Chapter 7 Chapter 06 Dazed 2: Don't Understand the World (3)
At the time of the Olympics, the state of etiquette is looking for ways of etiquette:
How do you think we should express the etiquette of our great country during the Olympics?
Different cultures, absurd understanding leads to absurd evaluation:
Singing there with a grass skirt around the lower body, woo woo woo...
Big and small things reflect the national self-confidence in the details:
Why can't I wear white socks?Can I have Chinese characteristics?
On the evening of August 8, Beijing time, the world-renowned 29th Summer Olympic Games kicked off, and billions of eyes around the world focused on the Beijing Bird's Nest Stadium.The opening ceremony started with a shocking fou formation composed of 2008 actors, who recited the famous line "It's such a joy to have friends coming from afar".Fou is a kind of ritual vessel in ancient China. We use this special ceremony to reflect the hospitality of our state of etiquette.The opening ceremony of the Beijing Olympic Games has received praise and praise from all over the world.U.S. President Bush praised the Beijing Olympics for exceeding expectations, and said it was a great feeling to participate in the Olympics.For a long time, due to cultural differences, China and the United States have not been able to fully understand each other on the issue of etiquette.So, through this Olympic Games, how can we demonstrate the etiquette and demeanor of Chinese civilization, so that the United States and the world can better understand us?
During the 2008 Olympic Games, when I was doing the program "Lang Xianping Talk", I received a lot of questions, including local TV stations and viewers who supported me. gap.Everyone is thinking that the Olympic Games is about to begin. As the host country of the Olympic Games, should we embody the etiquette and demeanor of our Chinese nation?But the question is, what do we want to embody?How to reflect it? We talked about some issues in the past, such as not spitting, that is a thing of the past, who still spits now?This is no longer a problem.In other words, we basically have no concept of the so-called Olympic etiquette itself.Not only do we have no concept, but I think the government also has no concept. To put it a bit more extreme, the 1.3 billion people in our country hardly know how to show etiquette during the Olympic Games and maintain it.You can't just perform during the Olympics and let it go. After the Olympics, it's not okay to go back to your old ways. If I ask everyone: "How do you think we should demonstrate the etiquette and demeanor of our great country during the Olympic Games?" I believe many people will not be able to answer it, because this topic is too general, and we simply don't understand what Westerners are thinking. What, Westerners don't understand what the Chinese are thinking at all.Therefore, the Olympic Games is an excellent opportunity for the East and the West to further enhance mutual understanding.In fact, Westerners have Western etiquette norms, and we Chinese have our Chinese etiquette norms, but they don’t understand each other, so Westerners will think some of our behaviors are ridiculous. Take myself as an example, I grew up in China, and later went to the United States to study in 1983.After arriving in the United States, I was very uncomfortable because I found that they were too different from me.Let me give you an example, when I go to a supermarket or any other place, I open the door and walk right through, it's natural!As a result, I found that every time I walked past, the Americans walking behind me would make a very impatient complaint. "Oh," that's about the tone. "I'm so beautiful, there's something wrong!" I always thought to myself, "What mistake did I make again?" But I couldn't figure out the reason after thinking about it.Later, I found that every time the Americans in front of me walked past, they would almost without exception hold the door and let me pass, and then I had to hold the door again to let the people behind come forward .Therefore, I have learned this simple action of helping the people behind the door for a long time.Because when we were in China, we never held the door for the next person. We just walked through it by ourselves. What kind of door should we hold, right?Everyone goes their own way, isn't it great?No, Americans don't see things that way, so when Americans see such a small thing as our Chinese not holding the door, they especially dislike you.At this time, I finally understood why the Americans walking behind me always complained, because he thought I was so vulgar. Since 1904, the United States has hosted four Summer Olympics, but many people still don't understand American etiquette.Because the United States is a country of global immigrants, the etiquette and customs in the country are complicated, and the situation in each state is different.Bush, who grew up in Texas, has a typical cowboy style. In 1991, when the Queen of England visited the United States for the first time, Bush Jr. told the Queen that he was the black sheep in the family, and asked the Queen who the black sheep in the family was. Such a conversation was considered too informal.Therefore, when the Queen of England visited the United States again in June 2007, one of the most important tasks of the White House was to provide etiquette training for the president.So, what do etiquette taboos look like in real life in the United States?
In early May 2008, the RAND Corporation, a think tank of the U.S. government, published an assessment report on the quality of Chinese people. I think their speeches should represent the American views on us in a very specific way.I must inoculate all readers in advance. They speak very badly. You can disagree, but let's not scold them. Let's think about why they say that. The evaluation report said that due to "growing up in a poor environment and lacking proper education, most Chinese people do not understand elegant manners and basic courtesy".I believe that my story about not holding the door just now is a manifestation of not knowing how to behave gracefully and basic politeness, and they think I don't understand. The assessment report goes on to say that "the majority of Chinese people dress clumsily and vulgarly, but do not feel shy".Readers will find it very strange, don't we all dress beautifully, men look handsome and women look beautiful.In fact, if we don't understand the etiquette of Americans, we don't know what they call us at all.Next, I want to tell a story that makes me deeply understand.Many of my students work on Wall Street, they are all Americans, they often come to see me and tell me some of the things they encountered.Once, they said to me: "Professor Lang, do you know that we interviewed some Chinese people who wanted to work in our company yesterday. People roared with laughter." Readers may not find this funny, because what's wrong with wearing a suit, tie, black shoes and a pair of white socks?We will think this is normal, but Americans will think it is very funny.Why? Because, in public, wearing a suit and white socks is the most vulgar, that is, the most awkward and vulgar way of dressing according to the RAND evaluation report.It's not that your suit is not expensive, you may have bought it from Versace, it may be a famous brand, but it doesn't matter, the problem is that your wearing white socks makes Americans feel so ridiculous that they even booed me in front of me Laugh out loud.Americans usually don't do this, they usually smile very reservedly, because this nation is very hypocritical.Aren't our belts from Dunhill, our clothes from Cerruti 1881?Why Americans Laugh - Because You're Wearing the Wrong Socks.You might say, is it just for such a small thing?Yes, you look small, Americans look big, because they think you are uneducated, this is what they think.Even if you don't hold the door, it is a lack of education.What socks are you going to wear?You must wear black socks, it's as simple as that.Can I wear floral socks?Can't.The last time I met one of my students, he was in Beijing (of course, my students are basically entrepreneurs, and they are all much more accomplished than me), and he was wearing a neat suit and a pair of short riding boots.If this dress is shown to Americans, I'm sure they will laugh wildly in their hearts again, because short leather shoes are required to wear a suit. In fact, readers, don’t think that Americans are very knowledgeable and have seen the world, that’s not the case.I spent several years in the Midwest of the United States, including Michigan, which is not a remote place. I also stayed in Ohio, went to Louisiana, and went to Tennessee for business trips.People there have a very limited understanding of the whole world. I’m not joking. There are even a few older people who think that Chinese people still wear braids, and Africans are still natives, wearing grass skirts on their lower bodies over there. Singing, woo woo woo... Don't talk about Americans, maybe many of us Chinese think that