How has your perception of China and Chinese people changed over the years?

The US is still the largest economy in the world, OP.

I've dealt with quite a of them and Chinese Americans are great. Chinese who are from China are not to be trusted. Between their "little emperor syndrome" and the fact that cheating in life and business is looked at as "clever" and not "evil", I'm distrustful.

This thread will not last long. Threads critical of the PRC are deleted quickly. Not quite sure why.

Any time I post about the Chinese pushing rhinos (for the purported sexual enhancement properties of the horns), elephants (for ivory), sharks (for their fins - to make soup out of), etc. toward extinction, the thread is gone within a day or two.

Same goes for any mention of their horrendous environmental record - one-fifth of their farmland is now poisoned.

OP, The Chinese have come a long way but they have many problems. Their land, water and air are heavily polluted, most of country is still in poverty. The factories that have been turning out junk that we buy are closing, some have moved back to US. The Chinese have a huge underground black market financial system that will make our last market collapse look like a small stock correction when it pops in the near future which will have global effects.

Finally the US should have never opened trade with them. China and Russia hack our computer systems on a daily basis and have stolen countless patents, electronic designs and blueprints from hundreds of corporations not to mention their continued human rights violations. Did I mention body parts removed from prisoners brings in a nice sum for the communist elite.

R3, Chinese censers routinely hack DL and delete the true like they are doing with what is happening in Hong Kong.

Was wondering if that night be the case, r5.

China is all smoke and mirrors, OP. Look at their per capita income. It's a nation of peasants.

My perception has changed, yes.

R3 East Asians do not like scrutiny regardless of whether they are Chinese, Japanese, Vietnamese or Korean. They would like to do whatever they please and have others look the other way. That has happened for the most part.

I like the mainlander gay boys. Some are quite hot. But the Singaporeans, Honkies, and Taiwanese are too rice queeny for me.

Not really. My perception of the Communist Party has changed though.

R11, How?

They have an entire rich population equal to the US but without our minorities within their 1.4 billion.

I didn't trust them before and sure as hell don't now.

We cannot win, you know. The only question is how bad will it get when they're running the world. Don't look for any Marshal Plan or Peace Corps.

It's amazing, mentioned before, how different Chinese-Americans are. That's a good thing, especially now that I'm frequenting drugstores more.

[quote]Finally the US should have never opened trade with them. China and Russia hack our computer systems on a daily basis and have stolen countless patents, electronic designs and blueprints from hundreds of corporations not to mention their continued human rights violations.

They put pee-pee in my Coke!

Just yours R14, I drink Pepsi and the Vietnamese pee in mine so it tastes sweeter.

China is growing in prosperity yet Chinese are increasingly leaving China for white-created countries like the US, Australia, Sweden, Ireland and Germany. It is the same story for other East Asian countries like Japan and Korea where for the past 100+ years immigration to the US has increased every decade in spite of those countries having great economies and great standards of living. Americans were always told that having their jobs shipped to China would increase Chinese prosperity so they wouldn't immigrate here. Well Chinese took our manufacturing jobs and with the money are coming to the US to take our jobs here.

I have to agree with r2. The people from the mainland I found to be very racist towards all groups, and they did not try to hide it. No being politically correct for them. That was my experience. I will not sugar-coat things with political correctness. I am not referring to Chinese-Americans, but native-born Chinese people. And before you go yelling about racism on my part, I call it like I see it, and describe exactly what I have experienced at the hands of native-born Chinese. They are absolutely horrible nightmares to deal with in ANY business transaction whatsoever.

I found they also felt the world should revolve around China. I was constantly reminded that their term for China is or was the Middle Kingdom. So, no, I don't trust them.

Finally, a friend was really, really given the shaft by them and the Koreans in a business deal gone bad. We were told not to bother with legal action, we would only lose in their courts, despite plenty of evidence of wrongdoing. My pal was screwed over royally, big time.

That is what happened, that is our experience. I will not hide the truth.

As a result of all this, I find that I don't want Asian art in my home as a result. I am far less interested in Asian cultural ideas. What did you expect? Even the food all tastes like soy sauce, ginger, green onions and peanut oil. That is only so interesting.

