But what? He wondered. Nearly everyone accepted the rough narrative that by lifting term limits, Xi Jinping strengthened his control, allowing him to complete the anti-corruption drive, and the Belt and Road Initiative.

He didn't buy it. Xi Jinping surely had time to groom a successor with similar beliefs and priorities before his 2nd term ends in 2023. Besides, there's precedent for former leaders to remain active in the wings, well beyond their formal rule.

The 2-term limit was introduced in 1982 to save China from the ruin of uninterrupted leadership - Mao's late legacy prompted the constitutional change. Throughout history, great nations and empires fail when they surrender their institutions to an individual.

The Chinese know this. Why'd they do it?

Is Beijing preparing for instability? Chinese banks have $40trln balance sheets (50% of global GDP, 3x Chinese GDP). US banks hold $17tlrn balance sheets (less than 1x US GDP).

Might China be preparing for internal economic instability? Or perhaps it's that the West is in deep political disarray, fractured, fighting itself.