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That's what the chinese thought in the 18th century :). A fun quote for the europeans here: "Our land is so wealthy and prosperous that we possess all things.
by asdasdsddd 2y ago
That's what the chinese thought in the 18th century :).
A fun quote for the europeans here:
"Our land is so wealthy and prosperous that we possess all things. Therefore, there is no need to exchange the produce of foreign barbarians for our own." - The emperor at the height of Qing China
- asah 2y agoThis was in fact so true that the Brits forced the matter: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Opium_Wars https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Opium_Wars
- anon291 2y agoIf your lesson from history is that hubris works, then that's very interesting.
- Der_Einzige 2y agoIronically, the most drug liberal places in the world, i.e. Silicon Valley, are the source of what this article talks about, productivity gains! You just need the right drugs, in this case, Psychedelics.
- trhway 2y agoThat is the point - the Brits were able to force the matter. If you aren't up-to-date on technology, specifically military tech, you're going to have matters like this forced upon you. Que the Ukraine giving up the nukes (and later getting rid of even non-nuclear missiles).
- marcosdumay 2y agoThere are a few centuries and a lot of decline between those.
- DiogenesKynikos 2y agoThe Emperor is not necessarily the guy to go to for the man-in-the-street view from China.