On your latter point, we don't need to go to China to know about it. The fact the great firewall exists is an affront to human liberty. All other freedoms are downstream from speech.
As someone who's lived and breathed aspects of both countries the story of china is the same. A complex story with many facets very good and very bad as well. I will say that the media's portrayal of China is heavily biased towards the bad side of china and has resulted in your bigoted and niave one sided outlook. This is not an insult, it is a statement to help you be more self aware. Like telling a white supremacists about the morality of equality among races I don't know if you'd be able to reexamine your view point, or just follow your biased outlook all the way to the bloody end.
Put it on your bucket list. Go to Shanghai or Shenzhen. China's progress is breakneck, there has never been a phenomenon like it in the history of civilization and I am not saying this haphhazardly. I promise you, that if you go, you will be blown away.