Boys will be boys, I suppose. Diario AS captured the moment that stunned everyone. Marc Cucurella walked off in slides, hauling away the World Cup trophy his teammates had bled for, stuffed inside a see-through plastic bag. What was that about?
Rewind to the trophy ceremony itself. Trump handed the World Cup to Spain's captain Rodri, then simply refused to step aside and let the players have their moment. Online users mocked him for "clinging to the stage." FIFA President Gianni Infantino eventually had to physically steer the US president to the side of the podium. Nothing like it had happened in the World Cup's 96-year history.
Here is a theory, purely speculation. The Spanish players were furious but dared not say so out loud. So back in the locker room, they may have drawn lots to pick someone to speak for the team. Cucurella, whose curly hair sets him apart from Dutch legend Ruud Gullit in his own distinctive way, drew the short straw. He answered with a piece of postmodern performance art, mocking the graceless guest of honor.
For real, both Cucurella and Trump share a certain eccentric streak, so who else would it be when a stunt like that is to be pulled off? Before the final, Cucurella had already promised that if Spain won, he would get head coach Luis de la Fuente's face tattooed on his body.
Calling this a national embarrassment might be a stretch. But the numbers back up at least part of the charge. A survey that has drawn global attention just landed. The Pew Research Center reported last week that in 25 of the 36 countries and territories surveyed, most respondents view China more favorably than the United States, and that group includes Canada and Mexico.
Pew ran the poll between February and May, right as the United States and Israel were at war with Iran. Who tanked America's image? The answer is written on the wall.
A Pew spokesperson said this marks the first time in 20 years that global respondents rated China more favorably than the United States. Views of the two countries had crept close before. A clear tilt toward China, though, is new. The spokesperson noted the shift is unfolding as Covid-19 fades from memory and America's global image keeps sliding.
It all adds up. This has all played out during Trump's presidencies 1.0 and 2.0, a genuine wake-up call.
Listen to what the Pew spokesperson actually said. There is a link between the outbreak of war, the sense that the United States is not contributing to peace and stability, and falling confidence in Trump. On top of that, Trump's push to annex Greenland, the US military's capture of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, and Washington's handling of the Gaza war between Israel and Hamas have all dragged America's approval ratings down further.
America's approval could still fall further. Why? Voters, through an indirect one-person-one-vote system, elected a president with the mental age of a five-year-old. Things were bound to go wrong. You and I both saw this coming, so there is little left to say. For reference, the countries that still hold a favorable view of the United States include Israel in first place, followed mainly by Japan, India, South Korea, the Philippines, and Poland. Even in those countries, however, favorable views of the United States have been weakening in recent years.
One postscript. After Spain's victory, reporters asked Cucurella when he would honor his tattoo pledge. His reply: "I'll definitely get it somewhere visible!" Good, very good. The most important thing is not to embarrass yourself. Above all, do not fail on the tattoo and then serve up a TACO, "Trump Always Chickens Out," as a substitute payment.
One more thing. Within less than 24 hours, Cucurella's trophy-in-a-plastic-bag moment had already outshone Messi in online popularity.
Deep Blue
** 博客文章文責自負,不代表本公司立場 **
A superpower like the United States has resorted to playing the victim. That is almost bewildering. It remains unclear whether this reveals China's rising strength or America's weakening grip. Either way, a sobering sign of the times.
The dust has not yet settled after China's navy conducted an underwater launch of a submarine-launched ballistic missile into the Pacific on July 6. A US State Department official claimed that "China's notification to the United States came only a few hours before the launch and failed to provide sufficient detail, falling considerably short of standards adopted by all other P5 nuclear weapon states." A check of the US Department of Defense's website tells a different story. Washington is only telling half the truth, and such hypocrisy does not look good on the world stage.
The agreement actually being invoked reads as follows: "On May 31, 1988, in Moscow, U.S. Secretary of State Shultz and Soviet Foreign Minister Shevardnadze signed the Agreement on Notifications of ICBM and SLBM Launches. The Agreement provides for notification, no less than 24 hours in advance, of the planned date, launch area, and area of impact for any launch of an ICBM or SLBM. The Agreement also provides that these notifications be provided through the Nuclear Risk Reduction Centers. The Agreement entered into force on the date it was signed."
This is a bilateral pact between the United States and the Soviet Union, now 38 years old. Yet somehow, when it gets dredged up again, it "automatically" morphs into "the standard jointly observed by the UN Security Council's permanent five." How does that work? Perhaps the US and Russia believe they alone are qualified to represent the entire "P5." Perhaps the White House cannot even be bothered with proper wordplay anymore and simply decides it gets to set the rules for the whole world.
China, however, holds even more tricks up its sleeve. Following the usual rule that "one thing leads to another," a show of force from China's space program came hot on the heels of the missile launch. Global Times reported: "China's Long March 10B carrier rocket lifted off from the Hainan commercial space launch site at 12:15 pm on Friday. Approximately six minutes after the separation of the rocket’s first and second stages, the first stage made a vertical return and was successfully recovered by an offshore recovery platform.” It noted that it is the world’s first net-based recovery system.
Elon Musk's SpaceX has carried out multiple successful rocket recoveries in the past. Its mature technology has earned it the title of "the undisputed leader in global commercial spaceflight." This time, though, marks China's first successful rocket recovery using a net-capture system, and the first such feat achieved globally. It has been described as "China’s first successful implementation of controlled recovery of a launch vehicle’s first stage." In simple terms, China has developed its own recovery method, distinct from SpaceX's "vertical powered landing" approach. The advantage lies in lower fuel consumption compared to traditional vertical landings, plus lighter equipment since landing legs are not needed. This could well become a viable alternative path outside the US-dominated model.
China has already flexed its muscles in artificial intelligence. Seedance 2.0, unveiled earlier this year, showcased the dominance of homegrown Chinese technology. Then there is Huawei's "Tao chip," a disruptive force challenging Silicon Valley's grip on Moore's Law. If China now has its own model for reusable space rockets too, how many strongholds of advanced technology does the US have left to claim as its exclusive turf?
Of course, the US has its own playbook for going after China on all these fronts. It can slap China with accusations of copying or stealing technology. Just tack on the word "future" and call it "copying America's (future) technology." Suddenly Washington gains the moral high ground to demand explanations, or better yet, to slap on punitive tariffs whenever Trump feels like it.
Still, it has to be said that a submarine-launched intercontinental strategic missile, chips and AI, and space technology are not merely civilian tools. They are either purely military or dual-use instruments of national power. Together, they show that China's comprehensive national strength has pulled ahead of the US by a generational. What is truly unnerving is that China now stands to gain a real voice across technical standards, the international order, and trade rules alike.
When China rules the world, the US may one day struggle even to stage a convincing "victim" act. This matters. Ye be warned.
