YouTube: America, China, and the Future of Democracy

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iyTvl7bmaug&t=995s&ab_channel=

Cyrus Janssen June 12, 2021

America has been a large advocate of spreading democracy around the world, and there is good reason. Democracy has been one of the most successful forms of governments in the world. Will China one day embrace a democracy? Would a democracy be better for the country of China? Join me live as we discuss these issues!

Comments 1,013

@MikeyDaHammer

2年前

As a Chinese citizen born in HK, I can assure that Brit HK never had democracy. Indeed, my uncle's childhood neighbour in the 60-70s was a university student. He was a a anti british gov individual, and was caught by the secret agents for publicly spreading anti gov topics. He was beaten badly and had severe internal injurires, and died few months after.

@Shenzhou.

2年前

Agreed. Previously Hong Kong was under authoritarian British colonial rule, during which Hong Kong did not enjoy democracy and virtually no elections were held in Hong Kong while it was a British colony. It's only during the period of Hong Kong's 1997 handover that Hong Kong people finally get to vote in elections for their favourite leaders.

So it's thanks to Beijing that Hong Kong people finally get democracy today under the One Country, Two Systems Policy, where they had none before, for 150 years as a British colony.

@michaelloong964

2年前

So sad. It is called British democracy. There are still many HKers wanting the British government to come back to govern HK. That's why the protesters carry British flag. What say you?

@adoreslaurel

2年前

Surely HK changed after 1997 when the hand over took place.

@Shenzhou. 2年前

@adoreslaurel Hong Kong actually held more elections after the 1997 handover than they ever did for 150 years as a British colony before, so isn't it thanks to mainland China that Hong Kong people finally get democracy under One Country, Two Systems Policy? Where they had none before for 150 years as a British colony?

@MikeyDaHammer 2年前

@adoreslaurel I still recall during the 80s-90s, HK was full of robbery, triads activities, and public safety wasn't all that nice, especially the new towns such as Tuen Mun, Shatin, Ma On Shan, etc. There were a lot of teenagers being recruited into the triads. Comparing that to post-handover, CPC had pretty much extinguished the violent activities between gangs, robberies, etc. You can feel safe walking home alone at night.

@adoreslaurel 2年前

@MikeyDaHammer That is good to hear,I thought I read somewhere once that the CPC used Triad members for clandestand operations overseas, not sure about that one, however the CIA will use any and all means for their operations.

@adoreslaurel

2年前

@Shenzhou. Yes, an opportunity for an election is good however whoever you vote for is always a Communist and beholden to the Party. as someone once said a long time ago, "If elections could change anything, they would be outlawed". This is true, they are only held to give the people hope that they have some say in their fate.

@MikeyDaHammer

2年前

@adoreslaurel to be fair, I think every gov has their hidden dirty side. As long as youre not standing in their way, we should be safe. But back then, the gaming arcades were full of triad kids. Our parents forbeit us from going there, since it was common to have mass brawl inside.

@Shenzhou.

2年前

@adoreslaurel Beijing appointing the Hong Kong Chief Executive is in accordance with Hong Kong Basic Law Article 45 (香港基本法第四十五條) which stipulates:

"The Chief Executive of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region shall be selected by election or through consultations held locally and be appointed by the Central People's Government." - Hong Kong Basic Law Article 45

So the Central People's Government (Beijing) reserves the right to appoint the Hong Kong Chief Executive in accordance with Article 45 of Hong Kong Basic Law.

@adoreslaurel

2年前

@Shenzhou. So it's a waste of time voting in HK.

@adoreslaurel

2年前

@MikeyDaHammer Yes Lots of truth there, with violence increasing in western society, it's a real worry.

@adoreslaurel

2年前

@Shenzhou. Hong Kong used to be the CCP's outlet to the west and that was its main purpose in leaving it alone, now the USA has revoked its trade status with HK, I don't understand your point, HK left the control of the UK in 1997, what authoritarian rule was it flourishing under? CCP has only had it since 1997.

@Shenzhou.

2年前

@adoreslaurel Before the 1997 handover, Hong Kong was flourishing under authoritarian British colonial rule for 150 years as a British colony. After/During the 1997 handover, democracy was granted to Hong Kong people and they could now vote for their favourite leaders thanks to the One Country, Two Systems Policy by Beijing, and Beijing does not cast any votes in Hong Kong's elections at all.

But Hong Kong is suffering under democracy today, whereas just next door in the mainland, Shenzhen transformed from a wetland village in 1980s to a technological mecca, home to some of the most advanced tech, smartphones, cameras, drones, electronics, IT, Artificial Intelligence, robotics, automation and so on. Chinese company DJI (world's largest civilian drone manufacturer) organises an competition "Robo Masters" attracting participants from all over the world to compete in robotics with the winner of the competition being offered a job to work at DJI.

Video: China's High-Stakes Robot Wars youtu.be/qrhvZhPaxQ4?t=40

All while Shenzhen is under the leadership of the Communist Party of China, while Hong Kong is suffering under democracy today.

@adoreslaurel

2年前

@Shenzhou. Hong Kong has no democracy today Xi has seen to that, the CCP has assumed total control, any governor of HK is under the direct control of Beijing.

@Shenzhou.

2年前

@adoreslaurel "神州 Shenzhou Hong Kong has no democracy today Xi has seen to that,"

Democracy basically means that people vote in elections for their favourite leaders and Hong Kong clearly have their own government separate from the mainland China. Carrie Lam won the 2017 Hong Kong Chief Executive election by obtaining 777 votes from the 1,194-member appointed Election Committee (which consist entirely of Hong Kong groups) and Beijing does not cast any votes in Hong Kong's elections.

So how does Hong Kong not have democracy? Hong Kong even held an election on 2019 resulting in landslide victory for pro-democracy group.

If Hong Kong was truly under Beijing's entire control, then Hong Kong would have turned out like prosperous Shenzhen in the mainland under communist party rule.

@adoreslaurel

2年前

@Shenzhou. Are you saying that if somebody got up on a soap box in HK and criticised the CPC that they would NOT be arrested for disturbing public order?

@Shenzhou.

2年前

@adoreslaurel I thought we were talking about "democracy" in Hong Kong, so since Hong Kong people clearly vote in elections for their favourite leaders, then Hong Kong clearly has democracy isn't it?

@adoreslaurel

2年前

@Shenzhou. Well China is a one party country, can you have a democracy if there is no alternative party? However i will admit that the so called 2 party system in America is a joke, they both screw the people.

@Shenzhou.

2年前

@adoreslaurel Are we talking about Hong Kong or mainland China? Why do keep on jumping topics when you're unable to refute my points? Since you acknowledged that the 2 party system in America is a joke, then can't China pursue our own success through a single party system? Not all countries have to adopt Western democracy to be successful and China is living proof of this.

@adoreslaurel

2年前

@Shenzhou. i am glad you are back, 200 YES 200 Police invaded the offices of the Apple Daily in Hong Kong at 7.30 AM yesterday and arresterd the Editor-in-Chief on the tired old charge of "Breaching Hong Kong's National Security laws, buy criticising the national security laws. What a Joke, there is NO DEMOCRACY in HK and never will be under the heavy hand of the criminal CPC, I wonder if it will be reported in your news papers, probably not. Mainland must never hear about dissdent views in Hong Kong.

@Shenzhou.

2年前

@adoreslaurel The Hong Kong National Security Law is in accordance with Hong Kong Basic Law Article 23 (香港基本法第二十三條) to prohibit any act of treason, secession, sedition, subversion against the Central People's Government (aka Beijing). But like I said, Hong Kong clearly have their own democracy, they voted in elections for HK Chief Executive Carrie Lam and Hong Kong have their own government separate from the mainland, and Beijing does not cast any votes in HK elections. So I've long proven the point that democracy exists in Hong Kong, they even won a landslide victory for the pro-democracy in 2019.

Source: Hong Kong voters deliver landslide victory for pro-democracy campaigners theguardian.com/world/2019/nov/24/hong-kong-residents-turn-up-for-local-elections-in-record-numbers

@adoreslaurel

2年前

@Shenzhou. Did you even botherr to read about the invasion of ther news paper in HK? I don't think you did.

@Shenzhou.

2年前

@adoreslaurel Firstly, Hong Kong is part of China, so how's that an invasion of their newspaper? Secondly, even if such an event transpired, Hong Kong still clearly have democracy, they vote at elections. HK Chief Executive Carrie Lam won the 2017 election garnering 777 voted out of the 1,200 Election Committee. Beijing didn't cast any votes in Hong Kong's elections, the vote was entirely by Hong Kong, so again, how does Hong Kong not have democracy?

Do you even know what the meaning of democracy is? That people can participate in voting for their favourite leaders? How does what happen to HK newspaper equate to HK suddenly not having democracy?

@jonathanlee5520

2年前

What has Demo(n)cracy got to do with human future ?

This has been a SINFUL world, so, ALL POLITICAL SYSTEMS ARE

*at best, can be tolerated by most,

*at worst, HYPOCRISY 'DESIGNED' TO DEFEND THE Perpetual INTEREST OF THE "FEWs"

@enthufm

2年前

@adoreslaurel but i think, on the other hand, we also need to examine the news written by Apple Daily. They do not exactly have a clean record on factual news reporting.

@adoreslaurel

2年前

@enthufm I guess we all have to be careful.

