That’s not even saving face, there is no face left, this is sheltering his ego and maintaining the illusion that he was successful to the MAGA crowd.
Well, the blinder they are to reality the better for the global majority. Unless he goes and starts a war.
I know a wealthy Chinese family, their kid has US citizenship, but I can tell they are starting to have a crisis. They clearly recognize things are getting worse in the US, but they have invested a lot of time and money into the US, such as buying a house and getting green cards. Despite that, they have not opted to have their kid go to school in China. Even those Chinese people that are the most receptive to the US and it’s propaganda, those wealthy libs with vested interest, are recognizing it.
This made me think about comparing the experience with how it’s done in China. Most convenience stores have a small terminal where you can self scan and scan your phone to pay. There are probably cameras, but definitely no sign accusing people of stealing. Then again crime is less common in large part because of people having economic opportunities. That said, there’s nearly always someone there, and grocery stores generally don’t use an automated system.
Besides other western countries are finally losing the blind trust they had of the US. They still can’t do much about it, but they are increasingly recognizing that, as Kissinger’s famous dictum puts it: “It may be dangerous to be America’s enemy but to be America’s friend is fatal”
It’s every stage of capitalism. The cumulative waste and suffering inflicted by capitalism might be humanities greatest tragedy.
Some fun effects of BPA[1]:
Exposure to BPA is a concern because of the possible health effects on the brain and prostate gland of fetuses, infants and children. It can also affect children’s behavior. Additional research suggests a possible link between BPA and increased blood pressure, type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease.
All things we definitely don’t have enough of in the US.
It’s also important to consider GDP and GDP PPP doesn’t consider unpaid labor. Housework, taking care of kids, etc. if it’s not paid. I don’t have any metrics on this, but in China it’s extremely common for families to be more tight knit compared to the US with the atomic (parents/kids) family. There is also a lot of unpaid work, such as grandparents taking care of the kids instead of a babysitter. Not only does this on one hand reduce GDP, but it’s socially preferable in that there is more of a familial social safety net on top of the public/governmental one.
Keep in mind that’s just high speed rail (HSR). China has an even more extensive network of regular rail, which millions use. The rail system is also indispensable for transporting goods efficiently, and with green potential since they are electric.
Things are so much more expensive in the US that, when you adjust for purchasing power parity (PPP), China has a GDP PPP of 1.25 times the US. Source? The CIA.
GDP is still flawed even when accounting for costs, but it goes to show how behind the US is.
Most of the “futuristic China tech” is just every day life in the PRC. It’s also funny to have to throw in the paragraph near the end the ‘others’ worry the Huawei device he brought would spy on him. Who is worrying? What proof is there? There is no elaboration, it’s just inserted as it’s seemingly impossible for western news to simply have a positive article about China.
Logging in to comment that this is absolutely the case, also for EU biotech. The scale of innovation and reliance on said innovations by the west isn’t being overstated on the video.
I discussed this with a former leading biotech insider that moved to China because of this. The big western firms have become rent extracting through purchasing IP of medicine developed in China. They don’t do much research any more, and once upon a time when they did do it, the research was profit centric.
Realize that China has not been increasing it’s military spending relative to GDP.
https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/MS.MIL.XPND.GD.ZS?locations=CN-US&start=1989
China does not have an expansive or aggressive posture. The US has about twice the spending as a share of GDP, with a larger nominal GDP. There is nuance to this, but China is absolutely not disproportionately or aggressively building up it’s military.
I suggest simply asking questions on lemmygrad.
The point of the book club should also be to help one another understand and learn. You aren’t teaching the others, you should all try to engage with the text and each others understanding.
Lastly, the more you read the better your comprehension will be. Consider if audiobooks or different formats might also help you understand better.
Not just infrastructure, payments are also convenient with Ali pay/WeChat pay. Everyone pays everything by phone, most haven’t used cash or card in years, although you can if you want. Apps are also ridiculously well designed and integrated, less visible as a foreigner, as much if it is obviously in Chinese and you have a language barrier. But you can really do anything you can imagine in WeChat. Alipay can also translate in miniapps. Say you are in a restaurant, you will scan a qr code on the table, can have a menu that you can automatically translate if you so chose. You also can order and pay through that menu on your phone.
Bureaucracy exists like everywhere else, but tends to be faster and more efficient in my experience. It’s not perfect, but the country does feel very different.
Also, it doesn’t depend that much on the city. I have been to most large cities in China, many small and medium sized ones too. I have also been to the countryside. The latter is more relaxed, but everywhere has technology and infrastructure. Basically all cities are serviced by train. Towns will all have bus systems that mean you can get anywhere in the country with public transportation.
Orientalism definitely plays a role
Agreed, no system, group, or party is infallible. There are many genuine critiques that can and should be made.
Archived link/paywall bypass: https://archive.is/VbSPI
Also, you would think a region once plagued by unrest and terrorism (fomented by our favorite imperialist power of course), now stable and prospering would be cause for celebration? No? Also about NEV subsidies, isn’t this what all countries should be doing? Besides, the Global North has long subsidized industries when they chose to.
Doubtful, although I wouldn’t be surprised if the US leaked/encouraged this sorry to try to pressure Russia. Also, since the talks in Saidi Arabia started the US constantly comes away from the talks with different conclusions of what was agreed Upton than the Russians. https://www.globaltimes.cn/page/202503/1330868.shtml