Thank you, I appreciate the kind words of praise.

It's such a foreign concept

It is indeed, especially to Westerners and those with Western ways of thinking. The obsession with "saving face" is not unique to East Asians either; South Asians have a strong streak of the same nonsense running through them too. And while there are a number of practical and philosophical benefits to that way of thinking, it mostly results in highly hierarchical patterns of thought and action that stifle individual innovation and greatly lengthen response times during crises.

it really is remarkable how they will straight-up lie and say they understand something, even if they have no idea what you're talking about it

Correct. This happens ALL THE TIME with East Asian people, especially with the Chinese. Their entire ethos is founded upon the notion that the higher your rank, or the more credentials you have to your name, the more you are to be respected.

I can only speculate on what causes the almost herd-like mindset of a lot of the Chinese and East Asians that I've met. That blind deference to authority is healthy only up to a point. And it's beginning to get them in real trouble.

The concept of "face" is fascinating (and scary, in this context), too. It's such a foreign concept. I'm a Southerner (Southern United States), and we have concepts of shame, family honor, etc., but nothing as egregiously crippling or inherently dishonest as the Chinese notion of "saving face." I've seen it (and discussed it with the ones that will) a bit with my Chinese students (we have a large international contingent–all coronavirus-free, thankfully, and I think their families are fine so far), and it really is remarkable how they will straight-up lie and say they understand something, even if they have no idea what you're talking about it. Granted, students do this generally, but it's far more pronounced, and comes far more effortlessly, to my Chinese students.

Anyway, that's all to say that this post really gave me deeper insight into the situation, and I've viewed every bit of news and commentary about the virus since then in light of your analysis. Very well done.

Once again, you win the commenting section.

The demons come out in the sun in red suits
Running like gold rushers staking a claim
Don't bother asking for the body count
They'll tell you it's still the same

In the year of the rat

They don't respond to any of your queries
As they lock the doors leading away
To the transport links and the ferries
Which they claim will run again, one day

By the bat-bloodied walls in the market stalls
There's a passage that they lead you to
They say, "We came here because of your calls
But you're not immune to this flu"

The year of the rat

While they look at you so coldly
And their eyes look at you as if they could kill
They drag you to the hospital so slowly
You think they probably will

The year of the rat

When next morning comes and you're on IVs
Watching TV about how the tourists are gone
Lungs filling profusely everyone can see
And they tell you to stay calm

But your case is as many in this world
It's a tragedy that could make anyone cry
Disease and fate, your life has uncurled
And so you're going to die

In the year of the rat
Year of the rat

(to the tune of "The Year of the Cat" by Al Stewart)