Jack Ma made his fortune in online retail, while Wang Jianlin got rich in real estate. Now, both turn their gaze to Hollywood. Their battle for influence is one of those larger-than-life sized conflicts, perfect for reality TV, if not the silver screen.

In many Western democracies, this is a year of revolt against elites. The success of the Brexit campaign in Britain, Donald Trump’s unexpected capture of the Republican Party in the United States, and populist parties’ success in Germany and elsewhere strike many as heralding the end of an era.

A maturing political process has helped the party develop quasi-government capacities for governing, organizing, integrating Chinese society. However, the challenges facing society and institutions today make the upcoming session worthy of special attention.

Language is more than just a tool: it is a framework through which we assess and engage with the world. As the Chinese language skills of Americans atrophy, so too does the ability of these Americans to effectively understand developments, motivations, and situations in China.

“Democracy” hasn’t always meant free elections, and it’s never meant nivana. China must cherish its traditional political wisdom and governance framework, and gradually improve its political institutions, in order to render them more appropriate to China's modernization. History tells us that blindly copying Western democracies is a path to disaster.

Whether Trump wins the election or not, we are seeing the failure of the U.S. democracy. Even if Meanwhile, Trump forced the Americans to face the inconvenient truth of their democracy and the dark side of the American society. The discrimination against the minority groups, the disparity between the rich and the poor and the money politics will not disappear just because the mainstream chooses to ignore them.

The People’s growing financial and political impact around the globe means that what happens in China matters everywhere. Thus, stability and predictability are important virtues. Yes, as Doug Bandow argues, political opacity is necessary as the interests of the Chinese coincide with those of outsiders.

China and the US should seize the development opportunity in the coming 25 years to expand and strengthen young people’s friendship circles in the Asia Pacific, thus enhancing mutual understanding among countries through exchanges in a multilateral framework.

Rule of law, human and social rights, and non-profit organizations (NPOs) have all been considered untouchable in foreign discourse on China, yet play a particularly important role in China-U.S. relations. Along with the growing engagement of China in the international arena, the future internationalization of Chinese NPOs is an inevitable process. This short reflection brings the experience of a pro-bono legal aid NPO into the discussion, suggesting the positive traits of the future internationalization of Chinese NPOs.

In 15 years China will have the world’s largest elderly population. By 2050, its working-age population will have declined by 200+ million people. China’s rapidly aging population will have a significant impact on all aspects of China, and constructing a social safety net to meet its needs will be both expensive and complicated.