AfricanExpansionist

Against the Grain

Internal Combustion

Sea People: The Puzzle of Polynesia

These all caused me to examine aspects of modern society that we usually just accept blindly

Bingo

No, they'll sell it cheaper than the store

Great list!

You have a bizarre definition of freedom of travel

Although I suppose on a grander scale, nobody truly has freedom of travel. But it's rare for citizens of a nation-state to need to be granted access to other cities and provinces... So on a relative scale, they don't. I'm not sure how you can say otherwise 🤔

I mean, it's obvious that you have no idea WTF daily life is like in China. I just ran down a list of possibilities and explained how travel works in China and you just posture like a bratty toddler.

Why do you feel a need to knee-jerk glorify and defend a nation-state you've never lived in or associated with? I didn't even badmouth the place, simply described a facet of life in China without hyperbole

Yeah there's no way that guy was allowed to buy train tickets, let alone airplane tickets. He probably had no passport

Lol you lemmygrad people hate hearing from people who have actually lived and worked in China.

If he tried to buy an airplane ticket it's possible he would have been denied. Riding a jetski across open ocean is pretty dangerous and not preferable. Also, there's no guarantee that you will be allowed entry to your destination. Risky move all around. Especially because the Korean island of Jeju has visa-free travel for Chinese passport holders. So maybe it was a stunt but... Risky move.

Oh speaking of passports, China stopped issuing new passports in recent years. I am not sure if they started back, but it was definitely an issue during the Shanghai COVID lockdown, as rich Chinese people were trying to leave and lay low elsewhere. It's possible that the guy's passport expired and he had no way of traveling by air.

I lived there and experienced it firsthand. All residents of China must apply to travel within China. These days it's mostly automated and quick for convenience, but you will be monitored at various checkpoints in the system.

For the most obvious example, you must register with local police within 24 hours of arrival in your destination, a service hotels usually provide free. This means that you must present your travel documents to check in to all hotels. This applies to all people, not only foreign individuals. Moreover, all lodgings are not legally registered to host foreign guests. So there are many hotels that non-Chinese people cannot even stay in.

I hope this helps relieve your incredulity

"I studied economics in high school. Hear my wisdom."

"I went to high school. Hear my wisdom"

This comment is fkn stoopid. Seriously. Look at the logic