• Hortener [none/use name]
    hexagon
    ·
    3 years ago

    china should let go of it’s inner states and become a liberal democracy

    It didn't say that. It said if those provinces were to separate somehow they'd fit right in with the world's other democracies. Pretty doubtful, but that was the claim.

    The real problem with the analysis was calling the coastal provinces the heartland, when the Han heartland was always the North China Plain. But otherwise an interesting video.

    • zifnab25 [he/him, any]
      ·
      3 years ago

      It said if those provinces were to separate somehow they’d fit right in with the world’s other democracies.

      Would they? If anything, it seems like the region is moving towards Beijing's center-of-gravity rather than bending backwards to DC. This is only more true as Western nations balkanize and flounder. I mean, Hong Kong is just ground-zero for this trend. The city's council model heavily favors Beijing-backed economic interests. And the closer Shenzhen integrates with the Hong Kong economy, the tighter its culture and economy adhere to mainland standards.

      You could say the same of any of these coastal mega-cities that have filled up with rural workers living out east. The more integrated the economy of China as a whole, the more influence the party has over prevailing public opinion.

      That's even before getting into the Korean and Japanese bend back away from neoliberalism, following a decade of economic stagnation. Or the rising influence over Indochina and the island archipelagos enjoyed by the soon-to-be world's largest economy.

      There's a reason American Intelligence tried to target Xinjiang and not Shanghai.

      • Hortener [none/use name]
        hexagon
        ·
        3 years ago

        Would they? If anything, it seems like the region is moving towards Beijing’s center-of-gravity rather than bending backwards to DC.

        Pretty doubtful. Dude is saying they're rich, they'd fit in. I think that was as far as his analysis went. Eh, these geopolitics guys all have their blind spots. At any rate, no provinces are going anywhere as long as Xi has the Mandate of Heaven.

        • zifnab25 [he/him, any]
          ·
          3 years ago

          At any rate, no provinces are going anywhere as long as Xi has the Mandate of Heaven.

          I'd say that plays a huge role in any geopolitical discussion. God only knows what the average China-resident thinks of Americans, but given how they're having pool parties while we're having Q-rallies, I have to assume it ain't great.

          30 years ago, you could at least make the "go-along get-along" argument wrt the States. That's less true now than at any point in my lifetime.

            • zifnab25 [he/him, any]
              ·
              3 years ago

              China’s 996 extreme work culture turns a lot of people off. Chinese culture is a frantic race to work, work, work so you can become an ATM for your family members who never offer a word of thanks.

              Seems like the courts ruled 996 illegal as of last August. That, plus the way Jack Ma got thwacked, might suggest reform on the horizon. That said, point taken. That work schedule sounds insane.

              Meanwhile Americans aren’t exactly lining up to immigrate to China.

              Eh. America's a big place, and lots of people consider internal migration easier and more lucrative than external migration. So you move from Texas to California (or California to Texas). As I understand it, internal migration in China is a lot harder.

                • zifnab25 [he/him, any]
                  ·
                  3 years ago

                  I mean, if its the standard at Alibaba...

                  That's like saying "Amazon Warehouses aren't the norm". Just the industry leader's way of doing business?

            • Redbolshevik2 [he/him]
              ·
              edit-2
              3 years ago

              Lmfao chauvinist scum

              Meanwhile Americans aren’t exactly lining up to immigrate to China.

              Damn the literal worst people to ever live are so blinded by their racist ignorance that they aren't lining up to move to what is objectively a high quality of life? Say it ain't so!

              • spectre [he/him]
                ·
                3 years ago

                what is objectively a high quality of life?

                I think this is an odd statement to make tbh. I don't think there would be much upside for nearly any American to move to the PRC unless they are very very poor, and even then it's probably a wash.

                • Redbolshevik2 [he/him]
                  ·
                  3 years ago

                  Chinese people make less money, yes, but their cost of living is a drastically lower portion of their earnings. The age of retirement is 54.

                  Also, turns out there are a shitload of poor Americans.

                  • spectre [he/him]
                    ·
                    3 years ago

                    True true, I guess it doesn't surprise me that people wouldn't want to emigrate from the US to the PRC so much as people from other places in the global south heading over there. I've heard that there's a growing African immigrant community in some Chinese cities so maybe that's the sign of a shift. Would make some sense for south/central American immigrants to head that way too probably, but it's still an ocean away, and I'm not sure if the PRC has much of an incentive to encourage immigration idk

                      • Hortener [none/use name]
                        hexagon
                        ·
                        3 years ago

                        China views itself as bursting at the seams with people. The last thing it needs is more people. Immigration is a non-starter. If you're ethnic Chinese you can enroll in the "returnee" program and they'll welcome you back home, but that's about it. You can get a "green card" if you have a Ph.D or similar or you have some badly needed talent. But a lot of people who qualify for it never get it because it affects your tax liability.

                    • Hortener [none/use name]
                      hexagon
                      ·
                      3 years ago

                      The African area of Guangzhou was broken up a while back. Last I heard they were trying to reform it in Yiwu.

            • LeninWeave [none/use name]
              ·
              edit-2
              3 years ago

              Chinese culture is a frantic race to work, work, work so you can become an ATM for your family members who never offer a word of thanks.

              lol, OK :lmayo:

              Once again, several Hexbear users have seen fit to upbear garbage like this.

                • LeninWeave [none/use name]
                  ·
                  edit-2
                  3 years ago

                  Within 10 minutes of posting, two other people upbeared it. We have :LIB:s :amogus: .

                • Hortener [none/use name]
                  hexagon
                  ·
                  3 years ago

                  Where'd that come from? The gratitude is never offered to family members who work and provide money. That's what was said. Why would you need to thank them? That's family's job.

                  • LeninWeave [none/use name]
                    ·
                    edit-2
                    3 years ago

                    Where’d that come from? The gratitude is never offered to family members who work and provide money. That’s what was said. Why would you need to thank them? That’s family’s job.

                    Chinese culture is a frantic race to work, work, work so you can become an ATM for your family members who never offer a word of thanks.

                    You must see how that comes off pretty badly.

                    • Hortener [none/use name]
                      hexagon
                      ·
                      3 years ago

                      Working adults providing for the rest of the family is simply expected. It's not something out of the ordinary that people feel the need to offer thanks for.

                      • LeninWeave [none/use name]
                        ·
                        3 years ago

                        so you can become an ATM

                        never offer a word of thanks.

                        That seems pretty clearly intended to be read negatively.

            • spectre [he/him]
              ·
              3 years ago

              Grass is always greener and all that....

              The culture sounds pretty strict, and younger folks are going to grow up in better conditions and more influence from the Western world. A lot of what I've heard indicates that things will come around culturally in the next couple decades but we'll see.

    • carbohydra [des/pair]
      ·
      3 years ago

      Has anyone else ever laid claim to the coastal areas except the Europeans and Japanese? I get that the Han settled the south later but wouldn't both those areas be included in the heartland?

      • Hortener [none/use name]
        hexagon
        ·
        3 years ago

        China is thousands of years old. The last 200 years are the blink of an eye.

        Moreover most of the invasions China historically suffered came from the interior or the north (Manchu which became the Qing dynasty, Ghengis Khan who became the Yuan dynasty). By overrunning these areas, China protects its heartland.

        The overseas barbarians invading the coastal provinces is a new one. Yes, 180 years ago is "new" in China. China was never a maritime power, it never needed to go anywhere. It sits on the richest, most productive piece of land for thousands of miles in any direction. To the north, ice. To the east, a worthless mountainous island and thousands of miles of open ocean. To the south, tropical islands and to the east the endless wilds of central Asia.