@juliaz3342

2年前

In fact, when we watched the HK movies during 80-90s, we can see a lot of anti-British sentiment. But the new HKness, they always forget/ignore it.People always miss anything pass.

@enthufm

2年前

@adoreslaurel Would you care to elaborate more? Careful about?

@adoreslaurel

2年前

@enthufm Well you never know, maybe the CPC paid propagandists may one day say something truthful.

@enthufm

2年前

@adoreslaurel Hmmmm... What is the point of saying something like when we are not even sure who is who within social media platforms? Whereas, I am more leaning towards objective analysis and fact checking to get closer to so called truth. I mean whats up with all the name calling? Wumao, Cia bots, etc etc. Doesn't really contribute to any truth right?

@adoreslaurel

2年前

@enthufm Maybe I should just leave these sites to those who are more "Cerebral", I have had enough of the 'Beijing BS Express".

@meetan77

2年前

@michaelloong964 braIn washed sInce prImary school

@michaelloong964

2年前

@meetan77 haha my primary school is better than DTrump University that teaches cheating, lying and stealing with Mike Pompeo as the principal. It Sounds like you have graduated from DT University. Shall I give you a PhD for your excellent observation of my background?

@spadeysay6846

2年前

@michaelloong964 They are traitors and should be treated as traitors.

@spadeysay6846

2年前

@Shenzhou. With hindsight, perhaps Beijing made a mistake by permitting the 1C2S for HK. It should have adopted the nation state practice that Germany took when East and West Germany re-united. The HK riots is a reflection of the devious and malicious mentality of the English and US governments.

@Shenzhou.

2年前

@spadeysay6846 Agreed. China is actually the only country that allows multiple political systems to exist within our borders under the 1 Country 2 Systems policy. I mean, every other country in the world is 1 Country 1 System, yet Western democracies are complaining that China is not doing enough to uphold the 1C2S policy.

@Shenzhou.

2年前

@adoreslaurel You're not even from Hong Kong yourself, what'd you care about China's internal politics?

@Shenzhou.

2年前

@adoreslaurel What makes you so reluctant to admit that China has something positive to teach the world? I mean, China is currently at peace and not at war with any country, since our last major conflict in 1979. Instead of making war, China is building infrastructure like roads, railways, highways, bridges, tunnels, powerstations, dams, ports, airports, etc and investing in developing countries like Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and also African countries like Nigeria, Kenya, Chad, Sudan, Ghana, Mozambique, Tanzania, etc.

Whereas the United States is warmonger being involved in Gulf War, Iraq War, Afghan War, Libyan War, Syrian War, Yemen War, etc, even in the 21st century. USA is bombing in those Middle Eastern countries and enacting regime change by cutting off their "heads" (Saddam Hussein, Muammar Gaddafi, etc) and then installing their own US puppet governments in place.

Video: U.S. should focus more on infrastructure rather than warmongering youtu.be/LyhK2PQyE_w

@adoreslaurel

2年前

@Shenzhou. I agree with a lot of what you say, and yes, the USA shows up really poorly in the eyes of the world by its bullying, warmongering behaviour, however when you say China is currenhtly at peace, I dispute that, how many people do you employ to suppress information coming in by using your firewall, and how many thousand professional "Hackers" do you employ trying to steal western technology, and how many "Back Doors" does Huawei install to take control of a countries infrastructure, the fact that China goes to great lengths to shut down access to the western media shows just how insecure the CPC really is.

@Shenzhou.

2年前

@adoreslaurel What Huawei backdoor? Even Germany's Federal Office for Information Security (BSI) have found no evidence of Huawei spying.

Source: German cyber watchdog says no evidence that Huawei spies rt.com/news/446600-huawei-spying-no-evidence-germany/

@adoreslaurel

2年前

@Shenzhou. Lets give credit to the smart people at Huawei, do you think the Germans are smart enough to find out everything? perthaps you give them too much credit. I think Huawei have scientists smart enough to do this, after all, every company in China swears allegiance to the Party and the Military, there are no secrets no matter what any company tells the west.

@Shenzhou.

2年前

@adoreslaurel So you think Germans are not smart enough? Even France's cybersecurity chief Guillaume Poupard said his agency hasn’t uncovered any evidence of Huawei spying via Europe’s communications networks.

Source: There’s no proof to show Huawei was spying in Europe, France says theprint.in/world/theres-no-proof-to-show-huawei-was-spying-in-europe-france-says/357011/

@adoreslaurel

2年前

@Shenzhou. Ok, lets assume the circuits are all in order this time I read some years ago, the Americans found some back doors in chips in some product, you never know, you can't trust companies with such ties to the Govt and Military, why has Xi become so nasty to Australia? just because we said it might be a good idea to find out where the virus started, this attitude by Xi was just uncalled for and brutal, He cannot be trusted to be honorable, Isn't it strange how both he and his father fell foul of the Mao monster yet Xi joined the Party, I suppose if you can't beat them, Join them, pity he has not worked to undermine the Party, but if he tried, he would wind up in front of a firing squad,

@Shenzhou.

2年前

@adoreslaurel Where's your source that Americans found back doors in chips in some products?

@Shenzhou.

2年前

@adoreslaurel If you can't trust companies with ties to the government and military, then you certainly shouldn't trust the Australian Strategic Policy Institute (ASPI) an Australian "think tank" that's literally funded by actual "tank-makers" themselves, the American military industrial complex (Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman, Raytheon Technologies, Boeing etc)

@adoreslaurel

2年前

@Shenzhou. Can't find it, it's old news so we will have to let this one go. But i did read it a few years ago. But it would be natural, Chinma styeals that much tec from other countries and gains knowledge when greedy western countries set up business in China and have to spill their guts. China does not respect patents.

@Shenzhou.

2年前

@adoreslaurel About patents, China applies for more patents than any other in the world and we also have the world's largest number of granted patents, according to World Intellectual Property Indicators.

Patent applications for the top 10 offices, 2018

1. China (1,542,002 patents)

2. United States (597,141 patents)

3. Japan (313,567 patents)

4. South Korea (209,992 patents)

5. European Patent Office (174,397 patents)

6. Germany (67,898 patents)

...

Source: World Intellectual Property Indicators wikipedia.org/wiki/World_Intellectual_Property_Indicators#Patents

Patent grants for the top 10 offices, 2018

1. China (432,147 patents)

2. United States (307,759 patents)

3. Japan (194,525 patents)

4. European Patent Office (127,603 patents)

5. South Korea (119,012 patents)

6. Russian Federation (35,774 patents)

...

@adoreslaurel

2年前

@Shenzhou. Yes and they are very careful not to say anything bad about the Party or lifer for them and their parents will be very difficult.

@adoreslaurel

2年前

@Shenzhou. China may have applied for plenty of patents but if they steal somerone elses I don't like the victims chances in any Communist controlled court.

@Shenzhou.

2年前

@adoreslaurel China publishes more research papers than any other in the world, over a wide range of topics such as physics, biology, chemistry, mathematics, clinical medicine, biomedical research, engineering and technology, and earth and space sciences.

Countries by published scientific papers in 2018:

1. China (528,263 articles)

2. United States (422,808 articles)

3. India (135,788 articles)

4. Germany (104,396 articles)

5. Japan (98,793 articles)

6. United Kingdom (97,681 articles)

7. Russia (81,579

8. Italy (71,240 articles)

9. South Korea (66,376 articles)

...

Source: List of countries by number of scientific and technical journal articles wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_number_of_scientific_and_technical_journal_articles

This shows that many Chinese scientist and researchers are making discoveries and publishing their findings, contributing to mankind's scientific advancements.

@adoreslaurel

2年前

@Shenzhou. I acknowledge that your country has a lot to offer, however we in the west will never bow down and acknowledge a communist regime that puts the kind of progress that it has achieved ahead of freedom of speech, If I were to go to Beijing and get up in the main square and criticise the Government I know that at best I would be deported, at worst, thrown in jail, for threatening state security, when your government has grown up enough to accept public criticism and let the worlds press in to hear some body do just that and not get arrested, then AND ONLY then, will your style ofGovt achieve some respectability in the eyes of the world. Xi is slow in accepting the notion that to gain respect that you have to stop trying to overide other countries views of how a political system should work. But I fear that his unreal desire to achieve his goals in his lifetime using the same technique is doomed to failure.This is a shame, as China could become a real power for peace if it modified its attitude.

@Shenzhou.

2年前

@adoreslaurel China has even sent people into space. In 2003, Yang Liwei became the first person sent into space by the Chinese space program, on board Shenzhou-5 (神舟五号) spacecraft.

Video: Yang Liwei: China's first astronaut in space youtu.be/tIviKg4Mduw

This makes China the world's 3rd country to independently conduct human spaceflight. China is the 1st Asian country to achieve such a feat, even other Asian countries like Japan, Korea and India have not conducted independent manned space missions of their own thus far.

@adoreslaurel

2年前

@Shenzhou. Yes, you are doing well in that sphere.lets hope this space race does not turn out to be a precursor to a "Space warefare Zone".

@Shenzhou.

2年前

@adoreslaurel In 2008, China even conducted our very own "spacewalk" where Chinese taikonaut exited Shenzhou-7 (神舟七号) spacecraft into outer space.

Video: Chinese astronaut makes nation's first spacewalk youtu.be/9PAkbT4kTpI?t=280

China is the world's 3rd country to successfully conduct extravehicular activity in space, after USA and USSR, as well as being the 1st Asian country to achieve such a feat. Even other Asian countries like Japan, Korea and India have not achieved such a feat.

