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Sign up with Google Sign up with FacebookQ: What are the words that come to mind when you think of Mainlanders?
I am thinking, "as explorers ourselves, wouldn't it be useful to those who come after us if we leave them a list of words [updated: and images] that describe our experience with Mainlanders (as oppose to Chinese living in all corners of earth)?" This is my reason for asking this question.
(I will refrain from answering my own question although I have a few strong words myself)
Selfish, rude, materialistic, liars, cheats, peasants, arrogant, (yet) ignorant, narrow-minded, crass, passive aggressive, xenophobic, racist, parasites, oblivious, unhygienic, show off, fake.
The worst are not the uneducated migrants but the crass nouveau riches (tuhao) who think they can treat everybody else like shit because they got some money.
A few years ago I had hope for the Daluren to improve and become first worlders, but as their income rises they become more and more arrogant, completely missing the point of why anti-Chinese sentiment is on the rise worldwide, it's not that other countries are jealous of China, it's that China and Chinese behave like spoiled teenagers.
Time to grow up.
Dey are Pipao!
Presumptuous
Ignorant
Parasitic
Apathetic
Oblivious
Sinobear:
And, then there's this, for which I have no words:
http://www.latimes.com/local/california/la-me-chinese-bullying-20150702-story.html#page=1
Sinobear:
And this (for a lighter side):
http://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2012/09/foolish-and-backward-nation-a-self-effacing-chinese-satire-of-america/261946/
earthizen:
Cruelty is the word I would use, extreme cruelty. The article also points out something better be done with the admission of these "kids" to USA. I agree, immediately. Educating "kids" like these....you wanna 911s all over America?
Sinobear:
Actually, frustration begets cruelty. These young kids are frustrated and have never known a hug or kind word from their parents.
Apathetic has been added to my list.
earthizen:
The majority of psychopaths come from the kind of background you describe, including terrorists. We quarantine them (jail) first before doing anything else. To give psychopaths time to roam around freely, make knives, dig tunnels is foolish enough, to give them business so they become rich, then let them into any country is asking for Pearl Harbor-911 Combos all over that country. To err is human, to immediately correct is survival, in this case.
silverbutton1:
And, then there's this, for which I have no words:
http://www.latimes.com/local/california/la-me-chinese-bullying-20150702-story.html#page=1
Someone downloaded the incident to youtube. I saw it a few days ago. it is disturbing to say the least. I dont know why the girl didnt run away as she had the chance to do so on numerous occasions.
EXTREMELY selfish
Rude.
Disrespectful.
Inconsiderate.
Cheap. (ie, want something without having to pay for it - not willing to give a fair price).
Ignorant. - often willfully so (ie, will refuse to be educated, or listen/learn to another person - especially if not Chinese
Of course, these are generalisations, and are certainly not true for all people... but unfortunately, these are what comes to mind... not the nicer words. I do know a goodly number of mainlanders who I like and are not like this... but I also catch buses and metros, and talk to other people.
selfish, materialistic, petty, ignorant, invasive (of others' private lives and personal space), uncivilized, short-sighted, cowardly, bombastic, pathetic, crass, vulgar, unsanitary
They're not quite there yet, not ready yet or know exactly what to do next.
Selfish, rude, materialistic, liars, cheats, peasants, arrogant, (yet) ignorant, narrow-minded, crass, passive aggressive, xenophobic, racist, parasites, oblivious, unhygienic, show off, fake.
The worst are not the uneducated migrants but the crass nouveau riches (tuhao) who think they can treat everybody else like shit because they got some money.
A few years ago I had hope for the Daluren to improve and become first worlders, but as their income rises they become more and more arrogant, completely missing the point of why anti-Chinese sentiment is on the rise worldwide, it's not that other countries are jealous of China, it's that China and Chinese behave like spoiled teenagers.
Time to grow up.
Antidisestablishmentarianism
seriously, if I had to pick one word for MLers I would pick STRANGE
I've been here a long time and I still can't figure out that shouting behaviour. strange
Many that instantly come to mind have already been said.
Some others would be... illogical, non-trustworthy (due to either ignorance, face or just being sneaky), unfair, lost, confused, lonely.
