Can "Red Note" reflect the living standard of all Chinese people?

The answer is no.

But which platform in the world can do it? The answer is still no.

I saw some discussions telling you that China is not as good as Red Note presents to you, which makes me want to crate this post.

**About income**

Every country has a poor population, but how do governments solve it? There is a saying in China that goes, '授人以鱼不如授人以渔', it means that teaching people how to fish is better than giving them fish. In China, if you are a homeless person, you can learn various skills needed to find a job for free in the community, and the community's rescue station will provide you with free accommodation and foods until you find a job and return to a normal life. For remote villages, the government will build roads into the mountains (you can see China's infrastructure level on any website), provide you with access to water and electricity, and teach you various methods of making money that are suitable for the local area. Through various policies and actions, China has lifted the vast majority of people out of poverty (see World Bank: Lifting 800 Million People Out of Poverty – New Report Looks at Lessons from China's Experience). It can be said that in China, as long as you are not lazy, you can live like a person. People will not discriminate against you, but rather praise your diligence.

And some people ignore the actual situation when discussing this issue. For example, I saw in a post (citing the original text): '...even China's former Premier Li Keqiang said that 600 million people in China earn less than 1000 yuan per month, and showing these poor lives to the public is not allowed in China because it will deepen people's doubts about the effectiveness of the Communist Party's economic policies.'

This statement is contradictory in itself. If 'showing poor lives to public' leads to 'people's doubts about the effectiveness of the Communist Party's economic policies', if the Communist Party is afraid of people knowing this, then how did the poster hear Premier Li Keqiang's speech on income?

The fact is that there are approximately 300 million minors (under the age of 18) in China. In China, even if you have no money, you still have the opportunity to finish high school, so most young people will choose to study instead of work, unless your studies are very poor. At the same time, China provides financial assistance for impoverished individuals, allowing those from financially disadvantaged families with excellent academic performance to pursue further studies in universities without worrying about financial issues. Due to various reasons, this group of people indeed have an income of less than 1000 yuan, but education will enable them to have a better life in the future. At the same time, there are about 270 million elderly people in China, a large part of whom rely solely on pensions for their livelihoods, which is a normal phenomenon in any country. We haven't included those who have just been lifted out of poverty here.

So, the so-called '600 million people in China earlier less than 1000 yuan' is not a very serious issue in China. Solving it is the goal of China's development, but not a serious problem. And China's low prices have once again eroded its severity. In remote areas, prices are even lower than what you see on Red Note.

**About Content Censorship**

Firstly of all, there are not many topics related to politics or current events in Red Note, as there are not only Red Note in China. We have our own social platforms where we can discuss politics or current events, such as Bilibili or Weibo. And Red Note itself is a social platform for sharing daily life, I don't understand why the lack of political content on Red Note has become its disadvantages. It's as ridiculous as complaining that McDonald's doesn't sell guns.

Secondly, each country and social platform has its own content censorship and there is content that cannot be posted. Stirring national division is the most typical example, which is clearly not allowed in any country. In fact, all the 'non publishable content' we discuss is based on whether local laws and culture allow it. In the United States, where there is a 'Cancel culture', are you really not afraid of saying the wrong words when speaking on social media? And it reminds me of the incident where Trump was banned from Twitter. Of course, as a Chinese, I don't want to comment on whether Trump really instigated the incident.

What I want to say is that if western social platforms DO NOT restrict the release of content, why does the American people not know that China is not a terrible country until today and 2025? That the Chinese don't dislike all Americans. That they have low-cost food and medical care, advanced mobile phones and cars, blue sky and white clouds, etc.. Why are these things not known until 2025, when American peoples enter Chinese social media platforms?

That's right, Western people are the ones who suffer the most from content censorship.

Finally, China's censorship system is not as strict as some people claim, provided that what you are saying the truth. Let's take poverty in China as an example. If you go to poverty-stricken areas to film how poor the living standards of the locals are, and explain clearly what causes poverty and changes in the living standards of the locals, then this video will not only not be banned, but will also gain a huge number of views. But if you say that China's economic policies are flawed just because there are '600 million people in China earlier less than 1000 yuan', then it is one-sided. I have already explained earlier that this is just a problem that appears large in numbers but is not serious. Please remember that poverty alleviation is not about suddenly increasing your income from 1,000 yuan to 10,000 yuan, it is a long process, but some people overlooked it.

