Chinalyst - China blogs in English http://www.chinalyst.net Your China Blog Community en Sat, 04 Jul 2009 11:05:07 -0500 Drupal TotalFeeds Module Chinalyst - China blogs in English http://www.chinalyst.net http://www.chinalyst.net/files/chinalyst-red.png 101 32 List of the Month - trivia quiz team names :: Froogville http://froogville.blogspot.com/2009/07/list-of-month-trivia-quiz-team-names.html As I have recounted a number of times before, I have - in my time - been quite an enthusiastic quizzer. I first encountered the pub quiz phenomenon during my teacher training year up in Durham, and played quite often with some of my fellow students at a number of pubs around the town and at my 'local' out in the wilds, The Loves (scene of one of my most salutary experiences in the sport). During my first teaching job, I became a questionmaster/question-writer for our inter-house version of University Challenge. Then, drifting back to Oxford for a few years, I found myself reunited with some university buddies who had never managed to leave the lotus-eating city - JimBob ("The Nags"), The British Cowboy, The Bookseller - and played with them (and, usually, also with Roger The Dodger, the most nerdily formidable quizzer I have ever encountered, a man who used to read things like Whitaker's Almanac and Burke's Peerage for fun in his spare time!) in a number of weekly competitions. In fact, at one point we were playing four times a week: Mondays in the Oxford Union Jazz Cellar, Tuesdays in the big Sam Smith's pub next door to the Union (which is now long defunct and whose name I forget) Wednesdays in the Lamb and Flag on St. Giles (where the convention was that the winning team would act as quizmasters for the following week; rather frustratingly, this meant that we hardly ever got to play against our closest rivals amongst the regular teams there, since we were always setting the questions for each other's victories in alternate weeks), and Thursdays in the Oxfordshire quiz league (in which the standard was, not surprisingly, extremely rarefied - although with The Dodger on our side, we did briefly manage to get promoted to the 1st Division, and had a couple of decent runs in the knockout cup competition), playing for my favourite pub of the time - one of the best pubs ever - The Black Swan. When I first moved to Beijing, I played a number of times in the quiz at the John Bull Pub (which, alas, ceased to exist three or four years ago) with my two disreputable teaching colleagues/drinking buddies, Big Frank and The Chairman ('The Three Amigos'), in which we fairly regularly used to manage to place 1st or 2nd, despite having a team about a third the size of everyone else's - and despite The Chairman being almost completely useless. We got disenchanted with that because of the absence of a cap on the team size; a raucous assembly of Australians, often nearly twenty-strong, began to beat us rather too regularly. After that, I had a bit of a lull in my quizzing. It's only in the past year or so that I have - a mere handful of times - been tempted to revisit my old vice. Anyway, one of the key components of a good night's quiz is a good team name - unique, memorable, amusing, but perhaps based on references so obscure and personal that only the team members will really get it. Over the years, I must have played under dozens, perhaps hundreds of different quiz names (in the early '90s, the Oxford Union used to run occasional 12-hour Quiz Marathons for charity, and in those, we'd usually adopt a different quiz name each hour - but on a related theme, so as not to confuse the poor quizmaster too much; I remember one time The Bookseller and I named ourselves after a succession of Abba lyrics ; their classic grammar-mangle in Fernando has to be my favourite: "Since many years I haven't seen a rifle in your hand"). These are a few of the ones I remember most fondly. The Three Represents [The name The Three Amigos usually used to play under: it's a Chinese political slogan, the key contribution to the evolution of Communist Party doctrine from Jiang Zemin.] Free The Grampus 8! [Grampus 8 was an oddly named Japanese football club which became briefly famous in the UK in the early '90s when national hero Gary Lineker - one of the England team's most prolific strikers ever - chose to join them for the twilight of his career. Many quizzers of the time could not help but be tickled by the reminiscence of famous campaigns on behalf of groups of people unjustly imprisoned - in the UK, the most notorious were two IRA terrorism cases, 'The Guildford Four' and 'The Birmingham Six'.] Pistol Pete's Karisma Klub [For reasons I can't now recall, the British press were somewhat hostile to Pete Sampras at the outset of his career - suggesting that he had no personality, was boring to watch, and that the 'Pistol Pete' nickname deriving from his metronomically consistent big serve was the most interesting thing about him. Of course, within a year or two he would be a national hero - probably the greatest Wimbledon champion ever. My quiz buddies and I were ahead of the curve: we decided to mock the negative coverage and take the young phenomenon to our hearts.] Touch The Monolith [The source of all 'wisdom' in 2001.] The President's Brain Is Missing [The title of a series of skits about poor old Ronald Reagan in the classic latex-rubber puppet satirical show Spitting Image.] 12 Square Monkeys [Terry Gilliam's sci-fi puzzle Twelve Monkeys furnished an irresistibly appropriate name for a group of quizzers assembled from Beijing's smallest bar - 12 Square Metres.] The Nattily Attired Gentlemen Of Colour[Yes, there is a story behind this one too - but I don't think I dare tell it in a public forum. Well, maybe later - in the comments... ] The Rain Dogs [A favourite name during those Oxford Union quizzing days. It is, of course, taken from the title of a great Tom Waits album.] Norfolk & Clew[A provincial estate agents' firm? Or a self-disparaging pun?] The Crafty Homosexual Gangsters [Charles Moore, an affected and rather unworldly journalist who used to edit the amusingly reactionary UK magazine The Spectator, wrote a long and and disparaging review in that magazine of Quentin Tarantino's Reservoir Dogs, in which he labelled Steve Buscemi's 'Mr Pink' character "a crafty homosexual gangster". I thought that was hilarious, and still regularly advocate it as a quiz team name today - even though nobody ever gets the reference. I assume Moore was taking rather too literally mob boss Joe Cabot's throwaway jibe that he has allocated the uncool codename to Buscemi "because you're a fag". There is no suggestion that this is meant in earnest, and no hint anywhere else in the script that this character is gay. I like 'crafty', though: 'Mr Pink' is much the most astute of the hapless gang of robbers.] Any personal favourites you'd like to share? Read this article on the community site
As I have recounted a number of times before, I have - in my time - been quite an enthusiastic quizzer. I first encountered the pub quiz phenomenon during my teacher training year up in Durham, and played quite often with some of my fellow students at a number of pubs around the town and at my 'local' out in the wilds, The Loves (scene of one of my most salutary experiences in the sport). During my first teaching job, I became a questionmaster/question-writer for our inter-house version of University Challenge. Then, drifting back to Oxford for a few years, I found myself reunited with some university buddies who had never managed to leave the lotus-eating city - JimBob ("The Nags"), The British Cowboy, The Bookseller - and played with them (and, usually, also with Roger The Dodger, the most nerdily formidable quizzer I have ever encountered, a man who used to read things like Whitaker's Almanac and Burke's Peerage for fun in his spare time!) in a number of weekly competitions. In fact, at one point we were playing four times a week: Mondays in the Oxford Union Jazz Cellar, Tuesdays in the big Sam Smith's pub next door to the Union (which is now long defunct and whose name I forget) Wednesdays in the Lamb and Flag on St. Giles (where the convention was that the winning team would act as quizmasters for the following week; rather frustratingly, this meant that we hardly ever got to play against our closest rivals amongst the regular teams there, since we were always setting the questions for each other's victories in alternate weeks), and Thursdays in the Oxfordshire quiz league (in which the standard was, not surprisingly, extremely rarefied - although with The Dodger on our side, we did briefly manage to get promoted to the 1st Division, and had a couple of decent runs in the knockout cup competition), playing for my favourite pub of the time - one of the best pubs ever - The Black Swan.

When I first moved to Beijing, I played a number of times in the quiz at the John Bull Pub (which, alas, ceased to exist three or four years ago) with my two disreputable teaching colleagues/drinking buddies, Big Frank and The Chairman ('The Three Amigos'), in which we fairly regularly used to manage to place 1st or 2nd, despite having a team about a third the size of everyone else's - and despite The Chairman being almost completely useless. We got disenchanted with that because of the absence of a cap on the team size; a raucous assembly of Australians, often nearly twenty-strong, began to beat us rather too regularly. After that, I had a bit of a lull in my quizzing. It's only in the past year or so that I have - a mere handful of times - been tempted to revisit my old vice.

Anyway, one of the key components of a good night's quiz is a good team name - unique, memorable, amusing, but perhaps based on references so obscure and personal that only the team members will really get it. Over the years, I must have played under dozens, perhaps hundreds of different quiz names (in the early '90s, the Oxford Union used to run occasional 12-hour Quiz Marathons for charity, and in those, we'd usually adopt a different quiz name each hour - but on a related theme, so as not to confuse the poor quizmaster too much; I remember one time The Bookseller and I named ourselves after a succession of Abba lyrics ; their classic grammar-mangle in Fernando has to be my favourite: "Since many years I haven't seen a rifle in your hand"). These are a few of the ones I remember most fondly.

The Three Represents

[The name The Three Amigos usually used to play under: it's a Chinese political slogan, the key contribution to the evolution of Communist Party doctrine from Jiang Zemin.]

Free The Grampus 8!

[Grampus 8 was an oddly named Japanese football club which became briefly famous in the UK in the early '90s when national hero Gary Lineker - one of the England team's most prolific strikers ever - chose to join them for the twilight of his career. Many quizzers of the time could not help but be tickled by the reminiscence of famous campaigns on behalf of groups of people unjustly imprisoned - in the UK, the most notorious were two IRA terrorism cases, 'The Guildford Four' and 'The Birmingham Six'.]

Pistol Pete's Karisma Klub

[For reasons I can't now recall, the British press were somewhat hostile to Pete Sampras at the outset of his career - suggesting that he had no personality, was boring to watch, and that the 'Pistol Pete' nickname deriving from his metronomically consistent big serve was the most interesting thing about him. Of course, within a year or two he would be a national hero - probably the greatest Wimbledon champion ever. My quiz buddies and I were ahead of the curve: we decided to mock the negative coverage and take the young phenomenon to our hearts.]

Touch The Monolith

[The source of all 'wisdom' in 2001.]

The President's Brain Is Missing

[The title of a series of skits about poor old Ronald Reagan in the classic latex-rubber puppet satirical show Spitting Image.]

12 Square Monkeys

[Terry Gilliam's sci-fi puzzle Twelve Monkeys furnished an irresistibly appropriate name for a group of quizzers assembled from Beijing's smallest bar - 12 Square Metres.]

The Nattily Attired Gentlemen Of Colour
[Yes, there is a story behind this one too - but I don't think I dare tell it in a public forum. Well, maybe later - in the comments... ]

The Rain Dogs

[A favourite name during those Oxford Union quizzing days. It is, of course, taken from the title of a great Tom Waits album.]

Norfolk & Clew
[A provincial estate agents' firm? Or a self-disparaging pun?]

The Crafty Homosexual Gangsters

[Charles Moore, an affected and rather unworldly journalist who used to edit the amusingly reactionary UK magazine The Spectator, wrote a long and and disparaging review in that magazine of Quentin Tarantino's Reservoir Dogs, in which he labelled Steve Buscemi's 'Mr Pink' character "a crafty homosexual gangster". I thought that was hilarious, and still regularly advocate it as a quiz team name today - even though nobody ever gets the reference. I assume Moore was taking rather too literally mob boss Joe Cabot's throwaway jibe that he has allocated the uncool codename to Buscemi "because you're a fag". There is no suggestion that this is meant in earnest, and no hint anywhere else in the script that this character is gay. I like 'crafty', though: 'Mr Pink' is much the most astute of the hapless gang of robbers.]
Any personal favourites you'd like to share?

]]> Sat, 04 Jul 2009 06:58:00 -0500 Froog http://froogville.blogspot.com/2009/07/list-of-month-trivia-quiz-team-names.html Happy 4th July!! :: Round-the-World Barstool Blues http://thebarprop.blogspot.com/2009/07/happy-4th-july.html Felicitations to all of my American readers - and especially to my regular, Gary, who, I recall, is a particular fan of Ms Amy Acuff, the lissom high-jump champion waving the flag above. (Ah, athletic women!) Read this article on the community site


Felicitations to all of my American readers - and especially to my regular, Gary, who, I recall, is a particular fan of Ms Amy Acuff, the lissom high-jump champion waving the flag above. (Ah, athletic women!)

]]> Sat, 04 Jul 2009 06:18:00 -0500 Froog http://thebarprop.blogspot.com/2009/07/happy-4th-july.html Hit Me Again: it’s July’s book giveaway :: The Blacksmith blog http://www.blacksmithbooks.com/blog/?p=407 Has it ever occurred to you that at practically every conference you attend almost all of the speakers are terribly boring? When you yourself made your last presentation did people come up to you afterwards to talk to you? Are you sure you made an impression? The irony is that almost all speakers have probably been advised or trained to present well. They don’t want to bore you. They want to entertain you – but they fail miserably. Why? John Miers, a former nuclear submarine commander and frequent media spokesman for Britain’s Royal Navy, has developed a radically different approach to speaking. It involves teaching people how to use emotional intelligence to engage a crowd, ensuring the message gets across and their words actually have an impact. In his new book Hit Me Again!… I Can Still Hear Him!, John explains his singular approach to business speaking – helping speakers discover how to be less conscious and more natural while communicating. To win one of three free copies, just answer this question: Who did John act as media spokesman for? Answers to pete at blacksmithbooks dot com, Asian postal addresses only. John Miers will be launching his book at Bookazine in Prince’s Building, Central, on July 16th… stay tuned for more details. Read this article on the community site

hitmeagainHas it ever occurred to you that at practically every conference you attend almost all of the speakers are terribly boring?

When you yourself made your last presentation did people come up to you afterwards to talk to you? Are you sure you made an impression?

The irony is that almost all speakers have probably been advised or trained to present well. They don’t want to bore you. They want to entertain you – but they fail miserably. Why?

John Miers, a former nuclear submarine commander and frequent media spokesman for Britain’s Royal Navy, has developed a radically different approach to speaking. It involves teaching people how to use emotional intelligence to engage a crowd, ensuring the message gets across and their words actually have an impact.

In his new book Hit Me Again!… I Can Still Hear Him!, John explains his singular approach to business speaking – helping speakers discover how to be less conscious and more natural while communicating.

To win one of three free copies, just answer this question: Who did John act as media spokesman for? Answers to pete at blacksmithbooks dot com, Asian postal addresses only.

John Miers will be launching his book at Bookazine in Prince’s Building, Central, on July 16th… stay tuned for more details.