@adoreslaurel

2年前

@Shenzhou. Well good luck to you and your family, there is no point in us discussing anything further, I have made my views on politics and you know where I stand, being raised in a totally different atmosphere obviously shapes our views on life. My worry is, where are the jobs of the future going to come from? technology is robbing us of our traditional avenues of employment, what with machines building everything these days, China is a big manufacturing and exporting country and its economy relies on other countries being able to purchase its products, If the west falls too far behind as having an ability to purchase these products it will be bad for both sides.

@Shenzhou.

2年前

@adoreslaurel Agreed that China relies on overseas consumers, (i.e USA's 300 million consumers) for our products, but if China can transform our 1.4 billion population into consumers ourselves, then China will be the largest consumer market in the world (if we aren't already). That's why China is promoting domestic spending time transform our middle class into the largest consumer market.

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@hhhhhung1423

2年前（修改过）

As a Chinese citizen born in Taiwan,I hope we can be unified one day.I really tired of others countries using cross-strait relations issue to take profit.

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@jessicaw8682

2年前（修改过）

There is no such thing as a political system one-size-fits-all, only what suits best for a particular country or culture.

Taiwan is a classic example of a failed state since it has adopted a "democratic" system. It has got one of the most incompetent governments in the world.

I don't know what China's system will look like in 50 years or 100, but if it continues to evolve and improve as it has done so far, then the future is bright! :)

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@zeissiez

2年前

Why democracy is overrated

I have been an expatriate in Singapore and China. China and Singapore have a similar government system. This is no coincidence, it’s the visit by Deng Xiaoping to Singapore in 1978 that inspired him to adopt the model in his country. They have an authoritarian system based on Socialism and meritocracy, and an economy based on state & private capitalism. There’s election in Singapore, but the PAP is so dominant and the media is so well controlled by it, that Singapore is effectively one party country. I was raised to believe in democracy. After living in Malaysia, Singapore, and China, I realised what I was taught was not entirely correct:

1. In any country, there are fewer intelligent people than less-intelligent people (a pyramid-shaped distribution). Since a democracy is a system where 3 idiots out-vote 1 smart person, democracy favours less-intelligent people’s decision.

2. Three preconditions for a democracy to function: a) no money politics. b) complete news freedom. c) a population with more smart people than less smart people. When money comes into politics, a) & b) are destroyed and a democracy becomes a plutocracy. There’s no country that satisfy c), not America, not even the Swedish, and of course not the Chinese or India which both have a majority living in the rural.

3. When a party wins an election by a small margin, the legitimacy of the win is low, because the result could go either way. When a party wins by a large margin, and the legitimacy of win is high, but it becomes a one party rule, because during the running of the government, the opposition has a small voice. So it’s self-contradictary.

4. In a democratic system, in the beginning, people choose the leader based on impression, not on the results. For example, no one knew how Trump would perform as a President, he did not even have experience in managing a town. It’s only AFTER he became a president that people knew about him, and damaged was already done. In a meritocratic system the leader has to work his way up and backed by a track record.

5. In a multiparty system, the country is divided right from the start. The sole aim of all parties is to win the next election. The parties bring along their supporter and people are then divided, and they waste a lot of time in constant fight and accusation. The US is currently at this state, it’s a divided nation. In Singapore and China. There’s much more political and social harmony. In democratic countries, political atmosphere often turn toxic. Racial issues are often used as weapon to gain support, resulting in less harmonious society.

6. Democratic countries face difficulties in implementing big changes. Plans, no matter how good they are, don’t get passed without a majority support. It’s natural for the opposition to not support any plans by the ruling party. Because their gain is our lost. As a result, many democratic countries suffered from stagnation. Democracy is a safety first approach, but the price to pay is very high. It’s akin to a person is afraid to fall, so he refuse to cycle or ride a motorbike, instead he choose to walk.

7. Mentality of the politicians. In many democratic countries, it’s difficult to get policies implemented, the politicians instead resort to superficial work to please the people, instead of digging down to real fundamental things that may not bear fruit in short time. The politicians in a democratic system tend to have a mentality of a contractor who serve a contract. The mentality of the leaders in Singapore and China are more akin to a father in a family. This is very important, only politicians with real sense of responsibility would sacrifice themselves for the people.

8. In many democratic countries, after an election, many policies are changed, and many projects are thrown away.

9. Lack of long term plans in democratic countries. When one party doesn’t know how long it will stay in power, and policies often get canceled if the opposition win, long term plans are scarce. In China and Singapore, there are long term plans in place. That’s why they grow more rapidly than democratic countries.

10. In a democratic country, how a citizen’s voice is heard is by the government? Every 4 or 5 years, citizens of a democratic country say: “I like you” or “I like someone else” in an election. That’s all. And there’s no guarantee the new government is better. In China, there’s a feedback system via a hotline by dialing #12345, where the citizen could use for complains. An officer is assign for every case and the response is timed. All cases are recorded in a central database. Most of the time problems are solved in a few days. The open cases are then analyzed in the background, if there are of high occurrence, a special task is set to look into the problem. The citizens will be called again after a specific time to check if their problems are solved. This way, the performance of each local government is accessed by the central government. This to me, is the new and advanced democracy for 21 century.

11. In Singapore and China. The government controls capitalism. While in many democratic countries, capitalism controls the government. Look at how the corporates have hijacked the political system in America. America is a corporate dictatorship where the Rich has TWO parties and the people effectively having NONE.

12. A government is more equipped with the knowledge of the domestic and international situation than normal citizens. They are more suited to make decisions than the people. People, especially young people and students, have limited knowledge of the real world, and easily misguided and instigated by foreign influence. Non Government Organizations (NGO) of the US, like the National Endowment for Democracy (NED) and the British Mi6, have been funding oppositions in foreign countries to overthrow the regimes that don’t conform to their interests.

13. There’s a wrong assumption that a democracy is less corrupted due to existence of check and balance mechanism. Singapore is authoritarian, but it has one of the cleanest governments in the world. Similarly, it’s untrue to assume the abuse of power only exist in a authoritarian system. My democratic country had a dictator for 22 years. Indonesia had a dictator Suharto for 3 decades. In the US, there’s a dictator called the Deep State. Libya was the richest country under a dictator Gaddafi. After being “liberated” by NATO, the GDP now is just 1/3 of that under Gaddafi.

14. By giving the right for the people to vote, the rich corporates make the people forget they have one powerful tool: revolution. In a democratic system, after one party is changed, the money moves to the other side. The rich aren’t afraid of a democratic system. In China, the government has to perform, for if they have done badly, a revolution awaits. And the country start anew. Just like we have seen throughout the history of China.

Is the system in Singapore and China suitable for other countries? Definitely not. It would only suit countries with a Confucianism root like China or with traditional social values like the Scandinavians, in which the people regard a country is akin to a family, and the leader is akin to the father of a family. And it’s not suitable for societies which demands individual freedom above all else. What if the “father” happens to be a bad one? Few people know what is the system like in China. The Chinese have very long term plans. Every five years, they come out with a 5-year plan which is very detailed. These plans are advised by the various functional bodies in the country, using data and scientific ways, to cater for the need in the future. Everyone can see the details of the plan, and the rest of the 5 years, it’s just implementation. No one sits above this, not even the country leader. That’s why after one chairman is gone, the policies get carried on.

There are successful democratic countries like Norway and Sweden, because they got the socialism elements in their system: Free schooling, low medical cost, and the people have strong sense of social responsibility. Corruption is well controlled, and the government regulate capitalism tightly.

In summary, is democracy the best system? Definitely not. Is socialism the best system? Definitely not for most countries. What is the best system for most countries? The one which adapt to the actual needs instead of rigidly bounded to ideologies. If there’s a name for the ideology in China, it’s “Whateverworkism”. The biggest mistake the world has been making is when things don’t work, nothing is changed, and people still get trapped in the ideological dogma.

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18 条

@jacktan8096

2年前

Well said.

@glowingnut

2年前

Very deep observation into different systems.

A working system is of vital importance to any country, the form of the system is not that relevant.

As a matter of fact, western style democracy now days came after a solid economy was in place and industrialization was completed. Forcing a developing country to adopt so-called democracy is either a kind of stupidity or a horrible weaponization of democracy.

@judykraska400

2年前

I admire your monologue. Very clear, very logic, very understandable, and very agreeable. Thank you.

I felt, as l sat in one of the Melbourne University auditoriums spellbound following an imported lecture.

One of the best comments here to the topic of democracy.

Thank you so much, one of the grateful readers. ??????

@petrushka2

2年前

Amazing observation and articulation. You are right in every form and cover almost everything. A patriarchal society is akin to traditional monarchy where the king, emperor or pharaoh has the responsibility of looking after its people.

@spadeysay6846

2年前（修改过）

Just a fantastic and comprehensive explanation of how and why the Chinese system of government works for China. If other countries are happy with their system of government, good for them. How democratic is it if the west and the US thinks they are entitled to force any system of government on another country? We all know how those impositions worked out. Which in reality were never the objective in the first place. The only objective is to achieve the subjugation of the countries invaded. It has nothing to do with "democracy". Id Saudi Arabia is democracy? Russia is a democracy, but has the west and the US been all praise about Russia?

@NishidateKitsune

2年前

Well said, fellow countryman.

