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The Chinese masses are much better off today than they were in the 70s. Globalization does increase inequality, particularly in countries with a lot of capital
by barrkel 6y ago
The Chinese masses are much better off today than they were in the 70s.
Globalization does increase inequality, particularly in countries with a lot of capital, but it also makes the very poor better off. What the US calls the middle classes do stagnate, though, and capitalists are the biggest winners - which, don't forget, also includes pension funds as a significant fraction.
Most of the top 1% are wage slaves like everyone else. The top 1% by income isn't what's interesting; it's the top 1% by assets. Wealth inequality is much bigger than income inequality.
- sprash 6y agoBut china is pretty nationalistic. They allow other global companies to produce within their borders, sure. But if you try to export something from another country to china you are going to have a bad time. So the reason why Chinese masses are so much better off today is this very "one-sided" version of globalism. You might as well call it nationalism.
- scarmig 6y agoPlenty of people have gotten rich exporting goods to China. They just tend to be concentrated in relatively low income countries like Vietnam, exporting things like clothing and textiles. China actually likes this, because it frees resources to develop strategic industries with higher wages. Which is more or less what the US did with China.
- sprash 6y agoStill China controls the borders very well and allows only products to enter when it serves the interest of China. This is the definition of nationalism and one of the reasons why the quality of life in China is rising so fast. Nationalism made China rich. Not globalism.
- ClumsyPilot 6y agoI am not clear, what specifically does china limit imports of? You can sell cars, phones, just about anything i can think of, even loteral plastic waste is allowed, obly recently standards were tightened.
- scarmig 6y agoMoreover, even from the West, tons of cultural products are exported to China. That's what gives Beijing the implicit power to censor the NBA, video game companies, Hollywood, etc.