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Rich vs Poor: How Parents Wealth Helps Or Hurts Children

by on Tuesday, September 15, 2009 46 comments

From QQ:

Poor Second Generation And Rich Second Generation [or Poor Kids And Rich Kids]

china-poor-kids-rich-kids-comic-strip

Comments from QQ:

相凝. .:

Deeply resonates with me.

青柠化妆品:

This society is very fair. The rich first generation [parents] did not come out of the mountains and become people with money. Every rich person thinks of their next generation, this is normal. I too am a poor person, but I am willing to go create opportunities, because to become a rich person requires thinking of a plan… Don’t have this attitude towards society. As long as the first generation’s money came cleanly, it should be fine.

断魂:

True satire…100% accurate representation of China’s situation.

默诺:

I extremely like your comic strip…hehehe…creative…

黄河狼:

Truly there are some bored people hyping up the poor second generation. The so called “poor second generation” are only those who must bear their own family’s historical responsibility, so why whine everyday about some “poor second generation” and “rich second generation”? If you do not even have the courage to carry this little bit of responsibility, I think there will soon be a “poor third generation” appearing.

简简单单:

What do other people’s parents working hard to earn money to give their descendants a good life have anything to do with you guys? When you guys have money/become rich, will you be willing to give all your money to others to spend?

想你游泳的鱼:

Pig head [idiot], what everyone is cursing is that the opportunity to become rich is not fair, not just hating rich people themselves!!!

卖赤兔骑吕布:

Those who cannot be descendants of aristocrats should strive to be the ancestors of aristocrats. If unlucky, then there really is nothing to complain about. Rich people have complex/complicated worries while poor people also have simple pleasures/happiness.

Ai /xin L:

No what what kind of outcome, everything must depend on your own efforts.
If you feel the world is too unfair, then pick up a gun.

水晶~~~妖:

When will Chinese people’s grudge against rich people change?

笑口常开:

The most primitive law of reality. Actually, life cannot be understood by poor or rich. Seeking the value of life cannot always be spoken in poor-rich terms.  If you use other people’s wealth to explain your own poverty, and have a grudge against rich people, then you are not only materially poor, your mentality and your thinking is even more poor. Yes, this society does have too much corruption, unfairness, but what is considered fair? Letting you be the rich second generation and others be the poor second generation would be fair? Stop blaming and criticizing. That kind of talk is that kind of immature and bland, and time wasted on complaining would be better spent diligently changing yourself. Ask yourself “Have I been diligent? Have I been aggressive/ambitious?”

木子///美:

Don’t think about other people…he may not have worked hard but his parents worked hard, and you too can let your children live even better.

What do you think about the above drawing? Do you think this is true in China? In other countries? Is it unfair? Can it be fair?

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46 Comments

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  1. Mf8cker
    Tuesday, September 15, 2009 at 5:52 pm

    first? and who cares!

    Reply
  2. Rick in China
    Tuesday, September 15, 2009 at 5:57 pm

    Some relatively enlightened responses. Glad to read their comments.

    Reply
  3. Ranger_lost_in_Mordor
    Tuesday, September 15, 2009 at 6:39 pm

    While typical American dream goes with the pattern of education,job,house and family, the Chinese dream (if only there is one) for most of them winds up into education without creativity and equality, cheap labour job, overpriced apartment on installation,one-child family with more than 20 years looking-after over the kid,just in case he might be poisoned by tainted food or squashed by mercedes in the street.

    Reply
    • Jay K
      Tuesday, September 15, 2009 at 6:49 pm

      although stereotypical, the majority of what ive noticed in this society seems to be in favor of what ranger just stated.

      Reply
    • C&N
      Wednesday, September 16, 2009 at 7:32 am

      i fail to see your point. what’s the difference between that and the american dream? one’s in a city apartment, the other is in suburbia. both end up in mediocrity and for most part, it’s the stability that the bulk of society’s pyramid craves.

      family, in most cases, still forms an enviable and comforting part of most chinese people’s existence – the elderly don’t usually end up rotting in a nursing home while the kids bitch about inheritance.

