I was published at Liberty Unbound with the second part of my reflections from China, based on repeated visits across the country.

In the article, I discuss why many people—especially libertarians and free-market thinkers—misunderstand China by seeing only its “communist” label. China is not a democracy, but democracy and freedom are not the same thing. In daily life, I found China far freer, more practical, more commercial, and more functional than many outsiders imagine.

I also examine the contradictions: China’s rapid modernization, the civilizing influence of commerce, the importance of low regulation, the creativity emerging in Chinese society, the brutality of the state, property confiscations, nationalism, Confucian hierarchy, sweatshops, and the hard reality that economic progress begins with production, work, and trade—not political slogans.

Read the archived article at Liberty Unbound via the Wayback Machine →