> whether much of the growth of the last 10-15 years (enormous empty cities) was substantive or useful at all.
I don't think anyone who has seen the development in China over the last 10-15 years first-hand would say this.
There has been massive development in nearly every area, both in quantity and quality. Just to give one example, anyone who follows the scientific literature in just about any field will be aware of the massive increase in high-quality publications coming out of China over the last decade.
There are one or two examples of "ghost cities" (though most supposed "ghost cities" actually become populated over time), but that doesn't negate the massive, real development that is visible everywhere in China.
I don't think anyone who has seen the development in China over the last 10-15 years first-hand would say this.
There has been massive development in nearly every area, both in quantity and quality. Just to give one example, anyone who follows the scientific literature in just about any field will be aware of the massive increase in high-quality publications coming out of China over the last decade.
There are one or two examples of "ghost cities" (though most supposed "ghost cities" actually become populated over time), but that doesn't negate the massive, real development that is visible everywhere in China.