Africans are still like that. I still remember seeing a TV interview done somewhere in Ohio. At that time, a plane just landed there temporarily due to some malfunctions (Ohio is already a normalized state), so the TV company went to report it. Incident, but also interviewed the local people.These ordinary people were very excited and happy when they saw the people from the TV station, and they huddled together to watch.The reporter asked them: "Suppose your plane breaks down, would you dare to fly next time?" As a result, these American people said: "We have never been on an airplane, and this is the first time we have seen an airplane." It was the first time for them to see a real plane because the normal flight path of the plane did not pass there.This is America, they don't understand the outside world at all, and most Americans don't.These Americans, especially those in the middle of the country, are really isolated (people on the east coast and west coast are still more exposed to civilized society), and in their minds they imagine that you should look like this, if your dress Unlike them, they feel very strange. The first reaction is that you dress clumsily and vulgarly, that you don't have elegant manners, and you don't have basic manners. In fact, these are some very small things. In 1932, Liu Changchun stood on the runway of the Los Angeles Olympic Games.The Chinese people's first appearance in the Olympic Games not only embodies the Olympic spirit of fair competition, but also changes the eyes of those Westerners who think that Chinese people still wear braids.In fact, as early as the end of the Qing Dynasty, the cultural contact between the East and the West had already penetrated to the level of etiquette.After the Gengzi Years, as many wives of foreign ministers entered China's high society and became the guests of the Empress Dowager Cixi, there was a direct collision between the style and fashion of Western women and the strict court etiquette of the Qing Dynasty.However, when the wife of the Chinese ambassador abroad told Cixi distressedly that the footbinding of women in the Qing Dynasty had become a joke all over the world, the Empress Dowager Cixi showed a higher level of insight, saying: "I heard that foreigners also have a habit that is nothing to blame. , They girded themselves with iron bars until they could not breathe.” Etiquette is a part of the traditional culture of various countries and has the characteristics of manipulation, so what kind of misjudgment will be caused by ignoring this difference?
The RAND Corporation study also said, "They are taught as teenagers how to lie and take from others rather than give and share what they have." We hear that , the first feeling in my heart was: "This is complete nonsense, who said we lied? I didn't lie." But did we really not lie?When the Education Bureau came to the school to investigate whether we had an after-school tutoring class, how did the teacher educate us——“…If the Education Bureau sends someone to investigate, all the students will say that we don’t have tutoring classes…”—— Isn't this a public lie?What about the Education Bureau officials?When you went to check whether the school has tutoring, did you ever think that your children are still taking tutoring at school! You will definitely say: "How did the RAND Corporation know this?" Of course it knows, and the RAND Corporation is a think tank of the US government, so it will naturally conduct various investigations.As soon as the RAND Corporation reported this kind of trivial matter, and the American media played it up again, it formed the impression that the Chinese people are liars in the hearts of Americans.This kind of thing is unimaginable in American schools, because they pay great attention to an attitude on the surface, which is called "integrity" in English-this word does not mean "honesty", but a higher level than "honesty". It's called "integrity."What today's capitalist society really needs is integrity, which includes honesty. You must be a person who respects yourself, respects others, respects the system, and respects society. You must not deceive others in anything you do.Readers may ask me, don't Americans deceive people?Of course they will deceive, and there are also lying presidents in the United States. For example, former President Nixon was sentenced for deception (the Watergate case, the Republican President Nixon ordered people to sneak into the Democratic Party headquarters to secretly record important information about the Democratic Party. After this incident was discovered by reporters , Nixon not only refused to admit it, but destroyed a large amount of evidence, so he was prosecuted and sentenced), and finally got a pardon.But when he moved, his neighbors knew that he was a former president, so they publicly said that they did not want to be neighbors with him.From another point of view, we can also say that Americans are a hypocritical nation. A large part of the reason why they attach so much importance to "integrity" is the pressure of public opinion and the law.What if Americans move to China?I believe their changes will be very big. For example, Americans will buy pirated CDs and fake brand names in China, and many people do this.But this hypocritical nation always pretends to be sanctimonious and accuses us. What is the most important feature of America?That is the discipline of this country.I was not used to it when I first went to the US, because the US is a bit of a nasty country, it has daylight saving time twice a year.What does that mean?That is to adopt daylight saving time. In summer when the dawn is relatively early, the time is artificially advanced by 1 hour, and then adjusted back in winter.But this move will not be widely announced, but a small news will be published in the newspaper the day before the time is to be adjusted.I was a professor in the United States at the time, and I was very nervous, because I was not very disciplined, and I was very worried. If I didn’t see it, what would I do if I was late for class the next day?So I read the newspaper every day, for fear that I would miss the class time.You must not think that Americans are undisciplined, their highly disciplined nationality is terrible.Because on the second day after the time adjustment, I found that all Americans were on time. This is the characteristic of Americans, a highly disciplined nation.And if I don't pay attention to the newspaper every day, I will probably be 1 hour late or 1 hour early.Because I am Chinese, my discipline is relatively poor. Not only that, the time zone division of the United States has a 3-hour time difference from the east coast to the west coast, and Americans will adjust the time by themselves, which is not easy.In China, if there is an hour's time difference between Beijing and Xinjiang, there will be chaos.If we also come to a country like the United States, which implements daylight saving time twice a year, the result will definitely be unimaginable.In this case, China will be chaotic, but the United States will not.This is the horror of the high degree of discipline in the United States. Because the United States is a highly disciplined country, basically as long as the government issues an order, the whole country will move in one direction, saying that the time will be adjusted nationwide, which is terrible.So they find it very strange to see Chinese people, they don't understand Chinese people at all.When the RAND Corporation report was published, the Wenchuan Earthquake had not yet occurred, and their report said: "...the Chinese only care about their families and relatives, and the sufferings of people who have nothing to do with them It's just turning a blind eye..." Why do they see us like that?Because they think that the Chinese are basically a mess, and usually everyone does their own thing, such as "everyone sweeps the snow in front of his own door, and don't care about the frost on others' roofs."But the U.S. is a highly disciplined country, so it's strange for them to see this happening.For example, in China, when someone has a car accident and is lying in the middle of the road, there are very few people who really help.Let me ask readers again, if a taxi driver encounters a dying person in a car accident on the road, would he dare to take him to the hospital?He didn't dare, because if the wounded died in the hospital, he would be responsible?I'm afraid the well-meaning driver is responsible.Even if the driver sent the injured to the hospital, he would bite the driver back, saying that it was the driver who hit him.And when Americans see taxi drivers turning a blind eye to a dying man, they agree with the RAND assessment. However, when the Wenchuan Earthquake happened, Americans were stunned. We actually cared about others. Americans were incomprehensible because of the comment from the RAND Corporation—"Chinese people only care about their families and relatives. I turn a blind eye to the suffering of people who have nothing to do with me" - completely wrong.You can even see all