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anonymous
Q: Can we really complain about Chinese people?
Foreigners often get cheated and ripped off in China. Guess what, so do Chinese.
It's hard to get a straight answer.
Sometimes we might feel used, just because we're foreigners.
etc.
These things are true, but overall, wouldn't you say we get treated pretty darn well in this country? I'm from Europe, so maybe in America things are different, but in most European countries you can't get the time of day from people on the street. Approaching someone will either get you a suspicious frown, completely ignored or sometimes worse.
Granted we're mostly generalizing here, but on the whole, it seems to me a lot of us are overly critical, in a country that treats us quite well.
I couldn't agree more.
I wonder how many people got ripped off at the London Olympics.
nevermind:
Not nearly as many as at the silk market this afternoon.
That wasn't even the point he was making.
crimochina:
if someone is ripped of in the uk they have legal recourse the same as a uk citizen. also in the uk, they don't allow known scam artists to operate openly. the police would arrest them. here, known scammers stand outside the same shopping malls everyday in front of the police. there is always someone new to scam because if someone that was scammed points them out to others the scam artists will gang up on them. so yes the uk is exactly the same as china.
wumaos should seriously consider that they are talking to people who have lived in china and in other countries. how is some nitwit that never set foot outside of china going to tell foreigners about foreign countries?
lokethebloke:
I don't really understand what you're talking about. I wish you'd make up you mind, am I a uk prat or a wumao, or possibly both. Whatever I don't care but I do know what you are.
Why the anonymous post?
People on this site generally all live in China. If they are like me when they are in China they have almost no interaction with other foreigners only Chinese people. They do not get a chance to vent or discuss their frustrations for fear of insulting their colleagues or friends or Chinese partner.
People complain about the negative experiences they have and we are in China and if we have a complain about something...guess what...it will most likely be about Chinese people or something about living in China.
I would complain..and do..about any vile behavior regardless of where I am and what the race of the person I have issues with is.
They are complaining about people...that's all...and we are in China.
Yes there are scammers and cheats and morons and perverts and assholes all across the globe...that's really not the point. Usually lack of education is the reason for most of these people and unfortunately many governments around the globe prefer a stupid ill-informed and poor population...even the US...it makes it easier to control them.
When I first was sent to China by my company I absolutely hated it here. I wish this site was up and running then as I am sure I would have coped much better.
I like to complain about idiots sometimes regardless of their race or my location but I still always feel sorry for them...usually.
I only spent a short amount of time in continental Europe (a fraction of the time I'd like to spend) but I found everyone incredibly friendly. Certainly no-one trebled their prices because they realised I was not a local! I'd probably have more time for this question were it not an anonymous posting.
lokethebloke:
If you were in London then the prices are automatically tripled and during the Olympics probably 4x or even 5.
MissA:
And your point is? That things become more expensive during major events? Agreeed.
we can complain about everybody as well 
not excluding ouself...
Chinese people are not better or not worst then any others (generally)
but there are some differences between them and peoples who complains
and those "complainers" just see the differences so big, that They can't stand it, so They point it out in form of complain
I find it funny the significance made from this being an anonymous posting. Like it would be different if it was from someone called Gobby2000 or something.
But to answer your question; Can we complain? Yeh, sure we can. You can complain to me and maybe i'll complain about your complaint, we can then complain en masse, have a debate, and then en masse we'll mass debate. (Fnar)
Honestly though i'm pretty much in agreement with you, I have found people here to be very kind to me on the whole. But the marriage between China and the rest of the world is still in its honeymoon stage. My only concern, as someone living and raising a child here, is how that relationship will develop.
MissA:
I suspect it's probably a regular poster who on this occasion doesn't want his/her name associated with the question. And, as much as it's anonymous, people's personalities come through with regular postings.
mArtiAn:
Yeh, i'd be careful with that kind of thinking, I know from personal experience on this site, just how easily people can become ABSOLUTELY convinced that this person is that person and so on and so on, and all the while be COMPLETELY wrong. It's interesting to consider but unwise to be sure.
MissA:
Actually, I didn't have any specific person in mind. More, that there are some people who complain bitterly and constantly about China and some who woll NOT hear ONE word against it. Since the question is about 'we', it'd be nice to know if 'we' actually were on the same page at all, China-wise.
