Brian Atlas vs Chinese Communist Girl: Which Country Is Better?

You were born in China, is that correct?

Anybody else like born not in the United States? I mean,

States? I mean, >> I'm born in England, >> but you're not you don't live here. So,

>> no, I don't live here.

>> Uh, anybody else? Anyone born somewhere else? Okay. Um,

else? Okay. Um,

to uh you you're Indian and you're Indian. Is that correct? Do you do you

Indian. Is that correct? Do you do you feel strong cultural ties to your heritage or your culture like Indian culture or >> Yeah, cuz there's like so many different ethnic groups in India since it's a

subcontinent and I'm I'm Punjabi uh personally and like the big stereotype with Punjabies is you'll always know cuz they'll always tell you cuz we're really prideful people.

>> Okay. What about you, Molly? Um, I mean I feel a lot of like pride for my culture but honestly like my parents had a love marriage and they were and they both came here when they're really young

and they also I don't know any like Indian languages they spoke fully English in our house like I know a lot of immigrant parents >> they'll speak their native language in their house and their kids are raised up on it. No, my parents spoke spoke fully

on it. No, my parents spoke spoke fully English.

>> Sure. And also they were religious but they didn't we never went to the temple much like I don't consider myself religious at all so I don't I'm not >> super Indian.

>> So you moved to the United States when you were five?

>> Yeah.

>> Okay. And so you have Chinese citizenship?

>> Yes.

>> But you don't have US citizenship yet? I

>> I don't. And I don't plan on getting it.

>> Oh, you don't plan on getting it? But

you >> I could have already gotten it because I'm 18 already, but I don't plan on naturalizing. So

naturalizing. So >> Oh, why is that? because I do have plans to return back to China and like if I were to naturalize, every time I go back would be like an hassle to have to get a visa and like get approved. But then

right now where I'm sitting with a Chinese citizenship, like a Chinese passport with a green card, it gives me the freedom to just travel freely between two countries. So I can go back to China for like two months, which I did, and like come back and be perfectly

fine, not have to sign any paperwork or anything. If you had to estimate like in

anything. If you had to estimate like in terms of so you're 18 >> in terms of total time spent in each country, what would be the >> like the ratio?

>> The breakdown. Yeah.

>> I'd say like because I go I come here for school. Like the reason why my

for school. Like the reason why my family came to the US was so um my siblings and I could get an American education. Uh so I'd say like for 10

education. Uh so I'd say like for 10 months out of the year I'm here and then like the summertime I go back to my >> Since you were five.

>> Well, not every summer. Sometimes in

summers like I have plans and like I have like tutoring like I have like extracurriculars but when I have the time. Yeah, pretty much. I'm still

time. Yeah, pretty much. I'm still

pretty connected to the culture over there if that's what you're saying. Like

I'm fluent in my language.

>> Yeah. You speak Mandarin.

>> But you uh you live there entirely for your first 5 years.

>> Yes.

>> And then you came here and you spend most of the time here in the United States.

>> Yeah. After that after my Yeah. After I

moved here. trying to think if you spend like one to two months >> maybe it's like 70 30%. Is that fair to say?

>> Yeah. 70 7030

>> 70 30% 70% of the United States. And

your parents don't plan to naturalize to the United States either. Is that fair?

>> They don't either. They are just waiting for us to finish school and then they're also going back to China.

>> Okay. Are your parents like diplomats or something or what do they do?

>> Um what do you mean like for work or >> Yeah. Yeah. For work? Well, my mom,

>> Yeah. Yeah. For work? Well, my mom, she's a stay-at-home mom. She doesn't do anything. And my dad works at Apple.

anything. And my dad works at Apple.

>> At Apple. Okay. He's like a soft software engineer or >> uh No, he does something like an HR, but he um >> Yeah, pretty much. He's the only one that works in our family. And he

siblings. Yeah. I have an older sister who goes to UCSB and a younger brother who is 10 years old.

>> 10 years old.

>> Mhm.

>> And are they going to stay here until he >> Yeah.

>> he graduates from college?

>> Um high school. And then at least high school. Yeah.

school. Yeah.

>> So, another eight years.

>> Yeah. And are are you going to stay here until your parents move back or you're moving back as soon as you're done with college?

>> Well, it depends on like where I locate based on my career because I'm trying to get my CPA after um my degree. So, we'll

just see. I'm not sure. But my long-term goal is to do big four accounting in like a city in China. So,

>> Oh, interesting. So, how do you um I guess like how do you come I'm just I'm not maybe unaware of the process. If the

goal is not to naturalize, how do you come and stay in the United States like long-term?

