>>>...but rather "nobody had any idea what's going on, so it was chaotic and nobody knew what the best course of actions were".

Yes, THIS is very plausible, along with an instinct to downplay it.

The misrepresentation by the western media is a big problem for me, and as you describe it, it makes sense that it is better pro-CCP propaganda than anything CCP can brew at home. When others depict you as being universally bad, anyone would get angry or dismissive .

So, when you describe it, I totally understand how someone punching through the firewall and seeing that would be offended - I would be too. What a horrible second-order effect on people that are not even thought to be the audience.

So, yes as far as the COVID-19 issues go, I've got healthy respect for the CCP internal response (excluding the apparent stonewalling questions related to the origins, again, I've only got limited info here).

And yes, I understand that the CCP's task of trying to control every bit of info is virtually impossible, even with scaleable AIs searching for trends, etc. Hard to catch the rubber ducks and Winnie The Pooh memes at the beginning.

And there is no doubt that when an autocracy makes good decisions, it is far faster and more effective than democratic decisions. The recent announcement about not building any more coal plants abroad is such a good decision, and they can just do it immediately, and if the coal plant constructors are screwed, or compensated, they can deal with it as they wish. Such a decision here would drag on for years.

That said, power, corrupts, absolute power corrupts absolutely, and major concentrations of power lead to bad things. There is still the issues of suppression of internal information about bad actions on occupied peoples (Tibet, Uhigurs, HK), and expansionism (Taiwan, 9-dashed line, island mil bases in international waters, etc.). Are these actively and openly discussed in the press and parlors in China?

In the US, it is really ugly right now. We have many problems in our past from the near-genocide of the Native Americans to slavery, dating back to before our founding and continuing. These are openly argued everywhere, and a major party has now devolved to the point of all but fully open White Supremacists who are trying to implement minority authoritarian rule. This will be hammered out, and will either result in a better society, or we will fall from democracy into autocracy.

It is messy as hell, but at least all the info is out there for anyone to pickup (actually, there's too much noise, a major part of our problem is deliberate desinformation spread by RUS and local political operatives as well as the usual crackpots). But, unless we have a constitutional crisis coup d'etat where the electoral process is subverted, there is no doubt that, because all the opposition is know, the government is legitimately supported by the people.

I still question whether, even with apparent support, the CCP can say the same thing. They took their ruling position by force, and then maintain it by both force and shall we say information management. You describe definite situations where the information management is very flawed or nonexistent at best, but how widespread is that failure? Can the Chinese people really be said to know the full extent of the CCP's activities, and have an option to not support them?

(& BTW, thank you very much for your detailed discussion, I'm learning a lot, and I hope providing good questions and some info)