By David Frum
(David Frum: 前總統布什的經濟演講稿撰稿人，他也是第一個“內幕---“對布什總統一書的作者。)
對於埃及媒體報道 ,很多人強調穆巴拉克總統的民主正當性不足。，當然這是千真萬確的。但是,這種缺乏民主的合法性是不是唯一的---亦是千真萬確的的。然而，沒有那麽民主的中國卻有一個普遍的安定的大眾. 事實上，如果民意調查是可信的，中國人民表達比地球上任何其他大國社會的條件更感滿意。
為什麽呢？---你知道怎麽用普通話說”這是經濟，傻瓜!”？
讓我們比較埃及和中國：當胡斯尼穆巴拉克於1981年承擔的權力，埃及的人均國內生產總值比中國的GDP高250%。今天，中國的國內生產總值比埃及的大50%.
自1981年以來，埃及經濟增長，並超過其人口增長速度。這是令人印象深刻，因為埃及的人口已經從1981年翻了一番，從4000萬至8000萬。
但埃及的經濟增長速度不夠快，無法滿足其人民的願望。一半國民的生活費每天不到2美元，社會向上流動受阻。在中東地區, 埃及一直是的大中專畢業生失業人口最多的國家. 另一方麵,中國因為經濟的快速增長和人口增長緩慢, 大規模提高了普通人民收入, 這種收入增長速度是如此之快，中國人民看到他們的生活有實質性的改善：更好的食物，更好的住房，更好的服裝。
是的，許多中國顯然仍然很貧窮，但足夠數量中國人受益達到足夠的滿足地步，他們更願意理解---等待----進一步的改善，而不是做任何可能破壞正在改善的現狀。反過來,中國的動態資本主義賦予它的其威權政府政府的合法性。埃及的低迷狀態的國有經濟現在已動搖國家的統治階級。這對威權政府獨是一個教訓---對民主領導人也一個教訓
(Google Translate)
Much of the press coverage of Egypt has emphasized President Mubarak's lack of democratic legitimacy. Which is true enough, of course. Also true: That this lack is not unique. Yet undemocratic China has a generally quiescent public. In fact, if opinion surveys can be trusted, China's people express more satisfaction with national conditions than those of any other large society on earth.
Why? How do you say "It's the economy, stupid!" in Mandarin? Let's compare Egypt and China: When Hosni Mubarak assumed power in 1981, Egypt's per capita GDP was 250 percent greater than China's. Today, China's is 50 percent greater than Egypt's. Since 1981, the Egyptian economy has grown, and grown faster than its population. That's impressive, because Egypt's population has doubled since 1981, from 40 million to 80 million.
But Egypt's economy has grown nowhere fast enough to satisfy the aspirations of its people. Half the country subsists on less than $2 a day. Upward mobility is blocked. Egypt has the largest population of unemployed college graduates in the Middle East.
China's rapid economic growth and slow population growth has raised incomes so fast that ordinary Chinese people see meaningful improvement in their lives: Better food, better housing, better clothing. Yes, many Chinese obviously remain very poor, but enough Chinese have benefited rapidly enough that they understandably prefer to wait for further betterment rather than do anything that might upset an improving status quo. China's turn toward dynamic capitalism has bestowed legitimacy on its otherwise authoritarian government. Egypt's sluggish state-controlled economy has fomented the discontent now shaking the state's controllers. There is a lesson embedded there for dictators -- and for democratic leaders too.