@javiertan16

2年前

Superb and detailed. Love point 11

@lateolabrax3155

2年前

You are the next Plato

@meetan77

2年前

@spadeysay6846 good observatIon

@whatgeorgeneedlikeone3758

2年前

I would like to save your comment to my note book. Best comment I have ever seen.

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@user-fd3ld9qc7d

2年前（修改过）

Democracy is understood differently in China than in the West. Democracy in Chinese is 民主, where 民 means ordinary people or commoner, and 主 means master/owner or priority. Hence democracy in China is not understood simply as one person one vote (btw, there is a reason why different people of different income levels are taxed at different rates, and this is basically why I disagree with different people with different socio-economic status receiving the same amount of votes), but is understood to be letting the ordinary people become the masters and owners of the country, or making the needs and aspirations of the people the utmost priority. When you compare this explanation with reality, where the Chinese government is doing a good job to alleviate poverty, building modern infrastructures to improve the livelihoods of the Chinese people (what all Chinese people wish to have), then the answer to the question of whether China is a democracy by her own definition becomes apparent. And remember, democracy is a mean and not an end. The end is about creating a society where all people are happy, prosperous and living fulfilling and meaning lives with dignity, and not about holding elections. If democracy is made the end, then it would become a religion (instead of being a social scientific experimental product as it should be) that is akin to a dog chasing its own tail, leading to stagnation, if not decline, and waste of social resources, evident by the state of many democratic Western countries in present reality.

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@scienceisrealnotgod2873

2年前

China is lucky that they didn't adored western style democracy otherwise it would take thousand of yrs for them to develop like my country India.

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@qaz120120

2年前

An important thing to note is that most wealthy countries got where they are while not being a democracy. Democracy is more the result of prosperity and not the other way around. Democracy does not have any significant effect on the growth of a nation.

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@NathalieBlais

2年前

Thank you always for such great content! I really, really like the broad, international perspective you bring to every topic; pretty hard to find in the media and much appreciated. I am learning a lot!

@optimalwin8327

2年前（修改过）

China has already accomplished democracy as defined by Plato.

The concept of democracy as defined by Plato, a Greek philosopher, and reiterated by ex POTUS Abraham Lincoln is "government for the people, government of the people, government by the people". The tools to accomplish the concept of democracy are numerous and are limited by your own creativity, and is not limited to what the West have employed. Concept and tool are completely two different things. A CONCEPT as defined in a dictionary is "a general notion or idea; conception OR an idea of something formed by mentally combining all its characteristics or particulars; a construct OR a directly conceived or Intuited object of thought." A TOOL as defined in a dictionary is "anything used as a means of accomplishing a task or purpose or concept."

The West have employed (1) one person one vote, (2) universal suffrage, and (3) multiparty election system as tools in an attempt to accomplish the concept of democracy. This is by no means the only tools available or a must employ tools or the best tools used or the worst tools used. The appropriate tools to employ for each country needs to be custom determined based on history, culture, geography, contemporary geopolitics, and other factors. Whether a country has selected the "right" tools for its populace will manifest in the passage of time.

Just take a look at the USA, with the passage of time, the verdict has been manifesting gradually over the decades that the USA have a very flawed democracy due to the "incorrect" or abusive use of tools selected. This flaw evolved overtime through its developed governance and policy structure, which in turn facilitate the very covert overwhelming of the democracy concept through the covert evolution of plutocracy governance structure and policy. Plutocracy governing has effectively controlled the “brain” of majority of its voting populace, hence the abusive use of tools selected to accomplish democracy concept by, for, and of the top 10% of society. For the tools employed by USA to supposedly accomplish real democracy, all the oligarchs and MIC need is to control the brains of at least 50% of the voting populace through at least three key strategies (1) effective control of most, if not all, major news outlets (2) shoddy lobbying legislation, effectively facilitate legalized corruption of appointed & elected government officials for the oligarchs and MIC to employ (3) effective control of supposedly charity type organization such as Human Rights Watch, National Endowment Democracy, Amnesty International, and endless other bogus organizations. Hence, rendering at least 50% of voting Americans brainless. Have USA accomplished democracy through its plutocracy governance? The answer is a resounding and Platonic NO!!

Now, take a look at whether China has true democracy by assessing its performance results with Plato’s definition of the concept of democracy. With the adoption of an economic concept coined as “socialism with Chinese characteristics”, China have achieved great successes with its most extensive poverty alleviation program unprecedented in world history, wiped out illiteracy, no more malnutrition & homelessness, universal healthcare & education, just to name a few. These great achievements happen to be basic human rights too. Have China accomplished democracy through its meritocracy governance? The answer is a resounding and Platonic YES!!

The selection of TOOLS is a very important and very critical tasks for the successful managing and governing of a country. The bottom line is like what Deng Xiao Ping had said: It does not matter whether it is a white or black cat as long as it catch mice. Same analogy apply to the application of the concept of democracy. As long as true democracy is achieved, as defined by Plato, it does not matter what tools are being employed PERIOD.

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@ClassicOperas

2年前

China has her own democracy that works great for China. Such as, the same clothes worn by different people looks differently. Do not impose on others and go after them telling them how to wear his/her clothes that fit them just fine; this is the democracy for them, their freedom and their right how they like to wear their clothes.

@relaxwhc

2年前

"How to have check and balance in China" is probably the better question than whether democracy suits China IMO.

@bjrnhjortshjandersen1286

2年前

I like the balanced view of Cyrus and his quiet factual way of sharing points of view.

@panyu2000

2年前

Cyrus, thank you for putting up this amazing content for your insights and the effort in building bridge between Western world and China. About one point, does it occur to you that US is going around spreading democracy to other countries (building military bases / supporting color revolutions), probably less because it is believing democrasy is beneficial to them, but exactly the opposite. Democrasy makes other countries more susceptible to foreign (western) influences / manipulations and regime changes.

@terencesim8050

2年前（修改过）

Thanks for all your hard work all these years, not just this livestream! You hit the major points about good governance (better word than Democracy). Would love your comments about the influence of the Military Industrial Complex on US politics. Btw, your final comment about US health insurance shocked me. I lived in the US 20 years ago, and was already complaining about the high medical costs then. But seeing how it has degenerated into a high-stakes haggling market left me speechless.

@mandyluo1371

4个月前

You’re courageous and inspiring Cyrus! The world needs more people like you.

@joyjoyoo

2年前

democracy is a moot point when the govt is not working in the interest of PEOPLE but corporations.

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@belahatvany

2年前

Thank you for the good work that you are doing. Partnership is gradually winning out over domination. We all have to work together to care for ourselves, each other, and our planet.

@daqiansun7944

2年前

Great job Cyrus! Just want to add my two cents about difference of US and China: I felt that US is becoming less and less friendly to small/tiny businesses while China is more friendly. For example: in China when you go grocery shopping, instead of supermarket you can choose these huge farmers markets, some of them larger than a football field. Hundreds of shop owners run their own small booth selling fresh vegetables, meats, nuts, spices, etc. When you buy an apartment, you can go to these huge home decoration centers which may be larger than a shopping mall. Each has hundreds of tiny shops selling everything you might need to decorate your apartment. These shop owners are mostly not highly educated. They have to work very very hard because the competition is incredibly fierce. But they were able to make a good living and customers got great choices of products at low prices. On the contrary in US big supermarket like Walmart and homedepot dominate everything. The customers have limited choices and employee make low salaries. I guess that's part of the reason why so many blue collar Americans supported Trump. They lost the hope for decent life with their hard work.

@td7074

2年前

Modern democracy is not the democracy 30 or 40 yrs ago. Modern democracy had mutated into something that serve the 1% rather than serving the mass.

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@Coumei2009

2年前（修改过）

Democracy or autocracy are means of governing, not the goal of governing. The goal of governing is to deliver promises, measured by the percentage of satisfactory people. Unfortunately, in the US now, "democratic" election is used by politicians as a way to keep themselves in power. Everything is about the election, meaning staying power. that is the core of US democracy now.

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@luminchang2203

2年前

Very well explained.

@Dhsu4321

2年前

All politicians under the election system are the slaves to the money men behind them. Their interests are serving their masters and themselves.

@alexanderking3343

2年前

"Democracy or autocracy are means of governing, not the goal of governing. " Can't agree with you more.

@Shenzhou.

2年前

Many Chinese are optimistic and look forward to a bright future ahead. However, many Westerners are increasingly pessimistic and tend to have a gloomy outlook of the future.

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@gamearena9519

2年前

Its not about systems, democracy or any other kind of guvernment. Its about the western hegemonis diplomacy about some countries. If western super powers want a country develop, the country will develop. But the US is firstly intrested in manipolation of dynamic of geopolitics in favor of itself.

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@unifieddynasty

2年前

Democracy simply means 'people's rule'. Western countries don't get to monopolize the word. China has its own form of people's rule, whereby if the Chinese people really don't like a government, they will topple it. It just so happens that currently, the views of the Chinese people and the CCP are aligned in the vast majority of policy positions. No ballots necessary.

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@andrewc3551

2年前

It doesn’t matter what kind government is when they citizens prosper, and get better each day.

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@t4ac

2年前

Great video, Cyrus :)

Few pointers about Singapore :

- National language is Malay. There are 4 official languages-Malay, English, Chinese(Mandarin in spoken form) and Tamil.

- home ownership is part of national identity/national security initiative - when push come to shove, one would stay to protect and fight for their home if crisis and threats arise. With no property ownership, more likely for people(citizens or otherwise) to just pack and leave.