kinds of touching scenes on TV. For example, a nurse has been saving lives. The reporter asked her: "Where are your children?" She immediately cried and said: "My child is still in school, and I I don’t know how my child is doing now.” But she didn’t leave her post, saying that I was going to save my child, and I didn’t care about the other wounded, and the others just die, I don’t care.She still sticks to her post to save others, even though she still has her child in her heart. There is also a police comrade who has just become a mother. He rescued several children and breastfed them with his own milk.What is this lesbian doing to save other people's children?This does not fit with what the RAND Corporation has said about the Chinese.Americans don't understand this kind of personality, because Americans don't understand Chinese people.What kind of nation is the Chinese nation?I also want to make it clear to the Americans here, that is, when the Chinese nation encounters hardships, the unity of the Chinese people is very surprising. Americans have always believed that only they have this high degree of discipline. of.They absolutely did not expect that a nation that usually looks like a mess would have such a high degree of discipline.After the Wenchuan Earthquake, the Chinese were very united. Not only did they help others together, which completely broke the views of the Americans, but the Chinese did not allow others to criticize their own government, which the Americans said was incomprehensible.Because they think it is right to criticize the government, especially this kind of selfish people who only care about their own relatives will definitely criticize the government.But they are all wrong. When encountering big problems, the Chinese people scold the foreign media—you, the anchor of CNN, talk nonsense, and the people of the whole country boycott you.Even the issue of Carrefour and the Dalai Lama frightened the French, not to mention a little, the French were frightened to death.So when the issue of Sharon Stone came out, the French government first stated that it had nothing to do with itself. Moreover, our Chinese group not only helps each other, but also integrates the government and the people. Any remarks that are unfavorable to the government or the country, the common people will fight back in the most angry and violent way.I can tell you that this kind of integration is the main reason why the leaders of other countries are very willing to come to China to participate in the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games.If there is no Wenchuan earthquake, they will not understand China.But the Chinese used to be loose and unreasonable, but once they came to a crisis, they suddenly became united and disciplined, and loved their own nation and compatriots just like the Americans. I think this kind of great love is even stronger than that of the Americans. more than one floor.Our nation is too complex. Because we are a nation with such personality, China is one of the few ancient countries in the world that can survive to this day.This nation will not disperse in a rush because of external crises. Whenever it encounters any external disasters, it will collectively integrate and cohere together in a highly disciplined manner.Just like ten chopsticks gathered together, you can't break them, but one chopstick is easy to break. This kind of inconsistency of the Chinese makes it difficult for foreigners to understand.If Americans think we are selfish, deceitful, and callous, and then we wear white socks, then they must judge us negatively.I am not surprised that the RAND Corporation made this kind of research report, because they do not understand the Chinese. On August 8, 2008, the opening ceremony of the Beijing Olympic Games attracted many heads of state from all over the world.US President Bush is one of them.Before the Olympic Games, the United States specially held a three-day commemorative event of "Ping Ping Diplomacy" between the United States and China. 36 years ago, US President Nixon set foot on the land of mainland China on the road paved by sports diplomacy, completing an epoch-making moment in Sino-US relations.This moment was vividly expressed through the handshake ceremony between Premier Zhou Enlai and President Nixon.Premier Zhou Enlai is recognized as the most outstanding diplomat in the world. His humility, calmness, firm principles and diplomatic style full of wisdom and flexibility fully demonstrated the charm of oriental etiquette.In fact, etiquette and communication are a mutual judgment of the two sides, and this judgment is equally important to China and the United States.
But do they want us to be strong?hope.So this is a kind of ambivalence of foreigners. The assessment report of the RAND Corporation said something like this: "If China in the 20th century was a rich and unified country, we would have a completely different World War I, We wouldn't have WW2 but WW2 in Europe. China would be able to stop Japanese aggression or defeat Japan. US would spend a lot less on these conflicts in a fundamental sense because Pearl Harbor wouldn't happen. We and the whole world, not to mention the 1 billion Chinese, have paid a heavy price for China's weakness for more than a century. The world needs a healthy China." The magnitude of China's contribution to the world is unimaginable.First, such a large market in China saved the Japanese economy, which was gradually declining in 1990. Without China, the Japanese economy would not be able to recover.So for the second richest country in the world, what kind of impact will its collapse have on the world?Think about it, everyone, who depends on saving it, it depends on China... The assessment report also said that China has helped GM and Ford a lot, and the sales volume of Coca-Cola, which Americans are proud of, has reached 1 billion bottles in China.They even used the story of Lenovo's acquisition of IBM's global PC business.The evaluation report said, look, the Chinese bought IBM, how many workers have been hired for this sunset industry in the United States?In addition, the Chinese produced so many cheap goods that the entire price level in the United States fell by 10%, so the strength of China is too important to the United States.This is the American ambivalence towards China.I think the biggest problem and ambivalence in this report is that Americans don't understand the Chinese. In fact, on the other hand, we do not understand Americans.The biggest problem with Americans is that I have never seen such a hypocritical nation.For any American who comes to China, as long as you ask him what is his impression of China, he will definitely say that Chinese women are the most beautiful...Chinese people are the kindest nation...China's economic development is the most successful, etc. Wait.Why do they say that?Because they are a very hypocritical nation, and the degree of hypocrisy is far higher than that of the Chinese. For example, Americans like to eat sweet and sour Chinese food in the United States, but they don’t like Chinese food when they come to China. Why?Because we are too authentic, Sichuan cuisine is too spicy, salty and numb, which Americans don't like.Their favorite Sichuan dish is stir-fried shredded pork with pineapple, some sugar, and some chili.How do you eat it? We certainly don't like it, but Americans do.So if you invite Americans to dinner in China, I can tell you that basically they can't get enough to eat.So they must go to McDonald's, KFC, and eat fried chicken.But I also want to tell readers that as long as you invite Americans to dinner, even if they don’t like to eat, they will definitely say after seeing the dishes: “Why are there such beautiful dishes, I’m starving to death. "You must not believe these words, in fact, he doesn't like it at all.Last time I took my eldest son to meet an American. In fact, my son was very ugly, but the American immediately praised my son and said, "I have never seen such a beautiful boy." I Said: "Come on, you, don't come here, I don't know you yet, it's just nonsense, my son is actually very ugly." Look, do we understand Americans?Still don't understand.Therefore, Americans' evaluation of us Chinese, such as the white socks, is based on their own judgment.Because except for Americans on both sides of the coast, most Americans are relatively ignorant.They think that we Chinese wear white socks, do not hold doors, lie, are selfish, cruel, only love our own family, and don't love others. In short, it is a negative impression.But after the Americans really got to know us, they found that this is not the case. They found that the Chinese are so disciplined and united in times of crisis, they can even put their own children aside and save other people's children first, which is better than Americans much better.This strange ethnicity has touched all European and American people, which is why there were no more negative attacks on Chinese people in European and American newspapers and magazines two or three months before the Olympics. But