      Reply
    • whichone
      Wednesday, September 16, 2009 at 11:24 am

      The only thing typical here is the your offensive and ignorant presumption of Chinese people. Education, job, house, family these are fairly common aspired values by people everywhere and there is nothing exclusively American about it. People don’t take cheap jobs and live in crammed apartments because they choose to, it’s the reality of living in a developing nation that is still struggling with many structural problems.

      Reply
  4. Alan
    Tuesday, September 15, 2009 at 7:21 pm

    It’s interesting how when the Chinese who can afford it go abroad, they see how much more some people in some countries have a decent quality of life. Add in the crowding, lack of privacy, along with the tainted food, crazy traffic…it’s no wonder so many dream of settling in a less crowded and more civic minded society.

    Reply
  5. mlgb
    Tuesday, September 15, 2009 at 7:57 pm

    We all know who the poor third generation will be. The descendants of the rich family. Mommy and Daddy earn the money, fat-ass lazy child pisses the money away.

    Reply
  6. Teacher in China
    Tuesday, September 15, 2009 at 9:05 pm

    Well I can tell you something based on my own experience here in China. I’ve had students from incredibly wealthy families come through here and accomplish absolutely nothing (some of them are still in Canada in a language program after 3 years, just wasting their parents’ money). I think it depends less on the money the family has and more on the work ethic and drive of the kid. In some people, wealth just breeds sloth and the complete inability to give a shit about anything. I shudder to think what’s going to happen to some parents’ hard-worked-for businesses when a few of the kids I’ve met in the last 4 years take them over.

    On the other hand, I’ve had some students with significantly less wealthy families who have shown tremendous drive and are well on their ways to accomplishing something. I have to admit though that I know nothing about the truly poor (or even low middle class) in China. It seems to me, however, that there is a chance for them to work their way into a good university and on to success. Does anyone have a more informed opinion on that?

    Reply
    • YueMeiqi
      Wednesday, September 16, 2009 at 2:05 am

      In China as in almost every country, children coming from richer families have so much more possibilities! This starts with money for extra-classes and ends with money to bribe your way into your university. I don’t doubt that many kids from poorer families are also very gifted and talented, but I doubt that you’ve met any kids from really poor ares yet – they are lucky if they attend elementary school till year six, but will never make it anywhere near a university.

      Reply
      • ST
        Wednesday, September 16, 2009 at 2:41 am

        This is very true. In the U.S. George Bush was able to attend Yale and Harvard, despite being a bad student of limited intelligence, simply because of his wealthy family. A poor person who is otherwise intelligent and hard working must hope for a scholarship to attend such a school and the number of scholarships is extremely limited. This is fundamentally flawed.

        Reply
        • Wan
          Friday, September 18, 2009 at 4:45 am

          Never thought I would defend G.W. Bush.

          But, he is highly intelligent. You don’t become President by being stupid. I would say he is intelligent but poor leader that makes poor decisions. Being well spoken does not make a person intelligent. Nor does being intelligent guarantee that you will be a good leader, draw good conclusions, and be successful.

          Reply
          • bs called
            Friday, September 18, 2009 at 7:10 am

            I have to disagree with you – George W Bush is an idiot. And the fact that he can become the President of the USA is a testament to the fact that you do not need to be intelligent to be President, and not the other way around. Also, being well spoken is a definite trait of an intelligent person, because what you say is an expression of what you think, and if you cannot say what you mean, then you must not be very intelligent, that is, unless you have a handicap. One last thing, “stupid is – is what stupid does”, that’s frigging Forrest Gump, and even he thinks G.W. Bush is stupid.

      • lee
        Wednesday, September 16, 2009 at 9:56 pm

        I agree with you…the same situation is also happening in Malaysia…especially to the minorities…

        Reply
    • shenyang
      Wednesday, September 16, 2009 at 9:10 am

      That is generally true. However, I have had many students from very wealthy families both in China and in America (In America it was the business school son of a billionaire) that had an incredible work ethic. All of the successful ones were obviously not spoiled. Their clothes were very basic, and they had no accessories or expensive items at all. They had respect for their teachers, and worked hard to succeed.

      On the other hand, I’ve lost count of the spoiled little snots that I’ve wanted to beat down. My boss’s daughter is one of them. At 9 years old she’ll walk into an office full of professors with a straight back and high nose and chastise them for something. Funny thing is, they’ve always ignored her rants. She still doesn’t get it.

