As usual I’d love for the down voters to comment instead of being cowards.

I’ll bite.

China is not communist. But we should talk about different economic systems because that’s the ultimate goal.

Communism in itself is a true ideal as long as output exceeds intake and satisfaction is high. It’s also possible on a global scale, if not designed for it.

Capitalism is also a true ideal as long as it’s built on an immovable foundation of human rights paid for by centralized non profit corporations.

The issue has nothing to do with the ideas themselves. The issue is and always has been the concentration of power.

It is the ideas of the few which can never properly represent the masses. Even with the best intentions. The only true ideal for power is that there is none except when handled by all. The US Constitution seemed to have this idea in mind with its intent, though it’s evolved into the same old concentration of power over time. Doesn’t matter which party either. The reality is power is so concentrated now that there are no true parties anymore. This is a mafia that transcends both sides.

So no China is no proof of anything except improper concentration of power. Mostly capitalist by the way. And totally tyrannical in their wielding of power against free thought, sex, religion, etc. It’s practically anti freedom and contradicts every protected class we have in the US.

Does anyone have the statistics on how many abortion occur there? Even if you’re pro choice, the piles of discarded fetuses could reach skyscraper height. This is not a normal issue to have. How many illiterate? How many old people died while they were bolted inside their homes during COVID?

If the question is what system would you be willing to put your life in the hands of, there is only one answer: which one has the most distributed power and wealth above the rest.

I don’t have time to go through everything wrong with your post but I want to touch on Chinese vs American literacy rates for a moment

In America while the total population literacy rate is often cited at 99%, functional literacy (the ability to manage daily living and employment tasks) is lower, with estimates placing it between 65% and 85%.

China’s literacy rate has grown from 79% in 1982 to 97% in 2020.

In 2018 PISA results,15-year-olds in China outperformed U.S. peers in reading, math, and science. Some analyses suggest about 20% of U.S. 15-year-olds do not read as well as they should by age 10.

In the 2018 PISA China ranked first globally in all subjects. The U.S. ranked roughly 13th in reading and 37th in math among 79 education systems

Youth literacy in the U.S. is facing a crisis, with 25% of 16-to-24-year-olds deemed functionally illiterate as of 2023, up from 16% in 2017. Roughly 60% of U.S. teens do not read at grade level, and 34% of fourth-graders perform below basic reading levels.

In 2020, youth (15–24) literacy in China reached 100%.

Nothing you said contradicts anything I wrote, so I’m struggling to understand why you started your comment this way. To say “everything wrong with my post” then address nothing I wrote… I’m not sure you should be quoting literacy at all.

You’ll find I’m highly critical of both China and the US once we discuss further.

Lastly, there is no chance in hell China’s literacy reached 97%, not will it as long as rural lifestyle continues with no need for it.

Literacy rate by country, 2026. China is at 97%. Get out of the 20th century and turn off Fox News.

First off, I’m a progressive. Second, I lived in China for 6 months and I’m telling you the statistic is wrong. I have first hand experience among the many many many rural areas that are basically third world. China historically reports garbage numbers and this one of them. Shocking I know! How could they!

Nah, you’re repeating far-right talking points. You have no counter-evidence other than your belief that underdeveloped rural areas cannot possibly achieve high literacy rates, when exactly that has happened everytime socialism has been established around the world. Further, in recent decades China has been focusing on the urban/rural divide.

First off, I don’t have any right wing, let alone far right propaganda in my life. I’m a progressive. Do you think a MAGA idiot would go live in China themselves? Obviously not.

I don’t actually need evidence to be correct, because I saw it first hand. But I probably can prove it anyways. The simplest way: there are multiple definitions of literacy. They now call it functioning literacy in some cases. Others get very specific such as can they read a newspaper or write a statement about a topic? I do believe China is achieving great things with their younger generations. That, I also saw first hand. Although, they conveniently rewrite history as well. Completely covering up the atrocities the government has caused. That is pretty unforgivable.

Anyways, the older generation is filled with people who are still illiterate. They are not in school. They are not learning. They are working. And mostly happy by the way. Illiteracy is not a criticism on well being. That was someone else’s argument that “they must be doing well because they’ve achieved so much LITERACY.” Those are the happiest people I’ve ever met. Willing to share their food and home with total strangers. Their jobs and their lives and their happiness do not require literacy. That is why they will never change. Only once the younger generation has outlived the older long enough to reach a 97% rate could we call it the achievement you are wanting to believe.

Anyways, none of this has anything to do with my initial statement. Both systems suck! Everyone else is throwing these random statements such as literacy to try to change the argument. Draw it into a which is better contest. It’s just like red and blue politics in America. Fuck all that. We the people, everywhere, deserve better than either of these power and control hungry psychos would have for us. Period.

You do need evidence to back your claims. Literacy rates were chosen as merely one example to prove the effectiveness of socialism in China at dramatically improving people’s lives. One person’s anecdote, especially when said person has no idea about basic socialist concepts like idealism vs. materialism, is not at all sufficient.

The truth is that capitalism sucks, and socialism works. You haven’t demonstrated that you even understand what these systems are, and have been confidently incorrect when others have explained them to you.

You add more invented problems like the idea that the CPC is “hiding atrocities.” Why should anyone take you seriously?

You don’t think the CCP* is hiding history from their people? It’s ironic you think I’m confidentially incorrect when I know for a fact you are. I don’t see this as an argument at all. This is me playing teacher to you so you can go research the many topics covered here that you don’t seem to understand. My original argument is simple. China’s system sucks. The US system sucks.

To think you can even define China’s system as socialism is ridiculous. No modern super power has an economy or government that abides by a single definition.

It is you and others here who have tried to change the argument to something you think you understand to try to “win.” It’s honestly exhausting. I’ve rewritten my thesis about 20 times and it’s still being ignored.

The irony: I like socialism. You people are simply too caught up in your own ego or something to let that sink in.

See, the key flaw here is that I’ve come to the conclusions I have precisely because I’ve researched these topics. You have been given scholarly sources proving you exactly wrong, and your only response is “nuh-uh.” That’s not acceptable proof in any setting, even a comment forum.

As for China’s system, it’s socialist because public ownership is the principle aspect of the economy and the working classes control the state. It has a highly particular socialist model fit for China’s present conditions, but it is plainly and simply socialist as fits the general characteristics of socialism.

Your thesis is being ignored because of 2 reasons: 1, it’s wrong, and 2, your only source is your own word. When scholarly sources debunking your claims are presented, you just deflect.

You don’t even seem to know what socialism is, and you seem happy to say a socialist country sucks, so your own word saying you like socialism rings extraordinarily hollow.

And it’s CPC, not CCP. Communist Party of X is the international format.

Explain to me how killing 30-50 million people is acceptable in this shining example of socialism. How about genocide? Massacre? What about Tibet? What about the impending invasion in Taiwan? Are these the everyday normal citizens taking their “control” over their system and saying GO FUCKING LEAVE A TRAIL OF BLOOD HERE AND HERE AND HERE?

It’s very very easy to point out that China has a brutal and immoral system with very common sense examples.

I just prefer my personal version because my memories of China were wonderful. As many Chinese visiting the US would agree. But the truth is obvious.