The reply I made doesn’t depend on the definition of imperialism because the comment I was replying to wasn’t refuting that definition of imperialism.

I was pointing out that their argument boiled down to “yeah well that doesn’t count because the USA does it too”.

Idk why you’re trying so hard to be an asshole, but you’re putting words in my mouth and then insulting me about them.

Hold up.

I think that mobile phones became popular before chat rooms.
Chat rooms existed first, but I think that they were mostly just for nerds until the early to mid 2000s

You sound like an asshole, fyi

You can pry my lol from my cold dead fingers lol

As I’ve said repeatedly what China is doing is better than what the USA is doing. But that’s bar is so low that it’s buried under the ground. Being better than the USA doesn’t make them beyond criticism and doesn’t make it good. The lesser of evils is still evil.

I’m aware.
But practically, that’s a difference without distinction. The majority of the rest of the world considers Taiwan to be a sovereign nation, and Taiwan has been acting as such for a long time. Functionally, that argument is the same as Russia is making with Ukraine, and technicalities over academic language doesn’t change that.

North Korea and South Korea are de facto separate countries, even though their civil war technically didn’t end. If the south invaded the North, that’d be the same.

The potential for bad is bad. It’s why benevolent dictatorship is still bad.

Let’s not forget the long history of vassal state politicians praising and thanking their subjugator.

Again, I think this is better than what the USA does, but it’s still worthy of criticism.

Do better at what? This isn’t a competition.

The dude said “yeah well the USA does it too”, as though doing the same thing as an imperialist nation was some kind of gotcha.
That’s the conversation.

So what is the point y’all are making with your memelording?

China and laos have strong friendship… According to China today? 🤨

I’m not saying that China is currently taking advantage of Laos, I’m saying that China has put Laos in a position where nothing is stopping them from taking advantage of Laos. The threat is implicit.

Bro didn’t read the thread, I can tell

“active civil war”

LOL stay on your meds, kids

But they haven’t.
Right now PRC holds all the assets and gets all the revenue, and laos holds all the debt and all the risks, for 30 years. China has used this to grant themselves positions of control over large parts of the infrastructure planning.

Then China should forgive the debt.

Dude calm down

Debt trapping, for example, laos.

Still a lot better than what the USA does - better to build out country’s infrastructure and then hold them ransom with the debt than bombing schools, but it doesn’t make them good or beyond criticism.

It’s like you forgot to read the question they’re answering.

Question: how is China imperialist like USA

Answer: here is how China is imperialist like USA

You: yeah, well USA does it too!

Literal definition of “no true Scotsman”

Something about the way he acts always gives me the ick. It feels like a mask.

Yeah I don’t wanna exclude other places for having shit universities for whatever reason - I just wanna comment on why it sucks in “the west” (by which I largely mean USA, Canada, western Europe).

The argument was “it happened before so it’s fine” which is an absurd argument, and I’m just pointing out the absurdity.

“You don’t get a choice so it’s fine” is also an absurd argument. If someone kidnapped me, bound me up, and expressed their intention to cut off my hand, then I would worry about it even if I had no choice. If you’re telling me you wouldn’t be worrying in that situation, you’re a liar or incredibly abnormal. Lack of choice plays nearly no part in the degree of worry.

What can help alleviate worry is knowledge, but here is a topic that is impossible to learn about.