• OurToothbrush@lemmy.mlM
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    1 year ago

    Except China has a vibrant democracy with a 95 percent approval rating, Xi isn’t that old, and Russia is a nakedly corrupt bourgeois “democracy”, sure

    Or literally any historical analysis as opposed to marvel movie understandings of politics

    • zephyreks@lemmy.mlOPM
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      1 year ago

      “Approval ratings” are rather nebulous. By the divisive and partisan nature of American politics, approval ratings in America are naturally going to be low because both parties exist solely to shit on each other. In China, “approval ratings” get measured from the perspective of “is my life improving?” rather than “would my life be improving more under someone else?”

      Honestly? I think asking if someone’s life has improved is a more fair polling question to ask, but it’s one that’s difficult to differentiate in the US because of how radicalized everyone is.

      Basically, what I’m saying is that the US would have a higher effective approval rating in the Chinese context than it does today, because many American lives ARE improving under the American government. People just think (often incorrectly) that it would improve more if the other party had power.

      • OurToothbrush@lemmy.mlM
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        1 year ago

        In China, “approval ratings” get measured from the perspective of “is my life improving?” rather than “would my life be improving more under someone else?”

        Wow, an actual useful metric for whether the government is responsive to the populations needs.

        Basically, what I’m saying is that the US would have a higher effective approval rating in the Chinese context than it does today, because many American lives ARE improving under the American government.

        Except for life expectancy reductions, child malnutrition, literacy rate reductions, etc

        • zephyreks@lemmy.mlOPM
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          1 year ago

          Sure, I agree. The US is basically adopting Deng Xiaoping’s policies on common prosperity: to develop some regions and pray that it drives less-developed regions.

          Of course, that doesn’t really work in a capitalist structure.