China has developed SO FAST in such a short period of time that I truly think many Chinese are lost, confused, mentally unstable and don't know how to act properly.
They just copy others who, in return, copy their officials (which are the worst role models ever). For those foreigners that think their presence in China means little... you are wrong. You offer many Chinese another perspective on things that they didn't even know existed.
Although I sometimes get annoyed at the behaviour of some people here. I think it wouldn't be fair to label over a billion people with 1 word. I for one find it annoying when some Chinese say that "All foreigners are...". It would not be fair to do the same.
earthizen:
"some Chinese say that "All foreigners are..." You know why? That's because they themselves are like that.
"People are all different", is western thinking. True too, in a place or country where people are brought up to be individuals, to think independently, the accuracy of 'one word description', is of course, low. In communist china, where people are brainwashed to kiss CCP's as?, brainwashed to be anti-west for decades, then the accuracy of generalizations soar, especially when they are based on solid, grounded real life personal experiences. How fair is it to those who come after us to give them diplomatic nothing-said words when we know, based on our first hand experience, that that makes us sleazy politicians? How fair is that to our own conscience?
RandomGuy:
The Confucian mind creates carbon copies, there is no room for the individual, no room for personal development and creative "out of the box" thinking.
Confucius teachings state that in order to achieve the full potential of a nation, harmony must prevail above everything else. Hence the political message used by the current leadership. In order to achieve this harmony, critical thoughts and individual personas must be destroyed since they are believed to lead to disharmonious thoughts and instability.
I mean, technically he wasn't wrong. Think of it you know, the stereotype for China, "the ant farm" takes its roots from this. Because of their harmony, one queen to rule them all, mindless workers, ants are extremely productive creatures. Chances are they would rule the world instead of us if they were just the size of the dog.
Problem is, Chinese see what we have got in the West, personal freedom and individual personas, they want it. Because no human in his right mind desires to be a mindless drone, even if that means less harmony and more disturbance. Because of this, there is a profound contradiction between who Chinese are and what they want to be.
Result is the type of people we encounter on a daily basis, they want to be someone unique, they want to stand out and let everybody else know that they exist. They copy what they see in Western medias, hence the fake classy, fake rapper, fake whatever Chinese. On the other hand they can't stand out too much or risk to anger those above, also they want to see their nation, their kind rise above other nations/kinds, typical Confucian mind. But they want more personal freedom, concept introduced very recently by Westerners, so they don't let those in power abuse them anymore. Ultimately these contradictions lead to the very disharmonious yet hypocritical society that we see today.
What applies to many other cultures does not apply to the Chinese psyche for aforementioned reasons. The leadership is trying really hard to create carbon copies, mindless drones, ant workers. But some people stand out and shout "I am a person, not a slave!". They escape from China or are silenced by the leadership.
earthizen:
Well said, 'ant farm'. These ants are no ordinary ants, these are fire ants, the kind that destroys everything in their path, red in color. Red China, interesting. Isn't Mother Nature always teaching us something, erh?
Confucius's goal, to achieve harmony was fine (to the psychologically healthy ones, an important point) until it was forced upon people through doctrines and 'no why' rituals. The founder of Taoism, Lao Tzu, reprimanded Confucius for his 999999 rules and rituals. What a debate, ha. Those with kids know about this. Rules or no rules? I suppose the issue depends on the kids in question. Ah....directly related to the issue of freedom, doesn't it? Gets tricky? Nope, not tricky for mainlanders, at large, "we want to freely abuse you!" Fire ants.
Well, we experienced it. Fellow explorers, let's keep this log book alive, continue to describe your experiences with Mainlanders, hopefully benefiting those who are about to track this trail. It doesn't matter if you use words others have used because they are your personal truth.
We truly have gone where no man has gone before considering the depth of the abyss we treaded.
Forewarned is forearmed, for those who get the message that is.
Lord_hanson:
Peon, yes I am proud of my working class background. Everything I have i earned myself.
Lord_hanson:
I'd like to point out that I hate the CCP, they betrayed the people of this country. Most of the people hear are victims of a f*cked up social experiment so cut them some slack.
earthizen:
Your hatred for the CCP is like someone hating Bin Laden, but saying "his followers, those poor zombies were brainwashed, cut them some slacks". Guess what, it was those zombies who drove those planes into the twin towers. Still want to tell people to cut them some slacks? They are laughing at you behind closed doors.
