On the issues of Tibet, the Dalai Lama, and religion, the Chinese government actually has a very large constituent of compatible ideological “supporters” within the U.S.. Recently, the American Humanist Association (AHA) blogger, Luis Granados, published two articles: “India vs. China: Part 1” and “India vs. China: Part 2.” He looked at these issues within the context of “India vs. China.” After reading those two articles, people in China may find it surprising that many Americans look at religion in the same way, even within the context of the specific issues so close to “home.” The Chinese view the Dalai Lama as a politician (see “Dalai Lama tries speaking to the Chinese” by Buxi). AHA minded Americans are too skeptical of religious leaders politicking.
In “India vs. China: Part 1“, Granados rejects the Dalai Lama’s recent admonishment of China about religious harmony. Here is how he starts off his article. I invite you to follow the link and read his article in full. You will have to decide for yourself if the Dalai Lama criticism is for real or for politicking. Let’s be clear though. Granados is no panda hugger. Few more clicks from his articles and you will find he has many issues with the Chinese government. Read more…
I thought this was a very accurate characterization by Orville Schell via an op-ed on China Daily of the “dysfunctional” investment relationship between China and the U.S. at the moment. My interpretation? On one hand, China welcomes investment with open arms; think Intel, GM, Caterpillar, and even Google investing in China. That creates tons of jobs in China. American politicians calls that “exporting jobs” to China. Now China wants to “export jobs” to the U.S. through investing, and the American politicians call this a national security issue! (Yes, if Chinese companies invest in the U.S., it would also mean they will derive revenue from the U.S.. That is the same thing already being done by U.S. multinationals like Intel, GM, etc. in China. That’s globalization.) The 50 Congressional Representatives Schell referred to? They are xenophobic, protectionist, and stupid. Read more…
On Monday, August 23, 2010, ex-policeman Rolando Mendoza hijacked a bus full of tourists from Hong Kong in Manila. A botched Philippines SWAT team rescue after a prolonged standoff resulted in eight tourists killed, including the hijacker Mendoza. Media around the world are now focused on what went wrong. Here is China Daily’s recent report, “Philippine leader vows punishment in bus hijack,” quoting President Benigno Aquino III (who took office only two months ago):
“Someone failed. Someone will pay,” Aquino said during a speech before students and faculty at a suburban university. He called the carnage “ghastly” and admitted there were “many failures.”
In this Op-Ed in China Daily, “FTA pushes ASEAN ties,” an associate professor at the School of International Studies of Nanjing University had these interesting statistics about the trade volume between China and ASEAN countries:
A much-anticipated free trade area (FTA) between China and the regional bloc was formally launched in early 2010, which, with a $4.5 trillion trade volume, ranks as the world’s third largest trade zone. The bilateral trade value in the first half of this year reached $136.5 billion, an increase of 55 percent year on year, and the figure for the full year is expected to total $250 billion.
Wow! This video is just inspiring. It is about Liu Wei, a contestant on “China’s Got Talent.” He is going to play “Marriage D’amour” without hands. He lost his arms at 10 from an accident. I like this take by Lyndsey Parker over at Yahoo Music blogs: “Armless Pianist Liu Wei Defies Odds On ‘China’s Got Talent’.” I will try to not complain about anything in my life in the next 10 days.
I don’t know how I missed this talk from 2008 – when China was demagogued by almost every Western media and press. But the views expressed here I think are on the whole surprisingly balanced and insightful. I hope readers from the West will take time to view this.
(If you are inside China, your may want the same version hosted on Tudou).
This is 张燕 (Zhang Yan) performing “夜来香,” a modern Chinese classic. I can’t quite put my finger on why I think this video is really good – perhaps the confidence projected by 张燕. In English, “夜来香” means “evening primrose,” a flower that opens in the evening. The Chinese characters literally mean “fragrance of the night.” By the backdrop, many of you will recognize this is early 1900′s music – of the same variety in Shanghai nightclubs that time. The microphone is a big give-away. “夜来香” was actually first performed in the 1940′s by Yoshiko Yamaguchi. (Click here for the original.) Read more…
The latest buzz is the expected overtaking of Japan by China as the world’s number two economy some time in 2010. I’ll ignore the more polarizing perspectives from the likes of CNN and the NYT. Here are some decent takes on this “news”: Bloomberg, BBC (video), and Japan Today).
As reported in Xinhua News, I think the most important aspect of this story is really the per capita of $3,600.00 in China vs. the $39,000.00 in Japan. The ratio of real wealth is 1 to 10, and China’s population is actually 10 times bigger than Japan’s. If the world has humanity, it should hope for continued stable development and that China’s per capita GDP catches up to Japan’s $39,000.00. In the article below, Xinhua writers explain why China is not that excited about surpassing Japan as world’s number 2 economy: Read more…
在那遥远的地方 (In That Distant Place) is a very popular folk song written in 1939. Over the years, this song has taken on many forms. Chinese, old or young, all know it. Below is a composition by 马九越 using the pipa, dizi, and erhu instruments.
