056 class FFL/corvette
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solarz
Brigadier
What exactly would you know about the so-called "little emperors"? I am an only child, born in the era of family planning (no such thing as a one-child policy), and am quite well adjusted, thank you very much.
So say you, and presumptiously for a whole generation. Have you served in any armed forces?
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plawolf
Lieutenant General
You were the one who questioned the qualities of an entire generation and now you talk of presumptuousness? Kettle, pot ring any bells?
I've served in the armed forces. I've had first hand knowledge of how different upbringing can influence the recruit's performance and atitudes. Have you?
Chuck, you and I both know that a good Drill Seargent can and will relieve spoiled children of their dispositions fairly quickly...or wash them out. That's been going on for as long as there have been armies.
If the PLA has a good "boot camp" training program (and with their history I know absolutely that they do) then what you are speaking of will be a non-issue as the PLA "adjusts" enough individuals who pass through their training into the proper military discipline to man their needs.
We both know that they do it ALL the time here in the US, where there are plenty of Gen X and the "Me" generation kids who need and receive similar transistional experiences...hehehe.
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solarz
Brigadier
Well said Jeff.
You may have served in the armed forces, but you obviously don't know much about the post-80 and post-90 generations of Chinese. "Little Emperors" is a term coined in the 80's when the first generation of family-planning kids were still just kids, and the term was based on the observation of their behavior as children.
Nowadays, the so-called "Little Emperors" that you so easily dismiss are both the backbone and the future of the Chinese economy. Nobody in China uses that term any more, it only gets dredged up by Western journalists who are more interested in parroting stereotypes than actual reporting.
Instead, the spoiled young adults in Chinese society are known today as "fu-er-dai" or "guan-er-dai", which in English means the kids of the rich and powerful.
vesicles
Colonel
They may have different attitude toward things, but it is the ability to adapt that makes the difference. So you may see many youngsters behave like they are spoiled when they first step into camp. This behavior is indeed dependent upon their upbringing. Then many of them adapt to the harsh training quickly and begin to thrive while others simply cannot change. And such ability to adapt to new environment depends more on personality than upbringing. And personality is a genetic thing, less affected by the environment. People have actually done extensive research on this in the 70's and 80's. They found twins who were separated at birth and grew up in completely different environment without even knowing they had a sibling. And characterized their personality traits. They found that these twins had strikingly similar personalities despite the fact that they grew up in different families.
So what matters in the end is not how they behave when they first show up as new recruits, but how they can be changed and molded into capable soldiers once they finish boot camp. Since adaption is what matters and depends more on genetics, the ability to actually field capable soldiers should be relatively constant throughout the years.
Many people have the misconception that, just because China had the one child per family policy, the birth rate must be 1 Little Emperor per family and few kids have siblings. For example:
"Because they lack siblings, the vast majority of Chinese couples 34 and younger are the sole inheritors of four parents’ wealth. When they die, their offspring get at least two extra homes (and, given investment trends, likely more). This extra supply will drive down prices, says Zhang, and because of the one-child policy, China will have too few young people to absorb the overspill."
The one child policy started in 1979, and China's fertility rate in 1980 was 2.63. Only in 1990-1993 did it barely drop below 2.1. Those who were born in 1980-1990 are 23-33 years old today (prime marrying age).
This is like, way off-topic. If we want to discuss this, perhaps we should use a different thread.
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