A Capitalist Love Story, From A Real Michigan State Spartan

I hear it everyday from those whose knowledge of China is, for political correctness' sake, very limited: "How's life with the commies?" I tell them everything is spectacular and that "the commies" aren't being too evil and I've only seen them sacrifice a few virgins...Then I dismiss this Cold War rhetoric and explain how things really are in the world's largest communist country.

In the States, when you go to the store to buy a bottle of water, if the price says 99 cents, taxes aside, you expect to pay 99 cents. If you tell the clerk that water is 89 cents down the street, they tell you that they could care less and that you can give them 99 cents or get the hell out...

Enter China: When we first arrived here, being fresh new pups in a big scary place, we were slightly naive. We were willing to pay 5 kuai for a beer or giant water bottle at our hotel's convenience store. Then we discovered the store right next door had the same beer and water for just 3 kuai; being college students and jumping at the chance to save 30 cents, we began cleaning out the store's cache of drinks. However, after a week or so of buying from this newfound oasis of frugality, our friendly hotel fuwuyuan(服务员, waiter/waitress or shop clerk) noticed that we had stopped frequenting the hotel's store. She stopped me as I walked in one evening and asked how much we paid for our beer next door. I explained to her that we paid just 3 kuai and she quickly put her arm around me and led me to the cooler, handed me a beer and told me "this one is free and from now on, always 3 kuai for you and your friends here." I was absolutely taken aback, wondering if her hands would be cut off for such a thing. But right there, in "commie China", capitalism was unfolding before my very eyes. I almost teared up, but I mostly just smiled because I had a free beer and I now had to walk 30 feet less to get my drinks.

This may seem like an overly-simplified situation, but it is indicative of the attitude and climate that rules Chinese business today. Beginning with Deng Xiaoping's "opening up" of the Chinese economy in 1978, continuing with Jiang Zemin's reduction of public ownership across practically every sector in 1997, and culminating with an extensive expansion of private property rights in 2003, China's economy seems to be anything but my ignorant friend's idea of communist. Some modern economic obstacles currently facing the country include healthcare overhaul, social security reform, environmental stewardship and renewable energy production. Wait? Healthcare reform and environmentally friendly energy production? Why those things aren't communist, their downright 'Merican (at least if you're a Lib)! Do you see it now? No everyday Chinese person would first identify themselves as a communist, and most of them, my fuwuyuan included, have no reason to; because they are capitalists.

China becomes more and more capitalist everyday. While it may be run by so-called communists, an emphasis on the common person isn't such a bad thing when that's the extent of the socialism. With liberal policies in place, China aims to undergo a self-titled "peaceful rise" to power, and rather than blind ourselves with our own titles for the Dragon Kingdom, the U.S. must recognize the potential for what could be a great and prosperous love story between the world's richest and most powerful nations. We need to hop on this love boat, or we will be left in the wake.