Occasionally I get asked what are some Chinese values. This is an example, I think. My grandparents, my parents, and people of my generation all know this song well. If you look around China, there is this pattern of cross generational connection. Reaching back and smoothing out the generational gap within society is the value. “In that distant place” in Chinese “New Age” style: Read more…
Media is a tricky business. Regular readers here know that Western media bias is a frequent topic on this blog. Few days ago, Rosa Sow, a community manager at Newsy.com, contacted me to embed an video from her company on my post, “China Daily reports, “Japan apologizes for annexation of Korean Peninsula”.” I refused. I was angry at the Western media, and I didn’t think it was possible another could come out and make “truth” and “fairness” its mission. A conversation ensued. At the end of it, I was mainly impressed by Newsy’s approach to this issue.
Our conversation started with her solicitation (email addresses removed): Read more…
What’s with the recent hoopla surrounding an ASEAN summit where US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton seemed to outline a new US policy in the South China Sea and China angrily denouncing her speech as an “ambush”?
Well, it is just that, a new US policy for the South China Sea, one where US asserts its “interests” in the disputed island territories. Washington Hawks welcomed Clinton’s speech as the beginning salvo against China. China denounced it as the new US backed “Asian NATO” to contain China further.
What’s the truth? Who’s the aggressor? What’s the likely outcome?
Human can accomplish incredible feats. Here is one of a pilot for JAL landing a Boeing 747 in 1998 in extreme crosswind conditions at the Hong Kong Kai Tak airport (source: AIRBOYD). The airport has been closed (obvious reason being the crosswind conditions). The technology to detect the crosswinds, the training that goes into making this kind of maneuvers with such a big plane, and of course, the plane itself are all feats.
Recently, US District Court Judge Vaughn Walker struck down a California voter backed law banning same sex marriage in California. The backlash from the supporters of the ban has been furious. Yet, the judge’s clear reasonings in his judgment cannot be faulted. Critics fault the judge on everything else: the judge’s own homosexuality as his bias, the federal court’s interference into state laws, and the age old cry of “judicial tyranny”.
But what is it really about? The fury of the critics and the judge’s clear reasoning only contrast the real problem with Democracy, that Democracy is irrational ultimately, it is an excuse that justifies itself, and it doesn’t like to be contradicted by facts and laws, nor judged by anything other than mob morality.
I think this is a responsible move on Japan’s part. It is a step forward in reconciliation. Some people argue unless the Japanese take full responsibility for their past atrocities, warming of relations with Japan should not be allowed. That is backwards. I have always said in the past, the warming of relations gives confidence and actually allows both parties to face a difficult past. This is more in tuned with human nature. Of course, this does not mean the past ought to be forgotten.
For the Chinese people, they in fact have shown incredible forbearance. The ultimate lesson of this recent history for us all is to not let it repeat. That should be a goal our generation work towards. If we do not, we are in fact likely sewing the seeds for our future generations to repeat the past. The Chinese government is expanding relations with Japan despite this unresolved history. That is responsible, wise, and admirable. Read more…
Below is the map of U.S. military bases around the world as of 2008 (source: From the Left). Now, if you put your gangster hat on, what do you think you’d do with this much power, especially when you are short on money? It is time to extract protection money! In fact, Japan and other “occupied” countries have been paying “protection money.” Have a read: “Japan, U.S. to hold talks on base-hosting expenses.” In the U.S. media, you’ll start to hear about China and other countries needing to pay protection money for investing in places like Afghanistan. I have always thought countries and gangsters are really not that different.
It is a patriotic song, as the title should make it all apparent – “Dear Chinese People.” I liked this video for its imagery. The majority of the Chinese people are proud and very forward looking for the progress China has made in the last three decades. This video sums up that sentiment rather well. I know this type of videos may not sit well with many Westerners – because their media tells them every day everything is wrong with their society or everyone outside of their national borders are bad. Especially with the global economic crisis, Westerners seem unable to celebrate anymore. (Ok, unless if you are the Spaniards who have just won the World Cup, in which case the party is still going strong.) So, the video offers this contrast. Read more…
Recently, I asked Tsinghua University Professor, Yan Xuetong, “In your view, how could our world shift away from politics that’s dominated by power? Can China’s rise change that?” Previously, I wrote about Professor Yan’s paper, “Tsinghua University Professor, Yan Xuetong: “The Rise of China in Chinese Eyes”,” where he said that the current international relations culture established by the West is dominated by power – where might is right. So I was hoping he’s got an answer to that question.
