Opium Wars

choi

The Opium Wars | Be Careful What You Wish for; A time when the West clamoured for free trade with China. Economist, Oct 29, 2011
http://www.economist.com/node/21534758
(book review on Julia Lovell, The Opium War: Drugs, Dreams, and the Making of China. Picador, 2011)

Quote:

"They [the wars] are largely unknown by British schoolchildren

"Despite China’s growing strength, Ms Lovell sees worrying similarities between China’s weaknesses today and those of the Chinese empire of 1838, describing both as 'an impressive but improbable high-wire act, unified by ambition, bluff, pomp and pragmatism.'

Note:
(a) crapshoot (n; First Known Use 1971):
"something (as a business venture) that has an unpredictable outcome"

* craps
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Craps
(b) The "tired" in "tired government propaganda" is an adjective:
"TRITE, HACKNEYED"

All definitions are from www.m-w.com.