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But what’s the take on Obama in China? How does China view Obama’s presidency, after eight years of the Bush administration where Chinese exports were embraced?

Of course, there is some concern on the trade side. A number of websites, including Hexun and Sina, cite a rather cautious quote from Obama regarding his stance on China:

中国既不是朋友，也不是敌人。他们是竞争者

(rough translation: China is not a friend, nor an enemy. The Chinese are competitors.)

Indeed, the article from Hexun, which includes in its title “The pressure is great for Chinese foreign trade”, suggests that Obama will put dampen the foreign trade market, which previously had been such a runaway locomotive under Bush. Of course, things have already slowed down. The article mentions a letter Obama wrote to a textile organization in the US, where he promises to pressure China to float the RMB and reduce exports. On the other hand, the author suggests some common ground for the two countries, namely working together to help resolve the current financial crisis.

As for Sina, the view is more positive than you’d think as well. The author points out Obama’s reputation for pragmatism — meaning that he would always act prudently when considering any policy changes towards China.

He reminds us that Obama spent four of his formative years in Indonesia, leaving him with a positive impression of Asia. He also once visited Karachi, and was shocked by the poverty and lingering landscape of feudalism that gripped many of the citizens there. These and other experiences have influenced Obama, and helped him to make better foreign policy decisions.

He also mentions Obama’s tendency to surround himself with the best and the brightest advisors, including Jeffrey Bader of the Brookings Institution, who is described as one of today’s preeminent China experts.

Additionally, this blog provides the translation of a discussion about Obama’s policy from Shanghai:

Despite this, in light of the large number of Obama’s China advisors with realist positions, and even more due to the fact that America and China’s common interests outweigh their differences, Obama’s “not a friend nor enemy” and “competitor” strategic position towards China is bound to be discarded about half a year after taking office, just like what happened early on in the Clinton and Bush administrations.  His China policy will gradually become more rational and realistic.  Compared with Bush’s current China policy, when the time comes, the differences in Obama’s policy will mainly appear in issues regarding America and China’s economic relationship.

So, what’s the verdict? Certainly, there’s going to be pressure on China — but, on the other hand, China sees Obama as a steady hand who, when it comes to governance, will, to borrow a phrase from a Spike Lee film, do the right thing.

UPDATE: This story on the World also talks about how China views Obama…mentions that people are excited about the election as a historic moment, but also cautious in their concern that he may be more protectionist.

“He said that someday he would like to make me the manager of his Yiwu office,” she wrote, “because I’m the only person in China that he trusts.”

It’s not as though this is a new sentiment. Let’s face it, throughout China’s recent history of development, trust — or rather, lack thereof — has figured into business relations with the country. Now, however, with the increasing transparency of information coming out of the country, and in light of recent scandals involving tainted milk and, to a lesser extent, Siberian ginseng, it’s front and center yet again…well, at least in China.

If it weren’t for the financial crisis, believe me, more American families would probably be checking their pantries with a fine microscope in search of the lactic miscreants that may have polluted their foodstuffs. (Admittedly, even I have taken a second look at some “made in China” foods in my home that contain powdered milk, and wondered if they were fit for consumption — I gave them to my husband and decided to avoid purchasing them).

Especially when it comes to importing and exporting, how can we trust our suppliers? The answer is not simple. If you’ve visited more than a few suppliers in China, no doubt you’ve experienced the ultimate China cliche in trust betrayal — seeing knockoff brands sitting on the wall of the sample room, or featured in catalogs. The “Hello Kitty” purse. The “Coach” bag. The “Dior” clutch.

It’s not hard to understand why this phenomenon — the IP issue — remains. For the longest time, in Chinese culture, the whole concept of IP was a fuzzy matter. Copying functioned as a form of flattery in many instances. When foreigners pummeled China’s reputation beginning from the 1840′s (when Hong Kong was ceded to Britain) all the way to the Japanese occupation before and during World War II, during this time, the Chinese determined to learn from their aggressors, just as Confucianism encourages us to learn from others. Learning from others meant first understanding, and copying, the best practices and ideas. Also, from the beginning of China’s history, students were expected to learn primarily through memorization. Much of China’s education today rests on the regurgitation of facts and ideas, not independent, free thinking. This is an atmosphere that will tend to encourage more copying rather than developing novel concepts.

