[wonton2]

I agree to most of the things the author said (except for America being the center of the world and a moral lighthouse for everyone of course). But what I think will get overlooked by most people is the beginning where he notes that the chinese he has met in his daily life are very nice people. Do not forget that they are the same as you. It sounds obvious but I think most people don’t realize how similar we all are. Probably every deeper concern you have had a chinese and russian and american person have also had. No they do not live worried lives where they think that if they break an arm they will be bankrupt. No they are not afraid every day of government agents knocking on their door to drag their father away. The risk of each one is larger in one country than the other. But day to day people think about the same things. Every country have their introverts and extroverts, engineering types and warm hearted caring types and the discussions that one does not exclude the other. Superficially chinese cut in line because if you dont cut you get cut and i am sure you would do the same if the situation was the same for you. Unless you are the quiet introverted type, which is also the case in China. Dont forget that this person talks about governments. You should dislike Xi for what he does to the chinese people, not for what effects you fear he may have on USA (the government, not the people).

[mistermann]

> Do not forget that they are the same as you.

How can you still hold this belief after reading articles like this?

> It sounds obvious but I think most people don’t realize how similar we all are.

That's more sensible.

Indeed, if any person from country <x> was raised in country <y>, they are going to be generally like others born in country <y>, but only if they were raised there. This is what constitutes culture, and all groups of people on the planet do not all share the same culture, as the author pointed out.

[neolefty]

> How can you still hold this belief after reading articles like this?

I'll push back on this. Spending time in China helped me look at myself and break down what was universally human and what was learned culture. For example, the story about the missionary giving a talk at the local English Corner about "the meaning of life"

> He said he knew what people would say having lived in China for sometime but even so was stunned at how deeply and rigidly held the belief that making money was the entire meaning of life. There was no value system. There was no exogenously held right or wrong, only whether you made money.

Yes, people espouse that. Even to themselves.

But spend some time with them and find out what makes them happy and sad, and what they want to make money for, and it's the same as a westerner (and I suspect the same as any mentally healthy human on the planet): having basic autonomy in your life, developing as a person, quality time with friends and family, helping each other, a chance to raise children peacefully and otherwise contribute to society. Those are the things people genuinely want.

I think people universally find obsession with wealth to be unsatisfying, but it's sometimes only after a learning experience. They may try it for a while, but they realize it's a socialized value, not an intrinsic one.

To overgeneralize, China as a whole is still at an earlier stage of learning about wealth than the US or Europe or Japan or Korea. But they are in the process of learning the lessons of wealth and will, I believe, get there faster than we did, simply because everything is changing faster there than it did here.

Edit: And we in the West are not done learning either!

[wonton2]

Thank you, this is exactly my thoughts also. The one you replied to was the kind of person my post was meant for.

[mistermann]

> The one you replied to was the kind of person my post was meant for.

Two questions:

1. What kind of person am I?

2. How do you know this?

[mistermann]

> I'll push back on this. Spending time in China helped me look at myself and break down what was universally human and what was learned culture.

It seems like you've agreed with me, not pushed back.

[wonton2]

> How can you still hold this belief after reading articles like this?

I think neolefty answered it very well. I guess i forgot to mention i also have lived in china and have a chinese wife, wich has taught me the same. Reading articles and watching the news teaches you very little about humans compared to actually talking to them, in my opinion.