Finally, if news reports can be trusted, it sure seems that political correctness and multi-culturalism is of no interest to China. It seems playing fair doesn't apply to them, but must apply to us. Hey, they can keep their trash. If I am able to purchase something hand-made in the USA, maybe from a crafter, I will do so, even if it costs more money. I absolutely will NOT put another dollar in China's pocket. What did you expect?

The Chinese are not only buying American businesses, they are also interested in settling people here in the USA. Do a search on Chinese cities planned in New York state. Another was planned out West somewhere. Chinese are also buying up California real estate. Apparently, this is also the case in some US cities as well. There was a major purchase of land in Toledo, Ohio. Funny, we wouldn't be able to buy land in China, or emigrate there if we desired.

I think its messed up to judge an entire group of people based off of 1, 2, even 10 interactions you've had with select members, BUT its understandable and very human in nature. That being said, I listened to a Chinese coworker who immigrated here 30 years ago (a lady whom I adore) outright admit what R2 said - in China, its nothing to lie, steal, or cheat. She went on to say that US mainstream cultural values (at least the ones we purport) are in stark contrast to what is permitted in China. I was in shock when she volunteered this because I have other family members, some of whom are of Asian and Chinese descent themselves, who have told me similar things. I always chalked it up to typical nationalistic pride but when I heard my coworkers explanation, I couldn't believe that she was admitting the stereotype was true!

I know little about the Chinese people. The government is cut throat, the citizens have no rights and you are about to see a slaughter in HongKong. They will never back down and have plans to take over much of Asia for themselves.

It's a brutal regime that has no regard for it's citizens.

There was a PBS special on how awful their factory workers are treated.

I do like Chinese food, one from column A and one from column B.

China steals rather than invest in R&D..Very sad that American corporations has sent most of the manufacturing jobs over to China..the US companies are aiding in this country's downfall.

I liked the Chow Mein better when I was a kid.

No one looks up to China, and no one will until it goes in for democracy and helps police the world's problems.

I think lifting the restrictions on travel means a lot more people have had dealings with Chinese-born people than at any time in history and they *do* behave differently than second or third or fourth generation immigrants. Chinese-born tourists are a fucking nightmare. Some teenager carved his initials into a pyramid recently, that's how much respect they have for other cultures.

They spit on the floor, push and shove wherever they're going, treat non-Chinese like dirt, complain about everything and demand discounts for non problems, don't tip, shout everything loudly in conversation no matter where they are, they are rude beyond belief - and these are the wealthy elite who have the money to travel. There have been editorials in Chinese newspapers about how the rest of the world is disgusted by the average tourist behaviour. The China-born people have little to no experience of anything outside China and it shows. They behave like they're still back home where papa is a high up official and they can do as they please.

Fuck the communists bastards!!!

You can always tell they are from mainland china by the way they dress. You can try to spot them on campuses across the USA.

they will wear white socks with black sandals, both female and male.

Yes, I am aware of the spitting bones on the table thing. I had the rare pleasure of sitting across from a Chinese woman traveling in the USA. She was an educated person, mind you. At dinner she actually spat a bone out on the table! Yuck!

The Chinese tourists love their selfie camera sticks.

I agree, I liked Chinese food and culture back when I was a kid and didn't know them.

The Chow Mein used to be a lovely greenish type stuff with white meat chicken. Now it has all gone Szctewan.

Someone can correct my spelling. I know how you are into that.

Will you guys think I'm an asshole if I admit that this thread is making me HUNGRY as HELL?

As a nationality, I detest them. I own farmland and refused to sell it to them. They have an appalling human rights record, which includes treatment of their 60,000,000 disabled people. Their treatment of animals for all purposes is sickening. The 10 most polluted cities in the world are Chinese cities you have never even heard of. Yet once they have assimilated into Western culture, they add a great deal. They are good neighbours, not violent, and conscientious at their work. Their children are clean and respectful. I would rather have a Chinese doctor who spent his time studying hard rather than someone who got drunk every night as a student. My dentist is Chinese and I will never choose another one.

I believe Morrissey said it best. I would add Russians though.

