I'm not sure I get your point Chuck. The title of your post suggests that neither Julia nor I are being objective about our comments regarding some of the baffling things about life in China, but then your opening paragraph states that you are given to wonder about such things as pointy shoes. (As for the vanity aspect of wearing such footwear, I would suggest that it's more of a successful marketing ploy by someone who bought some shoes that have been rotting away in some American or European wharehouse since the so long ago decade when they were briefly popular.)

"What are we really thinking about each other," you ask? Not much actually - just basic human curiosity. Maybe you're suggesting that we are passing judgement. Or maybe not, it's hard to tell from your post. But really making note of such perplexing things is just a way to pass the time and get some feedback. No big deal.

Health hazard or not, I'm thinking that you probably wouldn't enjoy having your freshly washed clothes smell like you just finished a 12 hour shift in a fish factory.

They wonder why we eat so much fast food? Hell, I wonder why they eat so much fast food.

They wonder why we leave a carbon trail behind us? Good lord man, have you ever been to Beijing? And from a purely ecological standpoint Chuck, have you actually noticed what's going on in China? Nothing much really - just enough of an ecological nightmare that it's got the rest of the world gnashing their teeth over it.

And shouldn't we wonder why that in a post-SARS environment so many people spit anywhere they please? It's logical to be curious about such things.

They wonder why we wash our clothes so much? Are you suggesting that they don't wash their clothes very often. Of course they do, and they often do so in a matter that is not conducive to a clean environment.

Their kids are not as violent as ours? Give it a few more years. Have you ever noticed how the younger generation is so drawn to violent video games?

At any rate Chuck, don't get so hung up on the need to defend our Chinese brethren. Nobody is attacking the Chinese people. Just commenting about a few noteworthy things. Julia, for example, made it quite clear that such things aren't driving her away from China. She stated that she's been here for six years. She was merely pointing out some interesting aspects of Chinese society and culture. If you were to query her or me about this you would probably discover that there's much about China that we've grown to love and cherish.

Well, maybe I simply misunderstood your post Chuck. I wouldn't be surprised if that were the case actually because generally I don't find much in what you write to take issue with. Please feel free to enlighten me if there's something I'm just not getting.