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Do you think there can be good authoritarian regimes? Or is democracy the only way?

Let's say there can be - is China one?

If you admit that, the issue becomes actual reality, not authoritarianism per se, and the comparison between the US and China becomes very uncomfortable when democracy is no longer a crutch.

What the hell are you talking about? China is currently undergoing an active genocide.

It must be a serious indictment that an active genocide causes less fatalities than the war in Iraq, then.

Look up the definition of genocide. Mass killing is not a requirement.

If the supremacy of democracy is not absolute, then who's to judge whether China is or is not one?

"Good" is such a subjective term. Even the worst totalitarian governments are good for some percentage of the population. Even the best democratic ones have people who are struggling against the system and would regard it as evil.

I live in New Zealand and there are people driving around thinking we are a communist country and feeling oppressed by government. They express as much through the signs and stickers all over their vehicles.

I wish that good and evil existed in a measurable way but I fear that we live in a world of grey and everyone sees the shades differently from their different perspectives.

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