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Well, they believe they don't. My compatriots from my two home nations, Russia and China, usually defend the authoritarian policy thanks to years of soft propag
by hkai 8y ago
Well, they believe they don't. My compatriots from my two home nations, Russia and China, usually defend the authoritarian policy thanks to years of soft propaganda and opinion guiding.
"Western countries have problems too, and did you see America, this is what democracy leads to."
You can see that on HN, too.
- geofft 8y agoThe fact that these people believe that their current system of government is better - i.e., that the result of a democratic election would be to avoid democracy - should cause us to worry if the same effect is at play when people who have lived their whole life under a democratic regime say that their current system of government is better, too.
- njarboe 8y agoSee "Manufacturing Consent" (1988) by Chomsky and Herman for a classic critique of how in the West there are also "soft propaganda and opinion guiding" systems in place and operating successfully. I wonder though, with the internet and the rise of Trump, if Chomsky might say these systems are not in control as much as they used to be.
- boomboomsubban 8y ago>Western countries have problems too, and did you see America, this is what democracy leads to." When you compare the "democratic" two-party American answer to terrorism and the "autocratic" one-party Chinese answer, it's hard to see democracy as the superior choice. Spying on millions of people is terrible, as are the re-education camps, but the "War on Terror" is responsible for millions of deaths while spying on millions of people. Years of soft propaganda make people praise American behavior, and democracy provides no option to end it.