]]> Sat, 04 Jul 2009 06:06:00 -0500 blacksmith http://www.blacksmithbooks.com/blog/?p=407 I kisses And Cabled The Great Wall Of China ! :: justmeNus http://justmenus.blogspot.com/2009/07/i-kisses-and-cabled-great-wall-of-china.html Yes, I have to admit I did kiss the Great Wall of China ! Not once but twice. It was in my wish list to visit the Great Wall of China for many years. And I am glad that I finally made it. I did promise my self that if I do reach or step onto this particular wonder of the world, I will give the wall a kiss. And I did !And I would like to thank Mr. Daniel Li the manager from beijing-tour.com for providing me the entire free tour for package A and B. So that solve some of the questions I receive by email why I am promoting beijing-tour.com . But that is not the 'cabled' I mean to the Great Wall.I bought a hiking stick during my previous trip in Hangzhou last February for this purpose. I brought the hiking stick along to the Great Wall but didn't actually has the opportunity to use it due to some reasons. Instead, we took the 'cable car' to reach the 8Th tower. Well, at least I walked 2 towers down and 2 towers up. That is exhausting enough. That's the 'cable' I mean.OK, lets start from the beginning. After the Ming Tombs visit, we proceed to The Badaling Great Wall. We had lunch at the base of the mountains. There were 7 of us. One elderly couple (very strong and energetic to climb the Great Wall) from the US, a younger couple also from the US where the husband is a soldier who just came back from the Somalia and another business couple from the Philippines. Lunch is provided in the tour package which comprises of 8 to 9 Chinese dishes and free flow of drinks.After lunch, we proceed to the cable car station and off we go to the top. As easy as that. Even though the place is crowded, we needn't need to Que for the cable car as they came very fast. We have the option to choose to walk up or to take the cable car. But seeing the lengthy climb with so many people, I think we make the right decision to take the cable car up and down. Anyway tickets for the cable car is not included in the tour package. So we have to buy our own tickets. However, we have a good lady tour guide, Ms Jennifer Tuan who speaks fluent English and doesn't mind handling all these ticketing for us.The view of the Badaling Great Wall is magnificent and beautiful. You just can't stop clicking your camera the moment you are at the base until you reach the 8Th tower. I am so sorry I can't express them in words except by posting more photos. The weather was perfectly fine at that time and there are so many people walking with you. Believe me, every angle of photos you take have it's own beauty. It's wonderful ! No wonder it's declare by the UNESCO as the Seven Wonders of The World.The Great Wall is one place in Beijing that I will re-visit if were to be back there visiting. Perhaps the next time will be on a winter season and we'll walk up. Well, I post more photos down and no more words for your viewing. I'm not good in words but the picture it selves says a thousand and one words.. Have a pleasant evening.. Read this article on the community site

Yes, I have to admit I did kiss the Great Wall of China ! Not once but twice. It was in my wish list to visit the Great Wall of China for many years. And I am glad that I finally made it. I did promise my self that if I do reach or step onto this particular wonder of the world, I will give the wall a kiss. And I did !
And I would like to thank Mr. Daniel Li the manager from beijing-tour.com for providing me the entire free tour for package A and B. So that solve some of the questions I receive by email why I am promoting beijing-tour.com . But that is not the 'cabled' I mean to the Great Wall.
I bought a hiking stick during my previous trip in Hangzhou last February for this purpose. I brought the hiking stick along to the Great Wall but didn't actually has the opportunity to use it due to some reasons. Instead, we took the 'cable car' to reach the 8Th tower. Well, at least I walked 2 towers down and 2 towers up. That is exhausting enough. That's the 'cable' I mean.
OK, lets start from the beginning. After the Ming Tombs visit, we proceed to The Badaling Great Wall. We had lunch at the base of the mountains. There were 7 of us. One elderly couple (very strong and energetic to climb the Great Wall) from the US, a younger couple also from the US where the husband is a soldier who just came back from the Somalia and another business couple from the Philippines. Lunch is provided in the tour package which comprises of 8 to 9 Chinese dishes and free flow of drinks.
After lunch, we proceed to the cable car station and off we go to the top. As easy as that. Even though the place is crowded, we needn't need to Que for the cable car as they came very fast. We have the option to choose to walk up or to take the cable car. But seeing the lengthy climb with so many people, I think we make the right decision to take the cable car up and down. Anyway tickets for the cable car is not included in the tour package. So we have to buy our own tickets. However, we have a good lady tour guide, Ms Jennifer Tuan who speaks fluent English and doesn't mind handling all these ticketing for us.
The view of the Badaling Great Wall is magnificent and beautiful. You just can't stop clicking your camera the moment you are at the base until you reach the 8Th tower. I am so sorry I can't express them in words except by posting more photos. The weather was perfectly fine at that time and there are so many people walking with you. Believe me, every angle of photos you take have it's own beauty. It's wonderful ! No wonder it's declare by the UNESCO as the Seven Wonders of The World.
The Great Wall is one place in Beijing that I will re-visit if were to be back there visiting. Perhaps the next time will be on a winter season and we'll walk up. Well, I post more photos down and no more words for your viewing. I'm not good in words but the picture it selves says a thousand and one words.. Have a pleasant evening..



]]> Sat, 04 Jul 2009 04:31:00 -0500 kbguy http://justmenus.blogspot.com/2009/07/i-kisses-and-cabled-great-wall-of-china.html beijing china great wall travel traveloque Hermit: North Korea’s Enemies spread Ugly Rumors :: Just Recently http://justrecently.wordpress.com/2009/07/04/hermit-north-koreas-enemies-spread-ugly-rumors/ Hello Children,in case that the sabotaging news about North Korea doing something that the Chinese people don’t want them to do has managed to upset you, let me tell you that all the talk about our dear friend Kim Jung-il testing more missiles is an ugly rumor spread by hostile media such as CNN. In [...] Read this article on the community site

Hello Children,in case that the sabotaging news about North Korea doing something that the Chinese people don’t want them to do has managed to upset you, let me tell you that all the talk about our dear friend Kim Jung-il testing more missiles is an ugly rumor spread by hostile media such as CNN. In [...]

]]> Sat, 04 Jul 2009 03:27:00 -0500 justrecently http://justrecently.wordpress.com/2009/07/04/hermit-north-koreas-enemies-spread-ugly-rumors/ america best wishes ccp china cronyism diplomacy hermit Ideology image imperialism intelligence international kim jong-il media military negotiations north korea revolutionary opera weirdos west Interview: Grace Before Meals post-rocking Shanghai :: Shanghaiist http://feeds.gothamistllc.com/click.phdo?i=5ef86e3feff7f44ef3ca2172d6d4e116 Coming to us off a European tour, Australian band Grace Before Meals is set to play at Yu Yin Tang tonight at the Indie China Showcase, along with six other bands from around China. We had a chance to talk to frontman Vic McEwan in between his band's crazy rehearsal schedule: Post-rock Ozzie band Grace Before Meals is playing tonight at Yu Yin Tang, along with a host of great Chinese indie bands for an Indie China Showcase. Where: Yu Yin Tang 1731 Yan'an Xi Lu (entrance on Kaixuan Lu), 延安西路1731号Starts: Saturday, July 4, Showcase starts at 9pmCover: 50RMBFor more local events, visit the Shanghaiist Calendar. How did the band come about? The band started as a solo recording project by me. As the recording was completed I realized that I wanted to play these songs live but didn't want to plat under a solo name such as Vic McEwan, so The name Grace Before Meals was born. I started practicing these songs with my girlfriend at the time Sarah Moor. She is a drummer and also plays piano. We organized to play a show together and realized that it would be nice to have some strings and of course needed some bass guitar to round out the sounds we had recorded. I had played in a band called Box Freezer Romance with Amelia Reid for some time so asked to come and play at our first show. Another friend Fiona Berry, was a viola player and so we asked her to join us and play. After a few rehearsals and a gig we realized we really liked playing together, and somehow it just felt very easy. Another friend from Box Freezer Romance, Penny McBride also had some rehearsals with us. She was busy for our first couple of shows but continues to play with us and is on tour with us here in China. Fiona Berry, the viola player, wasn't able to travel at this time so our line up for these shows is piano, percussion, xylophone, bass and trumpet. Mostly the people in this band came together because they are all so lovely to spend time with. And Sarah Moor and I got married the day before we left on this 3 months European and China tour. So this is really our Honeymoon Tour. Why the name Grace Before Meals? Grace Before Meals was simply a name that I had had in my head for maybe ten years and thought a band would be good with that name. To me the name isn't about anything religious but about a moment of quite contemplation and thanks for the good things around you. Maybe these songs are the sound track to that moment of quiet contemplation before people engage with the FRENZY of life. Your first show was in 2008- what's it like to be playing a worldish tour already a year later? We have all played in other bands all our lives, and still do play in other bands. Organizing a world tour so quickly is a great way to utilize the fresh energy that we have together. We all have a lot of energy for this band, not just for the playing music side of it but for the organizing part and for creating different experiences, whether they are musical, cultural or whatever. This band is full of people who have all had interesting life experiences and love to explore and to look into the cracks to find the undiscovered beauties. How do you factor instruments like a viola and clarinet into a band? The viola is such a beautiful instrument and under utilized in what is loosely termed "rock music". To me it is like adding a lace collar or a beautiful antique necklace to an outfit; it has such a haunting, beautiful, sad and uplifting tone, all at the same time. How could we have anything other that a viola? The clarinet is an instrument I have been playing for only a few years. It doesn't feature in our live show much because I am playing piano, but there are plans to have some songs that are based on the clarinet in our live set. These songs are being explored in rehearsals at the moment. Now the question every band hates: How would you describe your music? I would describe our music as beautiful and creepy creepy music, that sounds a bit like a haunted house. I think at the same time our sound manages to feel beautiful, like the first stages of love, and sometimes fearful, like you're a tiny child lost in a crowded market place and all you can see is the legs of tall adults and the deafening drill of human chitter chatter and endeavor. Complete loss with no plan of action for escape. What do you know/think about the Chinese bands you'll be playing with at Yu Yin Tang? We don't know much about the line up for the show at YYT. The person who has organized this show for us seems to be involved in some interested music from China so we are excited to play with some current underground players in this country. We are looking forward to seeing and hearing what is happening here. What next after China? We have many plans! When we get home to Australia on the 22nd of July, myself and Sarah will be traveling to Townsville in Northern Australia where we will be installing a sound installation along the foreshore of Townsville. This will be exhibited for a month as part of an outdoor sculpture festival. Before that we have our double EP launch in Sydney, then in October we travel to Melbourne for a launch and also play a show in the middle of the country in a dried out river. This will be part of a theatre show about water and the current drought in Australia that turns water into a precious commodity like gold. The show is called Gold. Four days after we get home to Sydney, we have our first show there as part of a ten month program of shows/exhibitions that are being funded by the Arts Council of The Australian Governement. It is a very exciting opportunity for us to be given some support to showcase some underground music and art from Australia. Ideally we would love to bring out a Chinese band or two to showcase as part of this series of shows. Next year we plan on touring Europe and China again and hopefully to spend one month together in Frankfurt, Germany making a theatre performance together. What are you expecting from your show on Saturday? On Saturday we hope to experience a real part of Chinese underground culture. Hopefully we will get to give and receive at this gig. I think there are some interesting angles being explored in this band that aren't very common in typical rock music, so we are looking forward to sharing that and to sharing in a real experience of Chinese underground music. We hope to learn from every little part of it. Read this article on the community site

gracebeforemeals-1.jpg Coming to us off a European tour, Australian band Grace Before Meals is set to play at Yu Yin Tang tonight at the Indie China Showcase, along with six other bands from around China.

We had a chance to talk to frontman Vic McEwan in between his band's crazy rehearsal schedule:


Post-rock Ozzie band Grace Before Meals is playing tonight at Yu Yin Tang, along with a host of great Chinese indie bands for an Indie China Showcase.
Where: Yu Yin Tang 1731 Yan'an Xi Lu (entrance on Kaixuan Lu), 延安西路1731号
Starts: Saturday, July 4, Showcase starts at 9pm
Cover: 50RMB
For more local events, visit the Shanghaiist Calendar.

How did the band come about?

The band started as a solo recording project by me. As the recording was completed I realized that I wanted to play these songs live but didn't want to plat under a solo name such as Vic McEwan, so The name Grace Before Meals was born.

I started practicing these songs with my girlfriend at the time Sarah Moor. She is a drummer and also plays piano. We organized to play a show together and realized that it would be nice to have some strings and of course needed some bass guitar to round out the sounds we had recorded. I had played in a band called Box Freezer Romance with Amelia Reid for some time so asked to come and play at our first show. Another friend Fiona Berry, was a viola player and so we asked her to join us and play. After a few rehearsals and a gig we realized we really liked playing together, and somehow it just felt very easy.

Another friend from Box Freezer Romance, Penny McBride also had some rehearsals with us. She was busy for our first couple of shows but continues to play with us and is on tour with us here in China. Fiona Berry, the viola player, wasn't able to travel at this time so our line up for these shows is piano, percussion, xylophone, bass and trumpet.

Mostly the people in this band came together because they are all so lovely to spend time with. And Sarah Moor and I got married the day before we left on this 3 months European and China tour. So this is really our Honeymoon Tour.

Why the name Grace Before Meals?

Grace Before Meals was simply a name that I had had in my head for maybe ten years and thought a band would be good with that name. To me the name isn't about anything religious but about a moment of quite contemplation and thanks for the good things around you. Maybe these songs are the sound track to that moment of quiet contemplation before people engage with the FRENZY of life.

Your first show was in 2008- what's it like to be playing a worldish tour already a year later?

We have all played in other bands all our lives, and still do play in other bands. Organizing a world tour so quickly is a great way to utilize the fresh energy that we have together. We all have a lot of energy for this band, not just for the playing music side of it but for the organizing part and for creating different experiences, whether they are musical, cultural or whatever. This band is full of people who have all had interesting life experiences and love to explore and to look into the cracks to find the undiscovered beauties.

How do you factor instruments like a viola and clarinet into a band?

The viola is such a beautiful instrument and under utilized in what is loosely termed "rock music". To me it is like adding a lace collar or a beautiful antique necklace to an outfit; it has such a haunting, beautiful, sad and uplifting tone, all at the same time. How could we have anything other that a viola?

The clarinet is an instrument I have been playing for only a few years. It doesn't feature in our live show much because I am playing piano, but there are plans to have some songs that are based on the clarinet in our live set. These songs are being explored in rehearsals at the moment.

Now the question every band hates: How would you describe your music?

I would describe our music as beautiful and creepy creepy music, that sounds a bit like a haunted house. I think at the same time our sound manages to feel beautiful, like the first stages of love, and sometimes fearful, like you're a tiny child lost in a crowded market place and all you can see is the legs of tall adults and the deafening drill of human chitter chatter and endeavor. Complete loss with no plan of action for escape.

What do you know/think about the Chinese bands you'll be playing with at Yu Yin Tang?

We don't know much about the line up for the show at YYT. The person who has organized this show for us seems to be involved in some interested music from China so we are excited to play with some current underground players in this country. We are looking forward to seeing and hearing what is happening here.

What next after China?

We have many plans! When we get home to Australia on the 22nd of July, myself and Sarah will be traveling to Townsville in Northern Australia where we will be installing a sound installation along the foreshore of Townsville. This will be exhibited for a month as part of an outdoor sculpture festival.

Before that we have our double EP launch in Sydney, then in October we travel to Melbourne for a launch and also play a show in the middle of the country in a dried out river. This will be part of a theatre show about water and the current drought in Australia that turns water into a precious commodity like gold. The show is called Gold.

Four days after we get home to Sydney, we have our first show there as part of a ten month program of shows/exhibitions that are being funded by the Arts Council of The Australian Governement. It is a very exciting opportunity for us to be given some support to showcase some underground music and art from Australia. Ideally we would love to bring out a Chinese band or two to showcase as part of this series of shows.

Next year we plan on touring Europe and China again and hopefully to spend one month together in Frankfurt, Germany making a theatre performance together.

What are you expecting from your show on Saturday?

On Saturday we hope to experience a real part of Chinese underground culture. Hopefully we will get to give and receive at this gig. I think there are some interesting angles being explored in this band that aren't very common in typical rock music, so we are looking forward to sharing that and to sharing in a real experience of Chinese underground music. We hope to learn from every little part of it.



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]]> Sat, 04 Jul 2009 02:00:00 -0500 shanghaiist http://feeds.gothamistllc.com/click.phdo?i=5ef86e3feff7f44ef3ca2172d6d4e116 arts/entertainment Rising Damp :: Liuzhou Laowai http://liuzhou.blog-city.com/rising_damp.htm It's a bit damp round these parts. Leave Comment Related Entries: They're Flagging Blast! Stubborn Buns - Updated Filthy Scum Random Photograph No. 14 Living in the Past Watersports Festival Urgent Warning Updated Chaos Three Way Road Read this article on the community site

It's a bit damp round these parts.