>> Like your does your father have a H1B visa or >> No, I >> or I don't know what it would be categorized as, but >> um I actually am not too familiar with

how we really got here.

I just know we had a we had a we did have like >> we knew people who were just able to do it for us. I don't know what you want me to say about that.

>> But you guys are here like you guys are here legitimately not not like illegally or something. Okay.

or something. Okay.

>> You can't call IC on me. I'm here.

>> No, I'm just curious like what the categorization is cuz there's different ways to stay here long term.

>> Utilizing your school. Oh, I saw that comment. Exactly. You don't need to

comment. Exactly. You don't need to justify yourself.

>> That's interesting. I have a question for you. Um, this

for you. Um, this >> it's interesting though because you're not planning to naturalize. You're not

planning to gain citizenship. Although

you've lived the majority of your life in the United States. You've enjoyed the benefits of living in the United States.

You've enjoyed the prosperity of living in the United States, the education system of the United States. Did you go to a public school in for high school?

>> Yeah.

>> Okay. Um, here's a question for you. Go

ahead. So imagine a completely neutral hypothetical situation >> where neither the United States or China is the aggressor, neither has done

anything unethical and there's no moral dimension, just a military conflict that exists in that valueneutral scenario.

To which side would your allegiance be?

The United States or China?

>> China, I'd say.

>> Okay. And that's obviously biased because I'm Chinese from China and most of my family's there. But right,

>> um, like you said, like you're confused why like I don't want to naturalize spending here, being in the US for like such a long period of time. I think like being in being here for a long period of time made me realize that I personally

like my life in China better. Like it's

more convenient. It's easier. Like

politics aside, >> your life here?

>> Yes, correct. But

>> not by choice because I go to school here. Like once this is over, of course

here. Like once this is over, of course I want to be back home like where I feel happiest.

>> All right. I guess uh it's interesting >> and for me home is China, not the United States. I wonder if uh

States. I wonder if uh I don't even know if would that be possible for an American to do in China what your parents like I don't know if

>> it's not possible >> and I don't know if you gave that answer or if an American gave the answer you gave in China how that would go over but um >> very well correct

>> but luckily for us America has pretty robust uh freedoms especially related to speech >> um perhaps unprecedented on the global

stage. But uh okay, that's interesting.

stage. But uh okay, that's interesting.

I mean, my argument does crumble. It

crumbles a little bit in the sense that you're not actively you're not a citizen of the United States. You're not trying to naturalize. So like it kind of makes

to naturalize. So like it kind of makes sense, but it is interesting. It's like

you have lived the majority of your life here, although you're 18, so you've been under the I don't know if control is the right word, but like you've been under the authority of your parents for your whole life, basically.

>> Yeah.

>> So, like when you're 15, you can't be like, "Fuck you, mom. I'm going back to China. You can't do that really. Your

China. You can't do that really. Your

parents have uh authority over you.

>> They're your guardians." And uh >> correct.

>> But it is interesting. It is an interesting thought. Mhm.

interesting thought. Mhm.

>> You know, we've asked this question before to um people who have like dual citizenship >> or who naturalized as American citizens.

Like we had one girl who came from uh I think it was Colombia was it? Do you

remember Mary that episode?

>> Yeah.

>> We had a girl who came here, immigrated here from Colombia, became a she wasn't a legal immigrant, became a naturalized American citizen and she said that her allegiance was still to Colombia. And I

found that interesting.

>> But in your case, it's a bit different.

I don't know. I think we're cooked in America, honestly. Look, I gotta be Yo,

America, honestly. Look, I gotta be Yo, chat, let me ask the chat.

>> Why do you think I want out?

>> Uh, well, you know, the the thing is is that I I think China is doing a lot of things uh in some ways better than the United

States. Like I feel like I've seen

States. Like I feel like I've seen construction videos.

>> Oh yeah, construction there is insanely fast.

>> Gets done. Like, bro, they've been uh I don't want to say the location, but like near I mean, there's all kinds of construction around just Santa Barbara, right? Man, that [ __ ] is like, what are

right? Man, that [ __ ] is like, what are they doing? It takes [ __ ] years for

they doing? It takes [ __ ] years for them to do a little patch of road. It's

like, but in China, I feel like they get [ __ ] done. And I wonder if that's because there's probably a bit more of a >> well monoculture.

>> I think there's an incentive here, too.