You hear many of these fire ants telling you how they hate CCP, playing victim to gain your trust. Inside they hate you to the core. This is one of their favorite war tactics, they call it "pulling the cat's tail", it works like the Trojan Horse. Don't be fooled. As a rule these "people" cannot be trusted.
There is a second scenario, there are those who truly hate CCP, but not because they have any sense of justice, it is because they can't have what the CCP have, i.e. sour grapes. If you give them a job with the CCP where billions of bribery money is received, they would say yes in less than a second.
Lord_hanson:
Earthizen, according to your logic you must think that all English people wear bowler hats, all French ride around on bicycles with garlic hanging around their necks and all muslims are terrorists. Are you saying that of all the different cultures in a country as large as China that there is no difference? Are the native Xinjiang people the same as someone from Beijing. Are the people of North China the same as those from the South? Are Tibetans the same as the Manchu people? You are foolish if you think this.
earthizen:
Have you heard of PRC's cultural 'revolution'? Do you know what a cult is? Ever heard of the Mao cult? Do you know how extensive the impact these have on mainlanders? You are foolishly arguing using exceptions, even high school kids know there are exceptions. Grow up.
Lord_hanson:
Earthizen you tool, if you have been here long enough you will know that the Chinese youth are not hardcore redguards. The only thing most of the youth care about it getting the next Iphone.
Cowardly bullies.
Nuff said. Two words that summarize it all: the rudeness, pettiness, boastful arrogance, insecurity, selfishness, ignorance and bad decision making.
Sayings it's because they are Daluren does a disservice to Xinjiangren and all other minorities under that title. The culture was rotten long before the government came and ruined things even further.
Taiwanese, Singaporeans and HK Chinese also respect elders unquestioningly, mistreat their children to learn an inefficient script, and are famed for disfunctional greed and lack of sociability worldwide. "Welcome to City Wok take a order please."
I dislike many things about my life here, and politics, and culture, and people, but I don't think name-calling is very mature, or helpful.
earthizen:
Calling a terrorist a terrorist is not only telling the truth, it also helps those who have to deal with the situation. The problem lies in lying, such as a terrorist calling himself a humanitarian, or framing a humanitarian, a terrorist. This is what fakes are all about, and the whole world knows what PRC is famous for.
Shining_brow:
"Name-calling" and "identification of common traits" are two very different things.
If you look over the words used here you won't find much in the way of "arseholes, bastards, crooks" etc, but just common adjectives that are used to describe behaviours.
You may choose not to partake, of course :)
(Edit: yeah, ok, I take some of that back... :p)
rasklnik:
Again...To say Modern Chinese culture is shallow, empty, soulless, angst-ridden, or suicidal. I'm cool with that. To call the powers that be corrupt, venal, petty, and jingoistic. I'm cool with that. But an awful lot of this thread seems to be along the lines of "they are dumb." I agree, they often DO seem dumb, but I depend on this site for my sanity...so try to keep it scholarly. To those who say this is a forum, I say, I wish I had a VPN. Or I didn't live here.
Selfish, rude, materialistic, liars, cheats, peasants, arrogant, (yet) ignorant, narrow-minded, crass, passive aggressive, xenophobic, racist, parasites, oblivious, unhygienic, show off, fake.
This summed it up pretty nicely
I spent the vast majority of my young adulthood escaping the gay-hating, science-bashing Fundamentalist Christian community that I had the gross misfortune of being born into. Chinese have all the negative aspects of religious fundamentalism, and none of the things that made it tolerable.
I really want to coin a word in English that describes the special combination of greed (or materialism), laziness, and unscrupulousness that mixes so easily into the PRC's national culture. Chinese want to be rich--all these people think about is money! But they don't want to work, don't want to invest, and don't want to risk anything, so they try their darnest to screw over everyone they meet instead. And when they do manage to steal from someone, what do they do with it? Usually blow the whole wad in a week by showing off how 'important' being a scumbag makes them. I suppose 'entitled' is the only word that comes close. They certainly are entitled.
