[lgieron]

> You aren't going to be talking about deep politics with a Beijing taxi driver without a good command of Chinese

Do people talk politics there? Accidentally let slip the wrong sentence when the wrong pair of ears is around and bam , your life as you know it is over.

[seanmcdirmid]

Yes, and no, China is not that totalitarian. Chinese will complain about the government all the time, just they don't appreciate foreigners, even residents, doing the same. That would be like a Chinese complaining about the USA while living there....