Leave Comment

Related Entries:

]]> Sat, 04 Jul 2009 01:42:00 -0500 liuzhou http://liuzhou.blog-city.com/rising_damp.htm Guangxi guilin li river Liuzhou yangshuo Win a VIP Card to 1949: The Forbidden City :: The Beijinger Blog http://www.thebeijinger.com/blog/2009/07/04/Win-a-VIP-Card-to-1949-The-Forbidden-City Tucked away behind Pacific Century Place just off Sanlitun, in what used to be the research facility for the Beijing Machinery and Electric Institute, is now 1949, a neo-industrial factory-chic dining and entertainment compound. Behind the brick walls lays a quaint courtyard-like commune, which features indoor and outdoor restaurants, cafs, bars, gardens, terraces, a private members' club, and a contemporary art gallery. The restaurants each serve a distinct style of cuisine. read more Read this article on the community site


Tucked away behind Pacific Century Place just off Sanlitun, in what used to be the research facility for the Beijing Machinery and Electric Institute, is now 1949, a neo-industrial factory-chic dining and entertainment compound. Behind the brick walls lays a quaint courtyard-like commune, which features indoor and outdoor restaurants, cafés, bars, gardens, terraces, a private members' club, and a contemporary art gallery. The restaurants each serve a distinct style of cuisine.

read more

]]> Sat, 04 Jul 2009 01:00:00 -0500 thebeijinger http://www.thebeijinger.com/blog/2009/07/04/Win-a-VIP-Card-to-1949-The-Forbidden-City dining jennifer ying lan nightlife things you should know A big THANKS to all our Independence Day Party sponsors :: Shanghaiist http://feeds.gothamistllc.com/click.phdo?i=2940261bef287c3d74f5864cd8e5ef53 Read this article on the community site

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]]> Sat, 04 Jul 2009 00:00:00 -0500 shanghaiist http://feeds.gothamistllc.com/click.phdo?i=2940261bef287c3d74f5864cd8e5ef53 arts/entertainment Polaroid Lives! :: The Beijinger Blog http://www.thebeijinger.com/blog/2009/07/04/Polaroid-Lives So you thought the Polaroid was dead? Apparently not. Platform China in Caochangdi, which prides itself on promoting the new and the emerging, have made the humble medium the focus of its current group show, running till July 19. The curator, Qiu Xiaofei, is intrigued by the Polaroid’s uniqueness within photography, that once the image appears it becomes the only possible copy. Inevitably a Polaroid will look over-exposed or much too dark, but there is nothing you can do. This sets the Polaroid entirely apart from the work of a digital camera, or one developed in a darkroom, and gives it its own plucky integrity. A Polaroid is always simply itself. read more Read this article on the community site

So you thought the Polaroid was dead? Apparently not.

Platform China in Caochangdi, which prides itself on promoting the new and the emerging, have made the humble medium the focus of its current group show, running till July 19.

The curator, Qiu Xiaofei, is intrigued by the Polaroid’s uniqueness within photography, that once the image appears it becomes the only possible copy. Inevitably a Polaroid will look over-exposed or much too dark, but there is nothing you can do. This sets the Polaroid entirely apart from the work of a digital camera, or one developed in a darkroom, and gives it its own plucky integrity. A Polaroid is always simply itself.

read more

]]> Sat, 04 Jul 2009 00:00:00 -0500 thebeijinger http://www.thebeijinger.com/blog/2009/07/04/Polaroid-Lives art madeleine o'dea The Little Bugger was up at five a.m.! :: Andis Kaulins in China http://andiskaulinsinchina.blogspot.com/2009/07/little-bugger-was-up-at-five-am.html Tony annoyed his parents this morning by deciding to get up and make demands of his parents at an ungodly hour.  Now, my recollection of the events of this morning will seem a little confused and disjointed because I dozed off a few times.  But I definitely recall Tony getting up at five a.m. and going to the living room.  He may well have pulled me by the hand, at the time, to get me out of bed.  It may also have been later, but drag me out of bed he did.  He took me to the kitchen to make formula.  At about six a.m., he turned on the TV and DVD player.  He demanded that I change the DVD for him.  In the bathroom, he watched as I shaved and washed my face.  He then got on a stool so he could reach the tap of the basin.  He turned on the basin and soaked his hands.  It is nice that he likes to wash his hands.  However, he likes to let the water run a long time.  Telling him to desist results in him having a tantrum - not something I have the patience to deal with when woken early.  He also insisted that I get him something from the fridge and from a kitchen cupboard.  Not having any idea what he wanted, he really earned my goat by refusing rather forcefully with his hand what I thought he wanted.   The little bugger!  Hopefully, he goes to bed early tonight as compensation.   Early to bed; early to rise.  Hopefully, Tony will end up wealthy and wise with these habits. Read this article on the community site
Tony annoyed his parents this morning by deciding to get up and make demands of his parents at an ungodly hour.  Now, my recollection of the events of this morning will seem a little confused and disjointed because I dozed off a few times.  But I definitely recall Tony getting up at five a.m. and going to the living room.  He may well have pulled me by the hand, at the time, to get me out of bed.  It may also have been later, but drag me out of bed he did.  He took me to the kitchen to make formula.  At about six a.m., he turned on the TV and DVD player.  He demanded that I change the DVD for him.  In the bathroom, he watched as I shaved and washed my face.  He then got on a stool so he could reach the tap of the basin.  He turned on the basin and soaked his hands.  It is nice that he likes to wash his hands.  However, he likes to let the water run a long time.  Telling him to desist results in him having a tantrum - not something I have the patience to deal with when woken early.  He also insisted that I get him something from the fridge and from a kitchen cupboard.  Not having any idea what he wanted, he really earned my goat by refusing rather forcefully with his hand what I thought he wanted.
 
The little bugger!  Hopefully, he goes to bed early tonight as compensation.
 
Early to bed; early to rise.  Hopefully, Tony will end up wealthy and wise with these habits.
]]> Fri, 03 Jul 2009 23:24:00 -0500 wuxiandis http://andiskaulinsinchina.blogspot.com/2009/07/little-bugger-was-up-at-five-am.html Friday in sh :: Shopgirl's Shanghai http://www.metrobloggen.se/jsp/public/permalink.jsp?article=19.10406475 Went to Cantina Agave, then Club 88 next door. Club 88 is absolutely crazy!!! A totally different way of clubbing. There are live performances, dancing shows, etc. Music like Backstreet Boys are being played and people go really crazy. Mix of locals and foreigners. A really cool club!! I met a blog reader at Cantina, Peijin from Shanghaiist :-) Nice to meet you! Read this article on the community site

Went to Cantina Agave, then Club 88 next door. Club 88 is absolutely crazy!!! A totally different way of clubbing. There are live performances, dancing shows, etc. Music like Backstreet Boys are being played and people go really crazy. Mix of locals and foreigners. A really cool club!! I met a blog reader at Cantina, Peijin from Shanghaiist :-) Nice to meet you!

]]> Fri, 03 Jul 2009 22:16:00 -0500 Siyan http://www.metrobloggen.se/jsp/public/permalink.jsp?article=19.10406475 Announcement: There is no interspecies sex on this blog :: Black and White Cat http://www.blackandwhitecat.org/2009/07/04/announcement-there-is-no-interspecies-sex-on-this-blog/ It’s always nice to see that people have arrived at my blog via a Google search and, though they may not agree with what they read here, the content is at least relevant to their queries. It’s not so encouraging to see so many people coming here on a fruitless quest for “black on white sex,” “girls with cocks” or some combination of the two. Less encouraging still is the frequently bizarre spelling of these words. And it’s downright disturbing to see how many people want “sex with cats.” Read this article on the community site

It’s always nice to see that people have arrived at my blog via a Google search and, though they may not agree with what they read here, the content is at least relevant to their queries. It’s not so encouraging to see so many people coming here on a fruitless quest for “black on white sex,” “girls with cocks” or some combination of the two. Less encouraging still is the frequently bizarre spelling of these words. And it’s downright disturbing to see how many people want “sex with cats.”

]]> Fri, 03 Jul 2009 21:36:00 -0500 Black and White Cat http://www.blackandwhitecat.org/2009/07/04/announcement-there-is-no-interspecies-sex-on-this-blog/ uncategorized Movies, Shakers and Ice Cream Makers :: The Beijinger Blog http://www.thebeijinger.com/blog/2009/07/04/Movies-Shakers-and-Ice-Cream-Makers The hottest thing about Sharon Stone’s character in Basic Instinct wasn’t her lack of panties – it was her ice picks. Here are ours: A new branch of Gustomenta, the Italian gelato chain, is moving into the space soon to be vacated by April Gourmet on Xingfuxun Zhonglu (the strip running parallel north of Gongti in Sanlitun). April Gourmet is shuffling across the street into smart new digs. Nearby on Xindong Lu, there’s more frigid fun to be had with the arrival of Swensen’s, an ice cream chain accompanied by sister restaurant Prima Taste Kitchen. Both Singaporean-run neighbors occupy the spot previously belonging to tapas joint Mare. Across town in Nanluogu Xiang, another new gelato joint - Mr and Mrs - has commenced trading. You can find the happy couple about halfway down the street on the west side. read more Read this article on the community site

The hottest thing about Sharon Stone’s character in Basic Instinct wasn’t her lack of panties – it was her ice picks. Here are ours:

A new branch of Gustomenta, the Italian gelato chain, is moving into the space soon to be vacated by April Gourmet on Xingfuxun Zhonglu (the strip running parallel north of Gongti in Sanlitun). April Gourmet is shuffling across the street into smart new digs.

Nearby on Xindong Lu, there’s more frigid fun to be had with the arrival of Swensen’s, an ice cream chain accompanied by sister restaurant Prima Taste Kitchen. Both Singaporean-run neighbors occupy the spot previously belonging to tapas joint Mare.

Across town in Nanluogu Xiang, another new gelato joint - Mr and Mrs - has commenced trading. You can find the happy couple about halfway down the street on the west side.

read more

]]> Fri, 03 Jul 2009 21:00:00 -0500 thebeijinger http://www.thebeijinger.com/blog/2009/07/04/Movies-Shakers-and-Ice-Cream-Makers openings and closings restaurants tom o'malley Happy Fourth of July America! :: Andis Kaulins in China http://andiskaulinsinchina.blogspot.com/2009/07/happy-fourth-of-july-america.html If the critics of America were even half as good as the country they love to verbally assault, there might be some credence in what is otherwise nothing but vile-hatefulness akin to anti-semitism, another disease of the mind.   Americans are great people because of their optimism, their independent spirit, their willingness to face problems, and work.   America!  Don't lost your mojo!  More than ever, it is needed!   Read this article on the community site
If the critics of America were even half as good as the country they love to verbally assault, there might be some credence in what is otherwise nothing but vile-hatefulness akin to anti-semitism, another disease of the mind.
 
Americans are great people because of their optimism, their independent spirit, their willingness to face problems, and work.
 
America!  Don't lost your mojo!  More than ever, it is needed!
 
]]> Fri, 03 Jul 2009 18:43:00 -0500 wuxiandis http://andiskaulinsinchina.blogspot.com/2009/07/happy-fourth-of-july-america.html Free Mobile Marketing Supplement in The Times :: MOBIZ http://mobchina.blogspot.com/2009/07/free-mobile-marketing-supplement-in.html Check out and enjoy this nice-shiny 16-page supplement on mobile marketing here. It’s been produced by Raconteur Media, and Mobile Marketing Mag Editor David Murphy who has been closely involved as an editorial consultant on the project, writing a couple of pieces, advising on content, and generally trying to make the thing as useful as possible to anyone picking it up who can’t quite get their head around what mobile marketing is. Read this article on the community site

Check out and enjoy this nice-shiny 16-page supplement on mobile marketing here. It’s been produced by Raconteur Media, and Mobile Marketing Mag Editor David Murphy who has been closely involved as an editorial consultant on the project, writing a couple of pieces, advising on content, and generally trying to make the thing as useful as possible to anyone picking it up who can’t quite get their head around what mobile marketing is.

]]> Fri, 03 Jul 2009 18:23:00 -0500 alvinfoo http://mobchina.blogspot.com/2009/07/free-mobile-marketing-supplement-in.html Wuxi Tony Update #360: Dominion Day #3 :: Andis Kaulins in China http://andiskaulinsinchina.blogspot.com/2009/07/wuxi-tony-update-360-dominion-day-3.html Happy America Day! I should say firstly. This video was taken in the countryside near our apartment on Dominion Day. Read this article on the community site


Happy America Day! I should say firstly.

This video was taken in the countryside near our apartment on Dominion Day.

]]> Fri, 03 Jul 2009 18:11:00 -0500 wuxiandis http://andiskaulinsinchina.blogspot.com/2009/07/wuxi-tony-update-360-dominion-day-3.html It’s Not China’s Healthcare Emergency, it’s a Global 911 :: Aimee Barnes http://www.aimeebarnes.com/blog/?p=591 I’ve succumbed to a temporary physical meltdown, beginning with one issue (in the spirit of TMI, an ulcer) which landed me in two different New York City hospitals. The symptoms of the ulcer have since been compounded by a virus resembling the flu, which I likely picked up in the emergency ward at the first hospital, [...] Read this article on the community site

I’ve succumbed to a temporary physical meltdown, beginning with one issue (in the spirit of TMI, an ulcer) which landed me in two different New York City hospitals. The symptoms of the ulcer have since been compounded by a virus resembling the flu, which I likely picked up in the emergency ward at the first hospital, [...]

]]> Fri, 03 Jul 2009 17:50:00 -0500 aimeebarnes http://www.aimeebarnes.com/blog/?p=591 business china development health healthcare insurance surgery swine flu u.s. All of our trolls are required to meet the highest standards of evil! :: Under the Jacaranda Tree http://underthejacaranda.wordpress.com/2009/07/03/all-of-our-trolls-are-required-to-meet-the-highest-standards-of-evil/ Recently we have banned some trolls from our blog.The reason why we banned them, was because they were so boring.    Our standard is to ban any and all trolls who are not as interesting as Cthulhu.   Because Catherine and I will never settle for a lesser evil!Posted in Ned Kelly's Pub Tagged: Cthulhu [...] Read this article on the community site

Recently we have banned some trolls from our blog.The reason why we banned them, was because they were so boring.    Our standard is to ban any and all trolls who are not as interesting as Cthulhu.   Because Catherine and I will never settle for a lesser evil!Posted in Ned Kelly's Pub Tagged: Cthulhu [...]

]]> Fri, 03 Jul 2009 15:16:00 -0500 underthejacaranda http://underthejacaranda.wordpress.com/2009/07/03/all-of-our-trolls-are-required-to-meet-the-highest-standards-of-evil/ ned kelly's pub Deer blends brighter future :: Engaging China http://www.engagingchina.com/blog/_archives/2009/7/3/4244017.html Deer Consumer Products, a Chinese manufacturer of kitchen appliances, may not yet be a household name. But Deer has big ambitions, prestigious contracts with the likes of Wal-Mart and Tesco and plans for a Nasdaq listing... Read this article on the community site

Deer Consumer Products, a Chinese manufacturer of kitchen appliances, may not yet be a household name. But Deer has big ambitions, prestigious contracts with the likes of Wal-Mart and Tesco and plans for a Nasdaq listing...

