President Obama is fond of using China as an example of economic success. Of course, to the President, the Communist/Socialist aspect of China is the appealing part; the capitalistic part... the part that isn't "fair"... is the only flaw.
NPR Via Mark Perry at Carpe Diem:
Jacob Goldstein/NPR
Yen Jingchang was one of the signers of the secret document.READ THE WHOLE ARTICLE or listen to it below... especially the end. That's the "fair" part.
In 1978, the farmers in a small Chinese village called Xiaogang gathered in a mud hut to sign a secret contract. They thought it might get them executed. Instead, it wound up transforming China's economy in ways that are still reverberating today.
Note just a few things:
- There was no discussion about unemployment benefits
- There was no discussion about "fair" taxation or increasing taxes to allow more stimulus spending; in fact, it was a perfect example of a flat tax [everyone was forced to give a certain amount to the government]
- There was no effort to blame the more productive for their success
- It worked... big time!
And then... the Chinese "Obama fairness" brigades took over....