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I don't think this is fully do to coronavirus. Media across the entire American political spectrum is beating the same drum: China is the enemy, and they need t

I don't think this is fully do to coronavirus. Media across the entire American political spectrum is beating the same drum: China is the enemy, and they need to be dealt with. Any Asian-American can tell you that the average American's ability to distinguish between people of Chinese ancestry vs. not is essentially nonexistent, so really this is just establishing that people who look East Asian are the enemy. You'll see the above-mentioned drum beat in this very thread, where a suggestion that China is not the enemy will be met with accusations of being a genocide apologist. I suggest it is worth considering what dogpile you want to join in on, and who is served by you jumping in that dogpile. Consent is being manufactured.

exolymph 6y ago
I doubt that the teenagers running up to Asian elders to push them over are motivated by hawkish sentiment toward China. I'd be surprised if they have any awareness of geopolitics whatsoever.
- ahelwer 6y ago
  This phenomenon isn't limited to dry discussion of foreign policy. You see it as an endless barrage of distorted, negative articles about every aspect of China posted all over social media. Try opening a reddit thread about China sometime. You won't have to scroll very far before you see someone wishing death upon some Chinese people.
- nexthash 6y ago
  First of all, you underestimate the intelligence of teens and their ability to perceive/think about the world. Second, if there's a pattern of attacks on Asian elders in America as discussed in the article, that isn't any accident. They are being identified and targeted because of their race, motivated by fearmongering about traditional nativist myths and the 'coronavirus made by Asians' myth.
  - exolymph 6y ago
    Nah, it has much more to do with long-standing tensions between the black (Black?) and Asian communities.
- malloryerik 6y ago
  I've often wondered if observing teens and even say ten-year-olds isn't indeed among the better ways of intuiting what attitudes and sentiments actually inhabit a community. Adults are likely to self-censor far more, whereas a young teen or eleven-year-old may simply echo what they've heard behind closed doors.
solipsism 6y ago
I have no good opinion on whether or not China, the nation and its government, should be considered an "enemy". But reasonable people can believe a government is an antagonist, while not blaming individuals from that nation. If people are getting confused, or are just plain racist, and are blaming individuals for the sins of a government, then that's the problem to solve. But the way to solve it isn't by avoiding uncomfortable truths about governments (or about anything).
- ahelwer 6y ago
  This "I hate the government, not the people" schtick is a cop out. The Chinese people overwhelmingly support the actions of their government. Beyond that, the idea that the media can wash their hands of this because people should know they're talking about the Chinese government, not Chinese people, is just incredibly generous to a class of people who absolutely know what they are doing.
  - solipsism 6y ago
    The Chinese people overwhelmingly support the actions of their government. How is that relevant? A person who disagrees with me isn't my enemy. Beyond that, the idea that the media can wash their hands of this because people should know they're talking about the Chinese government, not Chinese people, is just incredibly generous to a class of people who absolutely know what they are doing. I can't figure out what you're saying here. What do they know they're doing? And do you have any evidence of your claim?
    - ahelwer 6y ago
      What they are doing is establishing a shared belief among Americans that Chinese people are deserving of punishment (implied: via military means). For evidence I refer you to the book Manufacturing Consent by well-known computer scientist & political activist Noam Chomsky, who details how the US media again and again has used a strategy of selective reporting to categorize the world's people as deserving or undeserving victims in line with America's foreign policy goals.

exolymph 6y ago

I doubt that the teenagers running up to Asian elders to push them over are motivated by hawkish sentiment toward China. I'd be surprised if they have any awareness of geopolitics whatsoever.

ahelwer 6y ago
This phenomenon isn't limited to dry discussion of foreign policy. You see it as an endless barrage of distorted, negative articles about every aspect of China posted all over social media. Try opening a reddit thread about China sometime. You won't have to scroll very far before you see someone wishing death upon some Chinese people.
nexthash 6y ago
First of all, you underestimate the intelligence of teens and their ability to perceive/think about the world. Second, if there's a pattern of attacks on Asian elders in America as discussed in the article, that isn't any accident. They are being identified and targeted because of their race, motivated by fearmongering about traditional nativist myths and the 'coronavirus made by Asians' myth.
- exolymph 6y ago
  Nah, it has much more to do with long-standing tensions between the black (Black?) and Asian communities.
malloryerik 6y ago
I've often wondered if observing teens and even say ten-year-olds isn't indeed among the better ways of intuiting what attitudes and sentiments actually inhabit a community. Adults are likely to self-censor far more, whereas a young teen or eleven-year-old may simply echo what they've heard behind closed doors.

solipsism 6y ago

I have no good opinion on whether or not China, the nation and its government, should be considered an "enemy". But reasonable people can believe a government is an antagonist, while not blaming individuals from that nation. If people are getting confused, or are just plain racist, and are blaming individuals for the sins of a government, then that's the problem to solve. But the way to solve it isn't by avoiding uncomfortable truths about governments (or about anything).

ahelwer 6y ago
This "I hate the government, not the people" schtick is a cop out. The Chinese people overwhelmingly support the actions of their government. Beyond that, the idea that the media can wash their hands of this because people should know they're talking about the Chinese government, not Chinese people, is just incredibly generous to a class of people who absolutely know what they are doing.
- solipsism 6y ago
  The Chinese people overwhelmingly support the actions of their government. How is that relevant? A person who disagrees with me isn't my enemy. Beyond that, the idea that the media can wash their hands of this because people should know they're talking about the Chinese government, not Chinese people, is just incredibly generous to a class of people who absolutely know what they are doing. I can't figure out what you're saying here. What do they know they're doing? And do you have any evidence of your claim?
  - ahelwer 6y ago
    What they are doing is establishing a shared belief among Americans that Chinese people are deserving of punishment (implied: via military means). For evidence I refer you to the book Manufacturing Consent by well-known computer scientist & political activist Noam Chomsky, who details how the US media again and again has used a strategy of selective reporting to categorize the world's people as deserving or undeserving victims in line with America's foreign policy goals.