Hello. Let's try to be a little more balanced here. I know Chinese nationalism is running at an all time high right now, and Chinese pride rivals the proudest in the world, but don't show your own weakness by being being racist and inflammatory.

Yes, China is developing at a rapid rate and does have one of the most interesting and richest histories and cultures in the world, but this is not to say it is superior to all others. It is a common misconception that Chinese history is the longest and completely continuous. China as we know it today is made up of over 55 ethnic minorities that have all been part of different kingdoms and cultures historically. China proper is only a small part of what we call China today. On top of this, it is really not continuous. It has been ruled by Mongols, Manchus, and many other groups that are not Han Chinese.

Many argue that America has no history to speak of, but it is unfair to say that its history started in 1776. If this is the case, we should say Chinese history started in 1949 with the founding of the People's Republic. Western culture is just as rich as Chinese, with current aspects of culture, ideology, religion and philosophy reaching back to the Greek and Roman empire, language developing from a collection of ancient languages etc.

The West welcomes a big and developed China. While there are many racists and ignorant people in every country, those who are educated and not bigots hope for a better world for everyone, including China.

Many countries were the target of colonization in the 19th century. These days Chinese people love to portray China as a victim. Warlords and criminals inside of China did as much damage as foreigners during the fall of the Qing and after. Actually, only a small part of Yuanmingyuan was destroyed by foreigners. The rest was destroyed by looting Chinese, but you'll never see this admitted on a sign in the extremely nationalist mainland today.

How will the West depress Chinese culture today? It seems like all the young people in China today are striving to be Western. It's not Western culture forcing Chinese people to abandon their traditions. How many young Chinese are interested in classical literature, Beijing opera, classical music etc? In Beijing today you can see Chinese imitating the styles of American movie stars, music stars, but where is anything that is truly Chinese. Everything in China today is an imitation or a facade.

How can you call current Chinese society superior and modern? While the majority of the country is still poor peasants living in rural areas, the rich are getting richer due to connections and corruption instead of merit. Businessmen and officials are treating each other to KTV brothels in big cities, easily spending 5000 RMB a night, driving Audis with government plates, and the average salary in Beijing is still around only 2000 RMB. How is this morality? If anything, corrupt officials and businessmen are looting from the Chinese people, who are blind to this due to overwhelming nationalism and out of control pride for an ideal China that doesn't exist yet.

On top of this, these corrupt officials are maintaining their power by controlling the media and laws that protect both their face and money. While the western media is admittedly biased and not perfect, at least you can legally say anything you want and publish any periodical you decide. What do you trust more, a paper written by a censored government mouthpiece, or a newsletter freely printed by an independent group of people where they don't fear prison time or fines for voicing their opinion?

Is morality and tradition suppressing the people and silencing their voices? How can a society be harmonious where everyone is deaf and dumb?

I hope more than anyone that China can grow and prosper for the good of the Chinese and the world, but this is not going to happen quickly under the current situation. China's growth is and was based on producing foreign designed products for foreign markets. China has no middle class to buy these products (for previously mentioned reasons) so something needs to change for long term growth. On top of this, in order for an economy to be viable for a long time, it needs its own industries, own designs, own creativity, and own corporations. China has no rule of law, so it is a dire environment for local business. The government can take whatever amount of tax it sees fit, and can control what you do at the drop of a coin. Probably the largest problem aside from this is lack of intellectual property laws. Everyone knows everything replica and bootleg comes from China. Look at Chinese car manufacturers. Aside from a few (nice) independent designs from companies like Zhonghua, all are either derivative or blatant copies of Japanese and European designs. When will Chinese companies learn that they cannot turn out a crappy ripoff for instant profit for the few in charge instead of developing quality independent products for longterm growth? This kind of shady business and lack of any sort of safe legal environment is epidemic.

If China wants to develop positively, the Chinese people must look objectively at themselves in order to recognize and resolve these faults. It cannot be a victim. It cannot be too proud. It cannot be run by a few corrupt and greedy individuals.

China is stereotypically known as a collective society, but this cannot exist when a few loot from the rest of the population. I wish the best of luck for China and that someday that a modern society can flourish.

Posted on April 30, 2008 — by luxun

0 comments