Don't do it China

Sure as night follows day, a growing economy is followed by spiralling house prices that leaves many people in an almost impossible situation of being unable to afford a home.

Stuck in a job they may not like, with less ability to build a family, and with more stress in life which in many cases will even lead to suicide. Many will look back at some point and ask themselves "why"?

As the inexorable frenzy of unbridled capitalism continues to see corporations seeking ever higher profits and bigger market share which eats up smaller businesses that find it impossible to compete against giants. Vast changes occur in society in the wake of 'growth', 'modernisation', 'social mobility', 'cultural diversity', and so called 'progress'. Where society becomes fragmented as the rich become even richer and the poor become slaves to the economy and a way of life that many find bewildering, the economic crusade for growth continues.

We see governments embattled against their peoples on issues under global contention as global corporations deploy their arguments for cheaper labour with less restrictions on their employment practices and calls for political changes with no democratic mandate, that sees countries wiped away as a result of treaties on trade, ever closer union with others, to meet the corporate freedoms they want for themselves but without any care at all for the mess they are making to our nations or to our cultures and to our own freedoms.

As CNN reports today on "another blistering quarter of economic growth", it outlines a story just in the making which mirrors our own demise as it follows the story of "fever-pitch" grumblings over exorbitant home prices as it follows the story of an ordinary couple who now "rent a shabby old attic and subsist on a diet of instant noodles, only to find skyrocketing prices pushing their dreams of a new home beyond their reach."

"Haiping finally sets her sights on a flat on the outskirts of the city, even though the couple could barely afford the 900,000-yuan (US$131,800) price tag. Their 20-year mortgage comes to nearly $900 a month, but their combined salary is only around $1300 a month."

"Haizao, steps in to help her relatives pay for the 20 percent down payment by becoming the mistress of a high-ranking official in the city mayor's office. It ends tragically for Haizao when she suffers a miscarriage and her lover commits suicide after being accused of taking bribes."

"To pay off the mortgage, they refrain from changing jobs, spending money on entertainment or travel, and worry about falling ill. But for the Chinese, worrying about house payments itself is becoming a health risk. A survey on the health of Chinese white-collar workers, released by the Chinese Medical Doctors Association, showed that buying property ranks as the top cause of pressure among 46 percent of the respondents, followed only by parents' health, difficulty in finding a spouse and children's education."

Unless governments reverse the march of corporate greed then the peoples of China will like us, be turned into economic migrants or a life of struggle against poverty, only to find the roots of their society are in a pile of sand from where they'll find that the rich corporate sharks and politicians have already moved on without them when the inevitable economic bubble finally bursts.

Don't do it China. Don't be like us!