No? Must be a glitch.

Collectivist societies, such as the Chinese, place more value on the needs of the group and less on the autonomy of the individual. In these societies, understanding other peoples’ experiences is a more critical social skill than it is among typically more individualist Americans.

Hogwash. Ask most Chinese to answer if they wish to be communist and, if allowed to respond freely, hardly any would choose to. You’ll find more collectivist Chinese leftie activists here in the U.S. than in China today.

When I lived in communism none of us gave a damn about the well-being of others or “the needs of the group and less on the autonomy of the individual”. We were so miserable, looking out for the next meal, or acquiring the next item for which a shortage existed, all the while hating, really hating the totalitarian leaders who forced that lifestyle and fear on us.

This can only be ’sold’ to idealistic idiots. If I could aford to send them all to force-live in such a system for 2 years, without knowing that they could ever return, it would be a cured world of at least one major ‘disease’.

If you want to live in a country where people “place more value on the needs of the group and less on the autonomy of the individual” then moving to China might be a good plan.

Don’t complain when you lose some of the individualist self-focused rights you may have become accustomed to, that’s part of the charm.

The world’s expert on democide (government murders) Dr. R. J. Rummel estimates four communist dictators alone killed 126 million people in the 20th Century (Mao Tse-tung 77 million, Joseph Stalin 43 million, Vladimir Lenin 4 million, and Pol Pot 2 million). Some empathy, eh?

Biosocial evidence pretty much proves people are concerned with their own self-interests. But communists get so mad at people’s nature that they have killed millions in vain attempts to get them to do what the dictators want. Stalin said, “You can’t make an omelet without breaking eggs.” What history teaches all but the leftie loons is that communism can’t even make an omelet after breaking the eggs.

Individualism is the engine of progress. It is responsible for most the good things existing in the world today. For example, the reason China is now doing so well economically is because their leadership finally reversed course and began encouraging micro-level capitalistic activities. In the same way, Ireland, which used to be the 2nd worst economy in Europe, is now the 2nd best because it too switched direction and rewarded individual initiative.
The IRA has pretty much wasted away. And why? Because workers are too busy paying off their BMWs.

And who are the communists’ closest rivals for whoesale slaughter? Not surprisingly they are the previously mentioned leftist loons whose 30 year inspired ban on DDT spaying has been estimated to have caused 80 million deaths. (See Steve Jalsevac’s “Finally an End to Massive Genocide Caused by Environmental Extremists’ DDT Ban.”) Just like the communists, the environmentalists thought they knew better than others what others should do. And they were wrong. And millions died.

So when it comes to this experiment, brothers and sisters, please take its implications with a grain of salt.

Where did they get their Chinese Communists?

Harpoon on July 19, 2007 at 2:06 PM

According to the published article, available for a fee or for subscribers here,

“All subjects were University of Chicago
students. The Chinese subjects were born and raised in mainland China and had been in the United States from 2 to 9 months. To minimize the confounding of culture with other variables, we matched the Chinese and the American subjects by age (M522 years for both groups), gender (half males, half females), year in school, and major of study.”

While the terms “communist” and “communism” aren’t in the article, the emphasis on mainland Chinese is notable, as is the directness of the language of the abstract, “We conclude that cultural patterns of
interdependence focus attention on the other, causing Chinese to be better perspective takers than Americans.” It could be a matter of opinion whether this study starts off with a Chinese stereotype or a Maoist stereotype, but, either way, it seems to conclude that Chinese are superior, even though, as some commenters seem to indicate, it’s just as likely that the “Chinese” tend to make certain assumptions (and not, for example, question authority regarding what is desired) and “Americans” don’t.

It should also be noted that one of the “other variables” not accounted for is that of intelligence, either using grades or using other factors. Given that someone who comes to Chicago from an overseas community of over a billion is likely to have overcome more hurdles than someone who comes from Illinois or California, it might be reasonable to assume that the Chinese participants had higher IQs. This might have accounted for the quicker reaction time.

Incidentally, my handle here reflects the four years I spent at Cal Berkeley, and I certainly have no hatred of individualism nor do I have much love for the People’s Republic. Speaking of which, the book based on this article, A Year Without “Made in China”, just came out, for those interested.

Ching-chong ching-chong.

I warned you all this would happen if the donkeys gained control of Congress. The Democrats, never content to leave well enough alone, are opening up yet another front in their War on Individual Liberty. How so? They’re planning to introduce a 20,….

“Study: Chinese make stupid assumptions, Americans pay attention to details.”

Eggheads – when you get your Communist Utopia, enjoy the totalitarian presence in your classrooms, and the constant threat of a bullet to the base of your skulls. I hope that you reap what you sow.

OhEssYouCowboys on July 19, 2007 at 3:37 PM

I don’t — not all of us eggheads are oblivious pinko commies. I don’t want to pay for their naivety.

Sorry, I was educated in China.