4 ms·
It's the tradeoff between democracy and nationalism. I bet if you offered the typical mainlander the following choices. 1. Democracy + Developed country standa
by magicsmoke 7y ago
It's the tradeoff between democracy and nationalism. I bet if you offered the typical mainlander the following choices.
1. Democracy + Developed country standard of living, but Taiwan, Hong Kong, Macau, Xinjiang, Tibet vote to become independent and do become independent countries.
2. Autocracy + Developing country standard of living, but mainland China unifies with Taiwan.
Then most mainlanders would pick the second option. Due to historical reasons, any scenario that risks tarnishing the borders of the idealized unified China incurs a hyperallergic reaction.