My pity package of Chinese face masks sends a bigger message

As US health workers suffer from inadequate protection, there are signs of a shifting world order. "As I gratefully distributed masks to some vulnerable neighbours and medical workers that I know, I realised that this was a symbolic moment. First, and most obviously, it highlights how the geopolitical order is changing. A couple of decades ago — say, during the 1997 Asian fiscal crisis — aid, along with pity, tended to flow from west to east. This is now being reversed." Gillian Tett reflects in the Financial Times.