u/Economy-Seaweed-7290

The most accepted perspective on the century of humiliation was that China was the victim of imperialism during the 1900s.

However do people ever think there is a bit of victim mentality behind this? Empress Cixi was corrupt as hell, the Qing was far from competent. I feel like the victimhood is a bit performative and often used to justify modern day nationalist grievances and solidify CCP legitimacy.

It wasn’t like China was helpless and had no means to defend itself. It had one of the largest GDPs before century of humiliation.

TLDR If the Qing was so corrupt and incompetent that it couldn’t defend China, then China’s humiliation was at least partially self-inflicted.

Did the CCP learn its lesson from June 4th? The CCP defended its response/deadly force on that day deeming it non-excessive, but at the same time did not repeat the same kind of response for Hong Kong protests.

Why is it China did not resort to the same amount of violence/force in HK protests compared to June 4th? If the response on June 4th was so perfect, why not repeat it? Why was it the police response to HK protests was heavily controlled with attention to PR and international image?

The laid back response to Hong Kong protests compared to Tianmmen Square always seemed like an admission of failure/ overuse of violence during June 4th.

I have observed how China has excelled very well in individual person sports like ping pong, weightlifting, and diving. I think China is even excelling in the UFC/boxing world with names like Zhilei Zhang and Tang Kai.

However the same cannot be said for China in team based sports like soccer and basketball, which is unfortunately the more popular sports.

Why is it China lags behind in team based sports? Does it have something to do with upbringings and societal norms? Maybe corruption?

Is it true Cantonese culture/people are considered a lot more traditionally Chinese compared to people in other regions?

I did some digging and I read that Hong Kong while under British rule served as place where traditional Chinese/Cantonese culture was somewhat preserved and protected from the eradication of traditional elements during the Cultural revolution. As a result many Cantonese people were able to learn and continue the traditions of the past when Hong Kong was returned.

Not so sure how true it is, but I definitely feel like Cantonese Americans are much more family oriented and traditionally Chinese compared to other Chinese Americans.

Is it hard for US military veterans to visit China? I know in Russia it’s kind of hard but possible. Is it the same case within China?

How is the Xinhai revolution of 1911 taught in China? At the end of the day, 220,000 Chinese died both sides added up so it’s quite significant.

It’s definitely one of the better parts of KMT history so im wondering if there are any reductions to the importance of this revolution in the way it is taught.

How common is the phenomenon “rooting for the underdog” in Chinese culture such as sports and in TV shows?

In the US it’s a deeply rooted thing as the founding of the nation depended on ragtag soldiers uprooting a monarchy. Modern China was found on a similar note as well so I’m wondering if there’s a similar effect.

How often do sanctioned people get a free pass like this lol? 😂 Spell the name differently to get off the sanction list?

I know cram schools and prep schools are a big thing in China, but what about trade schools or simply schools where you can be integrated into the blue collar work force. In the US, there has been a crazy increase in students going for these schools right out of high school due to loss of confidence in a college degrees and AI replacing white collar jobs. Are more and more students perceiving a trade school as a better use of time and energy than studying for the gao kao and going to college?

Does sending your parents to a nursing home still have a bad reputation in China? In the US, it’s pretty normal, but I know it’s way more different in a Confucian society. I think times have changed and maybe the perception of this has changed as well? I just don’t think it’s viable for young people to take care of their parents when they are working so much nowadays.

How is capitalism viewed in China? Do people see not only the bad, but also the good in capitalism?

I know Deng Xiaoping is famous for saying "It doesn't matter whether a cat is black or white, as long as it catches mice" when he refers to economic systems.

Are funerals slowing down in demand? Seems like there is somewhat of a trend driven by decreasing religiosity and smaller personalized options as well as the rising costs.

How is the Ukraine war being covered in China? I feel like the world doesn’t really know who is winning. The war is often covered in a very neutral or minimal extent in US media. However I see thousands of extremely graphic videos mocking Russian soldiers being blown to pieces by FPV drones on pages like r/UkraineWarVideoReport and r/CombatFootage. Not to mention it seems like Russia is using outdated tactics like suicidal human wave charges that western media calls “meat-grinder tactics”. Do people think Russia is winning or is Ukraine winning?

How well known and prevalent is the No Fap Movement in China ? For research purposes only.

How popular is golf in China? I know building gold courses require using large plots of land, but do you think the sport is going to get more well known among the young folks?