- the brand of democracy tempered with paternalistic tendency is best described as 'socialist democratic' with a tint of autocratic overtone.

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@NishidateKitsune

2年前（修改过）

Hi again, Cyrus. I missed this as I was very busy in the weekend preparing (yes I mean work-related) for Euro Cup. Yes there are many different types of democracies, and I've actually read the comments faithfully. The Commonwealth use the British Westminster system, but with a lot of variants amongst the different countries within the Commonwealth. My country adopts it as well but the issue with democracy is that it's too easily manipulated and in many countries the system is actually GAMED by the politicians (Do check out what some of my countrymen mentioned below as well. It's very clear that gerrymandering is a very horrid problem here.)

That being said, there are issues in other democratic countries as well (of which I will not comment as it's not right for me to say so). Seriously, Malaysia is what we call a "Constitutional Monarchy" and also a Federation of States (this is the same as the US). The political system is basically democratic, but let it be known: Our current sovereign (the "Agong") cares a lot more for us than those people in the backdoor administration currently in charge of our country right now.

My main point is this, and I want to reinforce what so many people mentioned in the chat. There ARE in fact countries with so much diversity in terms of peoples, religions, cultures, etc. that it would be absurd if you take a look at them from the perspective of someone not in the know. Take for example, Malaysia, Singapore, etc. . I quote Dr. M., "I believe that in the future, every country would be like Malaysia, all encompassing.". He said that during an interview by the US media IN the US right after he took power for the second time.

You've mentioned that you've dropped by Singapore before, you may have noticed the intermingling of races and cultures. It's the same in Malaysia. There are tons of underlying issues in Malaysia, some of them really bad, no doubt about that, but we're able to live together without being polarized like what is happening in the US. I've mentioned before in another of your videos long ago, the important thing is the ability to respect each other and not be narrow minded and say, "My way/culture/religion/etc is the only right way, you must follow".

This is why I like your work. The world have to learn to work with each other and build bridges and not walls.

Last of all, it seems that there are also other people (Malaysians and Singaporeans alike) who, like me, are advocating for a chat/interview with Professor Kishore Mahbubani. Do give it a thought.

Cheers, Cyrus, and stay safe!

Edit: What you've just mentioned about "You won't understand China if you view it from the eyes of a Westerner"... is also mentioned by Martin Jacques more than a decade ago. In fact I think it was two decades or more ago if my memory serves me right.

@charmainewong6087

2年前

China system, in many respects, has actually taken quite a huge reference from the success of Singapore. Mr Lee Kuan Yew is definitely a legend!

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@reygus7

2年前

"Democracy" was imposed in most countries. It was not their choice. Also, why should we follow the western way?

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@juliuscesar103

2年前

You actually had my attention for a full hour. Thank you so much for your enlightenment.

@user-jb1mg7zy4k

2年前

Another brilliant speech from Cyrus. The whole world should hear this. Thank you.

@michaelloong964

2年前

There is no perfect "democracy" in the US in terms of voting during election. For example, the candidates of Donald Trump and Mrs Hillary Clinton during the 2016 election were nominated by their respective party. Therefore, it is not a democratic process of choosing a candidate for presidency election by the general population. Secondly, Mrs Clinton did win the popular vote but failed to win the electoral college vote for the presidency. The Electoral College does not represent every eligible voter. Thirdly, both of these two candidates were no popular with many voters but voters have no choice not to vote one of them to be the President. There is no democratic process for voting against the two candidates on the ballot to show that they are indeed not fit for presidency, especially Mr D Trump had no political experience plus having dubious character. Fourthly, one man one vote in theory is a perfect idea but not practical as some people are either too old or mentally too sick to understand what is going on in the country. Fifthly, the US election is determined by the amount of money the candidate spent on campaign. This is non-democratic.It is not a"pure" democracy. The aim of democracy is for electing a government that can do things for the country but in reality, many governments in the so-called democracy do things for the rich and powerful ,and many involved in corruption. The Chinese political process of electing a president may not be perfect in terms of so-called prefect democracy, but is in reality so far the Chinese system produces good government that works for the common people. The Chinese government has a every 5-year long tern plan for the nation's development which is not practiced in "democratic" countries. In fact , they often break their promises made during election campaign. Actual good political work performance output for the people is more important than pure theory of democracy.

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@gohwee-hong2931

2年前

It’s mind boggling always to listen to a great speaker like Cyrus …

Good to know the differences between a Full democracy vs a flawed democracy country …

Interestingly to learn that countries like China & Singapore of which are doing very well economically are not considered as Democracy-savvy …

Good talk , Cyrus , do keep it up .

@optimalwin8327

2年前（修改过）

Cyrus, every nations are sovereign. It is their rights to choose which definition or concept of democracy fit their nations. It could be defined by Plato, Wikipedia, or most importantly UN defined and voted on by all nations. It is important to quote which source or definition of democracy is being used when making comparison. The key is no one nation or small number of nations be allowed to tell what other nations should do or believe in. Personally, I like the concept of democracy as defined by Plato because it is simple, yet very far reaching and leave a lot of room for tools customization to fit the uniqueness of each nations.

@Don-co9zs

2年前

Thank You, incredibly informative. I did not think I would stay for 90 minutes, but I was riveted. I'm amazed at your facility with broadcasting information.

@chongyeeyap9586

2年前

Cyrus you are one of the most convincing democracy missionary. The 1st time I watched your programme, I said to myself that Cyrus is only 1 in a handful of bloggers that has the common sense to see that a partnership between Us & China will bring peace to the world and that you are sincere in seeking peace; but after today's performance, I rather doubt that there could ever be a man of wisdom in America that seeks to prevent the nuclear destruction of the world. AN AMERICAN DREAM. I am 87 years and it is 12 o'clock midnight. I will post further analysis of your podcast. If I am able to make contact with my motherland gov't. I will recommend that you be kept on a short leash !

@johnli6782

2年前

Any governance system is just that, a governance system. Regardless of it being better or worse than another, it's for each country to decide whether and when to adopt in whole, in part, or not at all, the governance system of another. No country has any standing to lecture another on how it choses to run itself, let alone scheming to topple the governance system of another.

If any government believes in its own system of government, the result of it being a better system than another must manifest in the lives of its citizens. The metrics for determining the quality of the lives of a country's citizens have generally been established and may be grouped into economics (physical wellbeing), cultural (emotional), and faith (spiritual). None of the metrics use political dissent as a measure of progress, as political dissent is not a goal, but a means to a goal. It's aim is to put forth and implement the best policy through debate and understanding to better the lives of people. It's absurd to establish dissent as a goal; as an indicator of a better quality of life. It is absolutely delusional to believe that the more we disagree, the better our lives will be. Dissent must never be the goal, and when it clearly is leading towards self or mutual destruction, we can only hope that wiser men and women are there to steer the thinking and sentiments of the larger society towards coexistence, compromise, cooperation, or collaboration for the prosperity of all.

@ATrueCanadianBeaver

1年前（修改过）

Excellent analysis and examples given.... Singapore has been my favourite as a country with its own unique democracy with great vision for the people and country, as the late Lee Kuan Yew, as he eloquently put it (I paraphrase here): "Freedom has its limits" (just like the old saying that by yelling "Fire!" when there isn't one is not freedom of speech)... As JFK said: "Freedom without responsibility is anarchy."

@yitingzhao3997

2年前（修改过）

Another good video, Cyrus. I always play your videos as a background when I am working. Not only because good opinions of you, but also because you speak English clearly and loudly , that’s good for me to keep my English listening skills since I went back china, hahaha, thanks.

@oreradovanovi5204

2年前

Democracy is ideology, it needs philosophical approach...

@fredericdalmas9195

2年前（修改过）

Very interesting livestream Cyrus, this help to think the world in its complexity, not in black and white and not only with a Western look.

@AbelMalcolm

2年前（修改过）

China not only does a good job of taking care of its own citizens, China also does a good job of taking care of other people who are not citizens of China. China has a foreign policy that tries to lift other countries out of poverty too. In marked contrast, America's foreign policy is designed to deliberately create poverty with the myriad of economic sanctions that America has imposed on just about half the world, such as the sanctions that killed millions of Iraqis until the US invaded Iraq, and now is trying to economically strangle Iran, Venezuela, Syria, Libya, Yemen, Lebanon, Cuba, North Korea, etc. China is making more and more friends thru out the world, while America is just piling up enemies. That right there is a major form of democracy, where the rest of the world is voting for China.

The American corporatocracy has been complaining a lot about Russia "interfering" in our so called democracy here, yet it is America that interferes in other countries' democracies, big time, more than anyone else in the world, by far. If anyone interferes in America's democracy it is these belligerent countries: the theocratic Zionist State of Israel, and the fanatical ISIS sponsoring fascist Wahhabi Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, that would be it. These are probably the 2 main examples of the 'tail wagging the dog'. Furthermore, America has overthrown more democracies than it has helped to develop. Most notably, in 1953, the CIA overthrew a very pro American and a very pro capitalist democracy in Iran (Google "Operation Ajax"). And then when the former Soviet Union decided to adopt American style democracy, America interfered there too, in fact, Time magazine had a picture of President Yeltsin on the cover, saying "how we put our man in the Kremlin". Yeltsin was an old senile alcoholic Russian President who presided over the break up & dismantling of the Soviet Union. Russia already tried American style democracy, and it was a disaster. I'm sure the same thing will happen to China too, if they are also stupid enough to let America interfere in China the same way and if China trusts these so called "torch bearers of democracy".

