Cheap and irresponsible China-bashing is counterproductive to the long-term American strategy because it is sure to inflame Chinese nationalism, a powerful emotional force that could be deftly exploited by the ruling Communist Party. When the Chinese media plays up such anti-China rhetoric coming from America’s most powerful politicians, one can bet that it will elicit instinctive anti-American feelings from ordinary Chinese.

A confrontation of public opinion may be more disastrous than hostilities between the two governments. Is Asia heading toward a dangerous public opinion showdown? If the Japanese government encourages such a trend within Japan, it may start a chain reaction. Room for negotiation in Asia will gradually be squeezed out.

What Nike and Ralph Lauren don’t do is make their own products in the U.S. or elsewhere – and this has become their competitive advantage...So let’s stop whining about a few “made in China” tags and start cheering for all of the great athletic performances made possible by superior U.S. innovation.

Having myself fired a few arrows at Dr Singh and the ruling Congress Party last month, I thought I would turn to an area where India is enjoying success: the projection of its soft power abroad. Here, arguably, it is outstripping China, its Asian Century rival.

U.S. diplomats have boosted their public diplomacy through social media. The U.S. government has an active presence on Chinese social media sites; many U.S. officials in China have individual Weibo pages, and the embassy in Beijing and consulate departments update their own sites with remarks by American officials, press releases and videos.

Perception matters in international diplomacy, and even more so for the U.S.-China relationship. There are vast differences in political systems and institutions, social norms, historical and cultural legacies, and the ever-present information asymmetry. Mutual perceptions can get easily skewed, with real repercussions for policy. Though the U.S.-China relationship has proven surprisingly resilient, it is also colored by an unspoken unease, especially among elites in both countries.

A widely read microblog written by the U.S. Consulate in Shanghai and known for its sometimes tongue-in-cheek comments about China's social and political issues was inaccessible Friday. Sina Weibo, China's most popular microblog site that hosts the consulate's account, said it could be a technical glitch, an explanation the company has given in the past in cases where censorship was at work.