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>Peoples complaining that China is just copycat-ing stuff do not know how China is influencing peoples in developing countries.

The problem is that altruism does not exist in geopolitics. Why is China influencing these people? Because it wants their support when it comes time to ask for favors. China is using Western inventions to grow its sphere of influence and defeat Western influence (and thus Western values, culture, etc)

Not that the West is entirely innocent in its quest for power either, but considering the dystopian state of Chinese government (compared to Western governments, at least), it is perhaps better to keep the devil you know in charge than the one that wants to know you much better.



> Not that the West is entirely innocent in its quest for power either

You don't say - most of Africa got a taste of Western "values" and "culture". The last generation that suffered from colonial rule is still living.


Ow. Even I felt that.


do you believe africa was some peaceful wakanda-like utopia before europeans arrived? arabs got there first anyway.


Certainly not. Just like every place on earth, Africa had its share of problems. But that didn't warrant the damage slavery and colonialism did - the effects of which are still rippling through the very fabric of the continent today.


You are responding to a case that has not been made. Furthermore, you are responding to that fictitious case without solid reasoning or good sourcing. It would be nice if you could provide that.


> The problem is that altruism does not exist in geopolitics. Why is China influencing these people? Because it wants their support when it comes time to ask for favors.

But more likely an entrepreneur sent a schematic to a fabrication line in Shenzhen for an underserved market they perceived, got a ton of the phones made for very cheap, and sold them as a service in that underserved market and it became a hit.


> Not that the West is entirely innocent in its quest for power either

My father grew up in Nigeria under Colonial Britain.

My Dad, and most Nigerians, do not have fond memories of British rule. Nor do they have fond memories of western meddling afterward.

I don't think the African people really have a positive view of any form of government local or foreign.

Most influences, internal and external, have been deeply motivated by exploitation.

The truth is, this ancient proverb from the Bible sums up ALL human ridership:

"man has dominated man to his harm"


Africa is ripe for the picking, it just needs infrastructure to get the resources back to China.

American tech companies dont target Africa because there is no money for them. China works on different economic principles. State backed companies dont just want profit. They want to your know dirty secrets. They want leverage.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Belt_and_Road_Initiative




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