[marktwain]

Exactly.

Competence no longer counts for anything. Scary time for people in China.

Some nationalistic dictators have worked. The question is, what is his economic philosophy?

Most dictators rule with the primary view of maintaining power and accumulating wealth.

How does Xi expect to rule? More or less central planning?

More or less gunboat diplomacy?

[TigerLikesRooster]

I heard a story that China is close to completing Internet tracking system of every Chinese. They will be evaluated based on what they purchase, what they say, and how they work. If you get low evaluation, you will be subject to various penalties. You would have low credit rating, lower priority in housing allocation, and diminished job prospect. It all depend on how the state grades you according to your political loyalty.

China can be the first full-fledged digital big brother state.

[Teacher317]

Some nationalistic dictators have worked. The question is, what is his economic philosophy?

China is all about economic freedoms, as long as the money keeps rolling in (and the correct state and local palms get greased). The Chinese (so far) have adored their Golden Goose, and do not want to kill it. (They just renamed it "Chinese Socialism" so that nobody figures out that it is actually Capitalism. Shhhh. Don't tell anybody.)

It is the social freedoms that have to wait "until the economic conditions are stable" (which, of course, they will never be).

[ek_hornbeck]

No matter how much political power Xi accumulates, China cannot and will not go back to the Maoist model of state ownership. Xi realizes that if he wants China to remain a major power, it needs an economy based on some level of private property and profit. China can’t afford its military strength or its political sway over other countries (including the US) if it goes back to a Communist economic system. Xi will no doubt continue to crack down on any and all political opposition, but he won’t be re-nationalizing private property en masse anytime soon.