Author & Professor Dr. Jack C. Westman Talks About World Peace Through the Alliance of China & America

By Timothy Yap Jul 19, 2017 01:59 AM EDT

Dr. Jack C. Westman's groundbreaking book, The China-America Alliance, lays out a framework for worldwide collaboration through the alliance of America and China, potentially paving the way for a form of world peace. Collaboration is the key, he explains in the book. As two powerful countries allied in marketplace trading, with co-existing concerns to strengthen the family unit, there is enough power and sway that the world will listen.

Dr. Westman is a Professor Emeritus of Psychiatry at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health. He has published extensively on individual differences in children, learning disabilities, child abuse and neglect, child advocacy, family therapy, children and parents' rights, and public policy. He has been editor of Child Psychiatry and Human Development, President of the American Association of Psychiatric Services, and President of the Multidisciplinary Academy of Clinical Education. He is currently President of Wisconsin Cares, and volunteers with Canyon Scholars, both organizations intent on building better families and strengthening children's options in life. Westman holds an M.D. and an M.S. from the University of Michigan. He lives in Wisconsin.

The China-America Alliance: East Asian and American Cultural Values Promote Global Harmony, (ISBN 3330650885, 2017, paperback, $40.00, 476 pages, available on Amazon.

Q: Thanks Dr. Westman for doing this interview with us. Tell us briefly about yourself.

I am Professor Emeritus of Psychiatry at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health. I am president of Wisconsin Cares, Inc., an organization devoted to public policy formation and have been president of three professional organizations. I have written over 150 professional publications and thirteen books.

Q: I have read that you were involved in the tearing of the Iron Curtain and the Berlin Wall, what were your roles in these historic events?

During the Cold War, I was active with International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War and met with Soviet physicians and Mikhail Gorbachev in Moscow. This experience impressed me with how behind the scenes activities can influence international affairs.

Q: Your book speaks about the alliance between America and China. Why China and not another country? What's the importance of China?

American and China are the two most important global powers. There is a compelling need for their collaborative international leadership. We have seen where this has yielded success; for example, the U.S.-China climate accord paved the way for the worldwide 2015 Paris Agreement. We also have seen where its absence has been missed, for example, North Korea's nuclear weapons development and the recent withdrawal of America from the Paris Accord.

Q: What are the benefits of having an alliance between the two nations? Why must these two countries work together?

The common interests and economic interdependence of America and China far outweigh their differences. Both benefit from collaboration and mutual support.

Q: You did mention that the similarities between the two countries are more than we realized. What are some of these similar points?

Both nations are capitalistic; in fact, China has more billionaires than America. Both nations are strongly influenced by the wealthy. Both largely are governed by a single political party.

Q: Your goal is for these two countries to achieve world peace. How do you define world peace? What is world peace?

The simplest answer is an era in which there are no wars.

Q: How is this world peace achieved?

World peace can be achieved if the dominant global powers adhere to cultural values devoted to the common good, such as the Judeo-Christian cultural values of America and the Taoist and Confucian values of China.