There was mass starvation under Mao, but since he finally died in 1976, China’s economy has grown explosively, dramatically raising the standard of living. Could it be that communism works after all?

No, it could not. The rise of China became possible because the ChiComs are commies in name only now. Their basket case economy was saved by incorporating capitalism into their authoritarian system.

China scholar Helen Raleigh explains:

If a country were to implement pure capitalism, without the authoritarianism, the economic growth would leave China in the dust. That’s how the USA quickly transformed itself from a backwater colony to the richest country in the world.

However, getting authoritarians out of the way is easier said than done. So we continue down the road of massive government spending, increasing taxation, and overregulation toward stagnation at best and possibly hyperinflation followed by economic collapse.

On a tip from KirklesWorth.