After months, perhaps years, of “China Will Eat Our Lunch” stories, I’ve suddenly observed a micro-epidemic of dissenting voices. These “well maybe not”-ers have focused on the following sorts of things: unrest among “other”—the roughly two-thirds/one billion Chinese, mainly on the farm, who’ve been left out of the “miracle;” their lot is not improved, and they are exposed daily to images of a minority who are doing extremely well. Pollution, not a matter of conscience, but concern about grave and widespread health threats. Corruption on an unprecedented scale. Burgeoning university education and R&D not all it’s cracked up to be, thanks to State control and a disposition toward rote learning. Productivity gains almost all due to migration to the city rather than better worker utilization (management, organization, automation).
