here’s a video with english subs to explain why 云南 is so special. here’s another video that’s more about 昆明 tourism

It’s sad to see 苏州 (suzhou) characterized by its relationship to 上海 (shanghai), when 上海 is merely a city invented by China within the last 100 years to interface with the capitalist west. 上海’s culture draws from the original, ancient cities of 杭州 (hangzhou) and 苏州. If history had played out slightly differently, 普通话 (common speech) would probably be their 吴语 (wu chinese) due to 南京 (nanjing)'s influence.

Chinese people I’ve heard from generally say 昆明 (kunming) is the best place to live, at least from a natural scenery and weather perspective. Here’s a map, where 昆明 is outlined in the 四季如春 (four seasons as spring) area, meaning the weather year-round is like spring. Beyond the climate, 云南 (yunnan), where 昆明 is located, is a mountainous province that is also a biodiversity hotspot. There’s bountiful microclimates and many local cultures as well. Definitely not a “Max GDP” sort of place, but the other factors are incredibly good.

No, the author is not an anticommunist. This book would not be so widely promoted in China if it were anticommunist. His depictions of the cultural revolution are focused on the suffering people went through in a neutral way. I don’t think it’s controversial in China to say that there were issues with the cultural revolution that led to suffering for some. Here’s an official narrative to summarize the cultural revolution on Chinese internet:

文化大革命全称“无产阶级文化大革命”，发生于1966年5月至1976年10月，是一场由领导者错误发动，被反革命集团利用，给党、国家和各族人民带来严重灾难的内乱，留下了极其惨痛的教训。[1][3][4]

The full name of the Cultural Revolution is the “Proletarian Cultural Revolution”, which took place from May 1966 to October 1976. It was a civil unrest that was wrongly launched by leaders and used by counter-revolutionary groups to bring serious disasters to the Party, the country and the people of all ethnic groups, leaving an extremely painful lesson.

I urge you to read To Live. I think it would help you through these emotions

here’s a pretty solid list of recommendations that you can adjust to your level. I enjoyed watching yolo and 喜羊羊 is a favorite kids show similar to spongebob in the west.

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Not sure if this is too off-topic but i picked up this manhua in China that’s like an illustrated kid’s version of CPC history. If my skill level ever gets high enough I will read and translate it. It’s gonna be a banger

I actually realized today I had met of the authors who writes for midwestern marx around 2015 when he was a very regular white frat boy at a very stereotypical fraternity. I’m sure they changed a lot in 10 years, but I think the background helps me understand the type of person PatSoc ideology would appeal to: progressive lib politics, religious, and white.

Short-term, they will probably just invest in defense tech and retreat to their guarded villas while they ruthlessly wield the platforms they own to extract maximum wealth now that the growth game is up. Or maybe something with biotech, I don’t really know.

Long-term (10 years) it won’t matter what western VCs think because the world’s innovative capacity is all concentrated in east asia (source). It takes about 10 years for research to show up in industry. So maybe they double down on South Korean and Japanese empire holdings, provided both of those vassals remain loyal.

Or maybe YCombinator becomes America’s SoftBank and heavily invests abroad. It will be interesting to see.

I played the Quest for forever. There’s an endless amount of content with the expansions. It’s a cozy game

+1 this can’t not be a bit 💀. did someone make this unironically? wild

Last week I was at a Chinese New Year dumpling wrapping party and witnessed a half ethnically Chinese burgerlander ask 2 Chinese burgerlanders unprompted what their families think about taiwan. the brain rot runs deep.

Ok but actually, does anybody have suggestions like this on how to redirect money that otherwise would have been destined for something like a 401k? I’m interested in finding a way to invest in the global south or at least just find a way to convert cash into some durable value that could support me during a period of extended financial hardship

I spent an evening reading this. It was absolutely worth it. This article truly peels off the mask of NATO imperialism and nakedly renders the apocalyptic ambitions of white settlers. It is the best summary I have read so far explaining the current state of the world. It also underscores the importance of the fediverse as a revolutionary tool. I think I’m going to default to this from now on whenever a sympathic ear I trust asks me what it is that I believe.