Life and money

The Chinese have a proverb:  Money is not everything, but you cannot do anything without it.  In China, people are used to depositing money in the bank to as a lifeboat, i.e. in case of emergency.  When I was young, my grandpa told me that everyone should remember to save money, because it is the most important thing that affects your life.  In those years, China experienced a lot of inflation.  My grandpa was once a rich man, with thousands of RMB (i.e. Chinese money) in his savings account, but when he got older, the amount in his bank account stayed the same.  Twenty years ago, he could have used his money to buy several houses, but he did not.  Today, the money cannot even buy a toilet in an apartment in Beijing.  I have heard a lot of similar stories.  I am starting to doubt that it is a good idea for us to deposit our money in the bank.  I noticed that most people in the US do not save their money in a bank account.  Instead, they use the money for vacations, buying boats, even gambling.  One American student told me she did not have money for college before her father sold his ship.  I was impressed by this.  If someone in China buys a ship, he or she probably has ten times as much money in the bank as the ship costs.  A person would not go even one day with a empty account, they wouldn't risk it.  I think this is the difference between the attitudes of the people in China and the US, and also their governments.  The US is the richest country in the world, and at the same time, has the largest amount of debt, while China is a developing country whose people are suffering from hunger and being over-worked at their jobs, but it still has a lot of savings in different forms.  I cannot tell if this is a good thing or not.  I just pray it will not get me into the same situation as my grandpa was in.

Life and money

The Chinese have a proverb: Money is not everything, but you can not do anything without money. In China, people are used to depositing money in the bank to leave themselves a lifeboat in case of emergency. I still remember when I was young, my grandpa told me that everyone should remember to stock save money, because it is the most important factor to impacts your whole life. In these recent years, China has experienced a big lot of inflation. My grandpa was once a rich man with thousands of RMB in his saving account, but when as he gets older and old, the amount of his money remains the same. Twenty years ago, he can use could have used his money to buy several houses, but he did not. Today, the money can could not even buy a toilet in an apartment in Beijing. I have heard a lot of similar stories. I have started to doubt if it is reasonable for us to deposit our money in the bank. I noticed that most people in the US do not save their money into the in savings accounts. Instead of doing that, they use the money for vacations, buying ships, and even gambling. One American student told me she did not have money for the college before his until her father sold his ship. I was impressed about this. If people a person in China bought a ship, he would probably they have ten plus times as much money in the bank as the cost of the ship. They A Chinese person could not live even a day with a empty bank account, they do would not dare to. So, I think this can explains the life attitudes of the people in China and the US, and also these the differences between these two countries. The US is the most richest country in the world,* and in at the same time, has largest amount of debts; while China is a developing country whose people are suffering from hunger and overwork, over-loaded jobs, but it still has a lot of savings in many different forms. I can not tell if it is a good thing or not. I just pray it I will not get in the same situations as my old grandpa. did.

*Richest in terms of GDP, but not the richest per capita.