there are still some ridiculous negative attacks, I saw it once, it was that the bar owned by the Chinese banned black people from entering.As soon as I saw it, I knew it must be nonsense, news made up by Americans.Only Americans can do this kind of thing that prohibits black people from entering bars, and no other country can do it.Would the French do such a thing?No, the racism of the French is very mild, and the most serious racism is the Americans, followed by the Germans.In the past few decades in the United States, there has been one public toilet for blacks and one for whites, with a clear distinction.Sometimes "White Only" is written on the signboard of the laundromat. When we Chinese see it, we think it means that only white clothes can be washed, but it is not true. It means that only white people can come in to wash clothes.So when I saw the news reports that the bars opened by the Chinese didn't let black people in, I knew it was the Americans who were talking nonsense, because the Chinese don't care about race at all, we seem to care more about money.If the news is that the Chinese let everyone in for money, then I think it is still possible.But if the Chinese don't let black people in, that's absolutely impossible.As long as you bring money, we are very welcome.Fabricating such news is a manifestation of the so-called chauvinism in the United States, using its ideas to vilify us Chinese, and this is precisely because Americans do not understand us. Among the countries I have seen so far, the United States and Germany are the most racist, and they look down on people of color the most.When Bush Sr. was president, he said that the goal of the U.S. government’s efforts was to make everyone “colorblind.”Nonsense, I don't believe it at all, it can't be done because Americans still look down on people of color to this day.Although they have promulgated many laws and regulations, stipulating that everyone is not allowed to look down on others, the discrimination in their hearts cannot be hidden, but they are very polite to you on the surface.Why?Because this is a hypocritical nation.If we Chinese don't like a certain person, we will clearly express our dislike and will not communicate with him.The Americans don't know it, and they still laugh at him, but they actually hate him very much in their hearts.For such a hypocritical nation, I don't know how to maintain China's reputation as a state of etiquette. I have a junior who is a professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He has done a very good job in dealing with people, at least in my opinion, he is much better than me.Because Americans have a criterion for judging others, that is, whether this person is a "Nice Guy". "Guy" means "guy", and Nice means "good", which together means "good guy" and "good guy".And my junior is a good man, so Americans like him very much.Chinese people don’t look at things that way, we don’t use “good guy and bad guy” as an evaluation standard, we just say “he’s a capable person” or “he’s a nasty person”, because the concept of “good person” is in Chinese culture The inside is less important.But let me tell readers, you have to be a nice guy if you want to do well in the United States—you must be a nice guy. What is a good person, I will use my junior as an example to explain.He once gave a speech at the Chinese University of Hong Kong. I observed him very carefully and discovered such a detail.A group of us went out to eat and walked through a small door. People like me who don’t have much understanding, are stupid, just stepped out of the door and walked through. Americans don’t like Chinese people like this.But my junior didn’t do this, he took a step back very instinctively, and let everyone else go out before he went out, so he was a "nice guy", and like me, the first one out , just not "Nice Guy".In fact, as long as people who have been in the United States see me saying these two words, everyone will laugh out loud, because this is the standard by which Americans judge others. Can you believe it? Then after my analysis, everyone will gradually understand, what is the state of etiquette?It doesn't mean that we should be humble to Americans when we see them, walk ahead of them, or be particularly polite to them. Americans don't take this kind of thing.We have to maintain our current attitude towards Americans, and we can do whatever we want. It doesn’t matter what negative comments they have about us, because that is their judgment on us in a closed and ignorant environment. "I wear a suit, so why can't I wear white socks? What am I doing to you again? Is it okay if I have Chinese characteristics?" Americans think it's wrong to wear it like this, and think we are clumsy and vulgar, but I don't think so. This is nothing more than a trifle.Therefore, some opportunities like the Olympic Games are needed to allow everyone to understand and impact each other, and then resolve this misunderstanding invisibly. In addition, for example, the issue of education, Americans think we like to lie, this is true, we really have to admit mistakes.And that we lied again in full view of the opening ceremony of the Olympics - having a little girl lip-synch on stage, I think that's all problematic.But if we say that we only care about our family and relatives, don't Americans care about their own family and relatives? "If there was a big earthquake in the United States, and you happened to be a nurse, would you go to the school to save your daughter first, or stick to your post to help other wounded people?" As long as we ask this question, Americans will definitely be speechless. What is a big country?A big country itself should contain self-confidence-I will not bow down to you Americans today just because I want to host the Olympics. I don't have to. I can still wear white socks and do what I should do. "Americans ask you to learn more about Chinese people", this is my attitude.I also hope that through this book, readers across the country can understand who we are and who the other party is.I can proudly tell you that I think the Chinese people have come to today, on the entire world stage, the whole world will be critical of us because they care about us.However, as far as the Chinese themselves are concerned, we must maintain the ego of a big country, because this is our culture, and our culture will not change because foreigners don't like it.According to our Chinese culture, we can be very polite and polite to foreigners. That is what we Chinese should do. As for how foreigners understand it, that is their business.Then next time when they see that we Chinese do not hold the door, they will not misunderstand us as vulgar, because they already know that the Chinese do not have the habit of holding the door. Now that I’ve said this, everyone understands that etiquette itself is a reflection of culture, and Chinese culture and American culture don’t matter which one is good and which is bad, they are just different.So I hope to explain to you through the background of the Olympics, we have to accept each other's differences, but the other party also has to accept our differences. In 1703, Britain sent a large mission led by Lord Macartney to China in the name of celebrating Qianlong's birthday.As a result, the first collision between the most powerful country in the West and the largest country in the East at that time did not understand each other because of a series of etiquette issues such as kneeling, and eventually turned into a dialogue between the deaf, and the two sides lost an equal mutual understanding precious opportunity.More than 200 years later, the London Olympics will be held after the Beijing Olympics.Britain is particularly concerned about the Beijing Olympics.Interestingly, relevant parties in the UK believe that London in the eyes of Chinese people still looks like people wearing bowler hats, beards, holding umbrellas and walking sticks, so they launched a series of glamor public relations during the Beijing Olympics.纵观全球，人类已创造出无数奇风异俗，让人眼花缭乱。奥运会更是各民族多元文化的汇集，相互包容、相互理解才是礼仪背后的真谛。
