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Why is it incredible simply to do something fast? China is not a model to emulate. They throw a massive number of people on projects, pays them next to nothing

Why is it incredible simply to do something fast? China is not a model to emulate. They throw a massive number of people on projects, pays them next to nothing (neither when they are maimed, nor to their families in case of death), and allow them hardly any time off. Wherever they're employed, it's not uncommon for Chinese men, and women, to only see their family 1-2 times a year.

glofish 7y ago
The fundamental model that we forget today is that impressive things are built by oppressing millions of people. From the pyramids, to Notre Dame, Neuschwanstein Castle, Great Wall of China, Panama Canal, Chichen Itza, Machu Picchu, Cancun hotel zone, etc every single technologically unbelievable achievement was built by exploiting large masses of the population. The reason we cannot build the same today is that the pool of people that can be exploited has been much reduced. Perhaps that is a cause for celebration.
- danans 7y ago
  > Cancun hotel zone Didn't expect to see that on the list. It looks to me like any other mega hotel beach area ... or am I missing something about it?
  - glofish 7y ago
    It is a massive undertaking (also including the resort chains down Riviera Maya), gigantic opulent sprawling palaces, built-in about two-three decades, in a remote place, jungles for hundreds of miles in every direction, in an area with no pre-existing infrastructure, It was built super cheaply on the back of millions of Mayans - it is on the list because IMO is the most recent and perhaps last example of building "pyramids".
    - danans 7y ago
      Ah yes, with the speed of construction and scale of human exploitation, it makes sense. Similar to places like Dubai. IMO, what distinguishes Cancun from the others on the list is the "cheapness" of it's aesthetics and likely it's actual quality.
      - glofish 7y ago
        I think the "aesthetics" is quite culturally indoctrinated - I find the interior of baroque catholic churches garish and unbearably cheesy. The resort construction in Mexico wants to deliver a grandiose feeling to tourists - and it does do that perfectly. I am repeatedly amazed at the architectural variety and talent that went into shaping and designing each resort. There are very few that are similar to each other or a "traditional" hotel. I will also say that many of the resorts in Riviera Maya are anything but cheap quality - heavy marble floors, thick noise absorbing walls, high ceilings. You can almost sense the Mayan pyramid building ancestry in each.
- hn_throwaway_99 7y ago
  Hallelujah. This is a passage about St. Petersburg, sometimes referred to (among other cities) as "The Venice of the North": Starting with the construction of the Peter and Paul Fortress, Peter dragooned thousands of conscripts, convicts and prisoners of war to erect the city from scratch in a place where snow can fall as early as September and as late as May. Tree trunks had to be sunk into the swampy ground before it could support structures. Living in ramshackle quarters and working with inadequate tools – often digging by hand and carrying the dirt in the front of their shirts – these involuntary labourers died in their thousands, carried off by disease or frequent flooding. As a result, St Petersburg became known as the “city built on bones”.
- fuzzfactor 7y ago
  >Neuschwanstein Castle This was a late 19th century project. The medieval castle originally on the site was likely built by clans that had been bred by the Romans for hundreds of years for this exact purpose.

glofish 7y ago

The fundamental model that we forget today is that impressive things are built by oppressing millions of people. From the pyramids, to Notre Dame, Neuschwanstein Castle, Great Wall of China, Panama Canal, Chichen Itza, Machu Picchu, Cancun hotel zone, etc every single technologically unbelievable achievement was built by exploiting large masses of the population. The reason we cannot build the same today is that the pool of people that can be exploited has been much reduced. Perhaps that is a cause for celebration.

danans 7y ago
> Cancun hotel zone Didn't expect to see that on the list. It looks to me like any other mega hotel beach area ... or am I missing something about it?
- glofish 7y ago
  It is a massive undertaking (also including the resort chains down Riviera Maya), gigantic opulent sprawling palaces, built-in about two-three decades, in a remote place, jungles for hundreds of miles in every direction, in an area with no pre-existing infrastructure, It was built super cheaply on the back of millions of Mayans - it is on the list because IMO is the most recent and perhaps last example of building "pyramids".
  - danans 7y ago
    Ah yes, with the speed of construction and scale of human exploitation, it makes sense. Similar to places like Dubai. IMO, what distinguishes Cancun from the others on the list is the "cheapness" of it's aesthetics and likely it's actual quality.
    - glofish 7y ago
      I think the "aesthetics" is quite culturally indoctrinated - I find the interior of baroque catholic churches garish and unbearably cheesy. The resort construction in Mexico wants to deliver a grandiose feeling to tourists - and it does do that perfectly. I am repeatedly amazed at the architectural variety and talent that went into shaping and designing each resort. There are very few that are similar to each other or a "traditional" hotel. I will also say that many of the resorts in Riviera Maya are anything but cheap quality - heavy marble floors, thick noise absorbing walls, high ceilings. You can almost sense the Mayan pyramid building ancestry in each.
hn_throwaway_99 7y ago
Hallelujah. This is a passage about St. Petersburg, sometimes referred to (among other cities) as "The Venice of the North": Starting with the construction of the Peter and Paul Fortress, Peter dragooned thousands of conscripts, convicts and prisoners of war to erect the city from scratch in a place where snow can fall as early as September and as late as May. Tree trunks had to be sunk into the swampy ground before it could support structures. Living in ramshackle quarters and working with inadequate tools – often digging by hand and carrying the dirt in the front of their shirts – these involuntary labourers died in their thousands, carried off by disease or frequent flooding. As a result, St Petersburg became known as the “city built on bones”.
fuzzfactor 7y ago
>Neuschwanstein Castle This was a late 19th century project. The medieval castle originally on the site was likely built by clans that had been bred by the Romans for hundreds of years for this exact purpose.