Who's afraid of China?

last SG · 2005-07-29T19:22:18+00:00

china's rapid growth is a cause for concern. nobody knows what they will do.

lwflee SG

Who's afriad of China's growing economic prowess and why?

I am actually a litlle apprehensive about this phenomenon in part because the Chinese seem to have such alien values. They are just so... chinese. Sad

Tuatau SG

Define "alien".

Oh, I forgot. "Alien" is exactly the word many Americans, especially immigration officers, use for things not American. Are you, by any chance, an American?

lwflee SG

I am, in fact, a Singaporean Chinese. I used the term 'alien' because i find some of the values embraced by the Chinese so very different from mine.

For instance, -Generally speaking-, they have no qualms about trying to get one over, well, everyone they are not closely acquainted with; its like they cream their panties everytime they obtain an advantage over others, however small that advantage is.

Atobe SG

Originally posted by lwflee:
I am, in fact, a Singaporean Chinese. I used the term 'alien' because i find some of the values embraced by the Chinese so very different from mine.

For instance, -[b]Generally speaking-, they have no qualms about trying to get one over, well, everyone they are not closely acquainted with; its like they cream their panties everytime they obtain an advantage over others, however small that advantage is. [/b]

Everyone has different values from oneself, even Singaporeans differ from one another - even within the same ethnic group, let alone amongst the different peoples in this multi-racial community.

" Creaming in one's panties " - is a common trait amongst the "kia-su" Singaporeans, who will camp overnight - 7 days ahead, if permitted - just to lay their hands on a couple of "lousy" tickets to be at the National Day Parade !

What's the problem here ?

If your question seeks a more serious reaction to your otherwise child like concerns and problems, we should be aware that China has been reported to have NINE Missile Brigades that can hit the USA.

This should be the one to "cream one's panties" - if not out of awe, at least out of fear.

sgdiehard SG

Originally posted by lwflee:

I am, in fact, a Singaporean Chinese. I used the term 'alien' because i find some of the values embraced by the Chinese so very different from mine.

For instance, -[b]Generally speaking-, they have no qualms about trying to get one over, well, everyone they are not closely acquainted with; its like they cream their panties everytime they obtain an advantage over others, however small that advantage is. [/b]

Just remember, you are an "alien" to the chinese, because your values are so different to their values.

For instance, you are just so... angmoh, but you call yourself chinese.

Are you afraid of China because there are so...chinese, or because they seem alien to you?

the Bear SG

i'm afraid of their economic power..

coz china has shown that morality is unknown to them... fake vaccines are regularly peddled and they are known to have faked everything.. there was even an article in their own newspaper showing that some merchants were actually peddling counterfeit EGGS!

the shell was chalk and the insides were gluten.. not safe for consumption...

now, imagine them peddling all kinds of fake goods to the world!

Tuatau SG

Originally posted by lwflee:
I am, in fact, a Singaporean Chinese. I used the term 'alien' because i find some of the values embraced by the Chinese so very different from mine.

For instance, -Generally speaking-, they have no qualms about trying to get one over, well, everyone they are not closely acquainted with; its like they cream their panties everytime they obtain an advantage over others, however small that advantage is.

There could be other examples to prove your point, but do you really think that taking advantage over others, whenever possible, is a uniquely Chinese value?

I wouldn't go so far to say that it is a value embraced by the Chinese (assuming you're referring to those from mainland China), not even on "generally speaking" terms -- it is a bit too much of a generalisation.

I'd rather think of it as a survival trait, employed by those especially in business and politics to make a quick buck, however unscrupulous it may be. Without proper laws in place, there would always be people who would take advantage of other people. These people who are victimised, in turn make victims of others, and the vicious cycle just goes on.

Besides, this is not really "alien". The same situation occurred in the early years of Singapore's independent history. If not for the strict laws against corruption and breach of trust in Singapore, don't you think the same situation would have happened to Singaporeans as well?

SilverPal SG

I'm actually frightened when they pretend to care about human lives.

My parents were in China just before the outbreak of SARS. By then, sg had daily reports on SARS, measures and safety tips etc on TV too many times a day.

In China, where an entire province had a SARS epidemic, they pretended nothing happened. They tell other countries they are "handling the matter" and that it would be a lost of face if other countries interfered. They handled it by closing all the ports (air, sea and roads) of the affected province and letting the people die off. No effort was made to implement a field hospital or commucable diesese centre or the like.

Tuatau SG

Originally posted by the Bear:
i'm afraid of their economic power..

coz china has shown that morality is unknown to them... fake vaccines are regularly peddled and they are known to have faked everything.. there was even an article in their own newspaper showing that some merchants were actually peddling counterfeit EGGS!

the shell was chalk and the insides were gluten.. not safe for consumption...

now, imagine them peddling all kinds of fake goods to the world!

Even if you do not trust them, at least trust the local authorities to inspect the imports.

"Fear leads to anger. Anger leads to hate."
- Yoda Laughing

the Bear SG

yeah... but we can't check everything.. Razz

still tickled by the fake eggs Laughing

that they'll go through all that to fake something so cheap

dragg SG

i have the impression that the chinese government dont even care much about their people.

what are we to them, even if we are chinese?

alexkusu SG

Whats there to be scared of a confused dragon? China is not sure which direction is heading for anyway..be it economic, military, etc. If China decideds to pursue economic prowess, then there would be something to think about.

