“A Study of China Does Not Personal Experience Make” by celesteli

LessWrong (30+ Karma) · Oct 25, 2026 · 8m

I am often skeptical of arguments about China that rely heavily on personal experience. The author may explicitly acknowledge that their experience is limited without appropriately treating their arguments with rigor beforehand. This acknowledgment may thus sit beside conclusions about the values, behaviors, and functions of Chinese society without meaningfully constraining any of them.

Different speakers may each have peers with similar experiences that corroborate their claims, or repeated experiences that solidify their firsthand evidence. We may believe one or another speaker is more…