In the search for stability, some western nations are turning to a country that many in Washington see as an existential threat
If geopolitics relies at least in part on bonhomie between global leaders, China made an unexpected play for Ireland’s good graces when the taoiseach visited Beijing this month. Meeting Ireland’s leader, Micheál Martin, in the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, China’s president, Xi Jinping, said a favourite book of his as a teenager was The Gadfly, by the Irish author Ethel Voynich, a novel set in the revolutionary fervour of Italy in the 1840s.
“It was unusual that we ended up discussing The Gadfly and its impact on both of us but there you are,” Martin told reporters in Beijing.
China is on a charm offensive with western leaders, a path cleared by Donald Trump’s increasingly erratic and destabilising power grabs on the global stage. Although Europe breathed a sigh of relief this week when Trump withdrew the threat of using military force in Greenland and said he would not impose tariffs on opponents of his plans in the Arctic, the US no longer seems like a reliable partner.
Is China socialist, though? I keep seeing them labeled as being communist and socialist but they seem like something else altogether.
Did I say they were socialist? I didn’t.
I could go over the laundry list of reasons why they are not socialist but are very much implementing the exact kinds of policies a socialist would implement. Remember that socialism is a transitionary society organization. China has not yet achieved its minimum program yet in regards to uplifting all of its citizens to a baseline of existence yet. But every day they are getting closer and closer to that reality.
It’s more like a state controlled capitalism. They do tons of business, have plenty of billionaires, exploited workers working ridiculous hours, hunger wages, etc., but without the ability to vote or access information freely.
It’s not a model to emulate.
Why are you lying and framing things in this deceptive way?
Yes people in China go to work like everyone else. Yes they have billionaires but that class is shrinking every year as China implements further restrictions on them - its one of the current primary goals of the CPC.
Yes there is inherently exploitation there but they are working very similar hours to many of our citizens. The difference being their government actually provides for them when they work 45+ hours while American citizens are doing that more of then than not working several jobs to still not be able to survive.
Chinese citizens get paid less than US citizens do on average but their cost of living is also drastically lower because of wildly socialized programs of housing, medicine, transportation, etc.
China has a consultative Democratic structure which seeks robust input from its citizens on issues that they need solved and then actually prioritizes them. It’s a massive part of their culture.
Chinese people literally access the western internet all the time with VPNs that the government really doesn’t crack down on or care about.
All of this is really easy information to find in both western and eastern sources. I guess that is kinda hard for you to get to when you are hellbent on spreading easily disprovable propaganda tho.
The citizens in China have some of the highest approval ratings of any country in the world and express that they believe overwhelmingly it is Democratic, though not perfect.
I can’t wait to hear about how you also think they are doing genocide in Tibet and Xingjang next lmao.
What model do YOU think we should be emulating?
I’m not trying to deceive anyone. From what I can tell, China’s labour protections don’t seem to be any better than those of the US. Wasn’t Alibaba known for demanding employees work 12 hours per day, 6 days per week? The infamous 996 schedule.
I’ve also heard of iPhone factories with nets to catch employees trying to commit suicide. I’d love to believe these are rare extremes, but these are also very large companies, not some fringe outfits.
What I would expect from an actual socialist system is the workers controlling the factories and receiving the profits, the people having a vote in everything, and not having an untouchable ruling class that’s above accountability and can draw more power to themselves.
How well that would work, I don’t know, but a better compromise between that and capitalism would be the Nordic model with strong labour protections and strong unions. In any case, the US is a very poor model to emulate, unless you want cut throat capitalism.
I’m sure there are a billion things I don’t know about China, and with China being such a closed society and censored internet access, there’s a lot I can’t know. I’d love it if you could set me straight on the details around these an other issues. I’m just here pointing out what little I know, and why that gives me the impression of state capitalism instead of socialism. It seems to be combining the worst of both worlds.
China does seem to be good at getting competent leaders to the top, though. I’m frequently frustrated by the amateurs and clowns dominating global politics, and often China seems to be the only one capable of a constructive long term vision. It’s undeniable that the mix of democracy with cut throat capitalism and extreme inequality leads to corruption, as we’re seeing in the US and Russia.
But you can’t really say you represent the people if you deny them a vote.