this post was submitted on 19 May 2024
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Since China's economic reforms in the 1980's, 700 million Chinese people have been lifted out of poverty, accounting for three quarters of worldwide poverty reduction during that time.
Do people here think China should've continued Mao's economic policies? Or do you think the correct path is somewhere in between Mao and Deng? Or are y'all just looking to criticize China regardless of what they do or what the results are, to performatively demonstrate your loyalty to the US government?
You don't have to answer that. I've asked it many times and I know none of y'all have an answer to it, beyond calling me a bot or foreign agent, to avoid the question and to performatively demonstrate your loyalty to the US government. I'd love for someone to prove me wrong, but I also know it won't happen.
Interesting, how do you feel about uyghurs? Also, are you aware that some of these people "lifted out of poverty" were folks in rural areas who were totally fine where they were at. I'm not a big fan of the US government either or other bodies that seriously impinge human rights. I think a correct path forward for China economically is somewhere close to where they're at now but with more civil liberties.
That's... certainly a take, alright. I suppose it's possible that hundreds of millions of rural Chinese were voluntarily choosing to live in extreme poverty out of some sort of commitment to asceticism. I'll admit that this was not a possibility I had considered before.
So then the billionaires aren't the problem you have with China then, if I'm understanding you.
Yeah it turns out they're just forcibly uprooting people who are happy where they're at.
I don't doubt that there were some cases of the government overstepping, or that you can find a couple people out of the hundreds of millions who are dissatisfied. But the figure of hundred of millions refers to people who were living in extreme poverty, which is defined as less than $2 per day, some of the poorest people on the planet. That's not a lifestyle that's worth preserving.
Coming back from that tangent though, am I correct that the general economic system and the existence of billionaires are not the problems that you have with China?
Since you bring up their income, do you have some data for the flip side of the coin - how much was cost of living for those people? I grew up with my Chinese dad telling me about buying the day's vegetables for like a nickel. Granted that was before the 80s, so I'd be interested in any data you have to share.
I'm not op.
Also, a bit of a wry aside, you might actually struggle to find people voicing their dissatisfaction due to the fear of the government relayed multiple times in the article :)
The $2 per day is a figure used by the World Bank. According to this page:
I don't know the exact details of the World Bank's methodology, but I believe the $2 figure is adjusted based on purchasing power.
That sent me down a cool rabbit hole, thanks!
Industrialization is a hell of a drug. During the same period apparently the wealth gap shot up, so chinas got that to contend with. Best of luck to them.