During the 2008 Olympic Games, when I was doing the program "Lang Xianping Talk", I received a lot of questions, including local TV stations and viewers who supported me. gap.Everyone is thinking that the Olympic Games is about to begin. As the host country of the Olympic Games, should we embody the etiquette and demeanor of our Chinese nation?But the question is, what do we want to embody?How to reflect it? We talked about some issues in the past, such as not spitting, that is a thing of the past, who still spits now?This is no longer a problem.In other words, we basically have no concept of the so-called Olympic etiquette itself.Not only do we have no concept, but I think the government also has no concept. To put it a bit more extreme, the 1.3 billion people in our country hardly know how to show etiquette during the Olympic Games and maintain it.You can't just perform during the Olympics and let it go. After the Olympics, it's not okay to go back to your old ways. If I ask everyone: "How do you think we should demonstrate the etiquette and demeanor of our great country during the Olympic Games?" I believe many people will not be able to answer it, because this topic is too general, and we simply don't understand what Westerners are thinking. What, Westerners don't understand what the Chinese are thinking at all.Therefore, the Olympic Games is an excellent opportunity for the East and the West to further enhance mutual understanding.In fact, Westerners have Western etiquette norms, and we Chinese have our Chinese etiquette norms, but they don’t understand each other, so Westerners will think some of our behaviors are ridiculous. Take myself as an example, I grew up in China, and later went to the United States to study in 1983.After arriving in the United States, I was very uncomfortable because I found that they were too different from me.Let me give you an example, when I go to a supermarket or any other place, I open the door and walk right through, it's natural!As a result, I found that every time I walked past, the Americans walking behind me would make a very impatient complaint. "Oh," that's about the tone. "I'm so beautiful, there's something wrong!" I always thought to myself, "What mistake did I make again?" But I couldn't figure out the reason after thinking about it.Later, I found that every time the Americans in front of me walked past, they would almost without exception hold the door and let me pass, and then I had to hold the door again to let the people behind come forward .Therefore, I have learned this simple action of helping the people behind the door for a long time.Because when we were in China, we never held the door for the next person. We just walked through it by ourselves. What kind of door should we hold, right?Everyone goes their own way, isn't it great?No, Americans don't see things that way, so when Americans see such a small thing as our Chinese not holding the door, they especially dislike you.At this time, I finally understood why the Americans walking behind me always complained, because he thought I was so vulgar. Since 1904, the United States has hosted four Summer Olympics, but many people still don't understand American etiquette.Because the United States is a country of global immigrants, the etiquette and customs in the country are complicated, and the situation in each state is different.Bush, who grew up in Texas, has a typical cowboy style. In 1991, when the Queen of England visited the United States for the first time, Bush Jr. told the Queen that he was the black sheep in the family, and asked the Queen who the black sheep in the family was. Such a conversation was considered too informal.Therefore, when the Queen of England visited the United States again in June 2007, one of the most important tasks of the White House was to provide etiquette training for the president.So, what do etiquette taboos look like in real life in the United States?
In early May 2008, the RAND Corporation, a think tank of the U.S. government, published an assessment report on the quality of Chinese people. I think their speeches should represent the American views on us in a very specific way.I must inoculate all readers in advance. They speak very badly. You can disagree, but let's not scold them. Let's think about why they say that. The evaluation report said that due to "growing up in a poor environment and lacking proper education, most Chinese people do not understand elegant manners and basic courtesy".I believe that my story about not holding the door just now is a manifestation of not knowing how to behave gracefully and basic politeness, and they think I don't understand. The assessment report goes on to say that "the majority of Chinese people dress clumsily and vulgarly, but do not feel shy".Readers will find it very strange, don't we all dress beautifully, men look handsome and women look beautiful.In fact, if we don't understand the etiquette of Americans, we don't know what they call us at all.Next, I want to tell a story that makes me deeply understand.Many of my students work on Wall Street, they are all Americans, they often come to see me and tell me some of the things they encountered.Once, they said to me: "Professor Lang, do you know that we interviewed some Chinese people who wanted to work in our company yesterday. People roared with laughter." Readers may not find this funny, because what's wrong with wearing a suit, tie, black shoes and a pair of white socks?We will think this is normal, but Americans will think it is very funny.Why? Because, in public, wearing a suit and white socks is the most vulgar, that is, the most awkward and vulgar way of dressing according to the RAND evaluation report.It's not that your suit is not expensive, you may have bought it from Versace, it may be a famous brand, but it doesn't matter, the problem is that your wearing white socks makes Americans feel so ridiculous that they even booed me in front of me Laugh out loud.Americans usually don't do this, they usually smile very reservedly, because this nation is very hypocritical.Aren't our belts from Dunhill, our clothes from Cerruti 1881?Why Americans Laugh - Because You're Wearing the Wrong Socks.You might say, is it just for such a small thing?Yes, you look small, Americans look big, because they think you are uneducated, this is what they think.Even if you don't hold the door, it is a lack of education.What socks are you going to wear?You must wear black socks, it's as simple as that.Can I wear floral socks?Can't.The last time I met one of my students, he was in Beijing (of course, my students are basically entrepreneurs, and they are all much more accomplished than me), and he was wearing a neat suit and a pair of short riding boots.If this dress is shown to Americans, I'm sure they will laugh wildly in their hearts again, because short leather shoes are required to wear a suit. In fact, readers, don’t think that Americans are very knowledgeable and have seen the world, that’s not the case.I spent several years in the Midwest of the United States, including Michigan, which is not a remote place. I also stayed in Ohio, went to Louisiana, and went to Tennessee for business trips.People there have a very limited understanding of the whole world. I’m not joking. There are even a few older people who think that Chinese people still wear braids, and Africans are still natives, wearing grass skirts on their lower bodies over there. Singing, woo woo woo... Don't talk about Americans, maybe many of us Chinese think that Africans are still like that. I still remember seeing a TV interview done somewhere in Ohio. At that time, a plane just landed there temporarily due to some malfunctions (Ohio is already a normalized state), so the TV company went to report it. Incident, but also interviewed the local people.These ordinary people were very excited and happy when they saw the people from the TV station, and they huddled together to watch.The reporter asked them: "Suppose your plane breaks down, would you dare to fly next time?" As a result, these American people said: "We have never been on an airplane, and this is the first time we have seen an airplane." It was the first time for them to see a real plane because the normal flight path of the plane did not pass there.This is America, they don't understand the outside world at all, and most Americans don't.These Americans, especially those in the middle of the country, are really isolated (people on the east coast and west coast are still more exposed to civilized society), and in their minds they imagine that you should look like this, if your dress Unlike them, they feel very strange. The first reaction is that you dress clumsily and vulgarly, that you don't have elegant manners, and you don't have basic manners. In fact, these are some very small things. In 1932, Liu Changchun stood on the runway of the Los Angeles Olympic Games.The Chinese people's first appearance in the Olympic Games not only embodies the Olympic spirit of fair competition, but also changes the eyes of those Westerners who think that Chinese people still wear braids.In fact, as early as the end of the Qing Dynasty, the cultural contact between the East and the West had already penetrated to the level of etiquette.After the Gengzi Years, as many wives of foreign ministers entered China's high society and became the guests of the Empress Dowager Cixi, there was a direct collision between the style and fashion of Western women and the strict court etiquette of the Qing Dynasty.However, when the wife of the Chinese ambassador abroad told Cixi distressedly that the footbinding of women in the Qing Dynasty had become a joke all over the world, the Empress Dowager Cixi showed a higher level of insight, saying: "I heard that foreigners also have a habit that is nothing to blame. , They girded themselves with iron bars until they could not breathe.” Etiquette is a part of the traditional culture of various countries and has the characteristics of manipulation, so what kind of misjudgment will be caused by ignoring this difference?
