sindri42: centerist-druid-of-vermont:lordfreemanofficial:30-minute-memes: You know its the truth
sindri42: centerist-druid-of-vermont: lordfreemanofficial: 30-minute-memes: You know its the truth. You have to wonder where China would be without communism today They’d set the age we’re in rather than America. And they’d be the only hyperpower in the world. China has always been in a sort of tug-of-war between a brilliant, innovative population and a government obsessed with total control at all costs. In the 14th century, China had the strongest navy in the world and spread their power across client states all the way down the coast of Africa. They were a global superpower when the European nations were essentially squabbling children. Then the government decided that this gave merchants too much power and made them a threat, so they ordered that all oceangoing vessels be burned and all naval architects executed. European explorers showed up just a few decades later, in vessels which were laughably small and weak compared to the navy China had just disposed of, but which were the strongest thing remaining on the seas, which allowed them to force China into the opium trade. Before that, you saw the same cycle repating over and over of a new dynasty rising to power, incredible technologies and art forms being developed as they worked to unify most of east asia, then the government clamping down on everything, crushing innovation, stagnating the economy, and ultimately collapsing under the weight of “barbarians” with new ideas, who then came in to build a new dynasty and start the process over. What we’re seeing now looks the late stages of a Chinese government, reactionary narcissists who could be on top of the world if they allowed their people the freedom to work, but who are more interested in violently suppressing any thoughts which aren’t completely complimentary. -- source link