screw human rights - China is a menace to humanity!

[pchang]

Uh....

Because English is EVIL...

Yeah.


That's it.

[Tingkai]

Mindseye: look at your own society and you'll find the same problems.

Baby food that bad for babies: just look at companies selling baby formula in the third world even though its unhealthy for babies. People in developed countries know that, sales of baby formula have dropped so these countries pawned it off on unsuspecting mothers.

Chemical dumping: ever hear of the Love Canal?

Or how about all those cigarette companies, be they Western or Chinese, selling a product they know kills.

No health insurance? Go to another hospital.

Crazy motorists? Yeah, ever hear of road rage?

Intellectual property rights? Read up on the history of the US economy, say Tolkein's problem with paperbacks in the US back in the 1960s.

Refusal to help people? You mean like people getting murder and no one calls the cops? A girl got shot recently on a crowded Toronto bus. Cops can't find any witnesses.

All the **** you're complaining about happens in a lot of places.

The problem with you mate is you got the expat arrogance.

The big question is why are you living among people you hate so much?

Another question: tell us about all the great contributions you're making to the general welfare of China. Or are you just there making money?

The sad thing is that China is a great country, full of interesting people, but you can't see it because you're blinded with hatred.

[Last Conformist]

@Tingkai: Considering your apparently bleak view on human nature, I find it amusing you think China is a great country.

[Tingkai]

Bleak view? Nah, just realistic enough to know there are bastards everywhere, but the majority of people are decent and for every selfish person there are many others who give more than I can imagine.

[lord of the mark]

Originally posted by Tingkai
Mindseye: look at your own society and you'll find the same problems.

Baby food that bad for babies: just look at companies selling baby formula in the third world even though its unhealthy for babies. People in developed countries know that, sales of baby formula have dropped so these countries pawned it off on unsuspecting mothers.

You do understand the difference between baby formula in general, which causes very subtle disadvantages vs breast milk, and which is a problem when shipped to poor countries because of the lack of sanitary water to mix with it, and selling formula that has NO nutritional value?? Youre not doing your argument any favors by being sloppy with facts.

[lord of the mark]

Mindseye: look at your own society and you'll find the same problems.

"No health insurance? Go to another hospital."

Hospital ERs in the US take folks without insurance. This results in uninsured folks using ER's for routine care, which jacks up costs, and is a big problem - but not the situation you suggest.


"Intellectual property rights? Read up on the history of the US economy, say Tolkein's problem with paperbacks in the US back in the 1960s."

Through an oversight, LOTR was not properly copywritten in the US, IIUC, which led to the issues. It was NOT a case of widespread disregard of IP rights.

"Refusal to help people? You mean like people getting murder and no one calls the cops?"

you mean the case of one woman in queens 30 years ago? Apparently everyone there thought that someone ELSE had already called.

" A girl got shot recently on a crowded Toronto bus. Cops can't find any witnesses."

Cant speak for Toronto.


"The sad thing is that China is a great country, full of interesting people".

Im sure it is

[Last Conformist]

Originally posted by Tingkai
Bleak view? Nah, just realistic enough to know there are bastards everywhere, but the majority of people are decent and for every selfish person there are many others who give more than I can imagine.

You just asserted that the kind of things mindseye mentioned were routine everywhere. If that's not a bleak view of humanity, I've never seen one. Not to mention it's in blatant contradiction with your subsequent "realistic" statement.

[Tingkai]

Originally posted by lord of the mark


You do understand the difference between baby formula in general, which causes very subtle disadvantages vs breast milk, and which is a problem when shipped to poor countries because of the lack of sanitary water to mix with it, and selling formula that has NO nutritional value?? Youre not doing your argument any favors by being sloppy with facts.

The problem with baby formula is it lacks the natural bacteria that helps a baby develop a strong immune system. As a result, babies raised on formula tend to have more health problems then babies who are breast fed.

[Tingkai]

Originally posted by Last Conformist

You just asserted that the kind of things mindseye mentioned were routine everywhere. If that's not a bleak view of humanity, I've never seen one. Not to mention it's in blatant contradiction with your subsequent "realistic" statement.

So you believe that in some countries all the citizens are humanitarians, and in other countries all the citizens are greedy?

Very odd.

That's all for me now. Catch you later..

[Wezil]

Originally posted by lord of the mark


" A girl got shot recently on a crowded Toronto bus. Cops can't find any witnesses."

Cant speak for Toronto.

