The US Ambassador to China, Gary Locke, is stepping down and leaving China after two-and-a half years. As the first US Ambassador to China of Chinese decent, his friendly and casual attitude about himself and his position won the respect of Chinese.
On China’s internet, this well-circulated “12 Observations of Chinese People” allegedly came from Locke—it may not really be from his pen, but someone wants to warn Chinese people what they’ve become using his name.
1. Very smart but believe in hearsay and rumors;
2. Fight for everything, from crib space after birth, to cemetery space before death;
3. Able to put up with big losses but will focus on small details and trivial interests;
4. Never solve a problem through formal routes when they can use connections to pull strings;
5. Won’t stand up for what is just but will fight to become a beneficiary;
6. Eager to criticize others but will seldom reflect on own faults;
7. It doesn’t matter if they are happy or not, but they need to make sure others are not;
8. Unwilling to cheer for or congratulate a friend’s success but willing to offer help to miserable strangers;
9. Refuses to help a powerful man in things he fights for but will cry for a weak person who compromises;
10. Don’t want to be bothered following written rules but will make sacrifices trying to fit into unspoken rules;
11. Will not fight for others interests but will condemn what makes people unfortunate;
12. Not willing to work for future interests but are willing to take a risk for the petty interests of the moment.
Read original Chinese article.
