Instead of an orderly handover of power, what we see in the People’s Republic is bitter back-stabbing and fighting for power among endlessly changing factions. Most of the country’s leaders do not understand even basic economics, focusing almost obsessively on one single figure, growth, often at the expense of development. The result is waste on a staggering scale. It is not uncommon, for instance, for state enterprises to subtract value, meaning that the raw materials they use are worth more than the finished goods they produce. Most of all, somewhat paradoxically, a one-party state does not
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