Tuatau SG

Originally posted by the Bear:
that they'll go through all that to fake something so cheap Laughing

The real thing may not really be cheap to the people buying the fakes. There are still many people in China living below the poverty line.

Think of it this way: If the real thing was truly so cheap and the margin so low, why wouldn't people sell the real thing?

Tuatau SG

Originally posted by alexkusu:
Whats there to be scared of a confused dragon? China is not sure which direction is heading for anyway..be it economic, military, etc. If China decideds to pursue economic prowess, then there would be something to think about.

Confused? Do you think the Chinese people really don't know what they want? Smile

Setting a direction for a country can never be based on the country's unilateral vision. International politics play an important role in shaping the future of the country as well. If a country, especially one as large as China, were to develop to full potential, it has to do so without posing as a threat to other countries, and that is not an easy task to accomplish.

Many countries in the world want to view China as a source of more than one billion cheap labour workers, not as a host of more than one billion rich merchants or strong soldiers.

the Bear SG

i dunno.. if you had seen the article, you'd wonder why they did it... because the manufacturing process that went into creating that fake egg is astounding Razz

in fact, go take a look Wink

click here => Danwei, News about China

mochou SG

agreed to sgdiehard's view on "alien", they are aliens to the approx. 3million population in singapore, and singaporens are aliens to the 1.3billion population in china.

the econ growth rate of china is really amazing for the past 15-20 yrs, and it's still growing.
if u went to one of the major cities in china 15 yrs ago, and u go there again now, u will be really suprised how these cities have changed.

one thing that alarm other countries is how cheap they can maufacture things.

Spian shoes manufacturer went for protest, burn "made in china" shoes, becuase the cost for chinese shoes factories to manufacture shoes plus the shipment cost, is still lower than thier manufacturer cost in Spain. That means many ppl from shoe factories in Spain gonna be jobless.
And for garments, US still using the quota system to control china's garment export to US.
The most simple lighter(plastic, roller type) that we buy in mama shops for 0.7-1.0 SGD, is selling in china shops for 1RMB only. u can imagine how low is the manufacture cost.

In the past, car only manufacture cars for thier own chinese brands like "hong qi", "zhong hua".
Volkswagen went in to china, which the model "santana" become almost every taxis in china, with other models like "golf","passat","bora" etc, Volkswagen cars are the most common car u see in china.
For now, u can see "made in china(or at least assemble in china)" mazda(323), honda(odessy,Fit,Accord), buick, nissan(blue bird),toyota, hyundai(coupe,sonata,elantra), BMW, Ford, Peugeot, volvo, and even Cadilliac. I have missed out some brands too, there are more.

talking abt fake stuff, ya, some of them, in fact many of them still making fake stuff. But big companies are setting up thier own brand in china, which makes they import less from other countries.

The computer brand "Legend", makes chinese buy cheaper PC with same quality and same fuctions as foriegn brands., no need to buy Dell, IBM, Compaq.etc. "TCL" which manufactures PC monitors and handphones, affect the sales of philips monitor and nokia phones in china, cos they are much cheaper with similar quality.

And Home elec products, like TVs, air-con, hi-fi, etc, chinese got thier own brands, which helps the china citizens no need to buy expensive japanese brands. Esp. "haier" air-con, which is the most popular brand in china, offers good quality and service, so why pay more to buy jap brands?

lwflee SG

Many Chinese coys are now starting to try and go international and in Africa, where many western govts do not encourage investment, the Chinese are stepping in. Mugabe, for instance, has just concluded an aid deal with china underwhich it is expected that China will get mineral concessions in exchange for provisding aid to Zimbabwe.

Chinese influence and economic prowess is clearly growing is it not?

ShutterBug SG

There's nothing to worry about China and their "growing" economy. They (it's people) may outwardly appear to be "growing" or "advancing", but behind all that glitter and fancy flashy lifestyle, their still primitive mentally. Lacking in internationally acceptable mannerisms. They're just running too fast for themselves to catch up, that's all.

As a country, they may be huge, but they are also clumsy.

I tell you, No worries at all.

The only thing the whole world should be noticing about China, is their heavy investments in Military Weapons, and advancement in Military Technology.

Big bunch of fighting cocks, if you ask me.

alexkusu SG

hmm..actually my opinion is based on the Pentagon report on whether China would prove a concern globally. Laughing

It shows we're not the only ones worrying as well

BadzMaro SG

hmmm.. china has a life span spanning 5000 yrs.. it took them great lengths to hold on to thier empire. I can just imagine if every city is as developed as Fujian , Shichuan and other few major cities, China can and will be the next super power on par with the US. The US is not upset or overly worried if you are behind them or doing something else.. they are worried that china is staying a step behind them.. following them. Basic example about China trying to buy over this american oil drilling company with such a huge amount of money that the US decides to bar them from buying the company over. China has the expertise but not the experience.. like i said.. they are following. Why u think the ang mo trying to learn chinese. Mr. Green