@maguire5302

2年前

Keep this up Cyrus! Great talk. ??

@Sirnkissako

2年前

I am sorry to see the US falling apart in what may turn into a major bloodbath. The US has little left and has to get realistic and realize their real place in the greater context of the world.

@scchai9656

1年前

Excellent history lesson for me. Thank so much.

@nefertemur8951

3个月前（修改过）

Greetings Cyrus, from my research, there isn’t true democracy on this planet, but rather a mixture of, fascism, kakistocracy, communism, plutocracy, and quasi-socialism. The books tragedy, and hope and the evolution of civilizations by Carroll Quigley describes it best. The Pledge of Allegiance says “ To The Republic” Thanks for sharing .

@joannang1016

2年前

You are really open minded and wise. I learned something new from this video and your other videos. Thanks for sharing your insights, knowledge and what some other countries are doing. You fit into the Chinese saying, "讀萬卷書, 不如行萬厘路!".??????.??

@relaxwhc

2年前

If you enjoyed this livestream, raise your hand to give Cyrus Janssen a Chinese pizza?? as your support ???

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@ritalee2914

2年前

I don't hate democracy, but after all these years, I find nowadays unpeace in this world is all because of democracy.

@inuwooddog3027

2年前

They are different shapes of Democracy all around the world that you would never heard before.

In Malaysia, the political parties are based on your race. They are 9 kings of the states, who take turn every few years to rule as the national king.

@baldwinxie1981

2年前

Hello, I am glad to see your contribution to the integration of Chinese and American cultures. Today’s world is polarized between Chinese and Western cultures. This can be clearly seen in China and the United States. The geographical locations of China and the United States are On the two ends of the earth, there are also great cultural differences, but this will not affect the integration of Chinese and Western cultures. The geographical location is physical, while the culture is spiritual. Only the integration of Chinese and Western cultures can promote the progress of the world.

@truthseeker9958

2年前（修改过）

America will be more democratic if we take the private money out of politics. We need publicly funded political campaign.

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@simonleung6104

2年前

Let’s imagine you are an employee in a company having 10,000 people and the heads of the 6 major departments and the CEO of the company are voted every 4 years by 1 employee 1 vote and there is no job or education qualification requirement for the candidates. What do you think the efficiency and competitiveness of that company? Why must it be the only model of any countries in the world?

@zzzzzz6686

1个月前

Hey Cyrus. Is it possible to get a decent IT job in China without the requirement of speaking Cantonese or Mandarin? If so, do you have any recommendations and/or resources? Thanks!

@Babyknite

2年前

It would be hard for America to focus internally as their money comes from selling weapons and without war there is no money. that is just how America is built supplying arms, creating war over throwing different government groups creating chaos.

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@tony37068

2个月前（修改过）

US$20.00

Thanks! Let's support someone made such positive contribution to debunk some of the lies made by American politicians and the U.S. mainstream media. Sadly, our voice is still too small, we need more megaphones.

Cyrus Janssen

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@mateialexandrucoltoiu7207

2年前（修改过）

It is interesting to note that there are no city states that are doing bad in the world today. It seems like the fact that they are city states already provides them with a good foundation for a successful governance.

@emmawang1999

2年前

It is safe to say that both USA and China like democracy. The difference lies in how it is practiced. The US side thinks that elections are the only way to realize democracy, while the Chinese side thinks that democracy can be achieved through consultation. The US side thinks that problems can be solved through public debates and grandstanding, while the Chinese side thinks that conflicts of interest is best handled by behind-the-door discussions. The most fundamental difference is that the US side thinks that the truth is determined by votes. The Chinese seek the truth from facts.

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@unifieddynasty

2年前

Elections =/= Democracy.

Voting =/= Democracy.

Rights and Freedoms =/= Democracy.

The most fundamental aspect of democracy is that the people decide how they are governed. It is indisputable fact that the Chinese people presently support their government.

@nowthen3150

2年前

Another outstanding video by Cyrus!! Thank you for sharing.

@lisa.e5776

2年前（修改过）

Chinese votes with their hearts, their smiles and their joyous. They are practical people. They want immediate responses and actions from the government.

The Democracy system of the West need to wait 4 years. The Chinese people doesn't interested in this slow motion Government..????

@kamustakabymmedianista4712

1个月前

Thanks for that great discussion that is enligthening to issues.

@jinxiangyu9249

2年前（修改过）

Respect each other and tolerance are two of the most important things in the universe

@ivanho7268

2年前（修改过）

The success of a country is not about just about political systems such as democratic or communist or socialism. It is the leadership quality, competent leadership bring in lots of merits to the people and nation's needs, such as security, infrastructures, educations, housing, healthcare, social needs, rules of law, social cohesion, environment, economy, etc.

China's leaders are selected based on meritocracy, whereas democratic system leaders are selected based on populism.

@frankm4349

2年前

It will be a much better world if more Americans are as honest and brave as Cyrus.

@sunnykhaw5118

1个月前

Thank you for spreading the Truth about China.

@fankefang

2年前

The U.S. has two parties that are strong political influence, China has one. So it's not too much of difference, from the number of parties point of view.

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@mechannel7046

2年前（修改过）

Japan has basically been a one party state since the end of WWII, even though Japan is generally considered a democracy.

@claytonyee6953

3个月前

Country's pride is very important. That is why young people who went back and contribute to China to achieve many success stories. Like space achievements, growing tech advances, etc. If the West alliances continue to focus on attacking China, they will loose out on world's future and the vision of the entire world growth. Democracy is important only how it's people think of it.

@organizer14

1个月前

Helpful presentation, thank you!

@jinxiangyu9249

2年前

I live as a Chinese in Germany for more than 32 years and can follow your way of thinking very well. I think Germany is much more democratic than America

@gmansingh4916

2年前

India is the largest democracy in this universe. How does that work for them ??

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@joyjoyoo

2年前

One psychology why these students are so naively protesting is instant gratification. They seek instant pleasure, but when you sit down and consider many of the logics and logistics, you'd then realize that they've been duped. In a way, NED is playing that psychosis game with the rioters in HK, and right now in Cambodia and Peru. lol

@MrGanbat84

2年前（修改过）

I think you are one of just a few people who know about the truth of the world. And you can be a very successful journalist.

@rootlevel2024

1年前

Every African should listen to you. Wow, what an insight on democracy.

@jimmybush4754

2年前

Thanks Cyrus for your non-bias view of China!

@margarethawinarto3931

2年前

Even if China embraces western democracy, there is no guarantee that the west will stop treating China as their formidable enemy. All they want is to see a poor and backward China again. So, unless China is willing to be twisted round the former imperialists little finger, never expect the west to stop being hostile towards China. During G 7 meeting the world can see that they're all marching together to counter China. It will be harder for China in the years to come, so China needs to be more self-reliant, work harder, stay focused and most importantly stay united.

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@fellsmoke

2年前

I have thought for a good while not voting should have a penalty...I thought paying taxes at a higher rate ..but then again...we also have large and growing numbers of homeless people...for whom paying taxes... doesn't apply...and voting isn't generally possible...

@luntingsin6819

2年前（修改过）

Democracy is good, but it needs a strong power to protect it. But as you know, my dear US…

@lennyung6042

2年前

Great program I love ?? your shows support you thank ????????????

@andrescho4003

2年前

I wish someone like you would considered to run for the presidency in the US.

@ricardoluitam

2年前

Very nice video. Support. Thanks for telling the truth

@relaxwhc

2年前

The Rock and any colorful cartoon character can run for presidential election. ??

@sunnykhaw5118

1个月前

I like your unbias comments and has very in-depth knowledge about China. What you have said about China is base on the Truth. I hope those Americans who don't know about China.... They should visit China to see for themselves .

@octopuz1

2年前

Let's us compare the 2 major countries, India, the largest democratic government, and China, an equally populous nation, a socialist-capitalistic meritocratic government (with Chinese characteristics). If you put an equally competent leader each in India and China, who do you think will perform better with results to show? The reality is obvious!

Democracy allows partisan, personal and power politics to interfere in the performance of their leaders. The more populous the nation, the more chaotic it becomes! At the end of the day, due to the constant bickering nothing is achieved but it sure is a thriving democracy no doubt! LMAO! Just look at India today. Full of potential but nothing to show!

The other beacon of democracy, the USA, is a total joke! It destroys democracy, freedom and human rights of other nations all over the world at its whims to rob them of their natural resources! The Americans, however, get to elect their leaders every 4 to 5 years. But because their democracy is based on popularity, the size of campaign budget and the ability to con and lie to the masses, rather than meritocracy, decide its leaders! And boy, they do get trashy leaders! Many were/are incapable of doing the hard work to repair the rotting America, so these incompetent leaders divert their brainwashed population's attention towards China! They had one who started his anti-China Pivot to Asia! Then another incompetent buffoon who demonised China with lies and weaponised trade, technology, finance, education, Covid-19, etc against China! Now it has a demented leader who believed he's not a buffoon but acted just like the Orange Buffoon 2.0! These incompetent leaders pay more attention to China than to Americans! LOL! Check and balance? Donald Trump. Need more be said? LMAO! On top of that, it is the elite 1% ruling over the US population for the benefit of its 1%! What did China do to deserve being demonised and made a scapegoat by US leaderships other than making them look incompetent and stupid?

