Current Event #1

http://www.economist.com/node/21546014

China's property market is still relatively new.  The business has gone through a major transformation over the last two decades, as the urge to own houses has taken over the Chinese people.  However, with the current economy of the world, China's housing market has started to dwindle, putting a large strain on the local governments.  China's never really had a tax on housing before a year ago when large cities started lightly experimenting with it.  China is considering creating a property tax, which would provide local governments with a steady source of income, however the work involved in implementing such a practice would be extreme.  The organization of all the houses and the verification of their actual credit would be a daunting task.  However, the Chinese government makes a risky move in implementing the new program because the people of China, especially the urban middle class, many of whom own multiple homes, see taxes as a form of theft by a government that doesn't provide enough for them.  The local governments are taking this point of view into account and it'll be interesting to see if China follows through in creating the new property tax.  It's kind of a risky move on their part.  Once China begins the game of taxing, public dissent and public opinion is going to become a huge issue.  In a nation that's still controlled relatively moreso than other countries in the world, that could be a major concern for the government.  If that process were to begin it could almost never be taken away again, and it would forever become an controversial political issue discussed in the country.  China's making a risky move, but perhaps China needs to stand up and be strong in order to keep its economy under control.