I don't want to sound like a wu mao here but let me say this...we are guests in their country and we should obey and respect their laws and customs whether we like it or not......we can't just come to someone's country and start judging them.........i saw most of the guys i met here in china judging this country...am not chinese but if i was one i would be pretty pissed.......i mean imagine someone comes to your own country and start judging you......Will you feel comfortable?!!!!!.........and by the way if you are judging means that you don't like what you see and with all do respect i want to say if you don't like it and your are judging it no one is pushing you to stay here or begging you to stay here....just leave no fuss and no judgments....no offense to anyone here.....God bless
giadrosich:
You had better judge people. It will keep you alive. Ex: Five guys are coming towards you shouting anti-foreigner slurs, and they are angry. You had better make a quick judgment, and then get out of there! I know, it sounds all tolerant to say, "don't judge people," but really, you have to.
Excuse me while I knit-pick for just a moment. As a few posters have already pointed out, yes, we can (implying do we have the ability to) complain. What you are asking is "Should (is it proper) we complain?" Okay. Knit-pick over. I'm getting ready for Fall Semester, so I'm in "teacher mode." Sorry.
Now, onto the body text. Please understand, what follows is not being defensive, angry, critical, or (insert preconceived conclusion about poster):
I'm not a guest in China. I'm a resident. I live here. I put up with the hassles and trials of life everyday. It doesn't matter whatsoever if one day I will go somewhere else. This is where I live now. So frankly, I don't buy all this talk about being a guest in a country just because one is from somewhere else. I am a legal resident who works and has integrated into a foreign society, obeying the laws (some, much better than some of the nationals do) and majority of customs here. I also have family and friends. In other words, this is my home.
So, when something screwed up happens, I complain about it. And no, I don't think, personally, I am overtly critical. In fact, it may be that I'm not critical enough. I let many things slide because in the grand scheme of things, it doesn't affect my life. People can do and act however they want to, and if it doesn't harm my family or I, I really don't care. I am protective of my own, and will always be so, where ever I am.
Do I get treated well? Yes. Why? Because I'm careful. And attentive. And don't put up with any nonsense. If I wasn't, how well do you think I would be treated. Probably less so, because people would be taking advantage of me left and right. That is human nature. You can make comparisons all day long about conditions in other countries being better or worse, and people do so on this board regularly. Some because they do want to put things into perspective, others so someone doesn't come along and say, "OMG, you're China bashing!!!" You mentioned that Chinese get ripped off, also. So! What you are really saying is, "Oh, the locals get ripped off, so it's okay if you get ripped off, too." No. It's not okay.
Much of what you're stating really doesn't apply. This board is about China; not China vs. Europe, or China vs. America, or China vs Everywhere else (although it can be). You mentioned about the way people treat one another in Europe, not giving each other the time of day. Well, if a baby was run over (twice) by a truck in Europe, I am pretty sure that someone walking by would have stopped and seen to the welfare of that child after the first truck hit her, don't ya think? If you want to see apathy towards each other in China, one doesn't have to go very far. The only reason you get nice treatment is because you are a curiosity. Think of it as being akin to seeing a two-headed frog.
Sometimes, what people expect is for everyone to stand around holding hands and sing "Kumbaya." Sorry. It just ain't gonna happen. Contrary to the government line, China isn't one big happy family. For reference, take a visit to one of the "autonomous" regions. China, as a rule, makes a good show of presenting their minorities as "Chinese (as in Han)," but many of those who are involved would consider otherwise. Closer to home, if a local can bitch about something, it's fair game for me, too, and believe me, they complain about a lot of things.
So, to wrap this up and get back to my java, "Should we complain?" Sure. It's healthy. Should we complain so much? Probably not, but hey, we're all human.
Createach:
i lived here for seven years..........am a guest.one day or another i will leave................a foreigner is always a foreigner in this country
mArtiAn:
Did someone mention Kumbaya? Heyyy, I love that song, let me get my guitar.
I think that thing with the kid could've happened anywhere. Anywhere where money was tight enough that people created scams along the lines that scared those passersby away from getting involved. People blind children, prostitute children, sell children, and they will continue to do so as long as they fear hunger, and wherever there is that fear.
lokethebloke:
I always thought that 'knit picking' was 'nit picking' as in the old victorian habit of picking nits from the hair, I am happy to be corrected.
giadrosich:
@Loke. You are right. I stand corrected. I'd edit, but for some reason, I can't, lol. Thanks for the etymological origin! 
lokethebloke:
I remember the days, early fifties, - no food, no shoes but plenty of nits lol
The OP with no name contradicts him/herself with the admittance that "foreigners get ripped off" in the very first sentence. Strange way to make a point to the contrary. Having said that the answer to this question is rather simple.