China might not call itself a democracy but it has characteristics of a democracy. Its citizens are free to travel freely in China and overseas, open businesses and practise capitalism, own properties, etc. 140 million Chinese tourists freely leave China every year and 140 million Chinese tourists return back to China! Oppression? Open your mind! It is much safer to be in China than in Wild West gun-toting USA! Isn't personal safety a human right?! Their leaders rise through the ranks, from the villages, elected by the villagers, all the way up to the national assembly, based on merits, and real results and achievements. China government is only doing its best to uplift its economy, development and the welfare and prosperity of its citizen, like any good government. It has brought 800 million Chinese out of poverty in 40 years without invading, plundering or mass killing others, unlike America and the Western imperialists! Why should China be a threat to America or any other nation unless they unilaterally want to make it a threat with the evil intention to destroy China?! They destroyed Iraq with lies about Saddam's "weapons of mass destruction" to rob Iraqis of their lives, happiness and their natural resources! Are Americans that ignorant and morally blind?

The China government has a 93% approval rating (Harvard study) among its citizens! The US government can only garner slightly over 50% approval at best. And it unashamedly and undeservingly calls itself a democracy of the people! Shouldn't China be the one?!

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@sickg6417

1年前

your hometown friend episode that trump supporter will unfriend with a liberal reminded me of the old cultural revolution in China.

my mom had a big family growing up, six siblings, there were no one child policy implemented yet back in the old day ,

she told me that grandmother had to prepare twice for every meal during the period, since the red supporters refused to dine with the blue supporters, refused to sit at a same table, even refused to come face to face on anything. it was chaos and tragedy.

thank god we got through those period. now I feel more strong about that a strong government is essential to bring social harmony.

Cyrus Janssen

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@inwan6645

2年前

Thanks Cyrus, great content.

@adoreslaurel

2年前

China and America both have one thing in common, If you sacrifice Freedom for Security, you deserve neither [I have forgotten the Author]

@csong4809

2年前

Never assume that there will be one-size-fits-all system exist, life changes every single moment, there are very rare people who can keep observing and learning (like how Lao Tzu suggests in cosmic balance and the importance of flexibility). Unhealthy pride is positive in a way where you can often stand on your beliefs and not be shaken as much, but it can help make you see yourself in an inflated sense and not understand the relativity of things in a proper way.

@plexsoup9378

2年前

Maybe it's time to push for "Liquid Democracy"

@davidding3351

2年前

Democracy is good. I don't think the United States is a democracy. It is more like an oligarchy.

@ausreir

2年前

Saying a form of government is better than another is about as dangerous as an investor who claims all listed companies are inherently superior.

@schumannli5825

2年前

Cyrus, the Westerners need your fair comments on China. US is not doing a fair game for this world. Keep

It up. Thanks a lot.

@kamustakabymmedianista4712

1个月前

I great agree with how you explain it.

@dougm9759

2年前（修改过）

The exuberance of democracy leads to undisciplined and disorderly conditions which are inimical to development.

China is a vast and a disparate country; there is no alternative to strong central power.

Lee kuan Yew

There is no inherent link between freedom and democracy, more often than not misunderstood. The failed democracy of India showed the mega flaws of the western ideology.

@relaxwhc

2年前

Greetings gentlemen

Welcome to China, the land of plenty

@tommyborsky8270

2年前

The US only have dream " Hegemony " maybe this will come down with screeching holt.Putin is right to say US and Russia will change places what use to be USSR that will come to the US.Its hard to say that but little democracy we have is fading away step by step.Yout presentation of this program is excellent. As far to see China is going places lot of countries will in proove there life style and prosperity.

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@jaybleu888

2年前

Leaving a footprint, two thumbs up.

@optimalwin8327

2年前

Cyrus, would you mind to make a video about health care system in China, Canada, and USA?

@garu24sa

1个月前

Well, having at least 'some politican experience' isn't a valid argument because, at some point, everyone starts at zero. In fact, having so much political experience is usually more dreadful than good because their tendency is making their lives from the people and not for the people. They have to know what feels to emmm... work. Here in Argentina, the mayority of politicians never ever got a job in the private sector, so they're out from the reality that the average citizen faces. I think that we have to start to show these characters that we don't really need them for our lives.

@ajajaj100

2年前

Can you imagin a hospital becomes democretic which means the patients and staff there vote for the head of the hospital, negreting the qualification of the person involved?

@alantan9863

2年前

I think even if China intends to have democracy, they need to delay the implementation for maybe 50 years due to China US conflicted etc.

@laogong52

2年前

2nd Amendment? Of course it can be changed. It's in the name "Amendment". Constitution was amended, it can be again.

@user-mk9bo7zy5w

2年前

Cyrus, your voice is benefit for the world!

@optimalwin8327

2年前

Cyrus, I like you mentioning some of Pierre Elliot Trudeau's wisdom quotes.. Pierre has been very mad at his disgraced son Justin from his grave for destroying what he had built for Canada.

@georgexu2502

3周前

Excellent!!

@loutan7903

2年前

Great work Jenssen

@kimmagnuson6834

2年前

Thanks....very good information.

@fankefang

2年前

You should show a world map to show how peoples life improved. Democracy is NOT the means, it's a WAY to improve peoples life.

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@qwertyuiopzxcvbnm9890

2年前

Or a possible result of improved living standards

@lewissiusankwong

2年前

We demand our freedom of choice. Every country should have the freedom to decide their tax system, not to be decided by America. We demand our right of democracy. Decision affecting the world should be decided by all countries under United Nations , not decided by G7

@MarkYeung1

2年前（修改过）

Hi Cyrus,The Chief executive of Hong Kong is very closed to Beijing and the CCP (as you mentioned). But she is COMPLETELY DISTANT from the Hong Kong people and lacks public support. Until she has the public support, there's no way the government can tackle the labyrinth of social problems. That's the difference between Hong Kong and Singapore.

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@rchandrar

2年前

Democracy is very important to any country, because it gives freedom to people and stops the party or a person being a dictator. People and media should be able to raise their voice when the party or president does a mistake, because these are also people not gods.

@banhualau

2年前

Looks around world politics, Democracy are easy be destabilize by the foreign funds and influences.

@angusliu66

2年前

I get the same criticism from people when I support China.

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@tanlaysoon

2年前

CPC Government has approval rating by its people of over 93% in a survey conducted by the Ash Centre in Harvard University LS Tan from Malaysia

@lingostar101

2年前

Super video! I applauded for CA$10.00 ??????

@Sweettg4u

1年前

I think in your chart the US actually has a 49% not 58% of respondents that believe "my country is democratic".

@chongyeeyap9586

2年前

Hi There my friend Cyrus ! I waited to see there my comment was posted before I made any further comment; I wish you to know that you have been sincere in attempting to bring the two countries that I believe you care the most together and that is admiral. My first comment was to remind you that you must not tout democracy as a superior model, because that means you will be interfering in the internal politics and especially so when from my observation, you have found a meaningful following in China; and if my assumption of you is correct then you will have created a pocket of resistance in China; little drops of water makes a mighty ocean. China has 1. 4 billion people and we cannot afford freedom(nonsense idea anyway),of expression. Let suggest that that bit of "freedom" is all propaganda nonsense and it is lest practised in white men countries. I was a lawyer and I know that nonsense that passes for freedom of speech. The easiest way to determine if democracy is a better model is to judge the performance under the system ! Is India that never experience from day 1 of independence better off than dear old China? I don't think so. Americans have to understand that Chinese people are nationalist but never IDEALIST; we go with black cat or white cat not "freedom and democracy" nonsense. Has not my motherland these 30 years of success prove to you in the west that democracy will never in a 1000 years free Chinese people from dire poverty? Why change for democracy? Will it improve on what can be further improvement and advancement of China? Absolutely no! You cannot preach that democracy is a better model because in the 1st PLACE IT IS NOT True ! And you have not proven in any way that democracy is superior. Democracy ideologue are mere idealist and nothing more; I am bhuddist, is it better for me to convert to Christianity? Is there an issue that one is better than the other? Absolutely No! I leave you to have my breakfast (5a. M. Now ! We old people do not need so much sleep ! See yah!

@johnniewalker7628

2年前

China is not rich enough to be in a state of paralysis.

@rebecca2950

1年前

I have a friend who was born and raised in United States his parents are from Vietnam. He told me this” Vietnam war is never there a war for best interest for Vietnamese . It’s an American war but it caused many Vernice become refugees than show the world how they saved refugees from Vietnam . You destroyed families caused them to lose parents or kids , you then moved them to your house . Why do you think that’s God’s decision for you to do His job ? When you see people go to church and when we see our dollar bill printed In God we trust “

@dranzacspartan8002

2年前

Well done Cyrus. It worries me how far the USA is going to trash China. Why can't they just work together and become united rather than this divisive stance.

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@alejandropflucker4857

2年前

China is democracy in opportunities and hierarchy in base of meritocracy...in my opinion the best combination. At the end the comunist party have intense debate and interaction up and dawn before take decision...inside it there is a left , right and central wings.EEUU have only two parties almost the same....coca cola and Pepsi cola, and a lot lobbies than degradate the real democracy and meritocracy. At the end the word democracy is to big with different interpretation in history and countries with cultural baggage....Aristotle for example consider necessary for democracy no big economic disparities in the society....etc.The entire definition of modern democracy as the government of the people by the people for the people is the opposit to the actual oligarchy in the majority of countries...so democracy is an ideal always to follow but plain of difficulties to achieve, always perfectible...

