He, of course, denied that, confirming that it was just a figure of speech. In sum, let's remember that something has fundamentally changed in China, within the last generation. China is now no longer self sufficient in basic food supply nor in energy needs. Again and again, Chinese refer in almost despairing tones to the burden of their country's vast population. World War III, which Mao expected to occur in his lifetime, hasn't yet broken out, and is not expected to break out any time soon.
Domestic resources are simply insufficient to support so many people.
This new reality is what generates alot of the anxiety that seeks to hide itself in reveries about ancient China's solitary splendour. Knowledgeable Chinese understand these things and are prone to regard official propaganda with skepticism, while at the same time repeating the same propagandistic themes to any gullible foreigner who will swallow it. Excuse me for butting in, but let us get something straight. Whether one agrees or disagrees with what is being said about the Chinese government, it is not methodologically sound to use the etymology of the name as part of your evidence. Think of all the sillinesses you could get into if you argued the same way from the etymologies of other countries' names.