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The first of my four visits to China was in 1981. The most recent was in 2017.Focusing on a city I visited all four times (Guangzhou,formerly known as "Canton") it changed substantially...actually enormously...in those 36 years.In 2017 the center of the city featured traffic jams (Toyotas,Kias and Buicks) and the streets were lined with glass and steel skyscrapers.In 1981 the traffic jams consisted of 750,000 bicycles and a few broken down buses and the streets were lines with Soviet style buildings reminiscent of the 1940s.

But in 2017,like in 1981,if you travel 5 miles outside of the city center you're back in the 1700s. And in 2017 the air was far dirtier than anything I've ever seen in NYC,the LA Basin or the Ruhr Valley.

As far as I could see the majority...probably the large majority...of China's people still live like savages.

As far as I could see the majority...probably the large majority...of China's people still live like savages.

Well, yours is an observation not shared by the main stream media, academics, senior government officials, and the crazed leftists... all who believe China is invincible. Even the cool billionaire capitalist Jimmy Rogers has his kids studying Chinese, not that there is anything bad in that but...

May I add that you have actually been there and seen with your own eyes the conditions in China. There is a huge disparity in the idea of China between those who have been there and those who only read about China. You are spot on, with the exception of using the word 'savages' when you probably meant to say living a bare basic lifestyle. China has no hope as it is, and its turmoil as it tries to adapt will rock the world. But only rock, then all will be stable, but China will have changed forever. Forget about expansionism and taking over the world...Never happen.