      Reply
  7. Marx
    Tuesday, September 15, 2009 at 11:04 pm

    Why is this surprising?

    Reply
  8. the great yellow master race
    Wednesday, September 16, 2009 at 5:20 am

    solution = start new cultural revolution.

    Reply
  9. Peye
    Wednesday, September 16, 2009 at 6:00 am

    New cultural revolution ? and then what??

    Reply
    • Cynicism
      Wednesday, September 16, 2009 at 7:49 am

      After a new cultural revolution, many people die and you solve the population problem. Then the government could afford free basic education for everyone and provide more scholarships and equal opportunities.

      Reply
      • the great yellow master race
        Wednesday, September 16, 2009 at 2:08 pm

        there is no population problem in Peoples Republic of China. cultural revolution mixed all “new social classes” again and let people taste what will became
        the only bad thing in cultural revolutíon was that they overdid it with killings and destruction.

        Reply
  10. Ranger_lost_in_Mordor
    Wednesday, September 16, 2009 at 9:09 am

    Wow, Good point. If it’s all about population, how abou t launching another world war to slash the number of people on this planet, starting with countries without nuclear weapon,they are easier to take down.

    Reply
  11. GIF
    Wednesday, September 16, 2009 at 9:13 am

    I am surprised by the positive comments from the Chinese netizens. Usually I would expect endless whining. “It’s all everyone else’s fault”; “I am only unsuccessful because of the society is unfair”; “I wish all rich people would die”; “I am unemployed because I am oppressed by the government”; “Why isn’t there welfare?”, etc. Maybe it’s because this is QQ, not Netease or Tianya. There are some really lazy losers online there.

    Reply
    • J
      Wednesday, September 16, 2009 at 9:53 am

      This is because Chinese people in general are more in touch with reality and don’t blame others for their own problems, unlike fuckin’ Americans who always point at others first.

      Our society rewards whining and bitching and there is a direct corellation with the amount of whining and the downfall of the US since the end of the 2nd World War.

      Reply
      • GIF
        Thursday, September 17, 2009 at 12:54 am

        Actually no.

        Please hang around Netease or Tianya. The level of whining and bitching on there is sickening. There is a constant hate for rich people and assumption that all rich people got their money from illegitimate means. Everytime there is any news that involve a rich/privileged party and a poor party, the commentors there will immediately side with the poor.

        Also, I am not saying all Chinese are like that. Just the people with enough time to spend on forums all day. There are plenty of unemployed able-bodied losers in China who just waste all their time on the internet. (These are also the people that shout the loudest for democracy.)

        Reply
  12. J
    Wednesday, September 16, 2009 at 9:37 am

    I think there a Chinese saying that “Wealth and power doesn’t last for more than 3 generations.”

    I find this to be very true so far here. I’ve seen incredibly wealthy parents with shit for brains kids. Now, most of these kids that grow up spoiled won’t know what the hell they’re doing and eventually they’ll lose all their cash or their kids will lose all their cash.

    I’m convinced that kids who know hardship and that grow up with it are the ones that become successful in this world. Parents that spoil the fuck out of a child are only dooming their own bloodline.

    Reply
  13. Celkian
    Wednesday, September 16, 2009 at 10:13 am

    Good thing China’s leadership has absolute power so it can crush this capitalist menace!

    Reply
  14. Alan
    Wednesday, September 16, 2009 at 10:17 am

    Yes after all working for yourself and paying taxes is a truly terrible thing, isn’t it, Celkian?

    Reply
  15. Wang Er
    Wednesday, September 16, 2009 at 1:48 pm

    Some the comics by the blog owner are pretty awesome, especially those on (domestic and international) politics. I really appreciate if Fauna could translate a few of them. BTW please notice the blog owner that you repost his/her works.

    Reply
  16. capt. nullz whatever
    Wednesday, September 16, 2009 at 2:27 pm

    Agreed. I wouldn’t expect anything shitty and less from chinahosmack. HAHA! She was the bomb.

    hehehe.