]]> Fri, 03 Jul 2009 12:35:00 -0500 engagingchina http://www.engagingchina.com/blog/_archives/2009/7/3/4244017.html manufacturing strategy Yuyuan Gardens :: Style Shanghai http://styleshanghai.blogspot.com/2009/07/yuyuan-gardens.html Location: Yuyuan Gardens, Shanghai ChinaHow to Get There: Bus 945 Shanghai Tan Mall (the trims market) Read this article on the community site

Location: Yuyuan Gardens, Shanghai ChinaHow to Get There: Bus 945 Shanghai Tan Mall (the trims market)

]]> Fri, 03 Jul 2009 12:11:00 -0500 mahreez http://styleshanghai.blogspot.com/2009/07/yuyuan-gardens.html Win in China: Driving Entrepreurialism in China. :: All Roads Lead To China http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/AllRoadsLeadToChina/~3/JI41HPorJOU/ Whether it is the entrepreneurs of Wenzhou who have developed the informal lending circles, those returning from Silicon Valley, your local delivery man who represents 6 delivery companies or the freshly minted grads who are receiving government aid, China breadth of entrepreneurial ventures is wide. Some of China’s biggest celebrities (Jack Ma) are in fact entrepreneurs, so big in fact that they warranted their own reality  TV compeition (CCTV’s Win In China) and their own documentary Win In China. Recently released, the documentary is an interesting behind the scenes look on the show, and the wider entrepreneur phenomenon, to capture the fascination behind entrepreneurs by looking through its judges (Jack Ma) as they have attained a hero status in China…. and what some will take to make it there.  The core competition is structured my like that of Trump’s Apprentice in so far as contestants are tested on their ability to work in teams, think on their feet, and succeed at a task, however, unlike Trumps version where it is a pool of elite MBAs, this show runs the gamete of single mothers/ grandmothers, successful manufacturer, recent MBA, returning Chinese, and so on. Additionally, the show adds a final 1-on-1  self criticism/ debate that becomes the climax of each show, a segment that leads into the final judging by Jack Ma and his team to decide the fate of one member over the other. On a wider level, what I find interesting about this show is not so much the competition, or who won (the good guy won), but the range of character that was displayed by the contestants, and the flexibility that the game offered contestants as they proceeded. You had some members who were really trying hard to proceed with a moral compas in hand.  Their goal was to develop a product/ service that was truly the best, without cutting corners.  While others clearly were happy to trade their moral compass, and push the lines of sexual harrasement, to gain the edge. Equally interesting, perhaps more so, was the fact that when one member (The Wolf) was called out for repeatedly working outside the confines of the rules, he trumped with “I was not educated in school.  I had to work doubly hard for my success”..and received a standing ovation. A very interesting insight. As I mentioned, in the end the “good” guy won the battle that was Win In China, but the update from the producer showed that in reality that had little bearing on who the war: The winner of the competition, Song Wenming, started his business; it is going slower than he expected. The second place winner - Zhou Yu – “The Wolf” - has rapidly expanded his plants and is growing his business quickly Read this article on the community site

Win in China

Whether it is the entrepreneurs of Wenzhou who have developed the informal lending circles, those returning from Silicon Valley, your local delivery man who represents 6 delivery companies or the freshly minted grads who are receiving government aid, China breadth of entrepreneurial ventures is wide.

Some of China’s biggest celebrities (Jack Ma) are in fact entrepreneurs, so big in fact that they warranted their own reality  TV compeition (CCTV’s Win In China) and their own documentary Win In China.

Recently released, the documentary is an interesting behind the scenes look on the show, and the wider entrepreneur phenomenon, to capture the fascination behind entrepreneurs by looking through its judges (Jack Ma) as they have attained a hero status in China…. and what some will take to make it there.  The core competition is structured my like that of Trump’s Apprentice in so far as contestants are tested on their ability to work in teams, think on their feet, and succeed at a task, however, unlike Trumps version where it is a pool of elite MBAs, this show runs the gamete of single mothers/ grandmothers, successful manufacturer, recent MBA, returning Chinese, and so on. Additionally, the show adds a final 1-on-1  self criticism/ debate that becomes the climax of each show, a segment that leads into the final judging by Jack Ma and his team to decide the fate of one member over the other.

On a wider level, what I find interesting about this show is not so much the competition, or who won (the good guy won), but the range of character that was displayed by the contestants, and the flexibility that the game offered contestants as they proceeded. You had some members who were really trying hard to proceed with a moral compas in hand.  Their goal was to develop a product/ service that was truly the best, without cutting corners.  While others clearly were happy to trade their moral compass, and push the lines of sexual harrasement, to gain the edge.

Equally interesting, perhaps more so, was the fact that when one member (The Wolf) was called out for repeatedly working outside the confines of the rules, he trumped with “I was not educated in school.  I had to work doubly hard for my success”..and received a standing ovation. A very interesting insight.

As I mentioned, in the end the “good” guy won the battle that was Win In China, but the update from the producer showed that in reality that had little bearing on who the war:

The winner of the competition, Song Wenming, started his business; it is going slower than he expected. The second place winner - Zhou Yu – “The Wolf” - has rapidly expanded his plants and is growing his business quickly

]]> Fri, 03 Jul 2009 11:52:00 -0500 All Roads Lead To China http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/AllRoadsLeadToChina/~3/JI41HPorJOU/ entrepreneur the big picture uncategorized China gets green Pepsi :: Engaging China http://www.engagingchina.com/blog/_archives/2009/7/3/4243932.html PepsiCo has opened China's first "green" beverage plant in Chongqing and reiterated plans to invest $1 billion in the country. The drinks giant says this is the first plant in the industrial centre of Chongqing to comply with LEED, a US standard for green buildings... Read this article on the community site

PepsiCo has opened China's first "green" beverage plant in Chongqing and reiterated plans to invest $1 billion in the country. The drinks giant says this is the first plant in the industrial centre of Chongqing to comply with LEED, a US standard for green buildings...

]]> Fri, 03 Jul 2009 11:35:00 -0500 engagingchina http://www.engagingchina.com/blog/_archives/2009/7/3/4243932.html consumer environment Pathways to a low-carbon future :: China Dialogue http://www.chinadialogue.net/article/show/single/en/3139 China has a number of potential sustainable development paths, but none of them will be easy to achieve. This is the conclusion of a recent report by Wang Tao and Jim Watson, which develops a set of low-carbon scenarios to 2100. China's continuous economic growth over the past 30 years has significantly improved the living standards of many of its citizens. The Chinese government claims that 400 million people were lifted out of poverty between 1980 and 2000, and GDP per capita has increased five times since 1981. Alongside economic expansion, China has also experienced a large increase in energy demand, especially after its economy moved into a stage of heavy industrialisation and urbanisation early this century. This dramatic increase in energy demand, most of which is met by the use of coal, meant that China became the world’s largest carbon dioxide (CO2) emitter in 2006. China’s recent energy demand growth has also led to concerns about energy supply, local and regional environmental pollution and social stability. China’s participation is a key to the success of a post-2012 international climate framework. However, such a framework must incorporate the development needs of China and other developing countries. This raises a fundamental question: can China develop within the tight global carbon emissions constraints that climate science now says are necessary? The Tyndall Centre’s recent research on China’s low carbon development paths has explored this question, and the results are summarised in a new report: China’s Energy Transition. The report investigates the potential trajectories of carbon emissions that China could follow to achieve a given global climate change target. The report investigates in detail how these emission trajectories could be achieved, through changes in China’s economy and society, and the policies and technologies that shape the country’s energy system. The target for China used in the report is a cumulative emissions budget over the twenty-first century. This is derived from a global target of stabilising the atmospheric concentration of CO2 at 450 parts per million (ppm). According to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s (IPCC’s) latest assessment, achieving this target would mean that the world has a significant chance of avoiding some of the worst impacts of climate change. The total global budget is 490 gigatonnes of carbon (GtC) over the twenty-first century. The report analyses four scenarios that are based on two different apportionment approaches for global emissions: namely equal emissions per capita and equal emissions intensity of GDP. Within this, China is given a cumulative emission budget ranging from 70 GtC under the former approach, to 111 GtC under the latter. These approaches were just used to provide an illustrative range for China’s potential cumulative emissions under a given global target rather than argue for legitimate carbon emission share for China. Combined with different medium-term carbon emissions pathways, these budgets imply that China would reach a peak in its emissions between 2020 and 2030, followed by a decline. The four scenarios for China with their different emissions trajectories are shown in Figure 1 (labelled S1, S2, S3 and S4). Figure 1: Carbon emissions in China: historic data, projections and Tyndall scenarios The four scenarios analysed in the report are distinctive from each other, but in general are divided by their relative positions on two critical issues: promoting innovation, and the approach to social inequality. This report is not intended to be prescriptive about which of these budgets – or the many alternative pathways – China should follow. The scenarios are designed to illustrate some of the possibilities, and what the consequences of these might be for investment, economic structure and policy if they were followed. The research does not reach a firm conclusion on which scenario is the most desirable. Within the scenarios, the Chinese economy in 2050 grows to between 8 and 13 times larger than that of today (see Figure 2). The economy in every scenario is dominated by the service sector, as is the case in most of today’s industrialised countries. The structure of other industries varies between the scenarios. In scenarios S1 and S2, high technology and high value-added industries will become the largest subsector in industry, while the other two scenarios will see more contributions from conventional and heavy industries. The total primary energy demand for 2050 also varies among scenarios, ranging from only 15% higher than 2005, to twice the 2005 level. As a result, the energy intensity of Chinese economy is reduced by 76% to 87% between now and 2050, while carbon intensity is cut further to just 4% to 7% of the 2005 level. China’s carbon emissions rise to between 24% and 72% higher than 2005 by 2020 and subsequently decline to between 15% and 70% less than the 2005 level by 2050. Among all the sectors of the Chinese economy, transportation has the highest growth within the scenarios. Changes in households and industry also hold the key to a successful transition to low-carbon development in the next few decades. Figure 2: Growth of total gross value-added of Chinese economy in each scenario Within the Tyndall Centre scenarios, renewable energy plays a much bigger role in China’s energy system in 2050, adding to a more diverse energy structure. Coal reduces from more than 60% in 2005 to around 30% in total primary energy demand, while oil and gas continue their steady growth in the energy mix. Nuclear has the most diverse picture, from negligible in S2 to more than 12% in S3. This reflects different priorities between advanced renewables, such as wind and solar photovoltaics (PV), and nuclear for low-carbon energy supply. Even with a similar level of renewable energy in the scenarios, there is still large variance in technology choice within the renewable options, as well as in the way they are deployed (for example, in centralised facilities or in small-scale micro-generation). Normal 0 false false false MicrosoftInternetExplorer4 st1\:*{behavior:url(#ieooui) } /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-style-parent:""; font-size:10.0pt;"Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-"Times New Roman";}Renewables contribute 37% to 61% of electricity generation in 2050 and differences exist in specific renewable sources in each scenario. For example, the power generating capacity in S2 in 2050 is more than 3,000 gigawatts, four times today’s size. Within this, more than a quarter is from solar and another 22% from wind (Figure 3). This implies an increase at about 10% every year for wind power and 16% every year for solar power between 2010 and 2050. A large portfolio of renewable energy could significantly improve some aspects of China’s energy security, for instance by reducing the exposure to fossil-fuel price volatility. Stability of the energy system with large contributions from renewables will be a serious issue, but could be managed with smarter grid technologies. Figure 3: Power generation capacity and percentage of each source in 2050 (S2) Even with the huge expansion of renewables, coal- and gas-fired power generation still account for 34% in this scenario. Carbon capture and storage (CCS) therefore becomes a crucial technology in helping China to develop within a carbon budget. CCS is not assumed to be implemented on a large scale in China until 2030, and will have to be diffused quickly so that decarbonisation of the power system could be achieved in these scenarios. By 2050, CCS will have to be installed on 80% to 90% of fossil-fuelled power plants in scenarios S3 and S4, in which coal will account for higher percentage of power generation than in S2. This means that action is required now, on an international basis, to assist China with the demonstration of CCS technologies. It is also important for China to bear in mind the need to retrofit CCS at a later date when new coal-fired power plants are built. Energy demand from households and transport will continue their growth in all scenarios as living standards increase in China. Energy-efficiency improvements in appliances and buildings, and contributions from micro-renewables will help to reduce emissions growth from household sectors. High-carbon energy sources, such as coal, will be completely phased out from household use by 2050. The transport system becomes a major carbon emissions source in all scenarios due to high demand growth as well as the difficulty of decarbonisation. Private road transport accounts for most of this growth. But in some scenarios climate-change impacts are reduced with demand-side changes – in mobility patterns, for instance; large scale-ups in of alternative fuel use – such as electricity and sustainable biofuels; and significant developments in public transport. Renewables contribute 37% to 61% of electricity generation in 2050 and differences exist in specific renewable sources in each scenario. For example, the power generating capacity in S2 in 2050 is more than 3,000 gigawatts, four times today’s size. Within this, more than a quarter is from solar and another 22% from wind (Figure 3). This implies an increase at about 10% every year for wind power and 16% every year for solar power between 2010 and 2050. A large portfolio of renewable energy could significantly improve some aspects of China’s energy security, for instance by reducing the exposure to fossil-fuel price volatility. Stability of the energy system with large contributions from renewables will be a serious issue, but could be managed with smarter grid technologies. The scenario analysis is intended to inform policy-making both in China and in international climate-change negotiations. Some of the key policy implications of the report’s analysis follow: • Decoupling carbon emissions growth from economic development in China is challenging, but is in principle achievable – and there is more than one way to realise it. The four scenarios demonstrate different ways to square China’s continuing development within a carbon emissions constraint, with different priorities in governmental decision making, infrastructure investments and social preferences. • It is vital to start slowing emissions growth as early as possible. This will maximise China’s room for manoeuvre in deciding when it is appropriate for emissions to peak. The later the slowdown in emissions growth and the peak, the more difficult it will be for China in the future. Furthermore, later peaks are often associated with steeper subsequent reductions in emissions, which are likely to be more challenging for policy and social stability. Our analysis clearly demonstrates that 2040 is too late: a peak in Chinese emissions between 2020 and 2030 is therefore a plausible contribution that China could make to global action to stabilise the climate. • The success and speed of economic and industrial structural change towards a more balanced economy – with a greater role for services and high tech industries – is likely to be crucial to China’s low-carbon development. This fits well with recent policy pronouncements of the Chinese government, which is keen that China moves away from its recent energy-intensive development path. The storylines associated with the scenarios suggest that economic growth could be much faster, more sustainable and resilient to external shocks in scenarios where this shift is implemented more quickly. • Energy efficiency is vital, but the challenges vary across different scenarios. Currently the largest potential for energy efficiency improvement lies in China’s industries. But the fast growing demand for energy in the household and transport sectors points to the need for early action on efficiency in these sectors too if China’s overall efficiency targets are to be met. • The transition to a low-carbon development pathway does not only depend on technology choices. Social choices and the potential carbon lock-in associated with life styles and behaviour patterns will have significant impacts on future emissions. Encouraging low-carbon lifestyles and consumption within China’s growing middle class could have a strong exemplary effect on the wider population regarding the development pathways that are desirable. This is an essential aspect of China’s future story that should be addressed alongside measures for low-carbon investment, institutional change and policy incentives. • While a focus on China’s potential future carbon emission trajectories is very important in terms of climate change, these scenarios have wider implications: they include potentially important impacts on the availability of fossil and non-fossil energy resources as well as other natural resources, such as water and land use. It is also important to consider the energy-security threats that China faces. The pathways for low carbon development illustrated by the Tyndall Centre scenarios have a particular resonance in the context of the current economic crisis. As in many other countries, there is an active debate within China about the extent to which economic stimulus packages to tackle the crisis can encourage more sustainable forms of development. Low-carbon development not only means the deployment of low-carbon technologies in China, but also presents an opportunity for China to build low-carbon industries and new institutions to foster low-carbon innovation. There are increasing signs that Chinese firms could soon develop world-leading capabilities in key low-carbon technologies, such as wind power. But even if such potential is realised, developed countries still have an obligation to make good on their repeated promises to assist developing countries like China with technology and finance. Without such assistance, there is a greater risk that China will not move fast enough towards the low-carbon development pathway that is necessary to enable the world to avoid the most dangerous consequences of climate change. For more details, please download the full report here: China’s Energy Transition: Pathways for Low Carbon Development. Dr Tao Wang is research fellow at the Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Research and Sussex Energy Group at SPRU, University of Sussex, United Kingdom. Contact him: tao [dot] wang [at] sussex.ac.uk Dr Jim Watson is Director of the Sussex Energy Group at SPRU and deputy leader of the Tyndall Centre's Climate Change and Energy Programme. Contact him: w [dot] j [dot] watson [at] sussex.ac.uk Homepage photo by Madiko83 Read this article on the community site

China has a number of potential sustainable development paths, but none of them will be easy to achieve. This is the conclusion of a recent report by Wang Tao and Jim Watson, which develops a set of low-carbon scenarios to 2100.

