A screenshot of Johns Hopkins University's COVID-19 map on Tuesday

When China reported zero locally transmitted symptomatic COVID-19 infections on Monday, CNN reported the same day that "China could become the world's first country to control a major Delta outbreak." CNN also said that "fresh outbreaks driven by the Delta variant are prompting some countries to rethink their approach" while China is "resolutely sticking to its zero-COVID approach."

This somehow reminds people that on August 3, Gordon Chang, a so-called China hand who is infamous for his "coming collapse of China" predictions, published an article in a Washington-based media outlet 19FortyFive, claiming that the Delta variant could "end" the Communist Party of China (CPC). He declared that "totalitarian-style tactics, unfortunately for China's rulers, have not worked with the hardy Delta variant" and Delta is now "killing off the triumphalism" of the CPC. China's current epidemic situation and CNN's report are undoubtedly another huge slap in the face to Chang.

In the US, however, the Delta variant is raging out of control. The number of confirmed cases in the US has seen a sharp rebound in August. Currently, hospitals across the US are overwhelmed by COVID-19 patients, and the number of children and adolescents hospitalized due to COVID-19 has risen astonishingly.

"Since both the Trump administration and the Biden administration have failed to control the COVID-19 epidemic, CNN's report can be seen as a painful recognition of China's outstanding achievements in its COVID-19 fight. Besides, CNN may hope to use China's achievements to spur the US decision-making political elite," Li Haidong, a professor at the Institute of International Relations at China Foreign Affairs University, told the Global Times on Tuesday.

In the US, many people view China's development and achievements in the COVID-19 fight with an ill mentality. Chang is such a typical poor figure. Many things that he predicted about China have been proven entirely wrong. Since publishing his book The Coming Collapse of China in 2001, he has repeatedly predicted the CPC's "collapse." In 2011, he claimed in an article on Foreign Policy: "I admit it: My prediction that the Communist Party would fall by 2011 was wrong. Still, I'm only off by a year." But nine years has passed, China is now the second largest economy worldwide, turning Chang - who has failed to sell his "China collapse" theory - into a mere joke.

"However, US society still provides people like Chang with a public opinion market and a political arena, which is a very important reason why the US' China policy has been led to an extreme. This shows how sick some aspects of American society are, especially those regarding China-related issues," Li said.

In this context, opposing China has become the business for those people like Chang. They worry that if they no longer oppose China, they may lose their job, discourse power and even opportunities to be funded by certain forces. This has formed the "spiral of silence" on China-related issues in US society.

This is true even in the above-mentioned CNN report which recognized China's success. The report read, "local authorities responded by placing tens of millions of residents under strict lockdown," obviously trying to hint something as it always does. As for recognizing the Chinese government's COVID-19 fight, CNN is also trying to reach a so-called balance in this way to fit in the general anti-China atmosphere in the US.

As the epidemic situation is worsening in the US, Washington will definitely continue to pass the buck to Beijing, for example, on issues including the origins of the COVID-19. But facts speak louder than words. No matter how those anti-China figures try to instigate hatred against the CPC, they cannot eliminate China's achievements. They will only blind the US itself and go further down the wrong path.