3 ms·

Lies. Fights are very common, especially in the north-east. Foreigners are often assaulted for being foreigners. Last year, a foreigner-Chinese couple was atta

by idra 10y ago

Lies. Fights are very common, especially in the north-east. Foreigners are often assaulted for being foreigners. Last year, a foreigner-Chinese couple was attacked by a sword-wielding man for being a foreigner-Chinese couple in one of the busiest areas of Beijing, rife with police. The woman died [1]. Roads are very friendly to pedestrians indeed, where the driver will most likely try to run you over again to kill you so they won't have to pay medical fees [2]. Medical care is entirely commercial, and you won't even be attended to by a nurse until you wait in line and pay your bill. Some reference regarding medical care is here [3]. Additionally, health workers are often incompetent, don't follow hygiene requirements, etc. There is anecdotal evidence that the entry barrier to becoming a nurse is purchasing a nursing certificate online. And let's not forget how a government-supported healthcare program gave AIDS to hundreds of thousands of people less than 20 years ago [4]. Urban environments are polluted, grey and soulless, and cities are almost undistinguishable from one another besides the pollution level varying from "high" to "hazardous". I'm not going even to start about the legal system, since it is doesn't exist. Whoever knows the judge wins the case (it's never the foreigner). [1] https://thenanfang.com/woman-stabbed-sanlitun-man-sword-graphic/ https://thenanfang.com/woman-stabbed-sanlitun-man-sword-grap... [2] http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/foreigners/2015/09/why_drivers_in_china_intentionally_kill_the_pedestrians_they_hit_china_s.html http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/foreigners/2... [3] http://fortune.com/2016/07/10/china-healthcare-costs-debt/ http://fortune.com/2016/07/10/china-healthcare-costs-debt/ [4] https://www.theguardian.com/world/2001/jun/11/china.internationaleducationnews https://www.theguardian.com/world/2001/jun/11/china.internat...

sangnoir 10y ago
> Fights are very common, especially in the north-east. I would say per-capita stats are ideal for objective comparisons rather than picking individual instances. Would you have those by any chance?
- Inconel 10y ago
  I agree, I'd like to see more concrete stats when statements like this are made. Of course, I would request similar stats for the contention the other commenter made saying that fights are rare.
- idra 10y ago
  Unfortunately, the problem with stats from China is that they are most certainly fake. Even if I had those, they would arguably be worse than anecdotal evidence. I provide fake economic stats as an example, since it's something the rest of the world cares and writes about [1] [2]. So take this as a personal account from someone who lived in China for over a decade. [1] http://fortune.com/2015/12/14/china-fake-economic-data/ http://fortune.com/2015/12/14/china-fake-economic-data/ [2] https://www.ft.com/content/0361c1a4-bcfe-11e6-8b45-b8b81dd5d080 https://www.ft.com/content/0361c1a4-bcfe-11e6-8b45-b8b81dd5d...
  - FabHK 10y ago
    While comparing statistics between countries is very problematic indeed, homicide statistics are considered among the best (a dead body is easier to define than unemployment or income or so).
FabHK 10y ago
No. Citing one anecdote does not change the facts: China and HK have about the same homicide rate as Germany (namely less than 1 per 100,000 per year), that's about a quarter of the US rate. As for healthcare, if I were to get seriously ill, I would frankly not want to be in mainland China or the US. Similarly for litigation, in fact. Lamentably, while Chinese used to be rather friendly and curious towards foreigners, now one observes more incidents of parochial, jingoistic hostility. All in all, though, I agree with GP's assessment: As long as you keep out of politics, you feel both safer and freer in China than in the US as a foreigner (which is not saying a lot).
- idra 10y ago
  China and HK are completely different entities and cannot be compared. I was also talking about fights, not homicides.

by idra 10y ago

sangnoir 10y ago

> Fights are very common, especially in the north-east. I would say per-capita stats are ideal for objective comparisons rather than picking individual instances. Would you have those by any chance?

Inconel 10y ago
I agree, I'd like to see more concrete stats when statements like this are made. Of course, I would request similar stats for the contention the other commenter made saying that fights are rare.
idra 10y ago
Unfortunately, the problem with stats from China is that they are most certainly fake. Even if I had those, they would arguably be worse than anecdotal evidence. I provide fake economic stats as an example, since it's something the rest of the world cares and writes about [1] [2]. So take this as a personal account from someone who lived in China for over a decade. [1] http://fortune.com/2015/12/14/china-fake-economic-data/ http://fortune.com/2015/12/14/china-fake-economic-data/ [2] https://www.ft.com/content/0361c1a4-bcfe-11e6-8b45-b8b81dd5d080 https://www.ft.com/content/0361c1a4-bcfe-11e6-8b45-b8b81dd5d...
- FabHK 10y ago
  While comparing statistics between countries is very problematic indeed, homicide statistics are considered among the best (a dead body is easier to define than unemployment or income or so).

FabHK 10y ago

No. Citing one anecdote does not change the facts: China and HK have about the same homicide rate as Germany (namely less than 1 per 100,000 per year), that's about a quarter of the US rate. As for healthcare, if I were to get seriously ill, I would frankly not want to be in mainland China or the US. Similarly for litigation, in fact. Lamentably, while Chinese used to be rather friendly and curious towards foreigners, now one observes more incidents of parochial, jingoistic hostility. All in all, though, I agree with GP's assessment: As long as you keep out of politics, you feel both safer and freer in China than in the US as a foreigner (which is not saying a lot).

idra 10y ago
China and HK are completely different entities and cannot be compared. I was also talking about fights, not homicides.