China's continuous economic growth over the past 30 years has significantly improved the living standards of many of its citizens. The Chinese government claims that 400 million people were lifted out of poverty between 1980 and 2000, and GDP per capita has increased five times since 1981. Alongside economic expansion, China has also experienced a large increase in energy demand, especially after its economy moved into a stage of heavy industrialisation and urbanisation early this century.

This dramatic increase in energy demand, most of which is met by the use of coal, meant that China became the world’s largest carbon dioxide (CO2) emitter in 2006. China’s recent energy demand growth has also led to concerns about energy supply, local and regional environmental pollution and social stability. China’s participation is a key to the success of a post-2012 international climate framework. However, such a framework must incorporate the development needs of China and other developing countries. This raises a fundamental question: can China develop within the tight global carbon emissions constraints that climate science now says are necessary?

The Tyndall Centre’s recent research on China’s low carbon development paths has explored this question, and the results are summarised in a new report: China’s Energy Transition. The report investigates the potential trajectories of carbon emissions that China could follow to achieve a given global climate change target. The report investigates in detail how these emission trajectories could be achieved, through changes in China’s economy and society, and the policies and technologies that shape the country’s energy system.

The target for China used in the report is a cumulative emissions budget over the twenty-first century. This is derived from a global target of stabilising the atmospheric concentration of CO2 at 450 parts per million (ppm). According to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s (IPCC’s) latest assessment, achieving this target would mean that the world has a significant chance of avoiding some of the worst impacts of climate change. The total global budget is 490 gigatonnes of carbon (GtC) over the twenty-first century. The report analyses four scenarios that are based on two different apportionment approaches for global emissions: namely equal emissions per capita and equal emissions intensity of GDP. Within this, China is given a cumulative emission budget ranging from 70 GtC under the former approach, to 111 GtC under the latter. These approaches were just used to provide an illustrative range for China’s potential cumulative emissions under a given global target rather than argue for legitimate carbon emission share for China. Combined with different medium-term carbon emissions pathways, these budgets imply that China would reach a peak in its emissions between 2020 and 2030, followed by a decline. The four scenarios for China with their different emissions trajectories are shown in Figure 1 (labelled S1, S2, S3 and S4).

Figure 1: Carbon emissions in China: historic data, projections and Tyndall scenarios

The four scenarios analysed in the report are distinctive from each other, but in general are divided by their relative positions on two critical issues: promoting innovation, and the approach to social inequality. This report is not intended to be prescriptive about which of these budgets – or the many alternative pathways – China should follow. The scenarios are designed to illustrate some of the possibilities, and what the consequences of these might be for investment, economic structure and policy if they were followed. The research does not reach a firm conclusion on which scenario is the most desirable.

Within the scenarios, the Chinese economy in 2050 grows to between 8 and 13 times larger than that of today (see Figure 2). The economy in every scenario is dominated by the service sector, as is the case in most of today’s industrialised countries. The structure of other industries varies between the scenarios. In scenarios S1 and S2, high technology and high value-added industries will become the largest subsector in industry, while the other two scenarios will see more contributions from conventional and heavy industries. The total primary energy demand for 2050 also varies among scenarios, ranging from only 15% higher than 2005, to twice the 2005 level.

As a result, the energy intensity of Chinese economy is reduced by 76% to 87% between now and 2050, while carbon intensity is cut further to just 4% to 7% of the 2005 level. China’s carbon emissions rise to between 24% and 72% higher than 2005 by 2020 and subsequently decline to between 15% and 70% less than the 2005 level by 2050. Among all the sectors of the Chinese economy, transportation has the highest growth within the scenarios. Changes in households and industry also hold the key to a successful transition to low-carbon development in the next few decades.
Figure 2: Growth of total gross value-added of Chinese economy in each scenario

Within the Tyndall Centre scenarios, renewable energy plays a much bigger role in China’s energy system in 2050, adding to a more diverse energy structure. Coal reduces from more than 60% in 2005 to around 30% in total primary energy demand, while oil and gas continue their steady growth in the energy mix. Nuclear has the most diverse picture, from negligible in S2 to more than 12% in S3. This reflects different priorities between advanced renewables, such as wind and solar photovoltaics (PV), and nuclear for low-carbon energy supply. Even with a similar level of renewable energy in the scenarios, there is still large variance in technology choice within the renewable options, as well as in the way they are deployed (for example, in centralised facilities or in small-scale micro-generation).


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Renewables contribute 37% to 61% of electricity generation in 2050 and differences exist in specific renewable sources in each scenario. For example, the power generating capacity in S2 in 2050 is more than 3,000 gigawatts, four times today’s size. Within this, more than a quarter is from solar and another 22% from wind (Figure 3). This implies an increase at about 10% every year for wind power and 16% every year for solar power between 2010 and 2050. A large portfolio of renewable energy could significantly improve some aspects of China’s energy security, for instance by reducing the exposure to fossil-fuel price volatility. Stability of the energy system with large contributions from renewables will be a serious issue, but could be managed with smarter grid technologies.

Figure 3: Power generation capacity and percentage of each source in 2050 (S2)

Even with the huge expansion of renewables, coal- and gas-fired power generation still account for 34% in this scenario. Carbon capture and storage (CCS) therefore becomes a crucial technology in helping China to develop within a carbon budget. CCS is not assumed to be implemented on a large scale in China until 2030, and will have to be diffused quickly so that decarbonisation of the power system could be achieved in these scenarios. By 2050, CCS will have to be installed on 80% to 90% of fossil-fuelled power plants in scenarios S3 and S4, in which coal will account for higher percentage of power generation than in S2. This means that action is required now, on an international basis, to assist China with the demonstration of CCS technologies. It is also important for China to bear in mind the need to retrofit CCS at a later date when new coal-fired power plants are built.

Energy demand from households and transport will continue their growth in all scenarios as living standards increase in China. Energy-efficiency improvements in appliances and buildings, and contributions from micro-renewables will help to reduce emissions growth from household sectors. High-carbon energy sources, such as coal, will be completely phased out from household use by 2050. The transport system becomes a major carbon emissions source in all scenarios due to high demand growth as well as the difficulty of decarbonisation. Private road transport accounts for most of this growth. But in some scenarios climate-change impacts are reduced with demand-side changes – in mobility patterns, for instance; large scale-ups in of alternative fuel use – such as electricity and sustainable biofuels; and significant developments in public transport.

Renewables contribute 37% to 61% of electricity generation in 2050 and differences exist in specific renewable sources in each scenario. For example, the power generating capacity in S2 in 2050 is more than 3,000 gigawatts, four times today’s size. Within this, more than a quarter is from solar and another 22% from wind (Figure 3). This implies an increase at about 10% every year for wind power and 16% every year for solar power between 2010 and 2050. A large portfolio of renewable energy could significantly improve some aspects of China’s energy security, for instance by reducing the exposure to fossil-fuel price volatility. Stability of the energy system with large contributions from renewables will be a serious issue, but could be managed with smarter grid technologies.

 
The scenario analysis is intended to inform policy-making both in China and in international climate-change negotiations. Some of the key policy implications of the report’s analysis follow:

• Decoupling carbon emissions growth from economic development in China is challenging, but is in principle achievable – and there is more than one way to realise it. The four scenarios demonstrate different ways to square China’s continuing development within a carbon emissions constraint, with different priorities in governmental decision making, infrastructure investments and social preferences.

• It is vital to start slowing emissions growth as early as possible. This will maximise China’s room for manoeuvre in deciding when it is appropriate for emissions to peak. The later the slowdown in emissions growth and the peak, the more difficult it will be for China in the future. Furthermore, later peaks are often associated with steeper subsequent reductions in emissions, which are likely to be more challenging for policy and social stability. Our analysis clearly demonstrates that 2040 is too late: a peak in Chinese emissions between 2020 and 2030 is therefore a plausible contribution that China could make to global action to stabilise the climate.

• The success and speed of economic and industrial structural change towards a more balanced economy – with a greater role for services and high tech industries – is likely to be crucial to China’s low-carbon development. This fits well with recent policy pronouncements of the Chinese government, which is keen that China moves away from its recent energy-intensive development path. The storylines associated with the scenarios suggest that economic growth could be much faster, more sustainable and resilient to external shocks in scenarios where this shift is implemented more quickly.

• Energy efficiency is vital, but the challenges vary across different scenarios. Currently the largest potential for energy efficiency improvement lies in China’s industries. But the fast growing demand for energy in the household and transport sectors points to the need for early action on efficiency in these sectors too if China’s overall efficiency targets are to be met.

• The transition to a low-carbon development pathway does not only depend on technology choices. Social choices and the potential carbon lock-in associated with life styles and behaviour patterns will have significant impacts on future emissions. Encouraging low-carbon lifestyles and consumption within China’s growing middle class could have a strong exemplary effect on the wider population regarding the development pathways that are desirable. This is an essential aspect of China’s future story that should be addressed alongside measures for low-carbon investment, institutional change and policy incentives.

• While a focus on China’s potential future carbon emission trajectories is very important in terms of climate change, these scenarios have wider implications: they include potentially important impacts on the availability of fossil and non-fossil energy resources as well as other natural resources, such as water and land use. It is also important to consider the energy-security threats that China faces.

The pathways for low carbon development illustrated by the Tyndall Centre scenarios have a particular resonance in the context of the current economic crisis. As in many other countries, there is an active debate within China about the extent to which economic stimulus packages to tackle the crisis can encourage more sustainable forms of development. Low-carbon development not only means the deployment of low-carbon technologies in China, but also presents an opportunity for China to build low-carbon industries and new institutions to foster low-carbon innovation. There are increasing signs that Chinese firms could soon develop world-leading capabilities in key low-carbon technologies, such as wind power. But even if such potential is realised, developed countries still have an obligation to make good on their repeated promises to assist developing countries like China with technology and finance. Without such assistance, there is a greater risk that China will not move fast enough towards the low-carbon development pathway that is necessary to enable the world to avoid the most dangerous consequences of climate change. 

For more details, please download the full report here: China’s Energy Transition: Pathways for Low Carbon Development.

Dr Tao Wang is research fellow at the Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Research and Sussex Energy Group at SPRU, University of Sussex, United Kingdom. Contact him: tao [dot] wang [at] sussex.ac.uk

Dr Jim Watson is Director of the Sussex Energy Group at SPRU and deputy leader of the Tyndall Centre's Climate Change and Energy Programme. Contact him: w [dot] j [dot] watson [at] sussex.ac.uk 

Homepage photo by Madiko83

]]> Fri, 03 Jul 2009 11:25:00 -0500 panamajack http://www.chinadialogue.net/article/show/single/en/3139 links for 2009-07-03 :: Transpacifica http://transpacifica.net/2009/07/04/links-for-2009-07-03/ The Internet: A room of our own? - Evgeny Morozov in Dissent [pdf](tags: internet internet-politics evgenymorozov)Video from The 7th Chinese Internet Research Conference, May 27 – 29, 2009I didn't make it to Philly, but caught some of the panels on webcast. Now video is up!(tags: circ09 circ china-internet research conference video)[Full story...] Read this article on the community site

The Internet: A room of our own? - Evgeny Morozov in Dissent [pdf](tags: internet internet-politics evgenymorozov)Video from The 7th Chinese Internet Research Conference, May 27 – 29, 2009I didn't make it to Philly, but caught some of the panels on webcast. Now video is up!(tags: circ09 circ china-internet research conference video)

[Full story...]

]]> Fri, 03 Jul 2009 11:05:00 -0500 gwbstr http://transpacifica.net/2009/07/04/links-for-2009-07-03/ 65 Twitter Updates for 2009-07-03. :: Jakob Montrasio's Net http://jakob.montrasio.net/2009/07/03/twitter-updates-for-2009-07-03/ State of emergency: There are now only 3 gigabyte space left on my notebook. Hasta la vista, mp3’s. # I didn’t get knocked down, but I got up again. # Why do they even bother to put up traffic lights in NYC? Everybody ignores them anyway. # Read this article on the community site
  • State of emergency: There are now only 3 gigabyte space left on my notebook. Hasta la vista, mp3’s. #
  • I didn’t get knocked down, but I got up again. #
  • Why do they even bother to put up traffic lights in NYC? Everybody ignores them anyway. #
]]> Fri, 03 Jul 2009 10:59:00 -0500 yakobusan http://jakob.montrasio.net/2009/07/03/twitter-updates-for-2009-07-03/ twitter Blockages :: Danwei http://www.danwei.org/internet/accrit_danwei_block.php Academic Criticism (学术批评网) is a useful website founded in 2001 by Yang Yusheng (杨玉圣), a historian and critic. The website aggregates commentary by and about academics: newspaper op-eds, book reviews, forewords to anthologies, and other similar material. It's a way to find a wide variety of opinion in one convenient place. Yang is also known as an "academic janitor" who takes out the trash of scholarly dishonesty and academic malpractice, including the plagiarism cases that crop up so frequently nowadays. Did he make some enemies? Academic Criticism used to be located at acriticism.com, but late last month, it was the target of a DDOS attack that left the website paralyzed, forcing it to move to criticism.cn. Sayre's Law says that academic politics are so vicious because the states are so low, but in many of these cases, the stakes are quite high indeed. A recent letter posted to the site demanded the resignation of Lu Jierong, a professor at Liaoning University who was listed as coauthor of a student's paper that later turned out to be plagiarized. And although faculty and administration frequently resist taking action against plagiarizing professors, occasionally one will be dismissed in disgrace. Earlier this year a blogger in China was stabbed by someone who took offense at the charges one post leveled against a friend of his. Who's to say an aggrieved academic wouldn't hire a botnet to take down an unfriendly website? Related only by the topic of website inaccessibility, Danwei's server in Texas has been generally unreachable from mainland China since around 4pm Friday afternoon. A targeted block? An unfortunate side effect of recent upgrades made to improve the efficiency of filtering unwholesome material? A giant mass hallucination? It's impossible to tell at this point. So spend the weekend outside and we'll see if we can't get things turned around by Monday. Links and Sources Academic Criticism (Chinese): Website to use URL criticism.cn starting June 25 iFeng (Chinese): Zeng Zimo interviews "academic janitor Yang Yusheng" ESWN: A Sequence Of Events In Blogger Stabbing Case Tags: Academic Criticism, blockages, opinion, Yang Yusheng This article is from Danwei.org Read this article on the community site
JDM090703accrit.jpg

Academic Criticism (学术批评网) is a useful website founded in 2001 by Yang Yusheng (杨玉圣), a historian and critic.

The website aggregates commentary by and about academics: newspaper op-eds, book reviews, forewords to anthologies, and other similar material. It's a way to find a wide variety of opinion in one convenient place.

Yang is also known as an "academic janitor" who takes out the trash of scholarly dishonesty and academic malpractice, including the plagiarism cases that crop up so frequently nowadays.

Did he make some enemies? Academic Criticism used to be located at acriticism.com, but late last month, it was the target of a DDOS attack that left the website paralyzed, forcing it to move to criticism.cn.

Sayre's Law says that academic politics are so vicious because the states are so low, but in many of these cases, the stakes are quite high indeed. A recent letter posted to the site demanded the resignation of Lu Jierong, a professor at Liaoning University who was listed as coauthor of a student's paper that later turned out to be plagiarized. And although faculty and administration frequently resist taking action against plagiarizing professors, occasionally one will be dismissed in disgrace.

