America v. China - The Contest of Size and Speed and Soul

Up early this morning, I watched the first two-thirds of John Pilger's 2016 documentary, 'The Coming War on China.' As if written and directed by Howard Zinn, the film so far is heavy on familiar themes.  America is a corrupt, hypocritical, and arbitrary imperialist Western power. China for its part has been the victim of predation for centuries, and communism is not so bad after all.  According to Pilger, the present course of conflict between the US and the CCP is actually about America being beaten at our own game. We are the tyrannical aggressor, and China is really for free market prosperity - albeit a "free market" managed and controlled by the communist party. As was the case with Zinn's history, the truth is abused by which facts are emphasized or downplayed by turn to support the underlying premise which is taken for granted. Once again, we must return again to the decision of which is preferred. Should America at home and abroad operate according to a fixed, transcendent standard of right and wrong?  If the answer is in the affirmative, then it is a wonder that American Christians are so often derided in our day for insisting on accountability at home and abroad based on firm, set convictions, as if such is the biggest impediment to progress. If the answer is in the negative, however, there is no basis for complaining about American conduct as somehow untoward or contemptible. This is a hard, unpleasant challenge for critics of the United States the world over to answer. Yet it must be answered.