Notes on China
I got quite mixed messages about the state of public opinion in China. This is to be expected in a society where you can't establish common knowledge. One person told me that the new generation is quite nationalist, unlike the older reform generation which personally experienced the catastrophes of Mao and the tangible benefits of liberalization.... See more
Dwarkesh Patel • Notes on China
The hardest part of confronting China’s rise is admitting what it reveals about ourselves: the erosion of America’s confidence in its own purpose.
I still have confidence in the American system and would much rather live under Pax Americana than its alternatives — but it is obvious that a certain brand of declinism... See more
Ryan Fedasiukx.comMy recent stay in China—all 10 weeks of it, across 6 cities—provided far too many layers of information than can be quickly unpacked on social media, but the overwhelming and obvious impression was one of negative economic sentiments, even pessimism, across the board: tentative spending on behalf of consumers, lack of confidence on behalf of... See more
Taisu Zhangx.comChina is like the thinking ocean in Stanislaw Lem’s Solaris: a vast entity that produces observations personalized for every observer. These visions may be a self-defense mechanism, allowing leftists to see socialism and investors to see capitalism; or, as Lem’s ocean might be doing, China is vastly indifferent to foreign observers and generates... See more
Dan Wang • 2021 Letter | Dan Wang
