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Randy Cohen, New York Times "The Ethicist" columnist, might be inclined to think so. Granted, Cohen's anti-auto podcast from last week is about Manhattan, but several of his arguments already seem applicable to Shanghai (and, in 2020, when our city's subway system looks like this, there will be few ethical excuses for owning personal cars in most of Shanghai). Cohen lays out five reasons why cars and Manhattanites shouldn't mix. Here's No. 1: "Cars kill. If you introduced a transportation system by announcing, 'It'll only kill 40,000 people a year,' it's hard to believe it would gain widespread popularity." (The number of "traffic deaths" in China was down to 73,484 in 2008, but up 100 percent over the last 20 years.) Listen to all New York Times podcasts here or subscribe via iTunes. They're all free.
Is driving a personal automobile in Shanghai unethical?
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I will not buy a car in China and not drive in Shanghai, until basic traffic rules are followed.
I do not think that there is a base of comparison between New York and Shanghai.
In New York, everyone is equal before the law, in Shanghai not.
In Shanghai cars with army and paramilitary Wujing number plates are among the worst road-hogs - naturally they do not get flagged down - and even police cars don't stop for pedestrians, especially if the driver is just busy lighting a cigarette.
If foreign drivers are involved in an accident in China, they are automatically assigned a large part of the fault for being a foreigner driving - an additional risk. The rest of the fault being shared, it is the foreign driver (or his insurance) to pay up. This, in view of the way the locals drive in Shanghai, is of course highly questionable.
I wonder what Shanghai wants to do about its mad drivers in view of the "Expo", or are they happy with how people drive here?
did you even listen to the podcast? driving etiquette has nothing to do with this.
Ethics and China don't mix
I've done 7 years here on bicycle, bus , subway and the odd taxi when stranded or out late etc.
The article is a good start.
Next question, is it ethical to own a personal car at all if you have a choice?