I also second whoever said cheap. Chinese want nice things, but they don't want to pay for them. They enroll their children in schools that can offer low prices due to high class sizes, and then try to nag the teacher into behaving as if their child is the only student. They hire migrants to run their factories and clean their homes, and then decide that it is too much to pay them their meagre salaries. The girls want 4000RMB handbags, but they don't want jobs, so they throw themselves at whatever man they think has money. Cheap isn't the correct word, I suppose--I am cheap, I just don't buy things and live the hippie lifestyle. They are parasites, just always sucking away and never even considering that they should give in return.
Shameless also comes to mind. It never amazes me what these people are capable of doing and saying with no embarrassment.
These first things aren't simply social behavior in China, but political behavior. No wonder China isn't respected by her neighbors. The 'have my cake and eat it, too' attitude wears thin, fast.
Self-involved and apathetic--terrifyingly so. Newbies in China seem to think that it is great that no one here is going to shoot them. I say, to hell with that--avoiding people with guns is a far simpler matter than avoiding people who will happily let you smother or explode, simply because they don't want to take the extra 20 minutes to set your gas gauge appropriately.
I had my concerns when I lived in Kenya and Peru, but the violent crime there did have a logic. Chinese will just run over a small child and brush it off (because the child was not theirs). That makes this place far scarier.
Racial supremacists. If you are white and new in China, maybe this actually surprises you. If you don't believe me, talk about Filippinos around a Chinese person sometime. These people are right up there with the Klan.
Shining_brow:
Rachel!
So NOT true!
"don't want to invest, and don't want to risk anything,"
Did you read about how so many have lost a fortune on the Shanghai Index, cos they went for the super-high risk, expecting to make a fortune in almost no time at all???
:P :p
RachelDiD:
And how many of those people invested because their government told them that it would be instant money? They invested because they thought it would be immediate, easy cash...the only way Mainlanders like it.
RandomGuy:
OMG the teacher's thing is so true! I have seen it with both local and foreign teachers.
Basically the parents pay class/group-tuition fees because it's cheaper but expect private-tuition for their kids from the teacher, in addition of normal lessons. They harass their way through using the management who then command the teachers to take the little emperor personally during office hours that should be used to prepare lessons.
Also parents will never admit it when their kid is a slow learner because that would mean a loss of face.
A few months ago I would have said "narcissistic and self entitled". However now I'd rather just say "completely self-unaware".
I live in a small county-level city. So perhaps my experience has been different to others.
Narrowed myself down to seven, sorry.
Conservative (socially and traditionally conservative)
Curious (perhaps nosey)
Friendly
Generous (maybe it's my friendly face and good manners but I get treated very well)
Backwards (often scientifically illiterate to a point where it shocks me)
Ignorant (They are usually ignorant of their ignorance. They have no idea what happens beyond the city limits let alone what happens in the wider world.)
Repressed
Kind, honest, noble, well mannered, respectful, cultured, civilised
dongbeiren:
And I would use the word "sarcastic" to describe Lord_hanson :)
Ozymandias
earthizen:
Well, they 'solved' the problem of impermanence of history. The destroyed ancient monuments (one hell of a "cultural revolution") are re-built. Brand new "cultural heritages" for tourists from laowailand.
ethnocentric, worthless, insincere, parasites.
"Always the victims, never the aggressors" - poor, tormented souls.
Kaiwen:
I guess my answer is a tad excessive - it came off the back of a particularly bad China Day when a group of locals tried harassing me for money.
kasuka91:
I can understand, it's happened to all of us.
I'd say that alot of Chinese people possess the best and worst traits of a child: inquisitive, able to make fun of themselves and not take life too seriously, but on the other hand, completely lacking in any real shame or coyness, and at times cowardly and short-sighted.
I think that with time, as life hopefully becomes easier and more comfortable in China, some of these traits will die away as the whole starving farmer mentality becomes a things of the past.
The Nazis of our Time...
rasklnik:
A economic powerhouse that is irritated with all their neighbors?
A system of thought that depends on harping on past defeats and future greatness?
Bad relations with religions?
An expanding military?
A country with a single man having a great deal of power?
A country that has lavish military parades?
A country that has issues with ethnic minorities?
A country that restricts artists and authors?
A country that controls the media?
