taufic, really, I think you're worrying too much. I've been here 12 years, eat wherever I want, have only very rarely had any stomach problems that didn't go away in 36 hours, and there are no significant epidemic diseases to worry about. I wouldn't bother to recommend safe restaurants, but if I thought really hard I might come up with one that isn't, but I can't think of any such at the moment. I buy my food at a local shop near where I live and I buy fresh vegetables and meat in the local market. And the stomach problems that didn't go away in 36 hours went away in 48. There are very few problems with violence, although there are fights in bars once in awhile, but no more than anywhere else. The only criminal problem that I know of that has affected any significant number of people whom I know is bicycle theft. I have had no special vaccinations against anything since coming to China. I am well over 60 years old. An American friend of mine had a heart attack a few months ago; he then had triple bypass heart surgery in a local private hospital in July - the surgeon flew in from Beijing to do it, and it cost him about US$20,000. I ran into him about 5 days ago and he looked better than he has in years.
My guess is that you live in a more dangerous environment than I do, or for that matter, than most people do.
As for families with children, there are more of them all the time.
Relax.
@taufic: simply because the issues that you mention, while real, are not really all that bad. I wouldn't call medical care here at a 'low' level, though I wouldn't call it high, either, and is certainly more than sufficient for the great majority (of urban dwellers, anyway) most of the time; and anyway unless you need some kind of daily care for serious conditions, there are better medical facilities available in Hong Kong, Chiangmai and Bangkok, not so far away. As for 'not so cheap', well, it depends on your standard of comparison, but it doesn't seem expensive to me - where do you live and how expensive is it?. Complaints about pollution are largely in comparison to how it used to be, which was better than it is today - the situation is certainly much better than in many, many other Chinese cities, and that in quite a few non-Chinese ones.
Another reason for staying here is that the province is really beautiful and varied, and the people are a bit more laid back than in much of the rest of China.
Then, for some of us, there is a longtime fascination with many aspects of Chinese cultural, history, development, etc., which take on a somewhat particular character from many other parts of China because Yunnan is a border province with a unique history and a great variety of local cultures.
Finally, I've got a lot of friends here.
taufic, have you ever spent any time in China? if not, you may be looking at it from an outside perspective, and there are many outside perspectives about the country which are exaggerated in one direction or another. Some people bring those perspectives with them (and no, outside perspectives are not useless), and it takes them awhile to begin to see what they see rather than what they think they are seeing. This is particularly the case for those who haven't yet, or don't ever, learn to speak the language, which is a rather silly way to live anywhere.
And it should be obvious that there are other ways, practiced in other countries, to swamp public opinion - ways that do not permit what I've referred to as 'free speech' above - one might hmm think of China in this way. Oddly enough, in some such places people are smarter about reading between the lines in the press, and in what people say, than they are in places where a level playing field is imagined. But I still prefer the formal guarantees.
Like I said, propaganda exists in many forms, but it needs power behind it to be effective, and that power can be in terms of law, wealth, or (as is the usual case) a combination of the two. I can't at the moment think of any place where this is not the case.
@Geezer: When PC is used in nasty ways then I am against the nasty ways it is being used. But others use the same sorts of tactics, and the left in the US is not large, unless you are referring to US liberals, who aren't exactly a huge majority either.
Anyway, the problem with free speech in the US and many other places is not that speech is really restricted in any stringent terms, but that the mass of the media is controlled by huge corporate interests with fingers in many pies, dominated by advertising revenues, etc., and swamps public opinion with its points of view. Check out who owns major media outlets, and how articles are presented, buried, ignored or slanted by them. Many seem to think that papers such as the New York Times are somehow 'left', when in fact they generally merely present the views and promote the attitudes of sections of the owning class.
So when I speak of freedom of speech (and of the press), I don't by any means mean that it's all somehow open on a level playing field - I simply mean that there are plenty of formal, legal guarantees that say you can pretty much say what you want, even if you're not rich enough to be heard by many. This is indeed worth something, and it's important to make the most of it, no matter what your opinions, even though money and power weigh a hell of a lot more than your voice.
Yeah, as I've said, Yang seems naive to me too.
Not quite what you'd call a jumping place, but not bad at all for rather standard US-type meals, not overly expensive, and with a really good salad bar that's cheap, or free with most dinner dishes after 5:30PM. You can get a bottle of beer or even wine if you really want to, but I've never seen anybody do it - maybe that's just to take out. Chinese Christian run, and they hire people with physical disadvantages, who are pleasant and helpful. Frequented by foreign (mostly North American) Christians and Chinese Christians - was started by a Canadian couple associated with Bless China (previously, Project Grace), who are no longer here, but no religious pressure or any of that. Steaks are nothing special, and I avoid the Korean dishes, which I've had a few times but which did not impress me.
As a shop and bakery, it's very good bread at reasonable prices, of various kinds (Y18 for a good multigrain loaf that certainly weighs well over a pound. Other stuff too, like granola and oatmeal that is local, as well as imported things, including American cornflakes and so forth, which some people seem to require.
Large portions, seriously so with the pizza, which is Brooklyn/American style, I guess. Convivial, conversational, good place to drink with good folks on both sides of the bar, especially after about 9PM.
Chinese student apologizes after Maryland graduation speech sparks firestorm
发布者Geogramatt: Agreed.
Kunming police taking steps to tame traffic chaos
发布者About time. March of progress, etc. I'd still rather walk or take the bus, causes fewer problem.
Chinese student apologizes after Maryland graduation speech sparks firestorm
发布者And it should be obvious that there are other ways, practiced in other countries, to swamp public opinion - ways that do not permit what I've referred to as 'free speech' above - one might hmm think of China in this way. Oddly enough, in some such places people are smarter about reading between the lines in the press, and in what people say, than they are in places where a level playing field is imagined. But I still prefer the formal guarantees.
Like I said, propaganda exists in many forms, but it needs power behind it to be effective, and that power can be in terms of law, wealth, or (as is the usual case) a combination of the two. I can't at the moment think of any place where this is not the case.
Chinese student apologizes after Maryland graduation speech sparks firestorm
发布者@Geezer: When PC is used in nasty ways then I am against the nasty ways it is being used. But others use the same sorts of tactics, and the left in the US is not large, unless you are referring to US liberals, who aren't exactly a huge majority either.
Anyway, the problem with free speech in the US and many other places is not that speech is really restricted in any stringent terms, but that the mass of the media is controlled by huge corporate interests with fingers in many pies, dominated by advertising revenues, etc., and swamps public opinion with its points of view. Check out who owns major media outlets, and how articles are presented, buried, ignored or slanted by them. Many seem to think that papers such as the New York Times are somehow 'left', when in fact they generally merely present the views and promote the attitudes of sections of the owning class.
So when I speak of freedom of speech (and of the press), I don't by any means mean that it's all somehow open on a level playing field - I simply mean that there are plenty of formal, legal guarantees that say you can pretty much say what you want, even if you're not rich enough to be heard by many. This is indeed worth something, and it's important to make the most of it, no matter what your opinions, even though money and power weigh a hell of a lot more than your voice.
Yeah, as I've said, Yang seems naive to me too.
Chinese student apologizes after Maryland graduation speech sparks firestorm
发布者@Peter: My impression is that there are a lot of people spouting off freely in favor of Trump and for closed US borders as well - am I wrong?