Chinese rulers, to this day, have been obsessed with central control, continental unity, and social harmony – that is, a society without political conflict. The idea that people’s interests can and do naturally conflict is not readily admissible.
欧洲的统一理想并非当世无二。直到今天，中国当权者仍沉浸在中央集权、大陆一统、社会和谐（即一个没有政治冲突的社会）之梦中。民族利益可能也确实天生具有冲突性在中国是难以接受的。毛泽东的不断革命论是对传统中国政治思想的反动。