Responses (6)
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Jimbo
(10/15):
It seems odd that you put your post in the This Blows column. Was that a mistake? I think the questions are very interesting. I have also done some traveling and I see that Americans are very egocentric. We think our way of life, our point of view, is the only one that makes sense. There are billions of people on this planet who have no interest in being an American, or in having an American point of view.
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ronc99
(10/15):
I agree with Jinmbo, as well. I have travelled to many countries, but not lately. (Too dangerous)When I did, though, it was the same. People say how can such a young country propose to tell us how to do things. We have been around way before the Americans killed all the indians for their land, or killed each other for their land, and by the way, why do you kill each other so much? Why is there so much coruption and crime? They are afraid to come to America, some of them. It is a very interesting but dangerous place. If this sounds strange to you, your not alone. We Americans think there is nothing else but our own little world over here. Even Canadians are nervous living next to us. But I found these comments were mixed, most of the people I talked with spoke in admiration of our system.
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Anonymous
(10/15):
i personally am embarassed when i see fellow americans, especially the average american, abroad. we are loud, uneducated, and fat. but thank God our government helps other countries, cuz they need us.
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Jimbo
(10/15):
I think this dichotomy is only useful at times. I still believe that completely alternative societal beliefs have their own validity, and don't necessarily need to be converted to our way of thinking. I wouldn't worry about the Chinese overcoming their burdensome former or present governments. We have enough to worry about with our own government. And the Chinese are very sharp and industrious people. So I think it Rocks that they have a completely different path to walk than we do. And of course I support anyone's efforts at overcoming oppression. I myself have had to do a great deal of overcoming the oppressive upbringing I endured in a "Christian" family.
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abg
(10/19):
the grass Q isn't "cute" -- it was outlawed for a while in some areas of China as "wasteful" -- and who's to say that wasn't right!
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Anonymous
(8/14):
i agree with Jimbo-not everyone has the same values as Americans and they like it. Let ppl think for themselves. geez
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Responses (12)
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LHU
(10/15):
The Tao of Holyshnikes: This Rocks/This Blows. While the questions posted are very interesting, they reflect the breadth and depth that the Communist government controls the Chinese population. Since Mao Zedong announced the creation of a "people's democratic dictatorship" on October 1st, 1949, the communists have effectively destroyed the underpinnings of religion, and any belief in God, presumably because a higher authority (God) could undermine their communist dogma. State run company policies often dictate who and when you can marry and when you can have a child. So while the America meddling question was interesting and the grass question was cute, the rest reflected the oppression of over 1.3 billion Chinese. Ergo this Blows. (P.S. Why the Tao of Holyshnikes? The principle of Tao, or Great Ultimate, is divided into two opposite principles, or two principles that oppose one another in their actions, yin and yang.)
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LHU
(10/15):
Jimbo, Ronc99 & Anonymous – Now that I have deciphered the core of this posting do you think This Rocks or This Blows?
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LHU
(10/15):
Apart from the posting, I did want to add I lived in Europe for 10 years, and everything you say about the egocentric, loud and uneducated American is sadly not an isolated stereotype. This is the image most of the world has of America for decades. As an American living abroad it was painfully embarrassing when tour busses disgorged 30 or so of my fellow countrymen, but as a teenager we had a ball with American tourists. You could hear them long before you could see them, and their clothing made them stand out like moose with fluorescent bulls eyes painted on their sides. Like any teenage punk out to have some clean fun, my friends and I would hang around thinking up ways to torment tourists. From walking behind a group and talking loudly about different types of cameras (the result was what we called the “clutch and huddle”) to hanging out on the town square and gluing roll-your-own cigarette papers together to make long fat cigarettes – then taking “puffs” and acting stoned. We are in more tourist snapshots… So next time you are abroad, strike up a conversation with some local kids, and try to influence their image of what an American is.
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ronc99
(10/16):
"Americans are widely viewed as arrogant, loud, ignorant of other cultures and totally self-absorbed," he said in an interview earlier this week. "We think that's an attitude and behavior that can be changed."
Advertising executive Keith Reinhard has a message for U.S. companies: America's tarnished image may soon hurt your bottom lines.
From the asociated press today, interesting topic, falls right in line with this post, doesn't it.
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ronc99
(10/21):
Tell them we have grass because we "CAN". They have so many people, if they had a small piece of grass, it would be full of bodies, copulating and reproducing. I spent three weeks in Shanghi and would never want to go back. Just going across the street from the hotel to the mall, I was constantly mobbed by little kids, begging for money. Their parents standing back while they do this. Nice country, but just over populated so badly it is discusting, like rats or rabbits, continuously muliplying.
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Jimbo
(10/21):
The Nazis referred to the Jews as vermin. Likening the Chinese to disgustingly overpopulated rats or rabbits is not much different.
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LHU
(10/21):
ABG - I was not aware that the growing of grass had been outlawed as wasteful. Thank you for the edification. JIMBO – Well put. My father lived through WWII, and as a boy saw all the Jews in his town shipped off to concentration camps. Few returned. My wife is Asian-American, and we have kids. Neither of us think we are rats or rabbits.
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ronc99
(10/23):
I was referring to the way they reproduce, not that they were rats or rabbits. It does not surprise me that you would take that differently. And where does having grass being unlawfull come into this? I said we have it because we can. There is no room for grass there, unless you are extremely rich, or a member of government. If you had a small lawn, the next morning there would be 15 huts on it, and thirty people cooking breakfast. Maybe we could read these posts without thinking so negatively!
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LHU
(10/23):
Ronc99: I think you are correct; postings should be read more carefully. The unlawful growing of grass is clearly referenced to abg’s posting of 10/19 - see “This Rocks” column. Concerning your (RONC99) comments – “it is discusting (sp. disgusting), like rats or rabbits, continuously muliplying (sp. multiplying)” is as provocative as yelling “Fire!” in a crowded theater. It is common knowledge that China has taken extreme measures to control its population through the One-Child Policy. So your inflammatory rat and rabbit comment cannot even be defended on a “reproductive” basis. Your words speak for themselves.
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MarinaXY
(10/25):
Has anyone read "China, Inc" yet? It's just out and covers why China is the next superpower.
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Thomsan
(10/26):
Yeah, and 20 years ago everyone was fawning over Japan as number 1. Now its you better learn mandarin instead of Japanese to get ahead in business. The Chinese do not have the economic, environmental controls america must follow., so they are cheating in a way to get ahead. The dragon will grow no doubt but don't count america out!
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duncanbloor
(12/4):
Differences in cutures can often be used for humour,ridicule,to open ones mind or to amke us appreciate our own existence.
I suppose it just depends on how humourous/negative/positive you are as a person as to how you take the above questions
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Questions I have been asked while on business in China…