Not to mention they harvest organs of prisoners. They are crooks. Do not go into business with them. Be triple careful of dealing with chinese business people, they will sell their own mother just to make a buck.

Every one of them knows his country's history, so they are well aware what is going on now is leading to a catastrophe. They are trying to position themselves to ride it out and start over tomorrow. As always.

I agree Reply 20. Swapping Mao suits for coat and ties unfortunately fools rather too many people.

"Between their "little emperor syndrome" and the fact that cheating in life and business is looked at as "clever" and not "evil", I'm distrustful."

Sounds like most American businessmen to me.

What R2 said -- combining multiculturalism (which is only tribalism) and globalism almost insures the Chinese can poison our country the way they've poisoned theirs for centuries.

R28, and our government is worried about Cuba. The Communist learned that the true way to conquer the US without a military war appeal to the greed of the 1% and offer cheap goods to the masses. America rolled over for China like a two dollar whore.

[quote]I would rather have a Chinese doctor who spent his time studying hard rather than someone who got drunk every night as a student. My dentist is Chinese and I will never choose another one.

Many of the Chinese cheat their way through school (it's "clever.") So you have a good dentist, not a Chinese dentist.

"Many of the Chinese cheat their way through school."

"Many"?

What a bullet-proof accusation based on solid "facts" and "precision"!

I think we've all learned a lot from this.

The Chinese have been slaughtering each other for 4,000 years. They have killed hundreds of millions of their own people.

It's a hard habit to break.

R19, my experiences are not based a few experiences, but on many. At one point, I was romantically involved with someone from Hong Kong for some time. To make a long story short, I got an inside look into the culture then, and later, too. I liked them better when I didn't know them and when they were far away.

In autumn of 2009 I took a temp job at a garden center in a small town on the Rt 495 commuter belt highway in MA. I had no idea that their 'sleepy' retail barn was a major destination for holiday decor and gift shopping. It seemed like a typical garden center business doing most of its sales in outdoor plants, gardening supplies, and landscape installations.

I started working there in the retail barn in mid October, when they were overflowing with Halloween and Thanksgiving kitsch. Typical stuff with typical meh sales traffic.

The day after Halloween the regular staff stripped everything from the barn and erected 20-30 expensive high-end fake Christmas trees. Within a few days all of those trees were decorated with so much cheap crap you couldn't see the tree branches. Each tree had its own special theme. The barn was so full of trees you had to walk very carefully through the entire store. That was foreshadowing of the nightmare ahead.

My work weeks from Halloween through 12/24 consisted of locating cartons - hundred of cartons of decorative crap - unpacking/unwrapping, and shoving the contents into displays wherever possible to seduce the masses. One of the most important aspects of our job (there were about 15 of us temps) was to be SURE to remove ALL MADE IN CHINA tags. I figure that during my 3 day/week shifts alone, when 3-5 of us were doing those tasks together, we unwrapped between 3000-5000 items made in China per week. I am not exaggerating. It was ALL poorly made from cheap materials but made to look Martha Stewart-esque enough to sell well. And sell they did. It was a rather obscene display of excessive consumption of pure shit stuff.

The day after Thanksgiving is their annual Sale Day. People are waiting in 40" long lines at the 8 registers from 9am until 5pm closing. On regular pre-holiday days the sales traffic was constant, sometimes fairly heavy during the usual slow weekdays, and we were constantly having to restock more and more of this same crap.

I've worked in retail at a few places and I don't hate retail per se. However, I did learn to hate the mountains of cheap Chinese made crap and see how duped the people are who are willing to bleed mountains of money for such overpriced poorly made stuff. It was pretty sobering to see how much money one small semi-rural store was pouring into businesses based in China, and next to nothing into American made products. There were some cartons of overpriced Ina Garten and Stonewall Kitchen prepared foods or mixes, but they were rare.

What r39 said.

Plus, Wall Street LOVES the cheap labor and lack of serious environmental and workplace standards. Makes me wonder if that's what Nixon had in mind so long ago now when he opened the door.

I think we should be very concerned about their female infanticide and the disproportionate sex ratio.

Millions of more men than women - wtf are they going to do for wives? Those young men are primed for military.

