Wow this head has really brought out the bigots! The tone of the op towards anyone who reports they had a different experience suggests they have an agenda and no interest in any experience that doesn't validate this.
The fact the book uses the oxygen masks above 25,000 feet story to prosecute the Chinese is enough to cast doubt on the reader on how much of any of it you should take seriously. And also the authors own aviation knowledge?
As for claims of SOPs ruling compared to airmanship, we're always reading on other boards about the new breed of magenta line SOP monkeys on Western airlines, and the poor safety cultures of management. It's all very ministry of truth how that is being scrubbed for the sake of condemning other cultures.
And as for anecdotes about toursts in thailand, aren't pilots supposed to be rational? Not sure what it has to do with anything, but go and look at Aussies in Bali who are the most grotesque example of a single nation I've ever seen. Does that make them terrible pilots?
And yes, look at accidents. This comes across as a bitter person, who won't let it go. Some people can't and shouldn't attempt to live in other cultures.