Quote:
Originally Posted by Fuzz
I have to assume most of that is because the government controls education, and tries to control everything they see. So If they don't want their citizenry to take part in politics, or be educated about democracy, they can do a pretty good job of indoctrinating them into that.
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Well, public education systems everywhere are just designed to build citizens that support the country's own system of government. I have a lot of Chinese friends who were educated overseas though, and they are generally still supportive of the Chinese government after years of living in Canada, the U.S., Australia etc.
People just don't bother to talk about politics much in China. Politics is just like the weather, in that you can't change it so you just adapt and get on with things. In day to day Chinese life people have plenty of freedom, and consumer lifestyles in Chinese cities are well developed so people in the middle class feel they have choice about how to spend their time. This is true in even third and fourth tier cities now.
Most members of the middle class don't really care that much about politics in the West either. People care more about having a job, a home, being able to enjoy their life going out with friends or raising their family, going on vacations etc. As long as people have these things to enjoy their lives, they don't care who is in power or how they're governed, and China has been doing a great job of delivering these things for that middle class. People appreciate that their government has made this possible for them, and it certainly has.
These are among the reasons I called CaliPanthersFan's comparison with communist soviet union ridiculous, which it is. People living under the centrally planned economy of the Soviet Union dealt with bare shelves, lineups to get necessities, food shortages, poor infrastructure etc. Those that could get to the West would be amazed at the choice and abundance when walking into a store. This is totally unlike the experience of China's middle class. People from Chinese cities traveling to the West now often have the opposite experience, of feeling the consumer culture here is less developed, with less choice, less convenience and lower quality goods. On top of that, they look around at the issues with drug abuse that are so visible, alcohol abuse that is so visible, gun violence, racial tensions etc. and don't see it as desirable. The handling of COVID doesn't make governments like the US or UK look any better either. Most people care more about these things than they care about whether or not they have the right to vote, and even those who aspire to really get rich are often heading back to China now because they feel they can make plenty of money in China while living in a place that's more comfortable for them.
These are among the reasons I think democracy in the US is so at risk now. Democracy has been so poorly cared for that the middle class is beaten down and insecure. There's such a strong sense that the government is not looking out for the average person's interests that a lot of people would actually be fine with an authoritarian government as long it sorted out their basic pains of day to day life. That's what China already has. Most people feel their lives getting better and the middle class has confidence that the government does a good job taking care of them, so they don't care about democracy.