Millions of unmarried men with limited career prospects.

Every country has some corruption - but that country seems to do it to a whole other level.

Years ago R18, the Japanese were buying US real estate like crazy. When the market corrected, they lost their pants and sold much at pennies on dollar. History can and will repeat itself.

Why are their teeth so wretched?

Nothing will wreck your perception of the Chinese like moving there. Unless of course you think they are lying, evil, disgusting, dirt worshipping savages without a moral bone in their body. Of so, you will just be reaffirmed.

I do not think so R47. America was never dependent on the Japanese but it is on the Chinese.

what r44 said: Quit buying their cheap shit. Put them out of business.

Be aware that food products are now coming out of China. First of all, elaborate holiday candies such as those theme chocolates decorated as trees, cartoon characters and such. A line of Italian style goods actually is sourced from CHINA!!! READ THE LABELS. They often put country of origin in very small letters or make it difficult to see. Many candies are now being made in China or South American countries, also they can be from Mexico. Canned and frozen vegetables now can be coming from China. Again, read the label. They may also be from Thailand, India or elsewhere.

Ingredients in a food product, soup for example, may be from anywhere in the world. The origin of ingredients doesn't have to be listed on the label. I was shocked to learn about this years ago.

R51 Well that rules out anything made out of plastic.

I have had experiences with Americans of Chinese ancestry and Chinese-born business people.

My American born friends are wonderful. Smart, funny, and successful. My high school best friend's family was in California since the Gold Rush. American as can be, through and through. Beautiful, too, and it used to really bug her when people would ask, "What are you?" (Chinese, Japanese, etc.). She'd always answer "American."

A couple of friends did free-lance photography and art direction for a Chinese family from Hong Kong who established their business in San Francisco. They ripped off European designs for their home good products (quilts, linens etc.), employed entire Chinese villages to make the copied products, employed imported Chinese immigrants to the U.S. as laborers for dirt cheap pay, and eventually replaced all American contract employees, like my friends, with imported Chinese labor who worked for much less. Meanwhile, they spent extravagantly on themselves. One friend helped the female owner pick out accessories for her house, she spent the equivalent of a worker's annual salary on home decor. It was hard for him to take because he soon lost his job to be replaced by an imported immigrant.

Many of the wealthy Chinese business people who come to the west are ruthless in business, they play with different rules. Other friends have also learned the hard way as people fled Hong Kong, buying up property and businesses on the SF peninsula and using sometimes illegal business practices to compete. It has been a real challenge for local business communities but now, years later, the climate here has really changed. Chinese were not the only people to alter the Bay Area, the techies are doing their share to make this area a harsher more competitive place to live. Rents and property are through the roof. It's obscene.

It's interesting to note that with a population over a billion, the smart and clever Chinese who rise to the top, are ambitious enough to make it to the west, work hard when they get here, are very smart people indeed.

I really wish I could live a couple of hundred more years to witness all the crap we see now, competition for world power, the Middle East in flames and exporting terror, disappearing water, food, and other natural resources, expanding populations, global warming, the depletion of sea life, new diseases like Ebola, etc. play out. Given the stupidity of so many humans, I fear the worst.

Maybe that's a good thing. Can the earth recover from the age of human folly?

the thread like this always makes me chuckle. Among the torrent of replies, maybe one or two makes some sense if we are lucky, but most are just completely clueless, reading them is like watching village people in a remote Chinese mountain are having a heated debate on American politics and life.

Asians have terrible breath. I don't know what it is. The other day an Asian came up to me to ask a question. As soon as he opened his mouth I was punched in the face by his noxious, hot and humid breath. It was like he drank sewer water.

[quote]Many of the Chinese cheat their way through school (it's "clever.") So you have a good dentist, not a Chinese dentist.

This is just fucking bullshit. Chinese students are among the hardest working in the world; and cheating is definitely a big NO-NO in their culture,

I never watched China Beach.

I do not like young Chinese because the stand for nothing except grasping mercantilism. Creepy, pushy, ill-mannered (don't eat sitting across from them), sneaky and mean, they are like hive creatures. It's sad and of course a silly stereotype about millions of people, but any time I have met a Chinese person who wasn't dreadful it turned out they either were from Taiwan or they had been in the USA with their families for generations.

