Skip to content

Politics & Current Affairs — May 20, 2012

Social Issues in America Are a Question of Morality for the Chinese

The Chinese view social debates among Americans as unethical and immoral behavior. They believe issues such as gay marriage and abortion should remain out of the public eye.

Sign up for the Smarter Faster newsletter

A weekly newsletter featuring the biggest ideas from the smartest people

Article written by guest writer Rin Mitchell

What’s the Latest Development?

It is another election year and many hot-button topics such as same-sex marriage, abortion rights and gun possession are in the spotlight. Topics such as gay marriage and abortion are viewed as private morality issues in China. The social issue debates among American citizens and divorce statistics, which fill the media airwaves, paint a classless picture of the American people for the Chinese. China is a reserved culture, so to see and hear Americans discuss morality issues of a private nature is frowned upon by the Chinese.

What’s the Big Idea?

The Chinese are judging and criticizing the morality of the American culture because of the social issues that continue to be in the forefront of U.S. politics. However, the issues China would keep separate from politics are issues that are very much a part of the American political system.

Sign up for the Smarter Faster newsletter

A weekly newsletter featuring the biggest ideas from the smartest people

Related

A statue of a thoughtful, seated philosopher on the right seems to be contemplating a calling, while a standing figure holding a lyre on the left adds harmony against the textured background.

Everyday Philosophy: Can you have a “calling” without a caller?

If you’re an atheist with a vocation, who laid that path for you?

Close-up image of a human iris featuring vibrant blue and yellow hues with a dark pupil in the center.

The mystery at the heart of consciousness

“Is it possible that consciousness is a much more basic phenomenon in nature and is essentially pervading everything?”

▸

10 min

—

with

CMB polarization Planck

Starts With A Bang

Ask Ethan: Does the CMB really “prove” the Big Bang?

Since the mid-1960s, the CMB has been identified with the Big Bang’s leftover glow. Could any alternative explanations still work?

A wasp illustration in blue on grid paper is overlaid on a close-up image of effervescent bubbles in a golden alcoholic liquid.

The first known animal that’s “immune” to alcohol intoxication

Could studying the Oriental hornet lead to a treatment for people with alcohol use disorder?

Collage showcasing a stratospheric balloon soaring over Earth and a close-up of fingers, with "The Nightcrawler" emblazoned at the top, capturing the spirit of a creative renaissance.

How AI is ushering in a creative renaissance

Welcome to The Nightcrawler — a weekly newsletter from Eric Markowitz covering tech, innovation, and long-term thinking.

Up Next

From “Do I Dare?” to “Yes, We Can!”: Young Obama and T. S. Eliot

I’ve read nothing more heartwarming recently than the excerpts from young Obama’s love letters in the new Vanity Fair. The glow they exude has nothing to do with romance and […]