While not a prototypical example, "fascist" describes China's economic system from the 70s forward better than "communist". Fascist systems seem to tolerate pr

While not a prototypical example, "fascist" describes China's economic system from the 70s forward better than "communist". Fascist systems seem to tolerate private enterprise better than communist ones, though the government tends to pick winners and losers (and shamelessly back the winners with force, as in the Chinalco example). Of course, in such a system, the government is still mucking about in the economy, substituting cronyism for market decisions, and trying to dictate profits and define their rate of economic growth just like that state legislature tried to redefine pi. Even Europe and the post-bailout US look like libertarian fantasies of free enterprise and transparency in comparison. We have nothing to fear from the Chinese Model. Their explosive economic growth has almost certainly been exaggerated, and even if taken at face value, this fascist system still leaves China, aside from a few rich spots, closer to the third world than the first. Companies dealing with China should be aware of what they're getting into - but to put it coldly, they should do so at their own risk, without tariffs or rattled sabers on their behalf when things go wrong. Tangentially, I'm a little amused that "locovorism" has a better cachet than open "anti-globalism".