Furthermore, it should be noted that true censorship is conducted by social platforms, not by the government. Unless the content you posted seriously endangers social security, the government will not take direct action. Because they have more important things to do, such as how to make the Chinese people live better. For the platform, the purpose of strict review is to get rid of responsibility. For example, if a group of people discuss inciting riots on a certain platform and are not banned, the platform will also bear corresponding punishment when the riots actually occur. I believe this is easy to understand.

**About collect personal information**

The personal information we are discussing here mainly refers to information about daily life, such as what I did today or what I discussed with friends. The attention to collecting personal information is directly related to content censorship. So this part can also be considered as a supplement to the above.

Generally speaking, a person who publishes wrong content on the Chinese Internet will not have any consequences. At most, the relevant content will be deleted. The 'wrong content' referred to here includes but is not limited to making or disseminating false information, fraudulent information, selling illegal products, slandering the government without factual basis, and so on. But if this person repeatedly posts incorrect content, their account may be banned by the platform. Only when the content posted causes certain social harm, such as promoting violence or causing economic losses to many people, will the Chinese government take corresponding measures against this person, because such behavior is already illegal.

This is the situation in China, and then let's talk about the United States. To say the least, even if the Chinese government really collects personal information of Americans as some people advocate, what will happen? Will the Chinese government care if you have breakfast? Care if you brag to your friends? 'Oh! Because I spoke bad words about China, the Chinese government wants to launch laser weapons from the moon to eliminate me!' Funny. In fact, the Chinese government cannot do anything to you because we respect the laws of the United States and it is legal to speak bad words about China in the United States. You won't be banned from traveling to China just because you say a bad words about China online.

So what if these information are obtained by American companies or the US government? Perhaps, just perhaps, they will not use this information out of noble moral sense. (However, it is still the same question. Why did the American people know today what kind of life the Chinese live?)

**About some Chinese people**

The Chinese people haven't lived so well since decades ago, and we have also experienced quite a long period of pain after World War II. During this period, the rapid development of the Western world, represented by the United States, has indeed attracted the attention of the whole world. And some Chinese people chose to go to Western countries to live a better life, rather than stay in China to help their motherland develop. This is understandable, everyone has the freedom to pursue a better life.

After entering the 21st century, China's economy has begun to rise, and people's lives are improving every year. However, due to the lag of information, some Chinese still believe that the western world is paradise. Meanwhile, those who have already gone abroad still believe that China is still a backward country due to the information cocoon created by Western media. Therefore, in 2010, especially after 2020, there are not a few people who think that the life of the Chinese people is difficult.

For those who aspire to the Western world, they do not want to believe that China's quality of life has surpassed that of the West. Why? As I mentioned earlier, in China, as long as you are not lazy, you can become an normal person. In other words, if you are not living as well as others, the main reason is that you do not have their talents or you are not as diligent as others. Some people are unwilling to admit this, so they are more willing to believe that this is a social problem, a national problem.

Meanwhile, the Internet has expanded people's desire. This has led some people to have material pursuits beyond their abilities, wanting to become wealthy without labor. Interesting thing is, the US government reports that Chinese people are living a bad life every day, while the Chinese government rarely reports how bad Americans are living. Therefore, these people truly believe that they can live a happy life by doing any job in the United States.

On the other hand, for those Chinese who have already gone abroad, especially those who have only gone abroad in recent years, they have seen the shortcomings of the United States, but they cannot say. Admitting this means they makes a foolish decision. So some people may have a tendency to belittle China and praise the United States. You should know that the cost of settling in the United States is high. Especially the cost of settling in the United States is high.

In fact, since a few years ago, many people have compared the life of China and western countries and told the Chinese that 'we are not so bad'. These people are not only telling their own experiences, but also showing Chinese people photos and videos from abroad. But the two kinds of people I mentioned above have been strongly denying it for their own reasons. Until 2025, Americans personally compare the lives of the two peoples.

**Conclusion**

Is China a perfect country? No. We are a developing country and we still have many social issues to address. The 'development' here does not mean which country is stronger economically, but how to make Chinese people live a better life.

Is the United States a backward country? Absolutely not. As the world's most powerful country, the United States still has a lot to learn from.

If you don't believe everything I say, I hope you can download Red Note and take a look. Or if possible, come to China for tourism in person.

China is not an evil country. The Chinese people are warm and friendly. Not only the United States, we welcome anyone friendly to visit China. Any nationality, any race, any belief, any gender... As long as you come with kindness, we will repay you with even greater kindness.

There are two giant placards on Tian'anmen, the first meaning 'Long Live the People's Republic of China' and the second meaning 'Long Live the Great Solidarity of the World's People'.