Earlier this year a blogger in China was stabbed by someone who took offense at the charges one post leveled against a friend of his. Who's to say an aggrieved academic wouldn't hire a botnet to take down an unfriendly website?

Related only by the topic of website inaccessibility, Danwei's server in Texas has been generally unreachable from mainland China since around 4pm Friday afternoon. A targeted block? An unfortunate side effect of recent upgrades made to improve the efficiency of filtering unwholesome material? A giant mass hallucination?

It's impossible to tell at this point. So spend the weekend outside and we'll see if we can't get things turned around by Monday.

Links and Sources

Tags: Academic Criticism, blockages, opinion, Yang Yusheng

This article is from Danwei.org

]]> Fri, 03 Jul 2009 10:52:00 -0500 Danwei http://www.danwei.org/internet/accrit_danwei_block.php internet Ericsson puts China on fiber diet :: Engaging China http://www.engagingchina.com/blog/_archives/2009/7/3/4243881.html China's telecoms equipment industry gets more innovative each day. But there are still areas where western technology triumphs. How else do we explain Ericsson getting three contracts for fixed broadband access? Read this article on the community site

China's telecoms equipment industry gets more innovative each day. But there are still areas where western technology triumphs. How else do we explain Ericsson getting three contracts for fixed broadband access?

]]> Fri, 03 Jul 2009 10:30:00 -0500 engagingchina http://www.engagingchina.com/blog/_archives/2009/7/3/4243881.html hi-tech main page Taoism and the Dialog of Civilizations :: Just Recently http://justrecently.wordpress.com/2009/07/03/taoism-and-the-dialog-of-civilizations/ A number of contemporary New Confucian scholars are to some extent aware of the Second Axial Age, writes Wang Zhicheng (王志成), professor at Zhejiang University’s Humanities College, in an article on his blog. The axial age was a term coined by Karl Jaspers, a philosopher and psychiatrist who taught during the 20th century. A second [...] Read this article on the community site

A number of contemporary New Confucian scholars are to some extent aware of the Second Axial Age, writes Wang Zhicheng (王志成), professor at Zhejiang University’s Humanities College, in an article on his blog. The axial age was a term coined by Karl Jaspers, a philosopher and psychiatrist who taught during the 20th century. A second [...]

]]> Fri, 03 Jul 2009 10:13:00 -0500 justrecently http://justrecently.wordpress.com/2009/07/03/taoism-and-the-dialog-of-civilizations/ buddhism china confucianism education evolution Ideology international language lin yutang literature nature propaganda public diplomacy religion science taoism teaching west world Wanbao, July 3, 2009: Cleaner Skies Post-Games :: City Weekend Beijing Blog http://www.cityweekend.com.cn/beijing/articles/blogs-beijing/beijingologist/wanbao-july-3-2009-cleaner-skies-post-games/ Date: Jul 3rd 2009 10:55p.m. Contributed by: davidfeng We might get harmonized if we used the word "crap" with "Olympics" and "skies during this time & period", but we sure could have some better skies last Olympic August. However, here's news: apparently, our skies have been better post-Games than pre-Games. Either that, or the Wanbao wants us to be indoctrinated that the foreign media are blowing Beijing's pollution — well, out of proportions. Better skies or blacker skies? We leave that to the readership to make the final call. Wanbao headliner done. No road or Subway news today in the Wanbao (we know, what a tragedy). Just a warning of 10 more new SARS H1N1 patients, and the fact that North Korea went nuclear — four times again — yesterday. It's only the Yalu River that separates us from those people, folks. Not sure when we'll start >beep<ing in our pantalons if Kim decides to throw The Big One tomorrow (again, "the foreign media" has it that Kim might decide to "do a big one" on Independence Day in the US of A). All that are a little bit more on the front cover of tonight's Evening News. A nearly unrecognizably small news article on Page 11 is our Article of the Day. There's something else to do with that strings-attached microphone at the local KTV store than to threaten someone physically with it (we won't go into the details)... in fact, the fourth KTV fest is underway for folks coming into Beijing who work at state-owned enterprises. You're also free to yodel down Peking Opera into the mic if you're so inclined. Note that you need a fairly good command of the Lingo of 1.3 Billion And Counting to have any chance of clinching pole position... Weekends and thus a ... Read this article on the community site

Date: Jul 3rd 2009 10:55p.m.
Contributed by: davidfeng

We might get harmonized if we used the word "crap" with "Olympics" and "skies during this time & period", but we sure could have some better skies last Olympic August. However, here's news: apparently, our skies have been better post-Games than pre-Games. Either that, or the Wanbao wants us to be indoctrinated that the foreign media are blowing Beijing's pollution — well, out of proportions. Better skies or blacker skies? We leave that to the readership to make the final call. Wanbao headliner done.

No road or Subway news today in the Wanbao (we know, what a tragedy). Just a warning of 10 more new SARS H1N1 patients, and the fact that North Korea went nuclear — four times again — yesterday. It's only the Yalu River that separates us from those people, folks. Not sure when we'll start >beep<ing in our pantalons if Kim decides to throw The Big One tomorrow (again, "the foreign media" has it that Kim might decide to "do a big one" on Independence Day in the US of A). All that are a little bit more on the front cover of tonight's Evening News.

A nearly unrecognizably small news article on Page 11 is our Article of the Day. There's something else to do with that strings-attached microphone at the local KTV store than to threaten someone physically with it (we won't go into the details)... in fact, the fourth KTV fest is underway for folks coming into Beijing who work at state-owned enterprises. You're also free to yodel down Peking Opera into the mic if you're so inclined. Note that you need a fairly good command of the Lingo of 1.3 Billion And Counting to have any chance of clinching pole position...

Weekends and thus a ...

]]> Fri, 03 Jul 2009 09:55:00 -0500 cityweekend http://www.cityweekend.com.cn/beijing/articles/blogs-beijing/beijingologist/wanbao-july-3-2009-cleaner-skies-post-games/ b e g i j l n o s t Trailers/MV for Meteor Shower, HSDS 2009, and Remembrance of Dreams Past :: Cfensi http://cfensi.wordpress.com/2009/07/03/trailersmv-for-meteor-shower-hsds-2009-and-remembrance-of-dreams-past/ There’s a been a lot of television trailers coming out. First up is the one that people are more interested in, even though it’s the lowest budgeted of them all.  I really like Zhang Han’s expressions here, and loved the “mian ren” scene. Hopefully the acting doesn’t disappoint. It’s cute how everyone has their own [...] Read this article on the community site

There’s a been a lot of television trailers coming out. First up is the one that people are more interested in, even though it’s the lowest budgeted of them all.  I really like Zhang Han’s expressions here, and loved the “mian ren” scene. Hopefully the acting doesn’t disappoint. It’s cute how everyone has their own [...]

]]> Fri, 03 Jul 2009 09:48:00 -0500 idarklight http://cfensi.wordpress.com/2009/07/03/trailersmv-for-meteor-shower-hsds-2009-and-remembrance-of-dreams-past/ mainland china meteor shower remembrance of dreams past television Party!! :: Shopgirl's Shanghai http://www.metrobloggen.se/jsp/public/permalink.jsp?article=19.10398262 Read this article on the community site
]]> Fri, 03 Jul 2009 09:40:00 -0500 Siyan http://www.metrobloggen.se/jsp/public/permalink.jsp?article=19.10398262 A holiday haiku :: Froogville http://froogville.blogspot.com/2009/07/holiday-haiku.html Change of place, and pace,Refreshing a weary mind.Needful vacation. I'm not sure that I've ever felt so broken down by work, life, the whole damn thing. I need to get away from everything for a good long while. Read this article on the community site

Change of place, and pace,
Refreshing a weary mind.
Needful vacation.

I'm not sure that I've ever felt so broken down by work, life, the whole damn thing. I need to get away from everything for a good long while.

]]> Fri, 03 Jul 2009 09:17:00 -0500 Froog http://froogville.blogspot.com/2009/07/holiday-haiku.html Last Reminder: Shanghaiist + Boxing Cat Brewery July 4 Party :: Shanghaiist http://feeds.gothamistllc.com/click.phdo?i=6b37fa252aa8bdb5257af01722ac2b4f Where: 82 Fuxing Xi Lu near Yongfu Lu (复兴西路82号)Cover: 50RMB, includes drinkRaffle tickets: 25RMB per ticket, 200RMB for 10Music: The soulful sounds of Carlton J. Smith and some American tunes besides. Mini Schedule Round Up: Saturday, July 4 12am noon - Doors open, raffle ticket sales begin1:15pm - Carlton J. Smith begins to lay down his Independence Day grooves.3:00pm - Charity Drinking Relay first round begins3:30pm - Raffle first round begins6:00pm - Someone carries you and your numerous prizes home What can you win? Check out the list of fabulous raffle items: Ctrip.com - One night at the Shanghai Shangri-LaQuintet Bed & Breakfast - One Night Voucher at their 5 Bedroom Bed & BreakfastHair Culture - Free Haircut from Hair Culture and 2 x 1000 RMB Gift Certificates ZaZa Nail Spa - 500 RMB Gift CertificateCrocs - 25 Pairs of Crocseno - clothing and accessoriesTwo Cities Gallery - jewelryLaris - Brunch for 4, including Free Flow Champagne, Mineral Water and JuiceThe Factory - Free Recording Session & DinnerMon Reve - 5 certificates of 50 RMB each for their PastriesThe Fat Olive - 500 RMB Gift CertificateAwfully Chocolate - 2 Gift Certificates for cakesOsteria - 2 Gift CertificatesVargas Grill - 2 Gift Certificates for (Brunch for 2 People)NAPA Wine Bar & Kitchen - 500 RMB Gift CertificateSherpas - 400RMB in Sherpas vouchers and two bottles of wine.Ruby Red - 2 Bottles of THE Sauvignon Blanc, signed by the wine makerTorres Wines - Bottle of WineMHD - 1 Bottle of Svedka Premium VodkaNapa Reserve - 1.5 L Magnum of 2000 Howell Mountain VineyardsGlobus Wines - 2 Bottle of Schramsberg Napa Valley Sparkling WineGroup Trade LTD - 2 bottles: a Viniterra Terra Malbec and a Finca Sophenia Altosur Cabernet SauvignonClosed Door - 500 RMB Voucher for Late Night Wine LoungeCantina Agave - Voucher for a Free Bottle of Tequila @ CantinaREV Training and Coaching - 5 Personal Coaching Certificates (worth 2000RMB each) Read More on:FacebookCityweekend Read this article on the community site

Where: 82 Fuxing Xi Lu near Yongfu Lu (复兴西路82号)
Cover: 50RMB, includes drink
Raffle tickets: 25RMB per ticket, 200RMB for 10
Music: The soulful sounds of Carlton J. Smith and some American tunes besides.

Mini Schedule Round Up: Saturday, July 4

12am noon - Doors open, raffle ticket sales begin
1:15pm - Carlton J. Smith begins to lay down his Independence Day grooves.
3:00pm - Charity Drinking Relay first round begins
3:30pm - Raffle first round begins
6:00pm - Someone carries you and your numerous prizes home

What can you win? Check out the list of fabulous raffle items:

Ctrip.com - One night at the Shanghai Shangri-La
Quintet Bed & Breakfast - One Night Voucher at their 5 Bedroom Bed & Breakfast
Hair Culture - Free Haircut from Hair Culture and 2 x 1000 RMB Gift Certificates
ZaZa Nail Spa - 500 RMB Gift Certificate
Crocs - 25 Pairs of Crocs
eno - clothing and accessories
Two Cities Gallery - jewelry
Laris - Brunch for 4, including Free Flow Champagne, Mineral Water and Juice
The Factory - Free Recording Session & Dinner
Mon Reve - 5 certificates of 50 RMB each for their Pastries
The Fat Olive - 500 RMB Gift Certificate
Awfully Chocolate - 2 Gift Certificates for cakes
Osteria - 2 Gift Certificates
Vargas Grill - 2 Gift Certificates for (Brunch for 2 People)
NAPA Wine Bar & Kitchen - 500 RMB Gift Certificate
Sherpas - 400RMB in Sherpas vouchers and two bottles of wine.
Ruby Red - 2 Bottles of THE Sauvignon Blanc, signed by the wine maker
Torres Wines - Bottle of Wine
MHD - 1 Bottle of Svedka Premium Vodka
Napa Reserve - 1.5 L Magnum of 2000 Howell Mountain Vineyards
Globus Wines - 2 Bottle of Schramsberg Napa Valley Sparkling Wine
Group Trade LTD - 2 bottles: a Viniterra Terra Malbec and a Finca Sophenia Altosur Cabernet Sauvignon
Closed Door - 500 RMB Voucher for Late Night Wine Lounge
Cantina Agave - Voucher for a Free Bottle of Tequila @ Cantina
REV Training and Coaching - 5 Personal Coaching Certificates (worth 2000RMB each)

Read More on:
Facebook
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]]> Fri, 03 Jul 2009 08:30:00 -0500 shanghaiist http://feeds.gothamistllc.com/click.phdo?i=6b37fa252aa8bdb5257af01722ac2b4f food/drink Chengdu bus fire blamed on 62-year-old suicidal gambler :: Danwei http://www.danwei.org/front_page_of_the_day/insert_caption_here_the_police.php Chongqing TimesJuly 3, 2009 Police have completed their investigation into the June 5 bus fire in Chengdu that killed 27. They concluded that cause of the fire was arson, committed by a 62-year-old man named Zhang Yunliang who carried gasoline onto the bus and then ignited it. According to the report, Zhang was a compulsive gambler who had been unemployed since 2006. Earlier this year, his daughter, on whom he was financially dependent, cut back his allowance. He protested by threatening suicide several times. On June 4, the day prior to the fire, Zhang called his daughter and told her that he would "be gone tomorrow," and "in a very different way." Zhang's dead body was found on the center of the fire and there was no sign that he tried to escape. His family in Suzhou, Jiangsu Province received a note from him in the mail on June 9. Netizens have questioned the truth of the police explanation, with the sudden appearance of a weeks-old suicide note and the fact no explanation was given for the jammed doors major points of doubt. In other news, a police officer in Wenzhou, Zhejiang Province who took his dog for a walk by strapping it to a moving police patrol car was removed from his position as vice captain after someone uploaded the photo to the Internet. And a primary school teacher in Chongqing decided to get plastic surgery for the benefit of her students. According to the paper's report, after the teacher overheard some students commenting on their teachers' looks, she decided a prettier look would make her more popular among the students, thus benefiting her teaching. Links and Sources Xinhua via Netease (Chinese): Investigation into Chengdu fire concluded Oriental Morning Post via Netease: Police officer who walks his dog with a patrol car stripped of his position ESWN: The Chengdu Bus Fire Case Is 'Solved' Tags: arson, Chongqing Times, plastic surgery, police, power abuse This article is from Danwei.org Read this article on the community site
chongqingtimes.jpg
Chongqing Times
July 3, 2009

Police have completed their investigation into the June 5 bus fire in Chengdu that killed 27.

They concluded that cause of the fire was arson, committed by a 62-year-old man named Zhang Yunliang who carried gasoline onto the bus and then ignited it.

According to the report, Zhang was a compulsive gambler who had been unemployed since 2006. Earlier this year, his daughter, on whom he was financially dependent, cut back his allowance. He protested by threatening suicide several times. On June 4, the day prior to the fire, Zhang called his daughter and told her that he would "be gone tomorrow," and "in a very different way."

Zhang's dead body was found on the center of the fire and there was no sign that he tried to escape. His family in Suzhou, Jiangsu Province received a note from him in the mail on June 9.

Netizens have questioned the truth of the police explanation, with the sudden appearance of a weeks-old suicide note and the fact no explanation was given for the jammed doors major points of doubt.

