They're all afraid of being sued, sadly. The whole country has an unhealthy obsession with money.

If, I see someone in need, I think twice about the multiple ways they might turn it on me before helping.  I've looked around for security cameras that would capture anything sly.  Sometimes I make sure I could run away and get lost on a side street if necessary.  Then I might help. It's sad, but practicing a little more prudence is safe here.

Sad isn't it? We come from helpful societies where helping the old, incapacitated, sick etc is part of life and living. Coming here, we have to be careful helping those in need for fear of being persecuted. How crazy is that? This country has developed into a me, my, mine, I cesspit. Even when they are overseas, they won't even help a fellow countryman in need. Sometimes, I look in awe at their 5,000 year history but in retrospect I am disgusted that the result is an uncaring, selfish and arrogant people.

China and Chinese lack one big thing and that is "TRUST"

1)They don't trust each other

2)Other countries don't trust Chinese

3)China don't trust their own companies(e.g. milk,food,car,education,employer).Given a choice, everybody will go for a foreign entity

4)This is the reason China can't set up brands(brand=trust).

5)There is no law which can punish trust breakers

Lack of trust gave birth to self-centered/selfish society where everybody is on their own.

They are ok with this way of life although it is a bit odd to us.

I personally think it may sometimes be dangerous to not follow..."do as Romans when when Rome" and stretch your helping hands.But for us,it is difficult to behave like Chinese all the time...even if there is possibility of trouble.You decide whether you want

to listen to your conscience or to your brain.

the other day this woman on the bus was holding a year or so old baby that was vomiting.  She was covering her baby's mouth to stop vomit from going all over the bus and to go in the puddle o vomit on the floor in front of here.  I of course offered her a tissue to help her clean her hand and baby.  I felt if I did not help her, no one else was going to and she was going to have to ride the bus covered in vomit.  You just don't see simple kindness.  It is a real shame.    

I have adopted this philosophy:

I am not going to try and change China, but I will not allow China to change me!

I was raised by parents that taught me to help others when I can. I am a big believer in Karma and it is how I choose to live. I will continue to help people when I see they need help. If I am scammed, we will go to court. This makes my Chinese gf very nervous. But simple acts of kindness, a lady struggling with her bags at the train station, old lady who was trying to put her chain back on her bike. Takes less than 1 minute and in five years, thankfully I received nothing but gratitude from the people I have helped.

It is not a trust issue. Getting up so a preg can sit risks absolutely nothing.
China spews out so much hate towards the rest of the world but people from other countries treat them with such kindness. Do they notice?
Normal people allow the elderly to get on the bus first. In china they behave like rabid animals. Do they notice the difference in behavior?

I also would do the following without thinking:

   let old people and families with small children on public transport on first

   hold open doors

   give my seat to people who clearly needed it

  stand back to let people out of an elevator or subway train first before getting on

only for me to be pushed past by healthy younger people

When i am home i have to remind myself that no-one there behaves like many people in China, so i can be confident basic good manners will be seen everywhere and people will help other people

I agree, it is not about trust. Look at how they treat their country (littering, pissing , shitting and just being disgusting everywhere) compared to how foreigners are. And for some reason, they do not realize the difference.

As for the helping granny or ppl on the street I think because there are a lot of scams over the year ppl are afraid to making contact with stranger. For example when you extend your hand to help the old lady she suddenly collapse and yell "this fucking laowai is trying to rob/kidnap me", ppl will gather, police come, yada yada and now you are in trouble and suddenly you have to pay for her hospital fee or some shit.

However, I do think that something is seriously fucked up in here. I think current chinese culture is very different from when its used to be. For example, I'm a chinese indonesian, i won't bore you with details or history but the chinese value and the chinese culture that my family taught and told me is very different from what i found here.

I was an assistant prof in a top univ in China, because the professor have to go somewhere he ask me to supervise exams for him. Suddenly in the class 1 female student went into seizure (I see foam from her mouth and her eyes went white, something red was in the foam). So I lie her down put her in a safe position and rushed below to the office of my department.

When I got there, there were 3 ppl on the office, when I told them what is happening and ask them for help to call the hospital/taxi and stuff there are no response. I thought they don't understand what I said because i was in panick and my chinese sucked.

So I speak slowly and use body language to tell them whats happening, and one of them interrupt me and said "you don't have to repeat it we totally understand what you are trying to say, a student fainted in the classroom", then i was like "then why the fuck all of you are just sitting there and not even moving", "because we can't do anything, we can't help her", and i spent some time shouting to them what the hell is wrong with them and why won't they even help me with a phone call to the hospital I realized they just don't give a shit. So I stormed out of the room and do everything by myself.

There is no Chinese culture and no Chinese people in mainland China.

All that is left in mainland China, is a generic population of disposable consuming units.

Individuals share the bare minimum required to be able to live together: a language, a fantasy that's called history, and a racialist view of the world. That's solid enough so it doesn't need to be consolidated by stuff like common goals, ideals or other annoying concepts. Through education, they have been carefully shaped never to stand out or make waves in anything by people who have the longevity of their own reign in mind: they are supposed to be nervous, submissive, short-minded, desensitized. A symbiosis of both capitalist and communist dreams.

Nothing is shocking in this society. Everything and everyone is expendable. Complaining is a waste of time and mind you could be spending doing better things, like monetizing.

Thanks to the judge from Nanjing who had killed the last stream of good human nature in chinese.