A top economist has joined the growing list of China’s elite to have disappeared from public life after criticizing Xi Jinping, according to The Wall Street Journal. 

Zhu Hengpeng served as deputy director of the Institute of Economics at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (CASS) for around a decade.

CASS is a state research think tank that reports directly to China’s cabinet. Chen Daoyin, a former associate professor at Shanghai University of Political Science and Law, described it as a “body to formulate party ideology to support the leadership.”

According to the Journal, the 55-year-old disappeared shortly after remarking on China’s sluggish economy and criticizing Xi’s leadership in a private group on WeChat.

    • HobbitFoot
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      246 hours ago

      Even then, it isn’t healthy, just healthier. The USA is still going to going to experience economic issues of a growing elderly population, it just won’t be as bad.

      • @[email protected]
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        246 hours ago

        The US have the benefit of essentially limitless immigration that they can adjust at will. On the other hand, China’s leadership, being Han supremacist, is not receptive to immigration at all.

        • HobbitFoot
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          24 hours ago

          Immigration definitely helps, especially compared to China. I’m just noting that there will still be some decrease in the ratio of retired workers to current workers.

        • @[email protected]
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          05 hours ago

          Have you… have you seen how Americans have been talking about the border? Especially this election cycle? I don’t know if would characterize either party’s constituencies as “receptive”.

          • @SlopppyEngineer
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            52 hours ago

            It’s all talk. Corpos crave dirt cheap desperate immigrant workers and will make sure neither party messes this up.

              • @NOT_RICK
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                74 hours ago

                The US has the highest volume of immigrants in the world, 50x more than China. With or without a reduction of new immigrants that number will remain high.

                • @[email protected]
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                  3 hours ago

                  Sure, the US has an advantage in raw number of immigrants versus China. No one is arguing that.

                  My point is that touting “our melting-pot-loving leaders” versus “their Han-supremacist demagogues” at the height of your unprecedented devolution into fascism isn’t quite the own you think it is.

                  • @NOT_RICK
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                    2 hours ago

                    Never claimed to “own” you, but I’d argue this anti-immigrant rhetoric is exceedingly precedented for the US (see Chinese exclusion act, Japanese internment, Alien Act, etc). Even with those shameful events as a part of the US’ history, the nation has been a consistent and significant net importer of immigrants. That makes me confident that the US won’t face a demographic crisis in the same way China may (barring a change in Chinese policy)

          • @Zorque
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            105 hours ago

            You realize there’s more to immigration than the border between Mexico and the US, right?

            I know they ignore it, but you don’t have to follow along with them.

            • @NOT_RICK
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              54 hours ago

              50 million immigrants in the US, and that data is 5 years old. Germany comes in second with 13 million. It’s not even close. I don’t see how a demographic crisis could happen, even if they hypothetically cut immigration in half

      • @[email protected]
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        156 hours ago

        Basically, yes. The sides are nearly parallel, which is great. Compare with China’s, which forms a steep V. Once GenX hits retirement age they are completely screwed. The CCP’s recent push for “traditional family values” and increased birth rates is no coincidence.