I also do not trust Chinese people in business or academia. They are very, very keyed into their national interests and I don't believe they hold any confidentiality agreement with any fidelity. Everything goes back to the Chinese authorities, unless they think they can make money on their own out of what they steal.

Yup - they're pretty much just thieves. Like the Russians.

and please don't compare Chinese to people from Hong Kong, we do not like each other

for a lot of people in Hong Kong, Chinese from China are less "sophisticated" less "civilized" thus considered a nuisance to them.

for a lot of people in China, Hong Kong is a ginormous leech we are keep feeding, for those ungrateful and selfish colonial bastards, it's time to cut them off and let them face the reality.

R55, there's a torrent of replies because so many here have had negative experiences with mainland Chinese people but not with émigrés or Hong Kong Chinese. The common factor seems to be the social environment of mainland China.

It's not usual for any country to have to issue behavior guidelines to it's own people before they visit another country. I believe China has updated their guidelines a few times now to accommodate previously unexpected behaviors.

They are like Army Ants

For a while, my only contact with Chinese nationals or immigrants occurred in educational settings. Students at universities I attended or my pupils when I taught ESL. In the former, they were my contemporaries and in the latter I was in a position of authority and respect. To me they were just like other students, and my students were exceeding polite and soft-spoken.

That was my experience up to a point. Once I began encountering Chinese in public settings, I began to perceive them as more rude and having few boundaries. Bowling you over to get on a train with many empty seats, shopkeepers who are impatient and rude if you as a question about their goods (is there pork or chicken in the bun?), and behavior that is just not acceptable in the west.

Two incidents stand out in mind of people trying to cut in front of me in line. A man at Jewel literally tried ran right in front of me at the self-checkout actually pushing me aside. I'm a female, so I suspected he felt entitled. Mind you there was a line behind me that he also cut in front of. He didn't anticipate getting a loud earful. He tried to explain his dire emergency requiring a power strip.

The other was a female who tried to cut in front of me in the line at Target. I think she brushed up against me. I don't know if she was trying to intimidate me. I gave her an earful. I hope they both felt like the lost face in public.

Then there's the matter of their shady and unethical business practices.

My perception has gotten a bit more negative over time.

Meg is splitting HP into two companies -- was it pressure from her new SV Chinese overlords?

I think that it has to be acknowledged that the Chinese are enterprising, hard-working, people. Here in the U.S., we tend to look upon that as negative because we think in terms of what WE want out of our work, not what benefits the company, society, etc. I'm not saying what way is right, one or the other. However, one way is successful, and the other way is undergoing turmoil.

Success is not bad; neither is turmoil. Each offers their own pro and con argument. However, what each of us must ask is, what do we prefer: the successful way, or the turmoil way.

My perception has certainly changed in recent years.

I miss Nancy Kwan.

They are taking over San Francisco. Thanks Mayor Ed Lee!

Where the fuck does the OP get off saying China's economy surpassed the United States'?

Every credible measuring agency in the world still says America's GDP is TWICE AS MUCH AS CHINA's!

The U.S. is roughly $17 billion and China is only $9 billion.

China has FOUR TIMES AS MANY PEOPLE BUT ONLY HALF THE MONEY and they still have a LOT of catching up to do.

So WTF is OP talking about? A growth rate or something? What's the issue?

OP = Trolly the Asswipe.

R69 You need to calm the fuck down.

To #55 from #54, “the thread like this always makes me chuckle. Among the torrent of replies, maybe one or two makes some sense if we are lucky, but most are just completely clueless, reading them is like watching village people in a remote Chinese mountain are having a heated debate on American politics and life.”

Point well taken. In my reply I neglected to say along with my stories of ruthless Chinese business people and decent US born people of Chinese descent, I also have had many experiences with Chinese-born friends, co-workers, and fellow students who were smart, kind, and a pleasure to know.

It is always wrong to stereotype any people, even though some experiences may tempt us to do so. As a San Francisco native, I can tell you a few stories on which one could base a stereotype, like when I battled with an aggressive Asian woman for a parking space (I was there first, she nearly rammed my car to get it, but I was driving a clunker. Ram away lady, I got the spot).