In response, he said:
No one can gurantee China’s rise will lead the world toward a one based on morality. It only creates a opportunity for the world to change. Morality will become the base for world politics if China provides a leadership of humane authority and power will still be the base if China replace the US with the same hegemonic leadership.
(If you follow Huawei, you will know that it is one of the most innovative companies in China, and it has made substantial inroads around the world for its reliable and cost-effective telecom equipment. Actually, if you talk to some Cisco engineers about Huawei, they will tell you Huawei is incredibly innovative. Huawei may even be more active in international bodies defining standards – yes – even more so than Cisco!)
Abrams writes about the recent Huawei failed attempts at acquiring 3Com, 2Wire, and Motorola’s wireless equipment unit, despite offering $100 million more than the competition. He argues this was “blatantly protectionist.” I couldn’t agree more. The only disagreement I have with his article is his characterizing this blatant protectionist act on the U.S.’s part as “Zen.” It is American insecurity and xenophobia; pure and simple. Everyone in China recognize it as such.
In my opinion, this was really a blessing in disguise for Huawei. Read more…
Growth of wind power in China a key feature of 2009
There are a number of interesting facts about China and the U.S. in the report:
China surpassed the US in 2009 as the country with the greatest investment in clean energy.
New private and public sector investments in core clean energy leapt 53 per cent in China in 2009.
China added 37 gigawatts (GW) of renewable power capacity, more than any other country.
A flurry of recent studies indicates that candidates who simply look more capable or attractive are more likely to win elections. In this article, the authors investigate whether voters‘ snap judgments of appearance travel across cultures and whether they influence elections in new democracies. They show unlabeled, black-and-white pictures of Mexican and Brazilian candidates‘ faces to subjects living in America and India, asking them which candidates would be better elected officials. Despite cultural, ethnic, and racial differences, Americans and Indians agree about which candidates are superficially appealing (correlations ranging from .70 to .87). Moreover, these superficial judgments appear to have a profound influence on Mexican and Brazilian voters, as the American and Indian judgments predict actual election returns with surprising accuracy. These effects, the results also suggest, may depend on the rules of the electoral game, with institutions exacerbating or mitigating the effects of appearance.
Few days ago, I was talking to a friend over lunch, and the topic of modern hero came up. We limited ourselves to identifying three who are alive today. Jackie Chan (成龙) made my short list. Of course, he requires no introduction. In terms of worldwide popularity, I’d put him in the same league as people like Michael Jackson; very few stars can match.
Recently, he co-stared with Will Smith’s son, Jaden Smith, in “the Karate Kid” (see our post, “The Karate Kid – the biggest modern movie co-production thus far between an American studio and China“, by Allen). It’s an excellent movie having already surpassed $220million worldwide (source Box Office Mojo) in it’s 7th week. As relates to China, the film itself and Chan’s performance gave a nuanced view into Chinese culture and Chinese society that is simply rare in Western films. Chan is a Chinese cultural icon, and he is my hero because he can help bridge with those outside China. Read more…
My high school political science teacher said once, that the political spectrum is not linear, but rather circular. If one go far enough toward one extreme, one circle back from the other extreme.
So it is with the polarity of Western Individualism and Eastern Collectivism. Where the West has often maintained a tradition of individualistic accomplishments and thoughts, the weight and size of Western society has forced the evolution of Western Individualism toward Western Collectivism, and the ultimate convergence of both the East and the West toward a singular form of collectivism.
According to a report by the International Energy Agency, China has surpassed the U.S. to become the number 1 consumer of energy. The Wall Street Journal has this report, a copy of which is included:
China has passed the U.S. to become the world’s biggest energy consumer, according to new data from the International Energy Agency, a milestone that reflects both China’s decades-long burst of economic growth and its rapidly expanding clout as an industrial giant.
China’s ascent marks “a new age in the history of energy,” IEA chief economist Fatih Birol said in an interview. The country’s surging appetite has transformed global energy markets and propped up prices of oil and coal in recent years, and its continued growth stands to have long-term implications for U.S. energy security. Read more…
An April 2010 student publication at the Joan Shorenstein Center on the Press, Politics and Public Policy at Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government, “Torture at Times: Waterboarding in the Media” exposed the major U.S. media (New York Times, L.A. Times, USA Today, and The Wall Street Journal) brainwashing the American public on U.S. waterboarding as not torture.
“Google is digitizing the world and expecting the world to conform to Google’s norms and conduct,” said Siva Vaidhyanathan, who teaches media studies and law at the University of Virginia. “That’s a terribly naïve view of privacy and responsibility.” (NYT)
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