‘Garbage Time’ Buzzword Gains Traction as Third Plenum Ends With No Solution to China’s Crisis

A man reads a newspaper near a front page photo of Chinese leader Xi Jinping on a story about the conclusion of the third plenum, a key economic meeting, at a display board on a sidewalk in Beijing on July 19, 2024. (Greg Baker/AFP via Getty Images)

Commentary

China’s struggling economy has spurred the buzzword “garbage time in history” among Chinese people. The term originates from basketball and refers to the final moments of a game when the losing team has no chance of a comeback. The term continued to gain traction after the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP’s) third plenary session ended with no new ideas to resolve the current crisis.

So when will the Chinese people see a turnaround and a new era?

Guo Jun, president of the Hong Kong edition of The Epoch Times, said the popularity of the term “garbage time in history” means that people believe that any action the CCP takes will be ineffective in changing the current situation.

“Whether actions are proactive or reactive, they are seen as useless,“ Ms. Guo said. ”Like a carriage falling off a cliff, it doesn’t matter what the coachman does. For a political system, once a critical point is crossed, nothing, not even the actions of so-called great leaders, can reverse the course—just as the coachman is powerless. The CCP officials, however, would certainly not acknowledge this catchphrase. They believe that despite significant problems and an accelerating political, economic, and social downturn, everything is under their control because they are the ones holding the steering wheel. But in reality, this opportunity has already been missed.”

CCP’s 2 Biggest Fears

Chinese Dissident Du Wen said that the CCP is driven solely by profit, with no regard for ethics. It is thick-skinned, faithless, not afraid of being scolded or criticized, and devoid of conscience or any sense of moral guilt, he said. However, there are still some fears over certain international and domestic matters, said Mr. Du, who currently resides in Belgium and is the former executive director of the Inner Mongolia Government’s legal advisory office.

“Let’s talk about the domestic issues first,” Mr. Du said. “It is an open secret that the CCP’s greatest fear is social unrest and instability, especially large-scale protests, collective incidents, and regional turmoil. It has become increasingly important for the authorities to manage and control these issues to prevent mass protests, such as the Hong Kong anti-government movement in 2019 and the White Paper Campaign incident at the end of 2022. This is one of the reasons why the CCP’s spending on social stability has always exceeded its spending on national defense.”

Traditionally, the most likely protesters have been retired elderly people, rural migrant workers, and peasants. But, Mr. Du said, “the CCP’s current priority is to protect itself from the highly educated young people, who are the most dissatisfied in today’s China.”

“In the CCP’s view, this group is more dangerous than the retired elderly, rural workers, and peasants,” he said.

“Meanwhile, the CCP is also very worried about the economic crisis. The economy is the foundation of the CCP’s legitimacy. Back in the Mao era, the CCP compromised with the United States because the economy was in such a terrible crisis that the CCP’s rule could end at any time.”

He said that the CCP is also deeply concerned about international isolation, particularly under the dominance of the United States and Western countries, as sanctions could affect China’s economic, technological, and military sectors and thus its development and global status.

“Tensions with the United States, criticism of China’s human rights issues, and legislative actions such as the U.S. House’s Falun Gong Protection Act increase this pressure,” Mr. Du said.

“The CCP is also wary of global supply chain disruptions and technological blockades in high-tech sectors like semiconductors and AI, challenging China’s economic and technological progress. Geopolitical tensions, including those in the South China Sea, the China–India border, and the Taiwan Strait, further exacerbate these concerns. The CCP’s primary fears revolve around maintaining domestic stability, economic growth, and avoiding international isolation and sanctions.”

Ms. Guo said the CCP’s greatest fear is simply the loss of political power and control, and it will respond to various crises by tightening its control.

“The CCP over the past 100 years has always used force and the strengthening of control,“ she said. ”This was the case when the CCP took power, and it is still the case after they took power, so their experience is that they have to strengthen their control over society even more during a crisis. But sometimes, the successes of the past become the cause of the failures of the future. At the third plenum, Beijing did not decentralize but rather tightened its grip on power.”

Shi Shan, an expert on China issues and a senior editor at The Epoch Times, said that outsiders should not be fooled by the CCP’s propaganda of “comprehensive deepening of reform” at the third plenum.

“Before the end of the third plenum, the international community, especially the investment community and think tanks, [were] saying that China may have to introduce new reform measures,“ he said. ”The CCP also called it a program of comprehensive deepening of reforms. But looking at the communiqué of the meeting, all the comprehensive reform programs are about strengthening the leadership of the party, strengthening the leadership of the central authority, and so on, and that’s the direction of their so-called reforms.”

As for how long China’s “garbage time” will last, Ms. Guo said, “It’s in the hands of heaven’s will.”

Views expressed in this article are opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.