the chinese countryside, especially in the rice-farming south, has a higher density than most american cities. you can raise a riot pretty quickly, as has been happening with greater frequency in rural areas than urban ones of late.
it is true that if this were to link up with the cities, it'd be game over for the regime. it's easier to coexist with rural riots, as long as the food eventually makes its way in.
My old history professor claimed that revolutions are generally started by one of three groups:
Where peasants have the economic security that comes from living close to the land, and having less fear of starving in economic downturns, urban workers do not.
Peasants may thus be willing to get violent because there is less fear that they will starve if they reject the authority of economic elites. And I'll give my consent to any government that does not deny a man a living wage-Billy Bragg
