请离我远点，我有传染性的皮疹。
Please stay away, I have a communicable
rash.
Pipe Dreams
Last
week in Jinhua, Eastern China, it was reported that 22-year-old woman
gave birth while squatting over a toilet, and “accidentally”
flushed the baby. It is unclear how the umbilical cord was uncut, or
how such an egregious error could have been made, but people in the
building could hear the mews of the baby emanating from the plumbing.
After rescuers were called in, it took them two hours to remove the
L-shaped section of piping containing the infant. After chipping the
pipe away, they found the baby was covered in sewage with the
placenta still attached, but aside from a few minor abrasions, it was
amazingly okay.
Some are
quick to defend the mother, saying that accidental births happen all
the time. However, the details surrounding the incident point to
attempted infanticide. The woman admitted that the child was the
product of a one-night stand. Because of embarrassment, she made a
dedicated effort to conceal her pregnancy from her friends and family
by wearing loose-fitting clothing. She could not afford an abortion,
so it seemed her plan was to carry the baby to term, then flush it.
Now it
has been reported that the woman is on the verge of mental collapse
after the public backlash. It seemed her fear of social rejection as
single mother is what caused to her to flush the baby. Now that her
feeble attempt to get rid of the infant was foiled, people call her a
monster for flushing it. Kind of a damned-if-you-do / don't
situation. One would hope people would learn from this incident and
relieve the social pressures that provoked this kind of behavior. But
it causes one to wonder, how often does this kind of thing go on in
China?
After
all, there are restrictions to how many children people can have, due
to the One Child Policy. Rural couples are only allowed two children
if the first is female. Chinese couples have occasionally offed their
female offspring in favor of a male. It's now having major social
repercussions, as in some parts of the country, there simply aren't
enough women to go around for all the men that wish to marry.
Anyway...
It's
good to know that the toilet baby is recovering and in good
condition. I'm glad he has been rescued from a potentially shitty
future. I know if I got flushed down the toilet, I'd be pissed off. I
mean, his whole life was going down the drain, but now, though he may
look a little flush, he's sure to get better.
I'll
stop.
Mainland
Class
Last
week, Vice Premier Wang Yang straight-up called-out Chinese tourists
for bad behavior abroad. The list of offenses included talking
loudly in public, jay-walking, cutting in lines, spitting, and
as a result of the recent defacement of Egypt's Luxor temple,
willfully carving characters on items in scenic zones. In other
words, don't act like you act in China while in other countries. But
it calls into question why certain behavior should be acceptable
anywhere.
When
Chinese folks get called-out for certain negative behaviors, some
people are quick to say that it's a matter of education, or a result
of sudden economic growth. They say that's what happens when people
from poor environments receive their first share of wealth. Chinese
folks do have much more money than ever before, so they can afford to
tour various places for the first time. They may be simply
unaccustomed to the social expectations beyond their borders.
But
other people argue that is actually a cultural problem, and it's not
that they don't know the expectations, they simply don't care. They
point out that not all poor and uneducated people around the world
behave this way. It's difficult to say for sure, as it would take
only the most well-traveled people to make these kinds of
determinations. The fact remains that as more and more Chinese people
become global citizens, they may find themselves exposed to scrutiny
that they were previously able to avoid.
Recently
a video made round on the internet of a Chinese woman taking a dump
in an elevator in Shenzhen. Her husband was polite enough stand guard
while she took a squat right there on the floor. I too have seen
Chinese folks squat in the middle of the road. Some of them may just
be from rural areas, unfamiliar with the idea of finding an
establishment that provides facilities. But what is most striking
about this video is that the woman made no attempt to clean her mess.
Maybe she was just busy and had a lot of crap to do. Perhaps she was
performing an interpretative dance. Maybe she just wanted to express
herself, and had a few things she wanted to get out. So she gave her husband a
hint, and hoped he would pick up on it. All he had to say was, “I
can't believe this shit.”
Xi'ian's
Finest
This
was a photo from the Shaanxi Province, what was dubbed on Weibo
(Chinese Twitter) as “Majong Gridlock.” I'd say it's about time
to start installing some traffic lights and enforcing traffic laws,
eh?
 |
| It's just like "Where's Waldo:" One of the drivers in this photo is a total asshole. Can you tell which one? Answer next week. |
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