But, given that daily experience places Chinese citizens in an infinitely better position than Western executives to evaluate Chinese officials and their conduct, one would have to conclude that they are almost certainly right. And that means that Westerners who have spent considerable time in China and consider themselves seasoned “China hands” need to ask why they have gotten it so wrong.
调和这些不同的观点是不可能的。这既不是因为中国公众尖酸刻薄，也并非西方高管冥顽不化。但由于日常体验把中国公民置于一个相比西方高管绝对有利的位置去评估中国官员及其行为，因此人们必然得出结论说前者基本上是完全正确的。这意味着那些花了相当长的时间了解中国并以经验老到的“中国通”自居的西方人需要思考一下：自己为什么会得出如此错误的结论。