    Reply
  17. Truth Hurtz
    Wednesday, September 16, 2009 at 4:24 pm

    Could this be the reason there is so little innovation? Since its the ‘shit for brains’ ‘taizi/prince’ that take the higher position and those with actual talent and deligence lose out on positions which can potentially allow them room to innovate by applying their actual hard work, skills and knowledge. Lets be honest here, why would the children of the well connected family be driven if he / she already has a pedestal reserved courtesy of the family background.

    Reply
  18. Zeng Guofan
    Wednesday, September 16, 2009 at 5:15 pm

    吾细思：凡天下官宦之家，多只一代享用便尽，其子孙始而骄佚，继而流荡，终而沟壑，能庆延一二代者鲜矣。商贾之家，勤俭者能延三四代；耕读之家，谨朴者能延五六代；孝友之家，则可绵延十代八代。

    曾国藩

    Reply
  19. Icedew
    Wednesday, September 16, 2009 at 8:46 pm

    Why most poor kids work so hard on their studies but in the end still end up poor? Because becoming an anti-social workaholic gets you nowhere. Unless you have super talents people rather pick a person they can talk to and understand.

    Yes being social, proactive and have great networking skills is what gets people ahead. Ever heard of people getting far in life without even graduating college? Gee I wonder what great skills they have? Apparently there is no course in academics about changing social status or effectively network your way into the business world.

    And since its such a culture to lock their kids in their rooms until grades show up, which is never, Expats have a great opportunities in China FOREVEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEER!

    Reply
  20. lee
    Wednesday, September 16, 2009 at 9:51 pm

    wealth gap…exist in most country including in my country Malaysia.The rich are getting richer and the poor are getting poorer…The GOVERNMENT should act and act fast…

    Reply
  21. Singapore Short Stories
    Thursday, September 17, 2009 at 10:56 am

    Some kids are born into the world with a golden spoon which is the envy of many.

    Reply
  22. lasttoblame
    Thursday, September 17, 2009 at 5:12 pm

    “Pig head [idiot], what everyone is cursing is that the opportunity to become rich is not fair, not just hating rich people themselves!!!”

    Best comment, quoted for truth. I can still believe in you, China baby.

    Reply
  23. specter
    Friday, September 18, 2009 at 10:23 pm

    Pretty obvious cartoon, I mean that’s the way things are everywhere. We all know how the world works.

    Reply
  24. Fire in the Hole
    Saturday, September 19, 2009 at 6:38 am

    It doesn’t matter how much the current rich generation dress themselves up. It doesn’t change the fact they are all still farmers and factory workers.

    Reply
  25. German
    Saturday, September 19, 2009 at 1:07 pm

    I think parents should be ambitious and do their best for the sake of their children. If parents are lazy and don’t want to work then how are the children going to get ahead?

    Reply
  26. FYIADragoon
    Monday, September 21, 2009 at 6:21 pm

    Its fine for the parents to be rich and raise a respectable child who can earn his own life, but its just ridiculous and pathetic the way rich Chines parents go about this. That’s what this comic reflects. You’ve got a lean poor guy trying to gun it with all he has, and then you’ve got the fatass who doesn’t even care, because mommy and daddy are moving all the gears for him. That’s inexcusable and all the Chinese posters who are defending the rich seem to be missing this aspect.

    Reply
  27. JD
    Thursday, October 22, 2009 at 2:12 pm

    why is there a divide between rich and poor???
    China is a communist country everyone one equal and share the wealth!!! If do not want to share wealth stop pretending you are communists you no different to the western countries. China on pay lip service to communist values like lot a things in China…double standards…

    Reply
  28. Cleo
    Wednesday, December 28, 2011 at 10:14 pm

    If this continues, children of the middle class will be so concerned with class envy that they will tend to marry foreigners who seem cheerful and unenvious simply for the privacy and basic respect. It’s quite unseemly and frankly JAPANESE anti-Chinese to mind that some Chinese have managed to not suffer so much anymore. Chinese people are really suffering from working too hard for too little money. They work harder than other poor people in other countries to be just as poor. Think about how many steps the noodle soup street vendor goes through in the middle of the night to have a sellable product during the day? It’s not the same thing as an equally poor person in another country, is it?

    Reply
  29. Pathoth
    Saturday, January 14, 2012 at 1:14 pm

    Only the poor man with a blade will win this race. One capable of cutting his bonds and the competition’s tires.

    Reply
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