Did China squander its moment in the sun?

When you look at modern China, you are witnessing something stupendous – a great civilization at the peak of its relative power and effectiveness. Along a few dimensions, modern China is the most impressive civilization humanity has ever built. It has the highest total GDP of any country in history, measured at purchasing power parity.

Its manufacturing prowess is unmatched in world history, in relative terms rivaled only by US dominance after World War II. It has a high-speed rail network and an auto industry that put the entire rest of the world in the shade. By some measures, it is now the world’s leading scientific nation. The skylines of its great cities, rearing into the sky and festooned with multicolored lights, eclipse even those of New York and Dubai.

What makes China even more special is that it’s the only major world power experiencing this sort of peak in the early 21st century. The US is divided, chaotic and hobbled by excess cost; Europe, the UK, Japan and Russia are experiencing steep relative decline. The next crop of rising powers, especially India, is still far from its peak. Other than a few smaller countries like South Korea and Singapore, China really stands alone.

And yet, there is something decidedly melancholy about China’s moment in the sun. When I read about the country, or talk to the people who’ve been there recently, I find myself thinking about how much greaterof a nation it could be, if its leadership wanted.

Every year, I make sure to read Dan Wang’s letter from China, a blend of fun travel writing, subtle political and social insights, and speculation on technology and business.

Only this year’s letter was not from China; it was from Thailand, where a bunch of young Chinese expats are