That nation has more unemployed peasants in the rural areas than the U.S. has population. Plain fact, no spin at all. The question is: what's to become of them?
Well, from the ChinCom gov's standpoint at least, if they'd care to sit on their butts until doomsday, that's fine; we'll tax some other segment of the economy so they don't run out of rice.
However, that's not the way it's playing out. The rural poor are moving to the cities en masse, and even in direct defiance of the Party's assorted edicts. The ChinCom response to date has been to try to build new cities to accommodate them, hence the radical price changes in copper, iron, and cement over the past couple of years.
Won't work, of course -- CAN'T work -- but the ChinComs apparently are unaware of John Galt's statement to Mr. Thompson.
I've no idea -- certainly hope not! -- that the rural peasants will be mowed down by the PLA on their masters' orders, but I rather think this won't come to pass. Perhaps an incident or two, but no more.
The ChinComs are taking the short end of history, both their own nation's history and that of other nations to boot. This has hardly ever been a winning proposition. Ask Chirac for further details (assuming he's even READ his own nation's history). Or ask the Romanovs, whatever's left of them. Or the pre-Chavez ruling party in Venezuela.
Point is that when a nation gets stuck with SO MANY illiterate peasants who become discontented with being illiterate peasants and WITHOUT bothering to become literate, the sequel is potentially more volatile than mercury fulminate.
Exactly where China is, just this moment.
It will be interesting to see how it plays out. If it goes as many seem to think, China will implode on it's own. I'm not banking on it.
I appreciate the comments.
Substitute peasants with illegal aliens and illiterate with citizens...