surveillance initiated post Snowden may get rolled back and reassessed since the terrorists’ activities intensified in 2015. Evidence shows that the terrorist plots are festered in and facilitated by the Internet; this raises the need for nations to examine the national boundary issue with Internet and its management. Facing common threat from terrorists, perhaps, there would be incentive for countries to cooperate in reducing cyber hacking and attack in 2016 and beyond.

The above review of the past and assessment for the future are definitely carrying an optimistic tone. As promised, I will now reveal my reason for being somewhat optimistic towards the future. The basic reason is surprisingly simple; it is based on the world leaders’ work agenda, noticeable through the travels and visits they made to foreign countries. The head of states do not make a foreign trip lightly. They do so for the following purposes: 1. Policy Announcements (such as China’s One Belt and One Road Blue Print); 2. Business Deals and Commerce (such as bilateral and multilateral investment and trade); 3. Joint Statements (such as to clarify policy); 4. Alliances or Agreements (such as military or maritime); and 5. Seeking Support and Understanding (such as cultural exchange and improving friendship). These objectives tend to produce positive impact to international relations. The more diligently the world leaders are pursuing the above agenda through foreign visits the better will be the outlook of the world.

In 2015, most of the important world leaders made diligent and frequent effort in travelling and visiting foreign countries. The U.S. President Obama made 11 trips in 2015 (he had made 49 trips visited 52 countries during his two-term tenure to-date). China’s President, Xi JinPing, visited 14 countries in 2015 making him the most travelled Chinese leader since 1949. (In contrast, his predecessor, Hu jintao, only made seven trips in his ten-year tenure as the head of the State.) Vladmir Putin, the Russian President, also made 14 trips to foreign countries. The UK Prime Minister David Cameron made 47 trips as of 3/2014 and the French President, Francois Hollande, made 50 trips in 2015. Narendra Modi, Prime Minister of India, as of December 2015, has made thirty-seven foreign trips on five continents (9 in 2014). Even Abe with low rating at home with his Abenomics had made 49 trips in 20 months, making business deals, seeking support for Japan and following China’s footsteps to central Asia countries.    
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These world leaders’ trips and mutual interaction will generally produce positive effects barring secret negotiations leading to war plots. Obama missing at the 2013 APEC realized how important it is to attend the 2014 APEC; he then reached agreement with Xi on weather exchange and protocol on air encounter; later Xi’s state visit to the U.S. produced an order of 300 Boeing planes are clear example of the positive effects of these foreign visits. Based on the world leaders’ busy travel agenda, I dare say that the World Will Be Better Off in 2016 And Possibly Beyond. Happy New Year to You!