Yes, yes we can complain about Chinese and anyone else that knowingly tries to, as it was so accurately put, "rip us off". Case closed on this one.
P.s. You know, Mr. No Name, just because a large segment of a population does something that is deemed to be not beneficial to any race it is in no way supportive of the fact that we can't complain about it. Have a look at the question about Logic.
In my experience, when people complain about China. They don't just start making stuff up or use their imaginations. They complain about personal experiences or things they have seen. If they had the same experience in another country I'm sure they would complain there too. If everything was great no one would complain. when its not they do. That's life regardless of where you are.I complain about taxi drivers trying to take me on the "scenic" tour before taking me where I want to go, shop keepers quoting one price to locals and another to me, locals driving like retarded monkeys, people shitting and pissing in the street, people pointing and staring etc. Why? Because it happens everyday! When they stop, so will I.
Createach:
OH...OK....those things are alright to be mad about..........but tell me this how do you complain against people who pee and shit on the streets?!!!!............LOL
mArtiAn:
I'm laughing my arse off right now because 'again' i've come across someone talking about seeing people taking a shit in the street. The other stuff, yeh, sure; taxi detours, foreigner prices, dodgy driving, staring, spitting, etc, i've come across all that stuff.........but in eight years, I have never.....EVER..... seen anyone taking a dump in the street. And in fact i've just asked my Chinese wife, who is 28 and grew up in a very poor city, an ideal place for spotting street-poopers I would imagine, and SHE has never seen anyone pinching a loaf in the street. I REALLY don't think this is as common an occurrence as some people on this site have suggested. You just CAN'T list it amongst the staring, it's not fair. I mean, there must be Chinese people reading this stuff going "What the fuck! Shitting in the street? What the fuck!"
lokethebloke:
I've seen hundreds of dogs doing it in the street. There's not much of it in China, for a number of reasons!!!!
donluis:
I'm not making it up. I was in Shenzhen, Shekou district walking down a side street and a little boy about 2-3 years old squatted in the middle of the street and let it rip and when I say middle of the street, I mean middle of the street. A car had to wait for him to finish before he could continue. Even my local friends thought it was hilarious. Even worse was the time I was stupid enough to go for a swim in my apartments pool. Some kid walked up, dropped his pants and started peeing into the pool. Not while he was swimming, he just stood by the deep end and made it rain. The pool attendant yelled at him and his dad yelled at the pool attendant. Priceless....
mArtiAn:
Sounds pretty funny, but both were little kids. Not exactly representative of an entire society. I remember my friend's little brother, he'd just stand outside the bathroom door and pee in the general direction of the loo. Piss everywhere. Dirty little bugger.
GuilinRaf:
About the pooping? Until this month, I thought it was just an exaggeration having never seen it before in my five years here (except for little kids). However, early this month I was visiting the Labrang Monastery in Xiahe, Gansu, and people really DO poop in the street, openly. Men and women, not just children. Granted, not "every single local" did it, but I would see it at least two or three times a day. None of the poopers were Han as far as I could tell.
The one "main street" is kept relatively clean, but ALL the side streets have human turds in the gutters or close against the walls of the houses.
I guess a "Party Pooper" here means something completely different than in the rest of the world....
I just left China a few weeks ago and by that time it seemed that everyone around me was constantly horking and spitting, so much so that it turned my stomach. I got accustomed to playing shoulder tag ( always win), the traffic except for that arses that speed up and try to hit me. There are good people in China, but many have habits like mining for nuggets which gets to be a annoying if the hit the mother load.
So except for what I consider bad manners, I expect the Chinese to be different and welcome it, it's the differences that make it interesting, sometimes fustrating.
I always found that I only really had hassels in China when I was with my Chinese wife. And I noticed alot of other people's stories of taxis trying to rip them off and such often involve a Chinese person being with them.
I think that, alot of times they assume you don't speak Chinese so they don't bother hassling you. Individually I have met some incredibly nice and sincere Chinese people that have genuinely gone out of their way to help me.
That said, on a day to day basis I've seen far more rude f*ckheads.
Would I complain if these f*ckheads were back home? Yes. So why wouldn't I complain about it here?
Of course we can!!!!!!!!! DO NOT let anyone tell you different!!!!!!
Be strong!
Complaining is good, nit picking is petty.
lokethebloke:
I'm all for constructive criticism. I use the mirror for the negative stuff, from whatever direction it comes. Thanks for the understanding.
What an ODD question! :( OF COURSE, we can complain about China! This IS a very difficult country for non-Chinese citizens to live in. PERIOD! Just like South Korea!
