I dont pay too much attention to how it is framed, but the anecdotes themselves are interesting in this book, and relate to this topic: http://www.amazon.com/Stealth-Nation.../dp/037542489X

I am always struck by how little "government" there seems to be in China. Is that likely to remain the case or will the elite eventually establish much tighter control over the gigantic informal economy?
I take it that the current situation does mean that China can do less coordinated intervening than past powers. Thats probably a good thing in some ways; the environment gets screwed either way.