China Is Freer Than You Think
There are people who don't speak a word of Chinese and have never lived in China, yet claimed to be the experts of that country. Based their opinions solely on Hollywood movies, Western main-stream media, or some negative news on Google.
China certainly has many problems that its government is either unable or unwilling to tackle, but it's very different from the "living hell" that the Western media described. If it is, it wouldn't have the largest population in the world.
Winston is a British South African who worked and lived in China for at least 10 years. He has traveled extensively throughout China and other countries in Asia, and he shared some of the most honest views on this part of the world.
I totally agree with you, the standard about what is free is set by the west. I think that the west nowadays isn't free at all, slowly almost all westerners getting slaves of the financial system and almost nobody realize it, because they are brainwashed that the western civilization is the best on earth. Living in an Asian country for a few years now, I really start to realize this.
From my own experience, most of the foreigners who came to Taiwan (where I live now) to study or work wouldn't want to leave. And I know quite a number of Westerners living in mainland China too. There are surprises in every country, both pleasant and unpleasant ones. I just wish more people would try living in a country, even for a few weeks, before they judge it. Cheers~
If you are referring to living in present day Taiwan, then I would agree it is in many ways more free than the US. If I had a choice, I would seriously pick living in Taiwan over US at current moment. However politically, Taiwan is closer to US and very different to China (mainland).
nice been following Serpentza and C-Milk for years! It's amazing how much I've learned and been surprised about... I feel like I've been there with all the knowledge I've gained and a bit of an expert on the modern culture :)
I am finally here! Thanks for this!
Haha... I can't believe I got a Serpentza subscriber within a few minutes, on a relatively unknown social media! He really did a great job with his YouTube channel, and I really appreciate his effort and honesty.
Ya can't say enough how much i learned... They have way more freedom there almost anarchy! (depending where and what tier) Which has like everywhere else ups and downs. I like the honest culture where no political correctness but the big surprise for me is the lack of violence in the culture as whole. Which brings problems of like many insurance scams because they know won't be "beat up" for it!
Love him and laowhy86 AKA C-Milk
I think China is in some ways more 'free' than other countries. If we measure their ability to make progress as a nation, and garner society support, then yeah China can be considered more 'free'. Because the democratic wagering in Democratic countries overshadow the underlying issues at hand. Time and resources are wasted trying to achieve a 'sit on the fence' solution that doesn't really solve anything.
In the classic interpretation of free, you might say that the law is actually looser in China and as a result, many have abused it. Isn't that being more 'free' too?
Why is free only measured in terms of things like free speech and human rights. Is that really what makes people free?
Did you know, China has some of the most restrictive censorship on what kind of movies can be allowed to play in their theaters? Most Hollywood movies would not make it to China's theaters without satisfying requirements and self imposed soft censorship.
In case you didn't notice, I did wrote "China certainly has many problems..."
Yes, we all know that televisions, movies, and the internet are all censored in China. But China also doesn't have a lot of the serious issues in the U.S., you'll know what I mean if you live there, or ask Winston why he would choose to live in China for so long...
I live in both places. Though I admit last time I was in China (mainland) was 2006 and never bothered going back.
In my opinion, China doesn't have serious issues because talking about serious issues are either not allowed, or their dissenting voices are silenced. Outside of these restricted issues, then sure you are fairly free to do or say whatever without breaking any laws. But that isn't real freedom, it's just an appearance of freedom.
But I will give credit that China has made tremendous economic progress. As long people are prosperous, I believe the issues can remain suppressed. China's true challenge will come when it faces the next economic slowdown as many of the serious issue may surface. I for one am still waiting to see China make progress in it's political system on the scale as its economic system. That will truly be a great day for the Chinese people.
What is the most serious problem in China, in your opinion? Specifically in relation with the "serious issues in the U.S." you mention...
Man, this can take a very long time, but let me just bring up some main problems in China (I don't have time right now to get into the U.S. issues). 1) Air, water, and soil pollution. With most of the world's factories located in China, it's extremely difficult to clean up the main cities. Even if the factories all run on green energy (which the Chinese government is trying to do), they would still produce lots of toxic waste. The consumers of this planet all have responsibilities on this issue. 2) The lack of traffic enforcement. I know it's not easy to properly divert that insane number of cars, but the Chinese government could certainly do a lot more enforcement than they are right now. Driving or crossing the street on foot in China is way too stressful. 3) The refusal to crack down on scams and copyright infringements. While violent crimes are relatively low in China, non-violent ones are high. 4) Excessive censorship can hinder China's intellectual development. China is not only huge geographically, it has tons of very different cultures, resulting in lots of civil wars for centuries. Also, China was invaded by at least 9 countries previously, during the time when China lacked unity and was vulnerable. These are the main reasons why the Chinese government has been censoring the media so heavily, they are afraid that without strict control and order, the country would fall apart and become the victim of foreign invasion again. While they are gradually reducing the censorship, it's still not fast enough to induce a reasonable intellectual growth in China.
Very interesting.
What is the primary reason you think the Chinese Govt censors things?
To blakemiles84: I don't know why there's no reply button on your 2nd question. The primary reasons for the censorship were in the 4th problem I wrote; which are to prevent division & civil wars within the country, and to minimize foreign attacks & propaganda. To a lesser degree, another reason would be that the the ruling Chinese families are afraid of losing power/money.