Come West

Curious that this hasn’t gotten more attention:

In a major legal and economic change, the Chinese government has given over a hundred million farmers legal title to the land they work. Technically, the farmers will not own their land, but in practical terms they can mortgage, rent or sell it. This change, in nation that still pretends it is a communist state, is an attempt to get the rural population (over half of all Chinese) out of poverty, and forestall potential rebellion. Chinese leaders are very conscious of the their history, and the frequency with which the Chinese government has been brought down, or severely weakened, by rural unrest and rebellions.

Then again, as the West goes about the business of virtually nationalizing the banking industry, maybe none of our leaders want to acknowledge that the Chinese are moving in the other direction.