The RAND Corporation study also said, "They are taught as teenagers how to lie and take from others rather than give and share what they have." We hear that , the first feeling in my heart was: "This is complete nonsense, who said we lied? I didn't lie." But did we really not lie?When the Education Bureau came to the school to investigate whether we had an after-school tutoring class, how did the teacher educate us——“…If the Education Bureau sends someone to investigate, all the students will say that we don’t have tutoring classes…”—— Isn't this a public lie?What about the Education Bureau officials?When you went to check whether the school has tutoring, did you ever think that your children are still taking tutoring at school! You will definitely say: "How did the RAND Corporation know this?" Of course it knows, and the RAND Corporation is a think tank of the US government, so it will naturally conduct various investigations.As soon as the RAND Corporation reported this kind of trivial matter, and the American media played it up again, it formed the impression that the Chinese people are liars in the hearts of Americans.This kind of thing is unimaginable in American schools, because they pay great attention to an attitude on the surface, which is called "integrity" in English-this word does not mean "honesty", but a higher level than "honesty". It's called "integrity."What today's capitalist society really needs is integrity, which includes honesty. You must be a person who respects yourself, respects others, respects the system, and respects society. You must not deceive others in anything you do.Readers may ask me, don't Americans deceive people?Of course they will deceive, and there are also lying presidents in the United States. For example, former President Nixon was sentenced for deception (the Watergate case, the Republican President Nixon ordered people to sneak into the Democratic Party headquarters to secretly record important information about the Democratic Party. After this incident was discovered by reporters , Nixon not only refused to admit it, but destroyed a large amount of evidence, so he was prosecuted and sentenced), and finally got a pardon.But when he moved, his neighbors knew that he was a former president, so they publicly said that they did not want to be neighbors with him.From another point of view, we can also say that Americans are a hypocritical nation. A large part of the reason why they attach so much importance to "integrity" is the pressure of public opinion and the law.What if Americans move to China?I believe their changes will be very big. For example, Americans will buy pirated CDs and fake brand names in China, and many people do this.But this hypocritical nation always pretends to be sanctimonious and accuses us. What is the most important feature of America?That is the discipline of this country.I was not used to it when I first went to the US, because the US is a bit of a nasty country, it has daylight saving time twice a year.What does that mean?That is to adopt daylight saving time. In summer when the dawn is relatively early, the time is artificially advanced by 1 hour, and then adjusted back in winter.But this move will not be widely announced, but a small news will be published in the newspaper the day before the time is to be adjusted.I was a professor in the United States at the time, and I was very nervous, because I was not very disciplined, and I was very worried. If I didn’t see it, what would I do if I was late for class the next day?So I read the newspaper every day, for fear that I would miss the class time.You must not think that Americans are undisciplined, their highly disciplined nationality is terrible.Because on the second day after the time adjustment, I found that all Americans were on time. This is the characteristic of Americans, a highly disciplined nation.And if I don't pay attention to the newspaper every day, I will probably be 1 hour late or 1 hour early.Because I am Chinese, my discipline is relatively poor. Not only that, the time zone division of the United States has a 3-hour time difference from the east coast to the west coast, and Americans will adjust the time by themselves, which is not easy.In China, if there is an hour's time difference between Beijing and Xinjiang, there will be chaos.If we also come to a country like the United States, which implements daylight saving time twice a year, the result will definitely be unimaginable.In this case, China will be chaotic, but the United States will not.This is the horror of the high degree of discipline in the United States. Because the United States is a highly disciplined country, basically as long as the government issues an order, the whole country will move in one direction, saying that the time will be adjusted nationwide, which is terrible.So they find it very strange to see Chinese people, they don't understand Chinese people at all.When the RAND Corporation report was published, the Wenchuan Earthquake had not yet occurred, and their report said: "...the Chinese only care about their families and relatives, and the sufferings of people who have nothing to do with them It's just turning a blind eye..." Why do they see us like that?Because they think that the Chinese are basically a mess, and usually everyone does their own thing, such as "everyone sweeps the snow in front of his own door, and don't care about the frost on others' roofs."But the U.S. is a highly disciplined country, so it's strange for them to see this happening.For example, in China, when someone has a car accident and is lying in the middle of the road, there are very few people who really help.Let me ask readers again, if a taxi driver encounters a dying person in a car accident on the road, would he dare to take him to the hospital?He didn't dare, because if the wounded died in the hospital, he would be responsible?I'm afraid the well-meaning driver is responsible.Even if the driver sent the injured to the hospital, he would bite the driver back, saying that it was the driver who hit him.And when Americans see taxi drivers turning a blind eye to a dying man, they agree with the RAND assessment. However, when the Wenchuan Earthquake happened, Americans were stunned. We actually cared about others. Americans were incomprehensible because of the comment from the RAND Corporation—"Chinese people only care about their families and relatives. I turn a blind eye to the suffering of people who have nothing to do with me" - completely wrong.You can even see all kinds of touching scenes on TV. For example, a nurse has been saving lives. The reporter asked her: "Where are your children?" She immediately cried and said: "My child is still in school, and I I don’t know how my child is doing now.” But she didn’t leave her post, saying that I was going to save my child, and I didn’t care about the other wounded, and the others just die, I don’t care.She still sticks to her post to save others, even though she still has her child in her heart. There is also a police comrade who has just become a mother. He rescued several children and breastfed them with his own milk.What is this lesbian doing to save other people's children?This does not fit with what the RAND Corporation has said about the Chinese.Americans don't understand this kind of personality, because Americans don't understand Chinese people.What kind of nation is the Chinese nation?I also want to make it clear to the Americans here, that is, when the Chinese nation encounters hardships, the unity of the Chinese people is very surprising. Americans have always believed that only they have this high degree of discipline. of.They absolutely did not expect that a nation that usually looks like a mess would have such a high degree of discipline.After the Wenchuan Earthquake, the Chinese were very united. Not only did they help others together, which completely