Show Notes:
On today's show Andrew and Bill begin with five questions on the Fifth Plenum as Xi continues his corruption crackdowns and propaganda campaigns emphasize ideological unity and discipline. Topics include: The logistics of this week's meeting, the challenge of implementing policies throughout the country, the real corruption crisis that Xi inherited 14 years ago, costs of the crackdowns, and the inevitable arrival of a unified version of Xi Jinping Thought. From there: A tour of the hysterics surrounding Kylian Mbappé and Real Madrid this week, including the benign comments at issue, questions about why this is happening now, how the Party views Mao, how Chinese citizens view Mao, and why, if this is all part of a strategy, it may be a bad one. At the end: More bad news from the stock market as tech stocks continue to collapse, questions about forthcoming policies, and a bittersweet update on Pop Mart's fortunes in the afterglow of the Labubu craze.
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