It was an ethnic/gang situation. Witnesses afraid of retribution by the perpetrators sort of thing. Not quite an example of indifference to one's fellow man - more a case of fear.

[Last Conformist]

Originally posted by Tingkai


So you believe that in some countries all the citizens are humanitarians, and in other countries all the citizens are greedy?

Very odd.

You really do have issues with reading comprehension, don't you?

[lord of the mark]

Originally posted by Tingkai


The problem with baby formula is it lacks the natural bacteria that helps a baby develop a strong immune system. As a result, babies raised on formula tend to have more health problems then babies who are breast fed.

A minor increase in ear infections and the like, and some proclivity toward allergies. POTM was bottle fed, and is quite healthy. Its not at all in the same category as the nutrionless formula.

[mindseye]

Originally posted by Tingkai

Mindseye: look at your own society and you'll find the same problems.

Did you really not read the following in the post you were responding to?

Originally posted by mindseye

Sure, but not to the extremes found in China.

I don't mind standing by claims I have made at Apolyton, but look - I'm not going to waste my time if you simply ignore what I write.

The same applies to the other thread in which you called me a racist.

[Bosh]

Mindseye: look at your own society and you'll find the same problems.

My country doesn't have a policy of sending all (or virtually all) refugees from a certain dictatorship back to their deaths, when other countries would be more than happy to take said refugees. Being complicit in the murder of refugees is evil.

[mindseye]

I see I missed this nasty remark:

Originally posted by Tingkai

The problem with you mate is you got the expat arrogance.

The big question is why are you living among people you hate so much?

Another question: tell us about all the great contributions you're making to the general welfare of China. Or are you just there making money?

Well, I'm not sure what this has to do with my claims, or if it's even your business. However, I'll answer the question.

If I "just wanted to make money" I sure as he11 wouldn't be a teacher. We are the lowest on the "laowai" totem pole. I could make a lot more money if I worked in my previous profession (IT project manager). But one of the main reasons I continue teaching (pushing four years now) is that I feel so good about my job. Teaching is one of those jobs like nursing -- even though the pay and status are not high, there is never a doubt as to whether or not your work actually contributes to society. I get enormous satisfaction from knowing that every day I am materially contributing to my students' lives and this country's development.

My students range from classes of high school kids to one-on-one business English with corporate execs and occasionally gov't officials. I work hard and try to give my best coaching and teaching. I incorporate as much cross-cultural understanding into my classes as I can. I really think of myself as a kind of cultural ambassador, for many of my students I am the only American (or maybe the only westerner) they will ever interact with on a personal level. I take that as an opportunity and a responsibility.

Last year I helped write, edit and performed voice-acting for an educational cartoon series now apparently popular all over China (I sometimes hear my voice on the subway). I see the DVDs being sold in many stores. I received nothing beyond my normal pay for this, but it was worth it for the fun and experience. Because of this cartoon series, people occasionally come to our company and request my classes by name. I have been told by several students that I am a "famous teacher" in Shanghai, although I have a little trouble with that one.

The administrative staff frequently reminds me I am the best of our school's 50-70 foreign teachers, routinely receiving the highest feedback scores and highest re-enrollment rates. In feedback, students often describe me as "kind", and "encouraging". Customers have been known to refuse to register unless the school confirmed that I was the teacher. White collars have told me they attend my evening classes as much for their enjoyment and relaxation value as the English teaching. But the highest praise I receive is when students applaud at the end of a class.

I can't take all the credit for this, I'm sure DaShi can tell you that Chinese students (kids and adults) can be really wonderful and appreciative towards foreign teachers. It's one of the biggest benefits of this line of work.

So now you know why I write with some degree of confidence on my observations on Chinese culture: for over four years now I have been interacting (in Chinese and English) at a personal level with thousands of mainlanders ranging from CEOs to factory workers to high school students.

Satisfied?


By the way, Tingkai, in the other thread where you called me a hateful racist (China is teh evil, OMFG!111!@ ) I researched and left for you a long reply showing that this "indifference to strangers" phenomenon I have been talking about is widely observed and commented on by other foreigners, as well as mainland Chinese writers.

Unless you can explain how all of these other speakers are also racists, I really do expect a public apology for a remark like that. In these two threads you have repeatedly accused me of being "arrogant", "blinded by hate" and a "racist". That's strong language that I take personally. So unless you can show where all the other writers I quoted are also racists, I hope you are man enough to apologize for those remarks.