broke the views of the Americans, but the Chinese did not allow others to criticize their own government, which the Americans said was incomprehensible.Because they think it is right to criticize the government, especially this kind of selfish people who only care about their own relatives will definitely criticize the government.But they are all wrong. When encountering big problems, the Chinese people scold the foreign media—you, the anchor of CNN, talk nonsense, and the people of the whole country boycott you.Even the issue of Carrefour and the Dalai Lama frightened the French, not to mention a little, the French were frightened to death.So when the issue of Sharon Stone came out, the French government first stated that it had nothing to do with itself. Moreover, our Chinese group not only helps each other, but also integrates the government and the people. Any remarks that are unfavorable to the government or the country, the common people will fight back in the most angry and violent way.I can tell you that this kind of integration is the main reason why the leaders of other countries are very willing to come to China to participate in the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games.If there is no Wenchuan earthquake, they will not understand China.But the Chinese used to be loose and unreasonable, but once they came to a crisis, they suddenly became united and disciplined, and loved their own nation and compatriots just like the Americans. I think this kind of great love is even stronger than that of the Americans. more than one floor.Our nation is too complex. Because we are a nation with such personality, China is one of the few ancient countries in the world that can survive to this day.This nation will not disperse in a rush because of external crises. Whenever it encounters any external disasters, it will collectively integrate and cohere together in a highly disciplined manner.Just like ten chopsticks gathered together, you can't break them, but one chopstick is easy to break. This kind of inconsistency of the Chinese makes it difficult for foreigners to understand.If Americans think we are selfish, deceitful, and callous, and then we wear white socks, then they must judge us negatively.I am not surprised that the RAND Corporation made this kind of research report, because they do not understand the Chinese. On August 8, 2008, the opening ceremony of the Beijing Olympic Games attracted many heads of state from all over the world.US President Bush is one of them.Before the Olympic Games, the United States specially held a three-day commemorative event of "Ping Ping Diplomacy" between the United States and China. 36 years ago, US President Nixon set foot on the land of mainland China on the road paved by sports diplomacy, completing an epoch-making moment in Sino-US relations.This moment was vividly expressed through the handshake ceremony between Premier Zhou Enlai and President Nixon.Premier Zhou Enlai is recognized as the most outstanding diplomat in the world. His humility, calmness, firm principles and diplomatic style full of wisdom and flexibility fully demonstrated the charm of oriental etiquette.In fact, etiquette and communication are a mutual judgment of the two sides, and this judgment is equally important to China and the United States.
But do they want us to be strong?hope.So this is a kind of ambivalence of foreigners. The assessment report of the RAND Corporation said something like this: "If China in the 20th century was a rich and unified country, we would have a completely different World War I, We wouldn't have WW2 but WW2 in Europe. China would be able to stop Japanese aggression or defeat Japan. US would spend a lot less on these conflicts in a fundamental sense because Pearl Harbor wouldn't happen. We and the whole world, not to mention the 1 billion Chinese, have paid a heavy price for China's weakness for more than a century. The world needs a healthy China." The magnitude of China's contribution to the world is unimaginable.First, such a large market in China saved the Japanese economy, which was gradually declining in 1990. Without China, the Japanese economy would not be able to recover.So for the second richest country in the world, what kind of impact will its collapse have on the world?Think about it, everyone, who depends on saving it, it depends on China... The assessment report also said that China has helped GM and Ford a lot, and the sales volume of Coca-Cola, which Americans are proud of, has reached 1 billion bottles in China.They even used the story of Lenovo's acquisition of IBM's global PC business.The evaluation report said, look, the Chinese bought IBM, how many workers have been hired for this sunset industry in the United States?In addition, the Chinese produced so many cheap goods that the entire price level in the United States fell by 10%, so the strength of China is too important to the United States.This is the American ambivalence towards China.I think the biggest problem and ambivalence in this report is that Americans don't understand the Chinese. In fact, on the other hand, we do not understand Americans.The biggest problem with Americans is that I have never seen such a hypocritical nation.For any American who comes to China, as long as you ask him what is his impression of China, he will definitely say that Chinese women are the most beautiful...Chinese people are the kindest nation...China's economic development is the most successful, etc. Wait.Why do they say that?Because they are a very hypocritical nation, and the degree of hypocrisy is far higher than that of the Chinese. For example, Americans like to eat sweet and sour Chinese food in the United States, but they don’t like Chinese food when they come to China. Why?Because we are too authentic, Sichuan cuisine is too spicy, salty and numb, which Americans don't like.Their favorite Sichuan dish is stir-fried shredded pork with pineapple, some sugar, and some chili.How do you eat it? We certainly don't like it, but Americans do.So if you invite Americans to dinner in China, I can tell you that basically they can't get enough to eat.So they must go to McDonald's, KFC, and eat fried chicken.But I also want to tell readers that as long as you invite Americans to dinner, even if they don’t like to eat, they will definitely say after seeing the dishes: “Why are there such beautiful dishes, I’m starving to death. "You must not believe these words, in fact, he doesn't like it at all.Last time I took my eldest son to meet an American. In fact, my son was very ugly, but the American immediately praised my son and said, "I have never seen such a beautiful boy." I Said: "Come on, you, don't come here, I don't know you yet, it's just nonsense, my son is actually very ugly." Look, do we understand Americans?Still don't understand.Therefore, Americans' evaluation of us Chinese, such as the white socks, is based on their own judgment.Because except for Americans on both sides of the coast, most Americans are relatively ignorant.They think that we Chinese wear white socks, do not hold doors, lie, are selfish, cruel, only love our own family, and don't love others. In short, it is a negative impression.But after the Americans really got to know us, they found that this is not the case. They found that the Chinese are so disciplined and united in times of crisis, they can even put their own children aside and save other people's children first, which is better than Americans much better.This strange ethnicity has touched all European and American people, which is why there were no more negative attacks on Chinese people in European and American newspapers and magazines two or three months before the Olympics. But there are still some ridiculous negative attacks, I saw it once, it was that the bar owned by the Chinese banned black people from entering.As soon as I saw it, I knew it must be