Tombs to symbolize income inequality

This New York Times article tries to demonstrate the problems of income inequality in China by featuring the battle over outrageous tombstones but does so in a way that is so personalized the point is easily lost to a careless reader.  The first image that greets us is the an elaborate tombstone with a statue of a unicorn, gleaming floors, and a custodian cleaning the tomb.  The first page of the article discusses, with quotations from Chinese officials and an economics professor, the problems with allowing the rich to flaunt their wealth.  A contrasting picture is provided, contrasting funerals "with pomp benefiting a state funeral" to the  "many Chinese [that] find even a simple grave market beyond their means".   

There is a strong hint of mockery in the coverage of this problem (and not unjustly so), and I will even go so far as to say the article paints the Chinese as an exotic and ridiculous 'other' that does very strange things with their newfound wealth.  The explanation provided for the extravagance of the tombs is "face" (a very Asian concept that is easily ridiculed, especially when "face" with quotations is used as opposed to the word pride or image).  It is this type of reporting that is harmful in influencing people's perception of China and their rise.