This is what the chinese think of americans.

After Standard & Poor's downgraded Washington's top notch credit rating this month, some Chinese have shown scorn for Americans they see as spending money before they earn it.

"They should just buy what they can pay for," said Zhao Kai, a Beijing resident, explaining that like many Chinese people he "prefers to pay cash and does not like being in debt".

According to Forbes magazine, the average Chinese household had debts worth just 17 percent of its annual income last year, against 136 percent in the United States.


http://www.terradaily.co...nese_consumers_999.html

That is why I don't get it when I hear an African supporting American culture.

Chinese consumers' aversion to credit is so big that some high-rollers have been known to pay for hugely expensive items in cash.

In the eastern city of Qingdao, for instance, one investor famously bought an 80-million-yuan building with wads of cash in 2009.

What happened to the principle pf spending less than you earn? There's something wrong with america's brand of economics

There is nothing wrong with the american system. It is not like americans are idle waiting for the govt. to borrow and they consume the same, remember there are industries in america for products and services which are generating wealth. This wealth will be taxed and repay the debt in future as they continue enjoying themselves.

If you landed a job earning a million a month, you could either borrow money and move to karen upon confirmation (american style) or start saving for the next 10 years to move then (chinese style). At the end of the day you will both own a house in karen but the american will have stayed there longer (raise a family) while the chinese will be retiring in karen (what for?).

I prefer the american style.

@Bwenyenye, the chinese is the fool, have you considered that the American will have used the house throughout the 40 years while the chinese will have to wait, probably paying rent elsewhere.

The problem with the US is not the people living beyond their means but the fact that they are moving too many jobs to China, if they can create the low end jobs to keep the masses employed, they will not need to worry about debt, however if they continue to outsource, then they can forget about ever reducing govt expenditure and cutting debt.

By the way, at some point, the US will default on its debt and the Chinese will have no choice but to write off the entire amount to ensure their favourite customers keep buying the giant flat screens that keep their labour force employed.