nonsense, news made up by Americans.Only Americans can do this kind of thing that prohibits black people from entering bars, and no other country can do it.Would the French do such a thing?No, the racism of the French is very mild, and the most serious racism is the Americans, followed by the Germans.In the past few decades in the United States, there has been one public toilet for blacks and one for whites, with a clear distinction.Sometimes "White Only" is written on the signboard of the laundromat. When we Chinese see it, we think it means that only white clothes can be washed, but it is not true. It means that only white people can come in to wash clothes.So when I saw the news reports that the bars opened by the Chinese didn't let black people in, I knew it was the Americans who were talking nonsense, because the Chinese don't care about race at all, we seem to care more about money.If the news is that the Chinese let everyone in for money, then I think it is still possible.But if the Chinese don't let black people in, that's absolutely impossible.As long as you bring money, we are very welcome.Fabricating such news is a manifestation of the so-called chauvinism in the United States, using its ideas to vilify us Chinese, and this is precisely because Americans do not understand us. Among the countries I have seen so far, the United States and Germany are the most racist, and they look down on people of color the most.When Bush Sr. was president, he said that the goal of the U.S. government’s efforts was to make everyone “colorblind.”Nonsense, I don't believe it at all, it can't be done because Americans still look down on people of color to this day.Although they have promulgated many laws and regulations, stipulating that everyone is not allowed to look down on others, the discrimination in their hearts cannot be hidden, but they are very polite to you on the surface.Why?Because this is a hypocritical nation.If we Chinese don't like a certain person, we will clearly express our dislike and will not communicate with him.The Americans don't know it, and they still laugh at him, but they actually hate him very much in their hearts.For such a hypocritical nation, I don't know how to maintain China's reputation as a state of etiquette. I have a junior who is a professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He has done a very good job in dealing with people, at least in my opinion, he is much better than me.Because Americans have a criterion for judging others, that is, whether this person is a "Nice Guy". "Guy" means "guy", and Nice means "good", which together means "good guy" and "good guy".And my junior is a good man, so Americans like him very much.Chinese people don’t look at things that way, we don’t use “good guy and bad guy” as an evaluation standard, we just say “he’s a capable person” or “he’s a nasty person”, because the concept of “good person” is in Chinese culture The inside is less important.But let me tell readers, you have to be a nice guy if you want to do well in the United States—you must be a nice guy. What is a good person, I will use my junior as an example to explain.He once gave a speech at the Chinese University of Hong Kong. I observed him very carefully and discovered such a detail.A group of us went out to eat and walked through a small door. People like me who don’t have much understanding, are stupid, just stepped out of the door and walked through. Americans don’t like Chinese people like this.But my junior didn’t do this, he took a step back very instinctively, and let everyone else go out before he went out, so he was a "nice guy", and like me, the first one out , just not "Nice Guy".In fact, as long as people who have been in the United States see me saying these two words, everyone will laugh out loud, because this is the standard by which Americans judge others. Can you believe it? Then after my analysis, everyone will gradually understand, what is the state of etiquette?It doesn't mean that we should be humble to Americans when we see them, walk ahead of them, or be particularly polite to them. Americans don't take this kind of thing.We have to maintain our current attitude towards Americans, and we can do whatever we want. It doesn’t matter what negative comments they have about us, because that is their judgment on us in a closed and ignorant environment. "I wear a suit, so why can't I wear white socks? What am I doing to you again? Is it okay if I have Chinese characteristics?" Americans think it's wrong to wear it like this, and think we are clumsy and vulgar, but I don't think so. This is nothing more than a trifle.Therefore, some opportunities like the Olympic Games are needed to allow everyone to understand and impact each other, and then resolve this misunderstanding invisibly. In addition, for example, the issue of education, Americans think we like to lie, this is true, we really have to admit mistakes.And that we lied again in full view of the opening ceremony of the Olympics - having a little girl lip-synch on stage, I think that's all problematic.But if we say that we only care about our family and relatives, don't Americans care about their own family and relatives? "If there was a big earthquake in the United States, and you happened to be a nurse, would you go to the school to save your daughter first, or stick to your post to help other wounded people?" As long as we ask this question, Americans will definitely be speechless. What is a big country?A big country itself should contain self-confidence-I will not bow down to you Americans today just because I want to host the Olympics. I don't have to. I can still wear white socks and do what I should do. "Americans ask you to learn more about Chinese people", this is my attitude.I also hope that through this book, readers across the country can understand who we are and who the other party is.I can proudly tell you that I think the Chinese people have come to today, on the entire world stage, the whole world will be critical of us because they care about us.However, as far as the Chinese themselves are concerned, we must maintain the ego of a big country, because this is our culture, and our culture will not change because foreigners don't like it.According to our Chinese culture, we can be very polite and polite to foreigners. That is what we Chinese should do. As for how foreigners understand it, that is their business.Then next time when they see that we Chinese do not hold the door, they will not misunderstand us as vulgar, because they already know that the Chinese do not have the habit of holding the door. Now that I’ve said this, everyone understands that etiquette itself is a reflection of culture, and Chinese culture and American culture don’t matter which one is good and which is bad, they are just different.So I hope to explain to you through the background of the Olympics, we have to accept each other's differences, but the other party also has to accept our differences. In 1703, Britain sent a large mission led by Lord Macartney to China in the name of celebrating Qianlong's birthday.As a result, the first collision between the most powerful country in the West and the largest country in the East at that time did not understand each other because of a series of etiquette issues such as kneeling, and eventually turned into a dialogue between the deaf, and the two sides lost an equal mutual understanding precious opportunity.More than 200 years later, the London Olympics will be held after the Beijing Olympics.Britain is particularly concerned about the Beijing Olympics.Interestingly, relevant parties in the UK believe that London in the eyes of Chinese people still looks like people wearing bowler hats, beards, holding umbrellas and walking sticks, so they launched a series of glamor public relations during the Beijing Olympics.纵观全球，人类已创造出无数奇风异俗，让人眼花缭乱。奥运会更是各民族多元文化的汇集，相互包容、相互理解才是礼仪背后的真谛。