[tablespoon]

>> I think it is correct that prosperity will eventually bring democracy.

> Xi sees that too and is busy trying to knock China's wealthy citizens down a couple of notches.

What do billionaire-wealthy citizens have to do with prosperity or democracy (besides the fantasies of pro-billionaire propaganda)?

[ddoolin]

Well, they did pick up Jack Ma for speaking out against gov't regulation (to put it simply). Celebrities in China, including the wealthy, have a lot of influence. Their "abductions" almost certainly are intertwined with keeping a grip on their power.

[A4ET8a8uTh0]

From that perspective, I can understand why Xi wants to limit power of individuals he sees in US ( they do wield tremendous amount of power ). He obviously understands it is a threat to the system ( and by extension himself ).

I have long argued that too much power in one individual is a bad thing ( and that includes billionaires ).

[postingawayonhn]

I didn't say anything about billionaires.

I was talking more broadly about upper-class people in China. Generally anyone who lives in a tier 1 city and has a quality of life approaching that of people in developed nations.

It's easy to keep poor people happy through continued economic growth but once people reach a certain level of material wealth they're going to start demanding more personal freedoms.