- This topic has 6 replies, 4 voices, and was last updated 10 years ago by
.
-
Posts
-
I stumbled on this article in the New York Times this morning (VPN required) and it reminded me of how much Chengdu has changed. I just got back from the Tailor Made Chengdu event at the Ascott next to Raffles City and then had Japanese food for dinner. I’m sure there are many others reading this who don’t eat Chinese food everyday, and that is a huge change from even a few years ago.
I seriously doubt that the kind of frenzied pursuit of luxury living is sustainable in a country like China, but I wonder how it can possibly be scaled down?
Who would want to scale it down? Thinking about this actually makes me a bit sad, realizing how the Eastern world is getting more and more Westernized and flooded by ideas of power and economic progress, whereas the Oriental philosophy used to be more about seeking harmony and balance between nature and culture. Yin & Yang and all that stuff.
Nowadays even in the East most people are just brainwashed by capitalism and corporate colonialism. Following the hurd of the rest of the “developed” world.
It’s interesting to see that in Chengdu you can actually still (kind of) see the gap of difference between both worlds, judging from the luxury cars passing by the tea-drinking mahjong playing elderly, not giving a fuck.
haha, if you understand the China Dream logs, you can find out one is “Enjoying substance is degenerate”, while that most people in china are doing. This not people’s fault, its misleading by the big global companies plus domestic social value shift.
The old generation of communist do have a thrifty life, and working hard for people.
While for today’s officers or politicians, there is not more I can say.
About the luxury life, just like a flu, created by the giant head or profit relatives, infect everyone in the society.
In my opinion it’s still being brain washed.
Who would want to scale it down? Thinking about this actually makes me a bit sad, realizing how the Eastern world is getting more and more Westernized and flooded by ideas of power and economic progress, whereas the Oriental philosophy used to be more about seeking harmony and balance between nature and culture. Yin & Yang and all that stuff.
I don’t think anyone would want that but we can all see glaring signs of instability, from the dramatic disparity between wealth and poverty in China. The majority of China is impoverished and at the same time you see the most extravagant signs of wealth here that you see anywhere on earth. Those two extremes need to reconciled, and I believe they will, in some kind of crash.
It could be something quick and sudden, like the 2008 crash in the United States, or something long and gradual, like Japan over the last two decades. Chengdu becoming a booming market for the world’s most expensive handbags is a bit concerning since the average income is still around 2,000 rmb per month.
All of this development is also a threat to Chengdu’s notoriety as a city “good for living”. The slow and relaxed pace of life and leisurely activities are slowly but surely being replaced by the trappings of developed cities in Asia like Beijing and Shanghai: skyscrapers, multi-national companies, rising property values, direct foreign investment, etc.
This “gold rush” to Chengdu will change the city forever.
haha, if you understand the China Dream logs, you can find out one is “Enjoying substance is degenerate”,
What’s this?
The slow and relaxed pace of life and leisurely activities are slowly but surely being replaced by the trappings of developed cities in Asia
This. It sucks. Too bad it’s unavoidable.
Being an avid follower of Weibo I find that the frequency of vacationing photos and stories has steadily gone up. This is just anecdotal evidence, but it’s seems to me one of the more tactile supports in witnessing a steady rise in the spending of money.
I also work in an industry that revolves around recreation and what we offer is still very much considered a luxury. But I suppose you could see it such that we’re part of the so-called gold rush. This has it’s advantages though. I’d like to think a lot of what we do as a business, especially community involvement, shapes a number of things at large throughout the city. Businesses can impact positive changes on community and culture. (That’s my hope at least, but I’ll have to get back to you in several years to let you know how it goes.)
if you understand the China Dream logs, you can find out one is “Enjoying substance is degenerate”,
this thing originally came from Communism. It was used for describing how evil USA is. How evil capitalism is in the old time.
But from China’s today’s situation, it’s just funny they still propagate Communism ideas when most of them actually act like a capitalism government officer.
I saw so many this kind of poster on the street.
- The forum ‘In Chengdu’ is closed to new topics and replies.