Mateusz:
Come now. It's not like they created lebensraum in order to add more territory to their... oh, wait.
nzteacher80:
Hitler had excellent relations with religions, especially the Catholic Church. Which country doesn't have an expanding military? Which country doesn't have problems with ethnic minorities? Not really a great comparison.
rasklnik:
Hitler had abysmal relations with the catholic church. There were a handful of Nazi Bishops, and one Cardinal who helped war criminals escape Europe, but plenty of catholic prelates were executed in death camps. The idea Hitler had good relations with the Vatican is a myth popularized by new atheists and Catholic haters.
Ferengis
earthizen:
Ferengi greeting to other Ferengi home visitors: My house is my house. Visitor replies: As are its contents
M.- Ferengi greeting to laowais : My house is my house (thinking ---- so are yours after our cultural exchange, should they still exist)
i may be amongst the minority at least on this website but after going to HK for new years eve in 2013 (31st December) I was bloody relieved to get back to Shanghai. HK to me was like being in Manila but populated with Chinese people.
At the airport though, two lines being herded with some jumped up airport guy shouting "Foreigners" and pointing which line to stand in. So that wasnt nice but give me SH over HK anyday.
earthizen:
Shanghai is definitely better for you, it doesn't take much to tell....
aston.villa.f.c:
and if you are a Hong Konger perhaps you dont feel a bit silly by trying to out do the English with your plastic politically correct ideals such as 'no balloons on the metro system' or 'no food and drink on the bus' (50 HK dollar fine etc) and people saying sorry every 5 seconds to each other.
earthizen:
You confused "political correctness" with basic human decency and civic education. HKers told me signs such as "no sh?tting on the floor" are like those in other countries. They were put up after they became tourist spots for prc mainlander tourists. ECC has an article on this too. Before they get those toilets done I suppose they have to rely on signs.
http://www.echinacities.com/news/Thai-Temple-to-Build-Separate-Toilets-for-Non-Chinese-Visitors
As far as I am aware HK does not have "no shitting on the floor" signs and also i have not seen such a sign in any country i have been to including this one.
I doubt very much that civic educational ploys like "no balloons on metro system" were put up to politely inform people from the mainland China not to do it.
Like it or not HK tries to out do being British and appears up its own arse in doing so.
by the way im not Chinese either. I am from England.
earthizen:
In mainland PRC
Outside PRC, plenty of videos on youtube. You need a VPN to see them in mainland PRC.
Subway signs in Hong Kong warns not to poop http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=VXq7FUZdlPs
Chinese tourist poops at Taiwan Memorial http:// m.youtube.com/watch?v=dk_oioPFNCA
Lady (prc mainlander) defecates in Singapore Metro http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=KJrMMEWQgHU
Chinese Mainlander crapping on the street of Hong Kong https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=f7o5VNdv8LI
Iceland. You have to go ask the people there who the signs are targetting. www.dailymail.co.uk/travel/travel_news/article-3164987/Graphic-signs-warning-tourists-not-defecate-public-posted-near-scenic-waterfall-Iceland-car-parks-CEMETERY-used-toilets.html
Same for Spain. The Camino. http://mashable.com/2015/04/20/camino-de-santiago-no-pooping-signs/#W7AwzFusLOqi
France too. " Outside the Louvre in Paris, there's a sign in Mandarin which tells visitors not to defecate in the surrounding grounds. This sign is only written in Mandarin Chinese. No other nationality, it appears, needs to be reminded where it is and is not appropriate to shit in the vicinity of metropolitan France's art museums. Every other nation on earth understands implicitly the social contract they're signing up to: that, in exchange for their continued participation in art, visitors must shit only within the white porcelain bowls located inside the designated toilet zones. Not on the pavements. Not even in the bins....." http://www.ign.com/boards/threads/the-louvre-had-to-put-up-signs-asking-chinese-tourists-not-to-poop-on-the-grounds.454473308/
Canada. Toronto nightclub. (New immigrant possibly). Chinese woman poops in her hand and tosses it like nothing happen. https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=_gYYlUdV3h4
Somewhere over the Pacific Ocean. Chinese kid drops load on airplane aisle. Delta Airline flight from Beijing to Detroit. https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=tUx45I04e7M