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What actually is going on in China, is there some type of economic meltdown in progress ? Like, we can say it's because of covid, but something seems a miss to

What actually is going on in China, is there some type of economic meltdown in progress ? Like, we can say it's because of covid, but something seems a miss to me. > This is the biggest, richest, most international city of China and people are starving, without medicine, and without freedom. What?

stjohnswarts 5y ago
I think it's as much a show of force and power by the CCP as anything. They will even shut down one of their largest and most prosperous cities on a whim if it suits their goals. Starving people and shutdown productivity do not matter in the face of what the CCP wills to happen. It's as much a warning and shot across the bow as anything.
- bamboozled 5y ago
  Sensible long term strategy though? I doubt it...
zdragnar 5y ago
Western lockdowns were absolutely tame compared to the Chinese government's version. Additionally, ordering cooked food can be extremely cheap in China, and convenient if all the adults in a household are working long hours. Some may not cook at all, or have sufficient supplies to do so for long periods of time on short notice. Shanghai also has a population of 26 million people. Organizing a super-strict lockdown while also organizing the importation and accurate delivery of food and medicine to all of these people on very short notice is a logistical and bureaucratic nightmare.
pxtail 5y ago
> Like, we can say it's because of covid, but something seems a miss to me. I'm wondering about this as well - it's hard to imagine that this is not part of greater strategy so either all of this is intentional to increase pressure within Chinese society to the point of boiling for some reason - maybe to disrupt markets and world economy even more? Alternatively Omicron indeed surprised them and now when Russia is at war they do not want to deal with COVID and are ready to try to contain it at all costs.
- singularity2001 5y ago
  My pet suspicion is that it is somehow related to the Ukraine disaster or crash of the housing bubble, though a mere distraction seems like a weak reason.
  - bamboozled 5y ago
    Maybe both? Also there's at least a lot of talk of divestment in China, what impact this might this have had, has it even happened at all ?

stjohnswarts 5y ago

I think it's as much a show of force and power by the CCP as anything. They will even shut down one of their largest and most prosperous cities on a whim if it suits their goals. Starving people and shutdown productivity do not matter in the face of what the CCP wills to happen. It's as much a warning and shot across the bow as anything.

bamboozled 5y ago
Sensible long term strategy though? I doubt it...

zdragnar 5y ago

Western lockdowns were absolutely tame compared to the Chinese government's version. Additionally, ordering cooked food can be extremely cheap in China, and convenient if all the adults in a household are working long hours. Some may not cook at all, or have sufficient supplies to do so for long periods of time on short notice. Shanghai also has a population of 26 million people. Organizing a super-strict lockdown while also organizing the importation and accurate delivery of food and medicine to all of these people on very short notice is a logistical and bureaucratic nightmare.

pxtail 5y ago

> Like, we can say it's because of covid, but something seems a miss to me. I'm wondering about this as well - it's hard to imagine that this is not part of greater strategy so either all of this is intentional to increase pressure within Chinese society to the point of boiling for some reason - maybe to disrupt markets and world economy even more? Alternatively Omicron indeed surprised them and now when Russia is at war they do not want to deal with COVID and are ready to try to contain it at all costs.

singularity2001 5y ago
My pet suspicion is that it is somehow related to the Ukraine disaster or crash of the housing bubble, though a mere distraction seems like a weak reason.
- bamboozled 5y ago
  Maybe both? Also there's at least a lot of talk of divestment in China, what impact this might this have had, has it even happened at all ?