qubit000

The world is not binary - least of all human behavior which for overwhelming majority is more accurately described as shades of gray

Someone behind the scenes must be pulling the strings at the CDC as this is terrible advice considering all vaccines are far from being 100% effective.

Additionally it takes at least 2wks after inoculation for the vaccine to work and there is no definitive answer on how long the efficacy lasts.

All of this combined with the fact that millions of Americans refuse to be vaccinated will serve as prime reservoir for the virus to spread.

It was rather troubling when CDC first stated masks were unnecessary but this recent announcement is criminally negligent, on par with Boeing/FAA publicly stating 737 Max was safe even knowing full well there was high probability of another crash.

US culture is already too self-absorbed focusing more on style than substance. Selling personal tokens to fund one's career trajectory will only create more extreme narcissism akin to unqualified/incompetent people running for office.

"... this is very dangerous, it creates oligarchy, which, in turn, has all the incentives to restrict free market, free speech and democracy."

One could argue that the US is already an Oligarchy or more accurately an 'Oligarchic Plutocracy' which has accomplished all of the above.

Boeing has lost the public trust not only in the US, but internationally.

Inherent instability aside, fact remains the general perception is that Boeing retrofitted engines too large for 50yr plane design necessitating structural modifications which compromised its flight worthiness. As a result, software had to be written to compensate for this, which unbelievably, relied on input from a single sensor--iow, single point of failure.

The lost of trust is further exacerbated by the fact that Boeing/FAA knew there was high probability of another crash after the first catastrophic incident but refused to ground the planes continuing to let them fly while issuing deceptive public statements regarding the planes safety.

Boeing's largest market is China, which justifiably, will not allow the 737 to fly within their territory.

Also overwhelmingly white, oblivious to their bias and entitlement resulting in very narrow, US/Eurocentric perspective.

Problem is US leaders are elected based on populism rather than merit and whether theyre actually competent, let alone qualified.

The result is a political system that rewards morally bankrupt, sociopathic behavior that prioritizes self interest and profits over people.

Many will say it has worked considering how wealthy the US is and how it facilitates innovation. However, this is only made possible by the fact US, as global reserve currency of the world, is able to print $$$ w/impunity while exporting much of the resulting inflation which rest of the world has to bare -- essentially subsidizing US wealth.

The problem is that everyone has an opinion on design and thinks it's only about making things pretty. The designer, often on low end of organizational pecking order, is asked to bend over from all sounds and is just trying to keep food on the table.

The govt is confident that most citizens will see the downsides of democracy and how it leads to much social divisiveness and govt dysfunction as evidenced by the US.

HKrs fomenting riots/violence and breaking the law have rightfully had their passports confiscated to face consequences of their actions.

How does this happen in the richest country in the world which basically has monopoly on global monetary policy and prints $$ with impunity?

It stopped being the 'central' bio research lab in US but still continued such research thereafter.

It insures that people aren't emotionally triggered by disinformation which often results in social divisiveness if not violence as is happening in the US.

No, the meritocracy is actually defined by performance/KPIs which determine advancement. For example all party members must first pass 2 tests before acceptance as members than work at local rural level to advance from there.

There is no concept of 'established elites' because even the poorest can rise to top as President Xi has.

In a country of 1.4B not everyone is going to agree which is evident in US w/only 1/4 of population. Chinese are free to immigrate elsewhere if the choose to do so.

Chinese citizens elect leaders at local level who in turn elect those above them and this continues to the highest levers where only the most competent rise to the top.

Communism is a misnomer when applied to China. It is no more communist than US is a democracy. In fact in many ways China is more democratic than US whereby it's govt of 90M+ members more accurately represent interests of Chinese society.

No, the CCP is the governing body of China which is a sovereign entity. CCP contains multiple factions representing all facets of society hence 90M+ membership who do not all agree and have agendas.

What distinguishes CCP from western governments is that party membership and advancement is based on meritocracy not populism resulting in only the most qualified/accomplished rising to positions of leadership.