Taxi Driver Perspective

Good morning.

It is about 5:00 am. I am in a Hotel in Beijing, woken up by the persistent cold. Overnight it reached down to about -14 degrees Celsius. Yes that sounds very cold. It is about the same as 6 degrees Fahrenheit. (if you want a quick conversion double the Celsius, then add 30: -14x2 = -28+30 = 2.  It’s a rough estimate that works in the “normal” temperature range, but is less accurate when it gets really hot or cold. But I digress… ) Despite my long johns and socks (I never wear socks to bed), and triple layering my comforter sleeping under a narrow strip of covering, throughout the night I was repeatedly awakened by the cold. Somewhere in the middle of the night I got up to look for the little hand-held remote that controls the reverse air-conditioning “heat pump” which serves as a heater located near the ceiling on the wall. Searched everywhere, couldn’t find it, went back to bed.  Eventually my pride got to me so I called the front desk. “Oh you want the heater controller? Sure, we’ll send one to your room”. No sense in leaving those little devices IN the room where someone might actually want to use them.  At least I wasn’t charged for it (yet?). Ok, I’m grumbling – promised myself I wouldn’t do that. I’m just a little tired…

Are you aware that President Hu was recently in the US? (yes I could go on and on with a version of the Abbott and Costello “Who’s on first” routine… “Q: Who’s the President of China?  A: Hu. Q: Yes that’s what I’m asking” but I won’t ) For most aware folks here this is a GIANT deal, especially in Shanghai – which is the “New York” of China – everyone there is hoping to open better business opportunities, and in Beijing – which is the “Washington DC” of China – where everyone is hoping to improve political relations which apparently have soured a little in the last couple of years.  I’ve started to ask about the differences in our two countries during my twice-daily taxi commute. It’s interesting how the guy-on-the-street looks at the US.  Here’s a conglomerate sample: (By the way, I’m aware of possible prying eyes reading this email – it is not intended as an indictment of either China OR the US, just a perspective offered by various Chinese taxi drivers over the last week or so. I hope I am not deported.)

Taxi (T): America is the greatest country on the face of the planet. You are so rich, and you proactively reach out to poorer, developing countries

Jay (J): Yeah but there are still some places we can improve. China has done some great things over the last 20 years. Look at your personal improvement in standard of living.

T: Uh, maybe. Every country can improve, but you’ve already resolved some big issues.

J: Yeah? Like what?

T: You used to have a problem with slaves, but now your President is a black man. We still fight crime where children and women are sold into slavery in the countryside. No one likes it, and the government is trying to fix it, but there are so many people and not enough resources to successfully contain it.

J: Hmmmm.  OK, what else?

T: You used to have a problem with the Native Americans, but now they are accepted and receive benefits from your government. We still deal with the Uighurs in far western China, with Tibet, with Inner Mongolia, etc.  We’re trying to integrate those populations into our country, but it will take some time.

J: OK, I’m getting to see your point. But there is an ugly side of America that maybe you don’t see. There are many poor people who live on the streets and don’t get adequate medical care.

T: We have similar problems, sort of. They don’t live on the street, but for many, the streets may be a better alternative. They have no heat, no running water, no transportation, and they eat unhealthy foods just to get by.

J: Well, I understand, but that is something your government will probably get around to.

T: Maybe, but we don’t really know or have a say, at least you can vote if your President and Congress are not doing their jobs.

J: OK, I’ll give you that.  By the way, what do you think of President Obama?

T: We thought he was going to make big changes, but it looks more and more like he has no power. He seems inexperienced and Chinese politicians are hesitant to get behind him because he may not be around long enough. How do American’s feel?

J: That’s an interesting perspective. As for us, we’re split. Some are grateful for some important changes that are coming down, others feel sort of like you do. Do you think he and President Hu will be able to make any improvements during this trip?

T: Fact is, it doesn’t matter. I just drive a cab. I’m not in Afghanistan or Tibet or even in the smaller towns. I’m just here trying to make enough to feed my family and pay for my cab. Politicians do less than we give them credit for. They seldom make improvements that are meaningful. Usually they just create rules and laws that get in the way.

J: Hmmmm. I don’t really see it that way. How would you ever overcome child-trafficking. Are you personally going to go fix it?

T: No, I just drive a cab.

J: That’s my point.

T: Regardless, America is amazing.

J: I think China is pretty cool.

T: That’ll be 32 RMB, do you want a receipt?

J: Yeah. See ya.

So all the political mumbo-jumbo aside, I’m finding that I can be pretty impatient under certain circumstances (did you read my first paragraph?).  I am a master is saying stuff like “why don’t they just FIX this?” (like the horribly disgusting public toilets), or “when is the government going to step in and manage this?” (like the increasingly snarled traffic or pollution.)  Then I stop for a second and look back at how things were a mere 20 years ago. By our standards, most Chinese are still in the 1920’s, but by their standards, life is improving fast. There is an awareness of issues that need to be changed, and from my perspective (filtered by state-owned media of course) it appears that there are some meaningful changes being worked on. But imagine the effort necessary to turn this Aircraft Carrier of a country in ANY direction. Change cannot happen overnight. And it seems a little foolish for us (me?) to raise our fist and say “you better change, or else”. A better approach would seem to be “we notice some things that could improve, would you like some help?”  Although a fiercely proud country, oddly it seems that on the street level EVERYTHING mimics the US.

OK – well, it is now officially time to wake up and hop in the shower. My room is finally warm since I got my heater controller, and I’ve probably written enough in an open email to start noticing that I’m being followed. Not kidding. Anyway – interesting additional perspectives from the taxi driver sector in one small corner of Shanghai.

Cheers.