@jonathanfoo2318

2年前

Objective & analytical

@alicemegan1594

2年前

I don't think that there is any other legitimate way to earn money nowadays rather than investing

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@AbsoluteZero6714

2年前（修改过）

I’m Chinese-Canadian who actually didn’t know much about Canada’s system until the last couple of years. Canada’s essentially like the UK and other parliamentary systems in Europe where you vote for a party rather than a candidate, and the leader of the party that wins the election usually ends up becoming the Prime Minister. I also want to point out that there is no fixed “term” for a PM in Canada.

I’m not a big fan of the Canadian government either, and not a fan of Trudeau. Canada faces many of the same issues as the US although it does better in some regards like social security and healthcare, but other than that it’s culturally and politically the closest to the US.

I grew up in Richmond (Chinese majority city in the Greater Vancouver area) and I believe Richmond’s representatives have the right to know Mandarin and / or Cantonese in place of French. The long-standing divide in Canada has always been Anglophone-Francophone, but in Vancouver the Asian (mostly Chinese) community I feel really adds a third dimension to at least Western Canadian political affairs and I still don’t feel as though we have enough representation.

There have been attacks on Chinese people and non-Chinese Asians in Vancouver since Covid, but even before that I didn’t have the illusion that me being a Chinese-Canadian meant that I’d ever be truly accepted by “mainstream” society, and that despite Canada’s official policy of multiculturalism, it’s still a white, Anglo-Saxon Western country at heart. I sympathize with the plight of the indigenous peoples too, just go to parts of downtown, especially East Van and you’ll see many disenfranchised First Nations people struggling.

I actually have moved back to China after college, currently not doing much due to Covid which has brought my life to a standstill, but I have no plans to return to Canada.

The top person in Hong Kong is called the Chief Executive. 特首 or 行政长官

Not a zealot but I consider myself Christian too. So God bless, Amen. I totally share your sentiment of not identifying with either the traditional left or the traditional right. Unfortunately no mainstream political movement even in democracies caters to people like me who are centrist to slightly conservative on some social issues (one-man, one-woman marriage, for example) but economically more to the left (social security and welfare, UBI).

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@xiaoyunchen8337

2年前

Super video! I applauded for $2.00 ??

@NikhilChandra

1个月前

Man you should come to India...we have atleast 25 languages and 100s of dialects. Its awesome to have unity in diversity. US will never understand that.

@adoreslaurel

2年前

Cyrus, we could probably agree on this that America with its so called 2 party policy means you only have Republicrats and Demicans. Tweedledum and Tweedledee. America has so much poverty and needs a 3rd party.

@teddybearmonster

2年前

Wah, Taiwan is not doing bad as a country, according to this chart.

@hatsapp-oz2ol

2年前

In few months or so, people will definitely be kicking themselves in regrets for missing the opportunity to buy and invest in cryptocurrency

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@zhangruyi3153

2年前

Lee Kuan Yew did his law degree at Cambridge University and he got a double first.

While in the UK, he married his wife and he was very shocked with the racist nature of the English people and this was why he went home to Singapore, he fought for independence from the UK.

LKY did not go to Oxford.

@kmli8380

2年前

Cyrus your data is convincing, the talking is logical clear.

@MrPaullung

2年前

HK never had democracy under UK. That time liked a state of dictatorships. UK said so. No election.

Police were brutal. I was a child worker. Worked over 14 to 16 hours a day. 3 new years and two other statute holidays a year.

If you worked in the restaurant. My co worker grinded of all fingers. Injury, no compensation. Who said that years is better

than today? Then they were government dogs.

@MarkYeung1

2年前

Universal suffrage in Hong Kong was promised under the Basic Law, so the request by Hong Kong people was justified. Recently, there were a lot of Hong Kong people emigrating because they saw no hope, maybe Cyrus can talk about it

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@1andonly168

2年前

In America, now you can only choose to vote between a worse or wisrt leader.

@jefferybensimmons1656

2年前

Now can be the best time to buy and hold Bitcoin because surly it will come up to a standard rate

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@chingweilai1872

2年前

Democracy is of the people, for the people and by the people. However most countries are of the rich, for the rich and by the rich. It is partically true for a country‘s rich, wealthy people pay much less income tax and let the rest of people carry the big portion of tax. Those are not democratc countries, they are capitalism, individualism, egocentism as a fact.

@rebecca2950

1年前

Do we all need to eat spicy food ? Do we all need ice cream ? Do we all need bread ? Everyone has its own weight to like what kind of food they choose to eat. It is also based on how they were raised. Everyone has different health , We sometimes can’t eat certain food because our body can’t take it. I just can’t force people to eat everything we eat as they don’t need to force us to eat what they like to eat. Even When people in Taiwan they speak for China, they get red label become communism . It happens to many people you are not the only one . .

@RLsoundoost

2年前

Cyrus Janssen, it is very difficult to change party in China, but easy to change its policy; and it is very easy to change party in America, but almost impossible to change its policy.

@fazlulkarim9123

2年前

I think China is trying to improve the lifestyles of the Chinese people. They'll go for democracy after achieving certain level with respect to poverty reduction.

@kamsukying4685

2年前

????????

@hansunny3462

2年前

china has their own way to manage a big and multiple nationalities country, noting to do with western world...so, think about your more problems when american mention democracy to china....

@bjrnhjortshjandersen1286

2年前

I find it interesting that both Cyrus Janssen and Richard Wolff have European roots. This give the transcultural perspective that most Americans lack and a less biased approach to ideology.

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@CarpsterKing

2年前

Democracy is the election of the vocal minority not the silent majority... in any democratic election

only 70 % of the population are eligible to vote and only 80% voter turnouts...and the winner only win by a margin of 5% .. so in actual fact it is the vocal minority that won the election...whereas in China at least 90 % of the Chinese people approved the CCP as the representative of the Chinese people in China...

@laogong52

2年前

Housing is a problem too in central London, workers can not afford to live there.

@peacerespect120

2年前（修改过）

Proud of our CCP, Chinese residents are blessed, we don't like western style, we don't like drug, gun ....we respect others, we support our government, we love our culture and our system ?????????????????????????

@edwardweicai4197

2年前

你的演讲真棒!

@adammaxmaxon2736

2年前

Now days country with no culture and as young as 500 years old try to teach a country with over 3000 year old civilization...

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@wmtse8974

2年前

Deng Shao Ping has the foresight to say that " whether it is black cat or white cat, the cat that can catch a mouse is a good cat". So don't force democracy on to China. I am proud of the many achievements of China (to the extent that it agitates the US so much). It proves one party system worked for China. Autocracy, authoritarianism are just negative political ideological terms that the West put on to China. But with this so called autocracy, Chinese people are more united, standard of living is significantly raised, the country is getting so clean and beautiful, modern and futuristic. So China, please continue with this autocracy. Also with the national security law now in HK, the majority of us Hongkongers feel so safe without the brutal hassle from black rioters. I love China.

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@edwinouyang1971

1个月前（修改过）

I would seriously considerate voting for you if your running for USA Presidency.

Cyrus Janssen

@fazlulkarim9123

2年前

Can you make a video on the difference between China and India.

Cyrus Janssen

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@scchai9656

1年前

I reckoned Cyrus can be a good future America's President, as i see his understanding of political landscape of each country is valuable. It is unlike now the US president keep marketing their democracy to every country and almost force other to accept, mind you it doesn't fit in well to every country.

We have to realize that China has 1.4 billion population, that have to take care first. If the 1.4 bil population go hair-wired that matters, will affected the surrounding countries and may be the whole world.

Hope i live longer to see you become US president.

@crosshair6821

1年前

I'm used to the dialect thing, balkin people know this. Former Yugoslavia is like China in culture. Many different people but same.

@weizhang2834

2年前

China democracy is the real democracy which originated from the people and for the people

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@shizhe1629

1年前

Video 29:40, the top leader of Hong Kong is not the president. The president or chairman is the title of the top leader of the country. Hong Kong is a special administrative region established by China. The top leader of Hong Kong is called the Chief Executive of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region.

@arunaasuraz6500

2年前

So for election in the United States, we don't vote for our president directly. We vote for electors who votes on behalf of us to choose electors. so if we vote for Joe Biden, that elector will cast vote on behalf of us to Joe Biden. However if we vote for Joe Biden, but our elector choose Donald Trump. Then that state's electoral college goes to Donald Trump.

@fatdoi003

2年前

let's think about a full democracy corporation of 100000 employees with only 1 president and no managers

@qaz120120

2年前（修改过）

Germanic and Chinese are the noble peoples of the world. They will inherit the earth no matter what.

@natureaiaiai880

2年前

well said

@fellsmoke

2年前

Installing democracy around the world?...tell it to Iran, Chili, Bolivia, Venezuela, Vietnam...the Palestinians...on and on...

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@samueltan7343

1个月前

It is the chief executive of Hong Kong and not the top leader, Cyrus. Harry Lee Kuan Yew, the founding father of Singapore is educated in England. His alma mater is the University of Cambridge.

@poseidon61

2年前（修改过）

Keep religion out of politics. Eliminate corruption. Leaders should be elected base on merit.

This is the way to move forward. System does not matter.

It is about leading a country, better the lives of the people, affecting people outside your country.

It is not a popularity contest or pageant.

YouTube: America, China, and the Future of Democracy

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