white folks always trying to exoticize / exceptionalize the other (in this case, Asian countries that have handled Covid well) to normalize their own cultural incompetence
This is exactly right. Countries with high cohesion, with strong sense of community and interpersonal ethical obligation, have managed Covid-19 well; Japan, S Korea, Taiwan, Vietnam, other Confucian societies are all examples. One metric of cohesion is willingness to wear masks.