Under President Xi Jinping, the party ensures it is well-ensconced in ever-more ways. Direct elections are allowed only for some lower-level jobs; horse-trading among party elders determines who climbs the political hierarchy. The party has stoked national pride with Olympic gold medals and missions into space along with increasingly slick propaganda. Tight controls on mass and social media stifle dissent. The government has nurtured world-beating companies developing cutting-edge technologies such as facial recognition and artificial intelligence – tools that can be used to track challengers to its rule. Billionaires are tolerated as long as they toe the party line. A campaign against corruption that’s punished a million bureaucrats aims to ensure everyone stays in line...
... China set new boundaries for its most powerful technology companies seemingly overnight, while U.S. antitrust scrutiny of its tech giants is likely to take years. But there’s also much in China that’s maligned. The lack of checks and balances has led to ruthless enforcement of the party’s rule, such as the 1989 killing of protesters in Tiananmen Square and its treatment of the Uyghurs. Xi’s dismantling of the norms for succession put in place after Tiananmen creates a risk of infighting and long-term instability. A monopoly on power also means the party is its own watchdog, leaving the system susceptible to abuse.[https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-08-03/-china-model-aims-for-prosperity-without-democracy-quicktake-krvqxxd0]
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