The longer you take, the more these companies that we catch with can make money.

>> Yeah. I think it's just the structure of how things are. Like in China, you know, like the CCP, everything's run under one organization. Versus here, like you

organization. Versus here, like you there's so many bills and like like papers that have to be passed, so much paperwork that has to be done to do anything that in China it's just like okay, one said and done. Like they just

get straight to it. Here it's like so many approvals. It's just like how the

many approvals. It's just like how the like our leaders like our government runs. I guess I think that

runs. I guess I think that >> Wait, but here's my question. Chat

>> chat. Do you guys think I'm worried, bro? I'm worried. I think that uh you

bro? I'm worried. I think that uh you know, I feel like China is a bit of a threat. You know, I think that uh

threat. You know, I think that uh they're going to >> surpass the >> I think the Chinese >> It's already happened. England is

>> Well, she says it's already happened. I

don't know about that. I don't know about that. But in some ways, I I I do

about that. But in some ways, I I I do think that uh >> Have you ever been to China? Let me ask you that.

>> No, I haven't. But I I think that there's probably there's a lot of social upheaval in the United States. There's a

lot of political polarization, social polarization in the United States. The

United States has multiculturalism.

Uh look, in China, you have like weaggguers and I don't know if I said that right, but there are different like I guess ethno groups. I don't know if that's even like in China, but generally like

>> the people in China, they're like Chinese heritage, whereas here in the United States like multiculturalism, I don't really think you have multiculturalism in China. You have

>> Chinese culture.

>> Yes. But we do have like India like we have a lot of different ethnic groups.

Majority are like the Han ethnic group, which is what I am. But like there's a lot there's like a lot of cultures within China too. I wouldn't just categorize like all of China into one Chinese culture. Like depending on what

Chinese culture. Like depending on what region you're in, they eat different foods. They have different practices,

foods. They have different practices, different beliefs. They even look

different beliefs. They even look different. Like people in the north tend

different. Like people in the north tend to be taller than people in the south because of like climate differences. I

Yeah, I don't think it's like all categorized as one. I don't know if that helps but >> Well, I don't think China's fully caught up quite yet to the United States, but I would say that China has a better I I

think China probably has a better foundation for social cohesion than the United States does. So I think like the fall of the United States I don't think is going to be external. I think the fall of the United States would be

internal.

>> Internal correct >> which I think would be very unlikely in for China for example. I don't think there's enough >> political polarization or social upheaval in China.

>> And so by the way I apologize. We're

totally getting off [ __ ] [ __ ] talking about geopolitics in China. I

don't know chat. What do you guys think?

I I mean it isn't it just true though like there we got a lot of [ __ ] polarization societal upheaval in the

United States.

China seems a bit more cohesive a little bit among its populace.

>> But isn't their education better?

>> So I'm just I'm not sure but I'm just >> Well, it is but like the way they do it like the system is like >> really detrimental to like students mental health. It's like yeah, at the

mental health. It's like yeah, at the end of the day, like I guess you can say like China pumps out smarter kids or whatever, but like yeah, I think like their education system is something that I wouldn't really like approve of. So like yeah,

that's why I'm studying here and then like taking this knowledge back. But

>> and would you argue that China like values STEM more than America does?

>> Um that I actually am not too sure. I

wouldn't say but I >> also I mean the Chinese government has more control way more control like for example uh the Chinese government can

kind of dictate I I believe didn't didn't the Chinese government there's something about how uh the men were becoming too feminine or

wait [ __ ] I'm trying to remember what this was Mary you googling it >> something like they they were like all right the these [ __ ] little education drive to make boys more manly.

>> Well, there was something like, okay, if you're on Tik Tok, >> China bans effeminate men on TV, >> right? Yeah. Like if you're on Tik Tok

>> right? Yeah. Like if you're on Tik Tok in China, they're going to like the algorithm on Tik Tok and I guess it's named something different in China.

Yeah.

>> Or whatever. They're going to show like they're going to push in the algorithm like science videos. They're going to push uh educational videos. Whereas here

in the United States, they're the Tik Tok app is going to push like [ __ ] dances and like just brain rot [ __ ]

just slop [ __ ] content. Um, and

that's something proactive that the Chinese government is doing to like not rot the brains of their youth.

>> You don't have access to everything on the internet either there, right? cuz I

I had a one of my exes had gone to China and besides it being like very difficult to you know get approval to go to China um I remember he had to get like a VPN to access certain sites or whatever it

was.

>> Yeah, that is true for sure.

Anyways whatever.