 talk about China. A dramatic video yesterday from China that was kind of interesting and a little bit fun and spooky and everything. So I mean, the news of China is what we expected and that is that Xi was appointed for a third term. Basically, Xi has basically made himself ruler for life. He is the first ruler to have this kind of power and this kind of control over the Politburo, over the Chinese governing authorities, governing body, over the Chinese state since Mao Zedong. He is almost if not as powerful as Mao was in his heyday. And there was this event yesterday that people showed on live television because it was being broadcast in China. That's what's surprising about it. They're all seated like the front row is all the top people in the Chinese Communist Party. And right next to Xi is sitting the former head of the Communist Party, the one who ruled there until 2013. He was there from 2003 and 2013 and indeed, while he was still an authoritarian thug, he was definitely better than Xi. And it's certainly 2003 to 2013 is a period known as a period of opening up, opening up internationally, opening up of domestic markets, more free markets, if you will. It's a period in which there was a lot more free speech. It's a period in which some of the free market think tanks, some of the people, it's a period in which I and Rand's books were all published, it's a period with the free market think tanks were allowed to thrive and allowed to get instituted with freedom seeking professors for the most part, not completely left alone and allowed to allow to write and publish and speak and teach in China. So the previous leader whose name now escapes me and I was looking for the article with his name, the video of him being escorted out is old news, I guess. So I can't find it, but anyway, so basically, so you have Xi sitting there and Hojintao. Thank you, Brownie. Hojintao is sitting next to him. Hojintao is 79 years old. So he's clearly is clearly weak and he's sitting next to him. And Hojintao obviously represents a completely different perspective on ruling China than Xi. Xi is much more authoritarian, anti markets, anti giving any kind of economic freedom and definitely anti any form of free speech and any form of opposition. And so Ho is sitting next to Xi and then suddenly these guys show up and they kind of the guy whispers in Ho's ear and puts a hand under his armpit and kind of helps him stand up and there's some discussion and deliberation and Ho is going for papers and but he's being escorted out. And this is the final closing meeting of the 20th Chinese Communist Party thing and it's it's a big deal. This is the event and they're going to vote for Xi to be ruler for another five years. And the guy sitting next to Hojintao again, name I can't remember, but I think the current premier of China starts standing up to kind of help Ho to try to figure out what's going on. And the guy next to him, who's one of the cheap propagandists of the party basically pulls at his coat jacket and seats him back down. Don't do it. Don't stand up. You don't want to be seen with Ho. So in public, in this major event on television, broadcast of the world and broadcast within China, Hojintao is basically humiliated, walked out of this grand meeting. No explanation is given by any of the Chinese authorities. Nothing. And you know, that's it. Now that's a big deal. That's again, I think Xi doing a Mao Zedong, a embarrassing another leader with might have a power center within the Communist Party. And you know, it's a Stalin Mao move to kind of humiliate him in public show who is the boss now show that that era is gone. It was dramatic. It was dramatic. See all these people sitting around and they all just accept it. They all just roll with it. And it was brutal. It was brutal to watch. It was brutal to see Xi is a true little monster, real monster and a monster who will destroy China. I mean, you have to say that under Hojintao, Chinese growth was like four times higher, five times higher than it is under Xi. Xi is pushing China towards negative economic growth. And in terms of losing whatever momentum economic and I'd even say military momentum that China had, it is going to start losing it significantly as a consequence. Just some other notes that they announced the new Politburo, the new governing body in China. It doesn't have many of the people who were there are gone. Many of the supporters of greater liberalization, both economically and politically are gone. There are no women, not a single woman for the first time in a long time on the Chinese Politburo. All men, all men loyal, sworn loyalty to Xi. This is Xi's complete and out of consolidation of his power, complete and out of consolidation of his power base. This is him cleaning house, getting rid of all opponents. This is the beginning of the end of beginning of the slow decline. Well, it's already declining, but the continuation of the slow decline of China as a significant, I think, military and economic force in the world. And I feel sorry for the Chinese because as you know from previous episodes that I've talked about, I'm a huge fan of China, of the Chinese people, Chinese entrepreneurs, Chinese innovation. I'm a huge fan of their ability, their ability to be so productive and creative and to create so much at such a short period of time. Huge fan of what China did up until about five, six, seven years ago. Somebody's arguing in the room next to me. Sounds like they're talking Chinese. So maybe it's a Chinese Secret Service listening in on me. But yeah, I think it's sad. I think it's sad and something to watch, but Xi is consolidated his power. Consolidated his power. Show your appreciation. You can do that by going to youronbookshow.com slash support by going to Patreon, subscribe star locals and just making a appropriate contribution on any one of those, any one of those channels. Also, if you'd like to see the Iran book show grow, please consider sharing our content and of course, subscribe, press that little bell button right down there on YouTube so that you get an announcement when we go live. And for you, those of you who already subscribers and those of you who already supporters of the show, thank you. I very much appreciate it.