On the other hand, the IP issue plays out differently in Taiwan. Thanks to increasing regulation of goods, and crackdowns on pirated DVDs and IP violations, Taiwan has seen a decrease in these issues…though admittedly, you can still get your cheap Hello Kitty watches and mobile phone trinkets at the local night markets. Regulation, however, makes these instances much rarer than in the mainland.

With the milk scandal, regulation has been at the heart of the tragedy. Thanks to the country’s 免检产品 (inspection-free products) program, large companies considered to be pillars of corporate responsibility and quality were given the freedom to self-regulate. Well, given our recent financial crisis, I probably don’t need to explain why self-regulation doesn’t work. Before you knew it, the pillars fell and there was spilled milk all around. And, like the financial crisis, the biggest losers weren’t the corporations — who probably have enough connections with powerful Chinese such as officials and CEOs to, say, shift the direction of their business if needed. No, it’s the little guys — the dairy farmers — who lost out.

But keep in mind, the dairy farmers were never necessarily out to cheat the system — they were just trying to do their job. It was further down the food supply chain where melamine even entered the picture.

It will take time to trust China again, just as it will take us time to trust Wall Street and the financial system. But, as long as you do your due diligence — and don’t take things for face value, you may be pleasantly surprised. Just like this country, here are good people behind that label of “China” that don’t buy into the idea of gaming the system for more profits.

People like my good friend, Caroline.

Sure, I get it — the Olympics are a perfect opp for bringing to light the human rights violations within China (Tibet included) and as a proxy of China’s actions (Darfur). But are we going too far in trying to push this country that embraces “Socialism with Chinese characteristics”?

Perhaps.

As much as the Western media, such as US outlets CNN, likes to believe we’re “taking the high ground”, I have to wonder if the Chinese have come to another conclusion.

The human rights violations of the US have become too pronounced and too egregious for the Chinese to ignore. Guantanamo. Iraq. Secret CIA prisons. Heck, even the US health care debacle. We are no longer seen as a model of human rights. That makes us less credible and hypocritical in the eyes of the Chinese. What right do we have to denounce China when we can’t fix the current human rights abuses within our own country?

Meanwhile, Western media outlets have ignored the facts — and even ignored the actual situation on the ground. For example, the vast majority of attendees on the torch relay are in fact supporters of China. These events are almost never given balanced coverage in the media reports.

These actions also stoke the nationalistic undercurrents within China. Nationalism generally doesn’t win friends and influence people, and having a China opposed to the West will only mean trouble. In the worst case scenario, it could lead protests that might result in the arrest of Chinese citizens. There are already protests against the French supermarket chain store Carrefour.

Foreigners in China are starting to see some fallout, perhaps as a result of these actions, as visas are harder to secure and obscure regulations on registration are being enforced.

Perhaps what we need now is more of a “Nixon-style” approach. Nixon didn’t open up China with hard rhetoric or exposes or threats. He did it with diplomacy. In his historic visit to this “sleeping giant” of an Asian country, he was able to win the hearts and minds of a people and a leader who had long turned their backs on the evils of Western capitalism. Maybe Nixon realized something we have long forgotten — that every country has its own “skeletons” of abuses and imperfections. Including the US.

However, our business is still running strong.

If you’ve got a project that requires writing, Chinese translation, Chinese culture expertise or a combination thereof, we’d love to be of service. Talk to us today!

Why do some Chinese students, after years of grueling study, toss away their higher education when it comes to their career choices?

There’s clearly something amiss in China when it comes to getting higher education, as mentioned in this article “Record students seeking to enter postgraduate courses, but job market expert says employers prefer experience“:

Some candidates who registered this year [to participate in the postgraduate entrance exams] fear their undergraduate education is insufficient. Others say they want to study abroad but cannot adapt to foreign education systems or pay overseas tuition. Yet others want to delay joining the estimated 600,000 to one million graduates who will enter the job market next June and gain an edge over future competition.

