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My friend Helen and her parents were at Tiananmen square, and fled China soon after that. However, when her parents made contact with friends in China again, they said that they had left just before it had started getting good.
Sure, there are still many, many people who still live hard lives, especially in the rural areas. But compared to the Maoist era? The Civil War? The Republican era? The Qing dynasty. China's economy and standard of living is progressing faster than it has in the last 200 years. Sure, China could be a lot better. But if you compare China to many other parts of the developing world, it's clear that China could be in a lot worse situation than it is.
And as for tourists not being able to get an indication of true living standards in a country, maybe that's true to an extent. But surely people who've actually been to poor parts of China, as I have, would have a slightly better idea than some armchair economists in the West.
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"Look, I'm pretty relaxed for a guy who just lost money on a rave. And who's currently speeding down the highway drunk off my tits. And I'm being chased by someone in a blue Corolla. Woohoo! I just ran a red light!"
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