In other news, a police officer in Wenzhou, Zhejiang Province who took his dog for a walk by strapping it to a moving police patrol car was removed from his position as vice captain after someone uploaded the photo to the Internet.

And a primary school teacher in Chongqing decided to get plastic surgery for the benefit of her students. According to the paper's report, after the teacher overheard some students commenting on their teachers' looks, she decided a prettier look would make her more popular among the students, thus benefiting her teaching.

Links and Sources

Tags: arson, Chongqing Times, plastic surgery, police, power abuse

This article is from Danwei.org

]]> Fri, 03 Jul 2009 06:36:00 -0500 Danwei http://www.danwei.org/front_page_of_the_day/insert_caption_here_the_police.php front page of the day HBH 139 :: Round-the-World Barstool Blues http://thebarprop.blogspot.com/2009/07/hbh-139.html Whole country parties!Countless barbecues sizzle,Countless beers are chilled. It's three or four years since I got to spend the 4th of July in America. I've missed it. I can't think of another country whose 'national day' is such a joyous occasion, such an all-out, universal party - and almost entirely untainted by nationalism. This is just a party day. There are many things I love about America, but their holidays - Independence Day and Thanksgiving in particular - are amongst the things I love most. Read this article on the community site

Whole country parties!
Countless barbecues sizzle,
Countless beers are chilled.

It's three or four years since I got to spend the 4th of July in America. I've missed it. I can't think of another country whose 'national day' is such a joyous occasion, such an all-out, universal party - and almost entirely untainted by nationalism. This is just a party day. There are many things I love about America, but their holidays - Independence Day and Thanksgiving in particular - are amongst the things I love most.

]]> Fri, 03 Jul 2009 06:17:00 -0500 Froog http://thebarprop.blogspot.com/2009/07/hbh-139.html Abnormal death in Hebei police station :: Forgotten Archipelagoes http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/blogspot/OTlS/~3/jEZAvye4JNI/abnormal-death-in-hebei-police-station.html Read this article on the community site

]]> Fri, 03 Jul 2009 06:09:00 -0500 ForgottenArchipelagoes http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/blogspot/OTlS/~3/jEZAvye4JNI/abnormal-death-in-hebei-police-station.html New developments in the Kunming prostitution case :: Danwei http://www.danwei.org/law/insert_image_hereinsert_captio_14.php Liu Shihua, Pu Enfu, and a police officer The case of a Kunming man accused of helping his daughter become a prostitute, and protecting her by letting police carry off his two foster daughters, may be an example of coerced confessions and overzealous law enforcement after all. The initial story, which came to national attention through a Southern Weekly report at the beginning of June, painted a picture of police brutality. In March, police picked up two elementary school-aged girls on suspicion of prostitution, and beat up their parents who were brought to the station for questioning. The two girls were tested at a hospital and found to be virgins. The police apologized, but the father, Liu Shihua, demanded 200,000 yuan in compensation for the abuse his family had suffered. A few days later, that story was contradicted by reports that claimed that Liu had misled police into carrying off his two younger daughters (actually foster daughters) to protect his biological daughter who was the real prostitute. And the two girls' mother, Zhang Anfen, was accused of misleading the hospital into issuing fake test results, as well. The police detained Liu and Zhang for their role in aiding prostitution, and the local publicity department accused the media of mishandling its reporting of the affair. Now Wu Hongfei, a Southern People Weekly journalist and the lead singer of Happy Avenue, has posted a teaser of an upcoming report containing new allegations of police misconduct. From a series of Fanfou updates (1, 2, 3, 4): The Kunming girl prostitute case is basically forced confessions on the part of the police. Her father is being held at the detention center and will probably be arrested and the case buried. I'm in the Puji police station in Kunming and am unable to see the eldest daughter who was taken away. She's a minor, and without a guardian present she was taken away. A lawyer is drafting a letter to state that the sixteen-year-old daughter did not engage in prostitution, and the facts of the forced confessions will appear in The Beijing News tomorrow. Tencent etc. will republish. The goal is to get the support of additiona media outlets. I am a Southern People Weekly journalist who has always been in Kunming, and apart from me, all local reporters have been muzzled. I hope that there are people who can follow up so that this doesn't become a case of injustice. The judicial implications in this case are for the protection of minors, the gamesmanship between the disadvantaged and the apparatus of the state, and even a reflection on the media itself. I invite you to pay attention. Wu wrote up a short summary of her findings in a blog post that is probably a bit less dispassionate and rigorous than tomorrow's story in The Beijing News will be: An Appeal for Legal Assistance and Media Attention by Wu Hongfei After speaking to the lawyer a number of times, the following is what we believe to be the facts: Liu Shihua and his family were taken in by the police on March 16, and under duress, he was forced to confess that his two foster daughters had been acting as prostitutes. One was thirteen and one was fourteen. Zhang Anfen did not believe that her daughters, in elementary school, had engaged in prostitution and took them to the hospital to check whether they were still virgins. Entry continues on Danwei. Tags: blogs, Fanfou, law, minors, prostitution, Wu Hongfei, Yunnan This article is from Danwei.org Read this article on the community site
JDM090703kunming.jpg
Liu Shihua, Pu Enfu, and a police officer

The case of a Kunming man accused of helping his daughter become a prostitute, and protecting her by letting police carry off his two foster daughters, may be an example of coerced confessions and overzealous law enforcement after all.

The initial story, which came to national attention through a Southern Weekly report at the beginning of June, painted a picture of police brutality. In March, police picked up two elementary school-aged girls on suspicion of prostitution, and beat up their parents who were brought to the station for questioning. The two girls were tested at a hospital and found to be virgins. The police apologized, but the father, Liu Shihua, demanded 200,000 yuan in compensation for the abuse his family had suffered.

A few days later, that story was contradicted by reports that claimed that Liu had misled police into carrying off his two younger daughters (actually foster daughters) to protect his biological daughter who was the real prostitute. And the two girls' mother, Zhang Anfen, was accused of misleading the hospital into issuing fake test results, as well.

The police detained Liu and Zhang for their role in aiding prostitution, and the local publicity department accused the media of mishandling its reporting of the affair.

Now Wu Hongfei, a Southern People Weekly journalist and the lead singer of Happy Avenue, has posted a teaser of an upcoming report containing new allegations of police misconduct.

From a series of Fanfou updates (1, 2, 3, 4):

The Kunming girl prostitute case is basically forced confessions on the part of the police. Her father is being held at the detention center and will probably be arrested and the case buried. I'm in the Puji police station in Kunming and am unable to see the eldest daughter who was taken away. She's a minor, and without a guardian present she was taken away. A lawyer is drafting a letter to state that the sixteen-year-old daughter did not engage in prostitution, and the facts of the forced confessions will appear in The Beijing News tomorrow. Tencent etc. will republish. The goal is to get the support of additiona media outlets. I am a Southern People Weekly journalist who has always been in Kunming, and apart from me, all local reporters have been muzzled. I hope that there are people who can follow up so that this doesn't become a case of injustice. The judicial implications in this case are for the protection of minors, the gamesmanship between the disadvantaged and the apparatus of the state, and even a reflection on the media itself. I invite you to pay attention.

Wu wrote up a short summary of her findings in a blog post that is probably a bit less dispassionate and rigorous than tomorrow's story in The Beijing News will be:

An Appeal for Legal Assistance and Media Attention

by Wu Hongfei

After speaking to the lawyer a number of times, the following is what we believe to be the facts:

Liu Shihua and his family were taken in by the police on March 16, and under duress, he was forced to confess that his two foster daughters had been acting as prostitutes. One was thirteen and one was fourteen.

Zhang Anfen did not believe that her daughters, in elementary school, had engaged in prostitution and took them to the hospital to check whether they were still virgins.

Entry continues on Danwei.

Tags: blogs, Fanfou, law, minors, prostitution, Wu Hongfei, Yunnan

This article is from Danwei.org

]]> Fri, 03 Jul 2009 06:04:00 -0500 Danwei http://www.danwei.org/law/insert_image_hereinsert_captio_14.php law The Ming Dynasty Tombs, Beijing :: justmeNus http://justmenus.blogspot.com/2009/07/ming-dynasty-tombs-beijing.html The moment I have been waiting for have finally arrived, after waiting for years. Yes, I always wanted to go to the Great Wall of China. It's today, but not right now, because I have an appointment with tour-beijing.com . Mr Laoli the manager with tour-beijing.com have arranged for me Tour A. Details as below: Tour A: Badaling Great Wall and Ming Tombs One Day TourDeparture: DailyDuration: 1 dayStarts at: 07.30 amEnds at: 06.00 pmStarting point: Your HotelEnding point: Your HotelWe speak: English Tour Itinerary: Pick up at your hotel between 7:30am and 8:30. Then drive to Changling--- one of the Tombs of thirteen Emperors of Ming Dynasty with 500 year history are about 50 kilometres to the north of Beijing. After lunch. the drive to Badaling Great Wall takes about 40 minutes. Badaling section is the most famous and best-preserved wall. It lies 100 KM away at the northwest of Beijing. If you want to get to the highest point and have a bird eye¡¯s view of this section of the great wall, cable car is a good choice ( optional ). After the tour, transferred back to your hotel. After picking us from our respective hotels, it took us another hour by coach to reach the Ming Dynasty Tombs at Changling. Photo: Silk Burning Stove, Changling tombAccording to Wikepedia: The Ming Dynasty Tombs (Chinese: 明朝十三陵; pinyin: Míng cháo shí sān líng; lit. Thirteen Tombs of the Ming Dynasty) are located some 50 kilometers due north of urban Beijing at a specially selected site. The site was chosen by the third Ming Dynasty emperor Yongle (1402–1424), who moved the capital of China from Nanjing to the present location of Beijing. The Ming tombs of the 13 emperors of the Ming Dynasty were located on the southern slope of Mount Taishou (originally Mount Huangtu). He is credited with envisioning the layout of the ancient city of Beijing as well as a number of landmarks and monuments located therein. After the construction of the Imperial Palace (the Forbidden City) in 1420, the Yongle Emperor selected his burial site and created his own mausoleum. From the Yongle Emperor onwards, 13 Ming Dynasty Emperors were buried in this area. The tombs of the first two Ming Emperors are located near Nanjing (the capital city during their reigns). Emperor Jingtai was also not buried here, as the Emperor Tianshun had denied Jingtai an imperial burial, but was instead buried west of Beijing. The last Chongzhen Emperor, who hanged himself in April 1644, named Si Ling by the Qing emperor, was the last to be buried here, but on a much smaller scale than his predecessors. During the Ming dynasty the tombs were off limits to commoners, but in 1644 Li Zicheng's army ransacked and set many of the tombs on fire before advancing and capturing Beijing in April of that year.Photo: The book of facts explaining the past Emperor. kindly click the picture to enlarge. Frankly speaking, I was more interested in visiting the Great Wall. As such I didn't pay much attention to the tour guide this time. The Ming Dynasty Tombs offer more historical stories rather than just scenery.And here is the gate where you don't walk through to visit the tombs, but you have to walk through to get out. The belief is that you don't walk to the tombs, but when you walk out, you have to walk together with the rest of the entourage saying aloud 'wo hui lai le' meaning 'I am back'. literally it means you are back to the real world now. The ladies will step with the right leg first and the guys with the left leg first. Well, at least you know some ancient Chinese custom. Belief it or not, it's up to you..My next posting is the Badaling Great Wall of China ! Do drop by to join me on my Great Wall tour coming soon..Good Night (11.50 PM) Read this article on the community site

The moment I have been waiting for have finally arrived, after waiting for years. Yes, I always wanted to go to the Great Wall of China. It's today, but not right now, because I have an appointment with tour-beijing.com . Mr Laoli the manager with tour-beijing.com have arranged for me Tour A. Details as below:

Tour A: Badaling Great Wall and Ming Tombs One Day Tour
Departure: Daily
Duration: 1 day
Starts at: 07.30 am
Ends at: 06.00 pm
Starting point: Your Hotel
Ending point: Your Hotel
We speak: English

Tour Itinerary: Pick up at your hotel between 7:30am and 8:30. Then drive to Changling--- one of the Tombs of thirteen Emperors of Ming Dynasty with 500 year history are about 50 kilometres to the north of Beijing. After lunch. the drive to Badaling Great Wall takes about 40 minutes. Badaling section is the most famous and best-preserved wall. It lies 100 KM away at the northwest of Beijing. If you want to get to the highest point and have a bird eye¡¯s view of this section of the great wall, cable car is a good choice ( optional ). After the tour, transferred back to your hotel. After picking us from our respective hotels, it took us another hour by coach to reach the Ming Dynasty Tombs at Changling. Photo: Silk Burning Stove, Changling tombAccording to Wikepedia: The Ming Dynasty Tombs (Chinese: 明朝十三陵; pinyin: Míng cháo shí sān líng; lit. Thirteen Tombs of the Ming Dynasty) are located some 50 kilometers due north of urban Beijing at a specially selected site. The site was chosen by the third Ming Dynasty emperor Yongle (1402–1424), who moved the capital of China from Nanjing to the present location of Beijing. The Ming tombs of the 13 emperors of the Ming Dynasty were located on the southern slope of Mount Taishou (originally Mount Huangtu). He is credited with envisioning the layout of the ancient city of Beijing as well as a number of landmarks and monuments located therein. After the construction of the Imperial Palace (the Forbidden City) in 1420, the Yongle Emperor selected his burial site and created his own mausoleum.

From the Yongle Emperor onwards, 13 Ming Dynasty Emperors were buried in this area. The tombs of the first two Ming Emperors are located near Nanjing (the capital city during their reigns). Emperor Jingtai was also not buried here, as the Emperor Tianshun had denied Jingtai an imperial burial, but was instead buried west of Beijing. The last Chongzhen Emperor, who hanged himself in April 1644, named Si Ling by the Qing emperor, was the last to be buried here, but on a much smaller scale than his predecessors. During the Ming dynasty the tombs were off limits to commoners, but in 1644 Li Zicheng's army ransacked and set many of the tombs on fire before advancing and capturing Beijing in April of that year.Photo: The book of facts explaining the past Emperor. kindly click the picture to enlarge.

Frankly speaking, I was more interested in visiting the Great Wall. As such I didn't pay much attention to the tour guide this time. The Ming Dynasty Tombs offer more historical stories rather than just scenery.
And here is the gate where you don't walk through to visit the tombs, but you have to walk through to get out. The belief is that you don't walk to the tombs, but when you walk out, you have to walk together with the rest of the entourage saying aloud 'wo hui lai le' meaning 'I am back'. literally it means you are back to the real world now. The ladies will step with the right leg first and the guys with the left leg first. Well, at least you know some ancient Chinese custom. Belief it or not, it's up to you..My next posting is the Badaling Great Wall of China ! Do drop by to join me on my Great Wall tour coming soon..
Good Night (11.50 PM)

]]> Fri, 03 Jul 2009 05:21:00 -0500 kbguy http://justmenus.blogspot.com/2009/07/ming-dynasty-tombs-beijing.html beijing travel traveloque The Australian: On Liu Xiaobo :: Under the Jacaranda Tree http://underthejacaranda.wordpress.com/2009/07/03/the-australian-on-liu-xiaobo/ Today’s The Australian published Liu Xiaobo’s last interview with foreign press shortly before his arrest:China’s most famous dissident, the courtly, professorial Liu Xiaobo, 53, was taken by security officers from his home in Beijing last December and held incommunicado for six months, mostly in a room without windows at a secret location.Last week he was [...] Read this article on the community site

Today’s The Australian published Liu Xiaobo’s last interview with foreign press shortly before his arrest:China’s most famous dissident, the courtly, professorial Liu Xiaobo, 53, was taken by security officers from his home in Beijing last December and held incommunicado for six months, mostly in a room without windows at a secret location.Last week he was [...]