“I know a lot of people on the [job search] path, but I’m not mature enough, my undergraduate studies are not enough,” said Wu Yiyu, an accounting student at the Beijing University of International Business and Economics. She will take the postgraduate entrance exam at a People’s Bank of China research institute. Three of her roommates are also studying for the exam. One is applying for jobs as she prepares for the exam and will decide which works out better by June. Another accounting student, Han Yuxuan, hopes to enter her university’s graduate programme because she feels she lacks skills. She also has a chance at free schooling and sees advantages in delaying work. “There are so many Chinese students and competition is so intense, so there are people doing this to escape,” Ms Han said. “But it isn’t my major reason.”

People are, in part, products of their culture. And in China, the culture says, higher education is how you change your life.

In feudal times, young scholars studied fiercely with the hopes of passing the national exams to become an official — a ticket for their families to wealth, prosperity and higher status. It’s no different today, where officials enjoy cars, apartments, travel and dining privileges, with the tab generally picked up by the state. To become an official, you still have to participate in competitive exams.

Even recently, in the 1980′s, college assured lifetime stability. People who gained admission into college in that era were guaranteed a job — the whole “iron rice bowl”. It may not have been the best job, but it was essentially a job for life.

There is the problem of residency, too. Many people are barred from seeking their fortunes in the big cities because they are not allowed to become residents. It’s not like the place I live in the US. When I moved into my city, all I had to do to prove residency was bring in a couple of bills or bank statements or anything else addressed to me at my new address in the city. In China, however, merely having a Shanghai apartment doesn’t make you a Shanghai resident. Getting that residency for non-Shanghai residents is almost as bureaucratic and frustrating as getting a visa in the US. Yet, if you become a STUDENT in a Shanghai university, you can become a resident — provided that you get a job by the time you graduate.

As a result, this whole residency mess has further elevated the status of higher education into something truly transformational. I have a number of nameless friends who intentionally sought to pursue majors with little competition just so they could go to Beijing or Shanghai with the intention of becoming a Beijing or Shanghai resident. Most ended up getting jobs, sometimes not their ideal, sometimes better than expected. But they were able to become big-city residents — their primary goal.

Arguably, this model could be applied to study abroad, where students might also apply for certain majors or to certain schools, with the intention of becoming a permanent resident. My friend Douglas initially wanted to get a PhD in the US, ultimately as a means to gain residency there.

The saddest thing, however, is that Chinese people weren’t provided real guidance on how to succeed. People are taught to go through the educational system, but aren’t taught about how to discover what they really want to do. There isn’t much in the way of career counseling or vocational guidance to help students clarify their life goals, and then discover how to achieve them. So, people blindly follow the time-tested model of higher education as success.

Chinese society also didn’t provide enough alternative models of success. People such as my husband’s cousin, Jianfei. Jianfei failed the high school entrance exams in China, and decided to join the army. Once out of the army, after a few years of doing mindless work, he discovered the business of being a local courier. He eventually became the boss of one of Shanghai’s districts, and makes enough to drive a luxurious Volkswagon. Is he successful? Sure. But you’re definitely not going to see a lot of articles lauding guys like him as the next new model entrepreneur.

Abandoning a PhD is a lot more complicated than just poor planning. Sometimes education is simply a means to an end (residency) or seemingly the only option available, because you just didn’t know better.

In the meantime, I wish my aforementioned Chinese friends success in their new endeavors. Because, after all, there’s only one thing worse than getting a PhD you don’t want — never following your true dreams.

First, robbery, theft and fraud reveal a robber’s intention to get desired things through illegal means. The young generation born in 1980s and 1990s faces far more material attractions, such as computers, cellphones, and mp3s, than the previous generations. And they are given more than former generations. They are used to asking for more and getting more. But their parents’ limited ability could not satisfy their children’s unlimited desire for more. The delinquents’ committed robberies suggest these kids did not acquire and act on the social values that encourage success through hard work.

Second, intentional injury and rape indicate a disrespect of the well-being of others, besides a serious crime. Those delinquents show an extremely self-centered view of the world, in thought and action. In the delinquents’ mind, they are the only people who have feelings and rights. They lack an adequate capacity for emphasizing with others.