China has a long history that included brutality along with fabulous art, literature, and culture. What scares many westerners about China is the very large population, the intelligence of the Chinese, and world competition for power and limited resources.

FYI to those who may not know, the reason many Chinese people shout when speaking to each other (imagine a bus ride through SF’s Chinatown at rush hour), the belief is that healthy people shout and sick people whisper.

Also, I would love to overhear remote Chinese village people having a heated debate on American politics and life.

>>Many of the Chinese cheat their way through school (it's "clever.") So you have a good dentist, not a Chinese dentist.

>>This is just fucking bullshit. Chinese students are among the hardest working in the world; and cheating is definitely a big NO-NO in their culture,

You're both right. I saw in university (engineering department)that the Chinese students worked in teams and shared answers on assignments. They absolutely did not view it as cheating, although the lecturers did.

So, is OP ever going to submit proof that "China recently surpassed American's economy?"

Or do I close the case on this troll thread?

R21, the chinese food we eat here in states is nothing like the real stuff. Americas have added lots of sweet gravies and sauces that are not authentic.

Loathsome people who boil cats alive for dinner.

They just bought the Waldorf Astoria

Unlike those mountain villagers, we in the USA now have had business dealings with Chinese. Our feelings are based on actual experiences we have had with them. Once I read about how some in SE Asia would run from Chinese customers. I never understood why. Now, I do, unfortunately. I run from them in business dealings, too.

I don't hate them. I liked them better when they were far away, and the source of many beautiful, refined things. That is how I feel based on my experiences.

r74, I have eaten the "real thing". It is overrated.

And you can't deny the increase in Chinese nationals buying property, including housing, here in the USA. I also don't like the idea of special Chinese economic zones. Yeah, right, colonies more like it.

This thread has been part racist and part very thought-provoking.

bump

Well, I didn't know any Chinese before. I've been working with Chinese students for about 3 years now.

The boys tend to be a lot more entitled than the girls. They can be very direct and almost naïve, or pretty sneaky. Some know exactly what they're doing, others seem very oblivious as to how society works.

Even if I might be curious about Yunnan, and Lijiang, I don't think I'll ever travel to China.

Also regarding personal hygiene: some have clearly never learned the first thing about personal hygiene.

Last year we had a group of 10 Chinese students stay for 2 weeks at a residence. The residence called us and sent us a scathing e-mail after they left, everything was so filthy (including tampons inside the toilets but also on the floor).

Last year one of the girl students was in a seductive mood and was showing her unshaven armpits. You get the idea.

As someone that dated a Chinese guy for five years I would never date another. He was totally not a good person on the inside and so much of that was cultural. He was selfish, abusive, cruel, cold, obsessed with money, heartless, secretive, a natural liar and loved to use people for his own advantage. He was an evil man and my exposure to his culture taught me that he was not the exception. Stay away from the Chinese. They are only out for themselves and have no understanding of partnership and loyalty.

China - polluted cesspool

This thread has been pretty racist.

Asians have no souls.

r84, I, too, dated a Chinese student. Your experience was mine as well, exactly the same! Yes, it is definitely cultural. The food was good at first, but it really, really got tiresome fast.

He also despised the USA, absolutely hated everything about the USA.This was well over 25 years ago. Yet, I have learned that he is still here, well employed. I doubt his feelings have changed.

It took you five years to figure that out about him R84? Are you Channing Tatum?

Are you Chinese, OP?

It's a shame that eventually we are going to have to nuc them until they glow. You know that, don't you? It is inevitable.

Taiwan>>>China. I like how Taiwan is, culturally, a cross between pre-revolution China and Japan. Taiwan has also produced some amazing filmmakers like Edward Yang. I prefer Japanese and Taiwanese film to Hong Kong and mainland Chinese film,

Love Chinese Americans. Can't abide anyone from mainland China. Totally untrustworthy.

Will they love you long time?

R72 Point is, it's not regarded as cheating but simply as friends helping friends. And common as can be in China.

Why are we resurrecting a thread from 2014?