I lived in Shanghai for many years. One of my kids was born there. The Shanghai of the 2010s is the not the Shanghai of today. The author of this piece is spot on. Shanghai especially was not subject to the same extreme of “collectivist” policies of most of the country — it is/was almost the new Hong Kong — a lot of innovation and entrepreneurship. It is/was a significant engine of Chinese innovation and source of wealth and prestige for the rest of the country.
And suggesting these policies saved millions? That’s just not supported by any evidence. Cape Town didn’t have millions of deaths from Omnicron — nor did any other major world city where Omnicron showed up.
This is a communist flex — an opportunity to remind the Shanghainese that Beijing calls the shots. Lockdowns are a political tool disguised as a public health tool — much like lockdowns everywhere.
Still hard to believe that governments are getting away with the war in Eastasia (or was it Eurasia?) What an epilogue to 1984 we’re seeing!
And suggesting these policies saved millions? That’s just not supported by any evidence. Cape Town didn’t have millions of deaths from Omnicron — nor did any other major world city where Omnicron showed up.
This is a communist flex — an opportunity to remind the Shanghainese that Beijing calls the shots. Lockdowns are a political tool disguised as a public health tool — much like lockdowns everywhere.
Still hard to believe that governments are getting away with the war in Eastasia (or was it Eurasia?) What an epilogue to 1984 we’re seeing!