Chatting with Mao at Starbucks in the Forbidden City

One of those surreal moments you never forget has to be me sitting at the Starbucks on top of the Forbidden City sipping a cup of coffee while looking up at Mao’s Mausoleum. You can’t help but wonder if Moa was sitting next to you sipping on the foam of a skinny latte, where would the conversation steer?

There are so many problems facing China, some of them old, some of them new, where would your passion be today. Could it be population growth? The land ownership and growing wealth of eastern city dwellers compared to country people? Technology, Iraq, North Korea, space, trade imbalances, what would you talk about?

What would Moa see that would surprise him, surely a Starbucks on top of the Forbidden City will give him some gas, but what else? Do you think Chairman Mao would smile at all the sane people in their Western clothes walking around in a peaceful and orderly manner? What would he think of skyscrapers and western-style shopping malls, with everyone holding a cell phone to their ear? Do you think if he walked around a bit and saw the way China is working today, he would agree with some of Friedman’s theories and try to leave it alone and let the yin and yang of the free market work itself out?

If you caught him in a gloomy mood, what mistakes might haunt him the most, and what things would he change if he had a time machine. What new solutions could you try for old problems? Would you embrace or hinder technology?

How would Moa feel about pollution and global warming and now global dimming if torn between growth and protecting natural resources for future generations? Would it make room for a 5-year plan for alternative energy development as a way to curb coal use and lessen the growing need for oil from outside China?

In the end, I think Moa would like to talk about her grandchildren and how many gold medals China can win at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, after all, it’s not good to talk business at Starbucks.

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