I Suggest We Trade 10 for Thomas Friedman and a Hollywood Celeb to be Named Later

The 'Chinese Dream' is the U.S., Survey Reveals

The Chinese may have a nationalistic reputation, but when asked to pick their ideal country, more than a third are looking to the U.S., according to a survey by advertising group WPP.

Around 35 percent of Chinese picked the U.S. as their ideal country today, more than any other country. However, 42 percent expected their own country will have taken the title in just 10 years, the survey found. It's a stark contrast to the results in the U.S. and Britain, where respondents mostly chose their own country as ideal, both now and a decade from now.

Chinese also view the U.S. as the world's most powerful nation, more so than most Americans, the survey found, with 80 percent of Chinese selecting it, compared with only 66 percent of Americans.

Some of them are starting to see the hanzi (漢字) on the wall, though.

Only 12 percent of Chinese see their own country as the most powerful nation today, less than the 18 percent of Americans who view China that way, the survey said.

But Chinese are also expecting this power differential to change, with 44 percent expecting their own country will become the most powerful within a decade, in line with the 45 percent of Chinese who expect the U.S. will remain the most powerful, the survey found.

Friedman of course, is the New York Times columnist who pines for the dictatorial powers of the Chinese government to direct social, political and economic policies to his liking:

If we know anything about America's worst successful columnist, it's that he won't rest until he's flogged a terrible idea again and again and again. The latest, care of Jonah Goldberg, was Friedman's authoritarian envy on Meet the Press over the weekend:

Well, David, it's been decimated. It's been decimated by everything from the gerrymandering of political districts to cable television to an Internet where I can create a digital lynch mob against you from the left or right if I don't like where you're going, to the fact that money and politics is so out of control—really our Congress is a forum for legalized bribery. You know, that's really what, what it's come down to. So I don't—I, I—I'm worried about this, it's why I have fantasized—don't get me wrong—but that what if we could just be China for a day? I mean, just, just, just one day. You know, I mean, where we could actually, you know, authorize the right solutions, and I do think there is a sense of that, on, on everything from the economy to environment. I don't want to be China for a second, OK, I want my democracy to work with the same authority, focus and stick-to-itiveness. But right now we have a system that can only produce suboptimal solutions.

And the Hollywood celebrity to exchange? There are so many too choose from. I'm open to suggestions. Sean Penn seems like an obvious choice, but perhaps a better deal can be struck with Venezuela. Alex Baldwin? Matt Damon? Barbara Streisand?  All three Dixie Chicks?  That sounds like a good deal.