NATIONALISM DOESN'T WORK:

On the surface, it might seem reasonable to believe that those with close ties to China -- by birth, ethnicity, or business -- are more likely to become deliberate or unwitting agents of Beijing. But that's the wrong way to look at it. The vast majority of ethnic Chinese in the U.S. are simply living their lives, contributing to society, and enjoying the American Dream.

There have been successful prosecutions of Chinese nationals on U.S. soil. Earlier this month, Xiang Haitao pleaded guilty to conspiring to steal trade secrets in the agriculture industry. Yet, other defendants have also been successfully prosecuted. Harvard University professor Charles Lieber was last month convicted of tax offences and making false statements. Lieber admitted to carrying bags of up to $100,000 in cash from Wuhan to Boston. 

From an investigative point of view, focusing on one racial group risks incorrectly charging innocent victims, while missing those perpetrators who don't fit the pre-conceived framework of a "likely suspect." We've seen this play out with disastrous effect on African-American communities.

Just as important, this approach misses the forest for the trees. A key tenet for the U.S. ramping up the Tech Cold War, and bringing allies into the fight, is the belief in its own moral superiority. Freedom of speech, freedom of movement, due process, and the presumption of innocence are concepts which Washington and like-minded nations want to promote globally.

A rising China, which doesn't pretend to advocate the same beliefs -- instead emphasizing safety and stability -- is a risk to these so-called American values. So when prosecutors start hunting down defendants based on race and file charges for crimes that are of little real risk to national security -- tax and wire fraud is a far cry from stealing nuclear technology -- they start to undermine these same ideals they're supposedly promoting. 

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