Thanks for pointing this out. It was not my intention to portray Chinese citizens as childlike. I simply meant to use the loss of childhood innocence as an example of how world views can be changed at a fundamental level. That kind of change can occur at any stage of life for anyone; childhood innocence tends to be the most relatable as an example across cultures.

Another example was given to me by a coworker: after Fukushima, she realized that her employer ultimately did not care about her safety in a regional-paralyzing event. That shattered her world view about how she would be viewed as an object, not a person, by employers. This was despite all the women-in-tech, no-glass-ceiling, etc rhetoric. She vowed to take a new job where she would consider only employers that had demonstrated an active commitment to their employee's safety. It changed her world view about PR pieces put out by companies, especially with regards to diversity.

Edit: To conclude, I personally believe there is an opportunity for personal growth about learning a healthy distrust in what government or politically-active people have to say in any country, including the USA, for everyone. Including myself. I truly did not mean to single out the Chinese in a degrading manner.

Look at the great discussion you started! Thanks for taking the risk of being imprecise to share your thoughts.

I firsthand observed the fall of communist regime in my country (1989). A lot of ordinary citizens (some of them with great education and so on) were very childlike when interacting with the non communist world and the new rules. There was naivete in the population that was exploited and cashed to the fullest. Ponzi schemes, predatory advertising, cults, quacks ...

When the rules of the game change drastically - we are all children until we figure out the new ones.