When China’s new president Xi Jinping began his tenure earlier this year, he made all of the usual and grandiose promises a new leader often makes about about fostering a more transparent and less corrupt people’s government, building a more equitable society and economy, bolstering the rule of law, blah blah blah.

What Xi is actually doing, all too predictably, is following the well-tread path of communist and authoritarian history by ensuring the cushy status quo and protecting the plutocratic upper-crust that is the Chinese communist party — because that, of course, is all communism in practice has every really been about. All of that hyper-jingoistic language about class-free and economic “equality” and “glorious revolutions” and whatever else is a bunch of horse hockey that wealthy and powerful authoritarians use to brainwash the masses… which pretty accurately sums up exactly what’s happening here. Via the WSJ:

On a visit here in July, Chinese President Xi Jinping went to a lakeside villa where Mao Zedong spent summers in the 1950s enjoying such luxuries as a swimming pool and air conditioning. Opening a new exhibition there that makes no mention of the millions who died under Mao’s leadership, Mr. Xi declared that the villa should be a center for educating youth about patriotism and revolution. …

In fact, he appears to be doubling down on China’s authoritarian political model, while borrowing elements of Mr. Bo’s Maoist revivalism and media-savvy politics to boost his own stature and revive public support for the party, according to political insiders and analysts. …

The new Chinese leadership has also ordered officials to combat the spread of “seven serious problems” including universal values, press freedom, civil society and judicial independence. …

On the political front, however, Mr. Xi has shown no sign of considering even limited liberalization, party insiders say. “Xi is really starting to show his true colors,” said one childhood friend who recalls Mr. Xi spending hours reading books on Marxist and Maoist theory as a teenager. “I think this is just the beginning.”

Read on for the many despicable plans that Xi and the communist have in mind for cracking down on “constitutionalism,” “purifying” the Party, suppressing ideas for politically liberalizing reforms, and etcetera. It’s nothing really new, but here’s a hint: If the United States lived by China’s ‘laws,’ I think it’s safe to say that HotAir would probably not exist, and I would probably be in jail.