Once you buy something that breaks, it’s hard, or perhaps impossible, to replace it. I recently purchased a remote controlled toy car that without my/my kid’s fault broke a couple days later; blame the poor plastic materials and work in China. Oh god, how many of those kinds of toys have I had to get to satisfy my kids and how many times have I had to feel so sorry for them? Are the Chinese toys parts of the local stock market? Anyway, the shop assistant that sold the toy to us claimed she could not exchange it, although after my persistent objecting she had her superior attempting to fix it (to no avail of course). Aside my kids, I also feel sorry for myself, when I go to the local bank; being told at times snobbishly there’s no money in my saving account, even though there’s a couple hundred thousand in, at times freaks me out. Who knows what the bankers do with my money, but after I frown at them when checking my balance sometimes, they put it back in the system somehow. Saving accounts in China are currently interesting and scary at the same time as well as are the choices to invest which I don’t do now.

Poor communication skills that mostly project passively and/or uniformly throw back the manufacturing and service industries most definitely. Meetings in factories or offices are all about one (the leader or manager) speaking while all others are listening; there’s no feedback whatsoever and in fact any response in meetings is discouraged in China. For this reason, superiors often are out of touch with the reality, and they know little about, for example, the low quality of toys that their factory produces or the cheap paint, which falls quickly of thermos that they make. Then, a customer service rep, for instance, hearing you complaining may neglect what you wish as his/her desire to keep the job is more important than you.

From another standpoint, the underhanded approach to producing and serving people reflect the locals’ ability to interact too. You may visit the same restaurant dozens of times and order the same food as many times; however, you may get the very same named dish prepared in a very different way a few times. The excuse may be that there is a different chef in the kitchen which you must accept politely and with a smile (not sarcastic) on your face. Otherwise, you will be rude and unwelcome back; if you do return under such circumstances, you may see the staff talking loudly behind (or in front of your face) your back which isn’t usually considered for impolite around. Moreover on serving people, taking a cab or getting a haircut may feel that you are in a police station instead, since you are obliged to answer some silly personal questions over and over again. Not following up on such questions creates an unfriendly atmosphere for the driver or hairdresser and you will more likely feel it too. On a second thought, perhaps, those cab drivers/hairdressers ought to be stockbrokers.

Anyhow, those attitudes that are presented above may, and most often do, result in a trend that puts many people in compromising situations. Most importantly, such tendencies reduce the value of products and services, consume the time and resources and endanger the health of people and markets. Whether the Chinese stock market or import export are affected by those behaviors; or, whether people’s health is at risk for those characteristics remains to be seen as the media isn’t up for sharing or the fight with the neo-totalitarian system.