For sure, I don’t mean to say that we shouldn’t do constructive criticism, just that the criticism has to be rooted in material analysis to be meaningful.

I also find the chauvinism of people who criticize China because it doesn’t fit their model of an ideal society to be just so incredibly distasteful. It’s quite clear that vast majority of people in China support their system, and that means it’s working for them. We have no place to criticize how people in China decide to live.

Meanwhile, the fact that a particular system cannot be just copied is actually a useful tool for talking to people who freak out over particular aspects of existing socialist states like China. I explain to them that each socialist project arose from its own historical and material conditions, and each one is unique in nature. If socialism is implemented in the west, then it will necessarily be shaped by the conditions found here, and the ideals of western societies. Other socialist project can inform us how to approach specific problems when building socialism, but any learnings from them must be studied dialectically and adapted to the current conditions of a country. So, the whole concern people have is fundamentally unfounded. For example, if our society is more socially liberal then there’s nothing inherent about a socialist system that would be at odds with that.