Diegetics

China is a concern as it has Dictatorial levels of Labor/Wage control combined with a ruling class of 'Free enterprise' Mandarins. So far this structure has lifted millions out of poverty and while that still happens people will excuse the new callousness imbued into society by adherring to the 'fuck everybody else' element of Capitalism just a bit too much. Like a child with a new toy breaks the most novel feature of it within the first few days of ownership.

Azari, How does China threaten Iran?

As for China moderating this new callousness, a return to the fillial Confucious will overturn it as Confucious is a more natural state that is more than a match for the petulant child of base Capitalism.

The "collective" aspect of East Asian cultures has always puzzled me. Taken at face value, the notion that East Asians live in societies that favor collective rather than individual values would in Western eyes imply a value system that prioritizes the well being of others above the gratification of the self. But that apparently is not what "collective values" means in Asia. I guess over there it is interpreted as a sort of conformism to liberate individuals from having to get involved in the messy business of caring about the problems of others (who have presumably brought about their problems by deviating from accepted norms in the first place)?

Similar tragedies happen the world over, no doubt about it, but I have sensed a noticeably lack of empathy or concern for others from my Asian colleagues. Said colleagues also sometimes like to point out that Asian societies care not about ideology when solving problems, but about doing "what is right" to help people. Which is nonsense, of course, because actions speak louder than words. A sadly typical reaction to an injured bystander in China is to ignore them. They'll often cite a famous case in Nanjing where a judge held a good Samaritan liable because only someone plagued with guilt over causing an accident would return to help the victim. But that's not really the reason why they won't help, it's just an excuse that has become fashionable in recent years.

I think of it as selfish behavior and selfish values, and I'm not sure where it comes from. It isn't just a Chinese problem, by the way, but all of the "Confucian" cultures and perhaps even more broadly, the "Buddhist"-influenced societies. I don't really believe it's a religious or philosophical thing, but more likely a consequence of the concept of "face" and the general lack of acknowledgment of strangers. I think it tends to isolate people to a very unhealthy degree, especially when combined with the added anonymity that city life brings.

I really wish Ethan Jin were here to comment on this. I'd say that people are being overly general here, except that Chinese people are the ones pointing out how callous the culture is.

if you assume someone is a self reponsible adult that wishes to maintain their public appearance of being a self responsible adult whilst they work their way through the issues, then what passes for empathy is actually taken as scorn and ridicule.

this particular perception clash shows up in the left/right split in the west... language use and perceptions.