Third, gang fighting shows a belief in solving problems through violence. Society should provide multiple paths for peaceful resolution of disputes. In addition, society, community and family should model settling disputes and venting emotions through peaceful means.

Further reading:

China Youth Crime ‘in Rapid Rise’ – BBC

Crimes by Juveniles rise, China says – New York Times

The moral models were selected in September and they were divided into five categories: helping another person, acting bravely for a just cause, being honest and trustworthy, working hard and “making great contributions”, and showing filial piety and love to their parents and family members.

While rewarding moral models are positive steps to form a social environment of recognizing honors and disgraces, upholding justice, and promoting harmonious society, we need to be aware of the reasons leading to immorality and morality in promoting the overall well-being of a society.

Common sense tells us — confirmed by research — that people’s behavior is normally guided by their thoughts. Moral behavior is also affected by moral reasoning. Kohlberg’s stage theory of moral development suggest stages are critical, as they consider the way a person organizes their understanding of virtues, rules, and norms, and integrates these into a moral choice.

The goal of moral education, it then follows, is to encourage individuals to develop to the next stage of moral reasoning. Kohlberg held that moral education required more than individual reflection, but also needed to include experiences for people to operate as moral agents within a community. Kohlberg and his colleagues developed the “just community” schools approach to moral development which entails full participation of community members in arriving at consensus and establishing collective norms which express fairness for all members of the community. When members are responsible for determining and enforcing rules, they will take pro-social behavior more seriously.

Studies also show that the authority must be perceived as legitimate to gain obedience for its claim. In an experiment, eighty percent of the participants refused to comply fully when a cleric instead of the experimenter assumed command. Similarly, a government official who is not perceived as legitimate leader would less likely to persuade people to follow what she of he espouses. Officials are natural models for common people. When they corrupt, they are bad models of benefiting only oneself.

Another question is why these moral models would be in such an impoverished situation in the first place. They are nice and hard working people.

Does a campaign really solve the moral problems in China?

Curious? Watch for future posts when Jun answers this question.

If you want to understand just how far collectivism goes in China, look no further than lianzuo — or collective responsibility. Throughout China’s 2,000-year feudal history — from at least 7th-century BC all the way to the turn of the 20th century — people were guilty by association. That is, if you were a blood relative or close business associate of the guilty, you would be taking a fall along with them. This China Daily article refers to it as families that hang together — and we don’t mean “hanging out” in the modern sense, either.

The interesting thing is, group responsibility still has a hold on Chinese culture today — even if it is considered a little unfair.

I was reminded of this when proofing a manuscript for my husband’s former graduate school advisor. He wanted to examine Piaget’s idea of collective and communicable responsibility with Chinese adolescents, looking at their psychological response through a number of dilemmas. One of them included a situation where someone cheated in class, the teacher discovered it, but no one wanted to own up to their mistake, forcing the teacher to punish the entire class.

What was interesting was that, even though a majority of the adolescents considered collective punishment unjust, most showed a tendency to take responsibility for behavior in order to avoid punishment to the collective, and this tendency increased with age.

When you consider that Chinese culture emphasizes the group or family over the individual, it’s not surprising individuals would “sacrifice” for the good of the whole. Maintain the group harmony is a top priority. Plus, given that Confucianism stresses obedience to elders/leaders, it’s important to respect authority, even if the outcome is unpleasant.

From the authority’s point of view, it’s understandable they’d want to punish the entire lot. In China — even today as self-responsibility is gaining more popularity — people would, in general, rather not be the one in charge, but rather spread the responsibility around. It’s safer that way, right? As long as everyone holds a little responsibility, no one gets sacked from their job. If you’ve ever dealt with any bureaucracy, you know what I mean.

I think of the one time I almost “lost” my entire life savings in a snafu involving electronic bank transfers from one bank to another (not for the uninitiated, that’s for sure). I was caught in a ping-pong match between the banks as to who was not responsible for the mistake. Later on, I discovered it was a name input mistake — obviously an electronic, and not human, error.

Yeah, right.