]]> Fri, 03 Jul 2009 05:07:00 -0500 underthejacaranda http://underthejacaranda.wordpress.com/2009/07/03/the-australian-on-liu-xiaobo/ australia freedom of speech hu jia liu xiaobo media censorship under the tree My Dinners :: Liuzhou Laowai http://liuzhou.blog-city.com/my_dinners_1.htm I've been promising / threatening this for a while. Leave Comment Related Entries: They're Flagging Blast! The Lunatics Have Taken Over The Asylum China in the 1920s Urgent Warning Updated Chaos Three Way Road "Can I be your friend?" No Direction Home Sky Hole Read this article on the community site

I've been promising / threatening this for a while.

Leave Comment

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]]> Fri, 03 Jul 2009 05:05:00 -0500 liuzhou http://liuzhou.blog-city.com/my_dinners_1.htm china food Michael Jackson: 1958 - 2009 :: The Jolly Swagman! http://davidschroeter.blogspot.com/2009/07/michael-jackson-1958-2009.html Michael Jackson: 1958 - 2009Originally uploaded by Tobyotter Vale Michael Jackson... a belated tribute! Read this article on the community site

Michael Jackson: 1958 - 2009
Originally uploaded by Tobyotter

Vale Michael Jackson... a belated tribute!

]]> Fri, 03 Jul 2009 04:22:00 -0500 drs2biz http://davidschroeter.blogspot.com/2009/07/michael-jackson-1958-2009.html A Few Thoughts Concerning Michael Bay :: Lao Wai Wen Shen http://laowaiink.blogspot.com/2009/07/few-thoughts-concerning-michael-bay.html With mega-robot destruction sweeping the world cinemas and the countless critics tooting horns of lofty opinions, I'd like to share my take on the second-most prominent celebrity named Michael currently carpet-bombing the news. In every sense of the word, Michael Bay is the People's Director. He knows what the average moviegoer wants (bouncing boobs, bombs, bright lights, fast cars, thundering soundtrack). My grandfather once referred to Bay and his posse as "a wrecking crew." That's what Michael Bay does- he wrecks things in ever-so-beautiful and poetic hues of glorious devastation, because this is what people generally want when they go to the movies. Movies are the world's waking dreams, and we want to watch on screen what we generally can't have in real life. Now it's easy to just blow things up and have busty babes running around in slow motion, but I will contend that Michael Bay delivers such normally low-class entertainment elements with flair and bravado that no other Hollywood director can match. Bay's films are masterpieces of color and light. Many directors have their own particular tones and hues that they favor, and Bay opts to go with the disco club palette. If it's dark, it's really dark, but if it's light, it's really bright, but never glaring. Every camera angle is dramatic, every frame is excellently composed. I wouldn't call his action sequences gritty but they don't seem like watery CGI cotton candy either (see X-Men Origins: Wolverine). I guess the best word would be "visceral." It's as close to 3-D as you can get without being 3-D. Of course it's well known that Bay favors effects over story and characterization, but most of the time (though not always), his story and characters are enjoyable, if implausible. Bay's dialogue is always peppered with up-to-date slang and contemporary humor (though the racist depiction of black people in Revenge of the Fallen's Twins was a bit heavy-handed). His films have an MTV hipness infused in them that irks critics but resonates with young people and with which I identify. But he never feels like he's reaching either. The jabs and jokes flow like wine but never feel like they're forcing the social relevance with pop-culture references, as many children's cartoons do. Perhaps what I admire most about Bay's style is the tightness of his ship. Every detail is meticulous but never pretentious. The editing, the sound effects, the sets, everything is well-executed and solid without being overly flashy. Bay knows he's delivering a fluffy cream pie rather than a hearty meal, but damn if he doesn't make that cream pie as beautiful and sugary as possible. He makes the best-tasting cinematic junk food out there and if I'm not mistaken, he's the most profitable director active today in proportion to the number of movies that he's made. Michael Bay is McDonald's. I've been going to McDonald's since I was a wee tot, and while I only go every so often, when I do, it's a treat, and I enjoy a cheeseburger now just as much as I did when I was five years old. The critics can say what they want, but when you have a winning recipe, it doesn't matter whether it's healthy or not. Read this article on the community site

With mega-robot destruction sweeping the world cinemas and the countless critics tooting horns of lofty opinions, I'd like to share my take on the second-most prominent celebrity named Michael currently carpet-bombing the news.

In every sense of the word, Michael Bay is the People's Director. He knows what the average moviegoer wants (bouncing boobs, bombs, bright lights, fast cars, thundering soundtrack). My grandfather once referred to Bay and his posse as "a wrecking crew." That's what Michael Bay does- he wrecks things in ever-so-beautiful and poetic hues of glorious devastation, because this is what people generally want when they go to the movies. Movies are the world's waking dreams, and we want to watch on screen what we generally can't have in real life.

Now it's easy to just blow things up and have busty babes running around in slow motion, but I will contend that Michael Bay delivers such normally low-class entertainment elements with flair and bravado that no other Hollywood director can match. Bay's films are masterpieces of color and light. Many directors have their own particular tones and hues that they favor, and Bay opts to go with the disco club palette. If it's dark, it's really dark, but if it's light, it's really bright, but never glaring. Every camera angle is dramatic, every frame is excellently composed. I wouldn't call his action sequences gritty but they don't seem like watery CGI cotton candy either (see X-Men Origins: Wolverine). I guess the best word would be "visceral." It's as close to 3-D as you can get without being 3-D.

Of course it's well known that Bay favors effects over story and characterization, but most of the time (though not always), his story and characters are enjoyable, if implausible. Bay's dialogue is always peppered with up-to-date slang and contemporary humor (though the racist depiction of black people in Revenge of the Fallen's Twins was a bit heavy-handed). His films have an MTV hipness infused in them that irks critics but resonates with young people and with which I identify. But he never feels like he's reaching either. The jabs and jokes flow like wine but never feel like they're forcing the social relevance with pop-culture references, as many children's cartoons do.

Perhaps what I admire most about Bay's style is the tightness of his ship. Every detail is meticulous but never pretentious. The editing, the sound effects, the sets, everything is well-executed and solid without being overly flashy. Bay knows he's delivering a fluffy cream pie rather than a hearty meal, but damn if he doesn't make that cream pie as beautiful and sugary as possible. He makes the best-tasting cinematic junk food out there and if I'm not mistaken, he's the most profitable director active today in proportion to the number of movies that he's made.

Michael Bay is McDonald's. I've been going to McDonald's since I was a wee tot, and while I only go every so often, when I do, it's a treat, and I enjoy a cheeseburger now just as much as I did when I was five years old. The critics can say what they want, but when you have a winning recipe, it doesn't matter whether it's healthy or not.

]]> Fri, 03 Jul 2009 03:57:00 -0500 Kangwen http://laowaiink.blogspot.com/2009/07/few-thoughts-concerning-michael-bay.html Sips and bites: Crobar, Room, Cheers, Cosmos, In Vito, Muse, and more :: Beijing Boyce http://www.beijingboyce.com/2009/07/03/sips-and-bites-crobar-room-cheers-cosmos-in-vito-muse-and-more/ After false starts last Saturday and this Wednesday, Cosmos Hot Dogsis slated to open tonight in Tongli Studio, while the second branch of Vietnamese restaurant Muse is apparently to follow later this weekend. This is part of swift changes in the building that have included Juliette’s replacing Le Bistrot Parisien and Cheers announcing it will close this weekend. [...] Read this article on the community site

After false starts last Saturday and this Wednesday, Cosmos Hot Dogsis slated to open tonight in Tongli Studio, while the second branch of Vietnamese restaurant Muse is apparently to follow later this weekend. This is part of swift changes in the building that have included Juliette’s replacing Le Bistrot Parisien and Cheers announcing it will close this weekend. [...]

]]> Fri, 03 Jul 2009 02:27:00 -0500 boyce http://www.beijingboyce.com/2009/07/03/sips-and-bites-crobar-room-cheers-cosmos-in-vito-muse-and-more/ uncategorized Hong Kong 1 July 2009 :: Under the Jacaranda Tree http://underthejacaranda.wordpress.com/2009/07/03/hong-kong-1-july-2009/ This post is about how Hong Kong has commemorated the 12th anniversary of its return to PRC rule.  I promise you this is going to be a “fair and balanced” blog post.  I’ll let the images and eye witness reports speak for themselves.As usual, CCTV has the most “comprehensive” coverage:This is a typical report from [...] Read this article on the community site

This post is about how Hong Kong has commemorated the 12th anniversary of its return to PRC rule.  I promise you this is going to be a “fair and balanced” blog post.  I’ll let the images and eye witness reports speak for themselves.As usual, CCTV has the most “comprehensive” coverage:This is a typical report from [...]

]]> Fri, 03 Jul 2009 01:41:00 -0500 underthejacaranda http://underthejacaranda.wordpress.com/2009/07/03/hong-kong-1-july-2009/ china propaganda freedom of speech hong kong under the tree Raise your glass! Cheers to close this weekend :: Beijing Boyce http://www.beijingboyce.com/2009/07/03/raise-your-glass-cheers-to-close-this-weekend/ Cheers, best known for featuring live Xinjiang music on the weekends, will call it quits in Tongli Studio this weekend. This bar ranks among my ten favorites in Beijing. In addition to excellent music, it draws patrons of all ages, nationalities, and professions, offers an ecentric combination of pool table and nude oil paintings courtesy of own Leo, and leaves me [...] Read this article on the community site

Cheers, best known for featuring live Xinjiang music on the weekends, will call it quits in Tongli Studio this weekend. This bar ranks among my ten favorites in Beijing. In addition to excellent music, it draws patrons of all ages, nationalities, and professions, offers an ecentric combination of pool table and nude oil paintings courtesy of own Leo, and leaves me [...]

]]> Fri, 03 Jul 2009 01:34:00 -0500 boyce http://www.beijingboyce.com/2009/07/03/raise-your-glass-cheers-to-close-this-weekend/ uncategorized After 403 Days... :: Mark's China Blog http://markschinablog.blogspot.com/2009/07/after-403-days.html Qian and I arrived back in Xi'an today after an incredible week in Beijing. Despite my crotchetiness with the young backpackers at our hostel, the four days we spent in Beijing were delightful. The highlight of the trip for me was renting an electric-powered motor boat and taking that out on Houhai with our friends Richard and Ling. We got into the boat at sunset and cruised out on the water as Houhai and the bars surrounding the lake went abuzz with the darkness. A surreal experience. Other highlights included watching Qian see Tiananmen Square for the first time (I'll post some goofy pictures of her there in the coming days), the Temple of Heaven, the Great Wall at Jinshanling and Simatai, hanging out with a number of different friends we know in Beijing, and having a cup of coffee with probably one of, if not the best, China blogger on the internet. As great as our few days in Beijing were, the biggest news for me at the moment is the news Qian and I received this morning. When Qian and I got back to Xi'an a few hours ago, we checked her email. Yesterday we'd sent an email to Guangzhou asking about the status of her visa to America. Well, today the consulate in Guangzhou responded that they'd received all of the documents they needed, had reviewed our case, and have given approval to Qian for a visa to the States! Wooooohooooo!!!!!!!!!! The Land of the Free (and adjustable rate mortgages), here we come!!! The final step will be going back to Guangzhou again in the coming weeks (Ramesh, Qian and I would love to buy you dinner) to get the visa in Qian's passport. We then will have a party for us here in Xi'an (an event with bells and whistles celebrating our upcoming marriage, but without an actual marriage certificate or anything official... we need to still be unmarried upon entry to the States) and then going to America. Today, July 3rd, 2009, is a good day. We sent in our first application for Qian's visa to the States on May 26, 2008. So only 403 days after initially sending in information to the United States Customs and Immigration Services, we've received confirmation that Qian can come to America on a fiancee visa. Someday in the future, I'm going to give a detailed plan for how to get through this process. We made a few mistakes and it cost us a significant amount of time. I'll try to type up something clear and simple explaining how one should go about this K1 visa process. Until I do that, I'm going to enjoy life as much as possible here in Xi'an, wrap up all of the loose ends that I'll need to after being in China for more than three and a half years, and Qian and I are going to do our best to prepare for the insanity that will be getting married and going to the US in the next couple of months. Read this article on the community site

Qian and I arrived back in Xi'an today after an incredible week in Beijing. Despite my crotchetiness with the young backpackers at our hostel, the four days we spent in Beijing were delightful.

The highlight of the trip for me was renting an electric-powered motor boat and taking that out on Houhai with our friends Richard and Ling. We got into the boat at sunset and cruised out on the water as Houhai and the bars surrounding the lake went abuzz with the darkness. A surreal experience.

Other highlights included watching Qian see Tiananmen Square for the first time (I'll post some goofy pictures of her there in the coming days), the Temple of Heaven, the Great Wall at Jinshanling and Simatai, hanging out with a number of different friends we know in Beijing, and having a cup of coffee with probably one of, if not the best, China blogger on the internet.

As great as our few days in Beijing were, the biggest news for me at the moment is the news Qian and I received this morning.

When Qian and I got back to Xi'an a few hours ago, we checked her email. Yesterday we'd sent an email to Guangzhou asking about the status of her visa to America.

Well, today the consulate in Guangzhou responded that they'd received all of the documents they needed, had reviewed our case, and have given approval to Qian for a visa to the States! Wooooohooooo!!!!!!!!!! The Land of the Free (and adjustable rate mortgages), here we come!!!

The final step will be going back to Guangzhou again in the coming weeks (Ramesh, Qian and I would love to buy you dinner) to get the visa in Qian's passport. We then will have a party for us here in Xi'an (an event with bells and whistles celebrating our upcoming marriage, but without an actual marriage certificate or anything official... we need to still be unmarried upon entry to the States) and then going to America.

Today, July 3rd, 2009, is a good day. We sent in our first application for Qian's visa to the States on May 26, 2008. So only 403 days after initially sending in information to the United States Customs and Immigration Services, we've received confirmation that Qian can come to America on a fiancee visa.

Someday in the future, I'm going to give a detailed plan for how to get through this process. We made a few mistakes and it cost us a significant amount of time. I'll try to type up something clear and simple explaining how one should go about this K1 visa process.

Until I do that, I'm going to enjoy life as much as possible here in Xi'an, wrap up all of the loose ends that I'll need to after being in China for more than three and a half years, and Qian and I are going to do our best to prepare for the insanity that will be getting married and going to the US in the next couple of months.

]]> Fri, 03 Jul 2009 01:02:00 -0500 midgepuff http://markschinablog.blogspot.com/2009/07/after-403-days.html personal travel Go Tony! :: TheDarkSide.Hk - The other side of Hong Kong http://thedarkside.hk/2009/07/03/tony-chan-nina-wang-trial/ A lot has been said about the Nina Wang/Tony Chan case. But hey, who doesn’t like hearing about a story of a rich, old and crackpot woman worth billions who gets seduced by a young bachelor claiming to be a ‘Fung Shui master’? The Standard reports that the court battle has finally lifted the lid on this city’s obsession with this ancient Chinese energy system. Turns out a consultant can charge several thousand Honkie dollars to look at a typical 500-square-foot flat, with the best-known masters charging much more. Bling indeed. The Wang family has been nothing short of pissed off of course, Nina’s sister proclaiming that Chan was nothing more than a eunuch (castrated servant) to Cash Cow Nina. Snap! But angry the Wangs may be, we still give Tony an A+ for effort in his noble endeavor to get the cash. A man with a smile like this and able to convince retarded white collar workers seeking luck and fortune to literally burn their money is a special type of douche. With a son named ‘Wealthee‘ (the name ‘Wealthy’ was apparently denied by government officials, prompting this creative twist), you’d reckon some eyebrows would have been raised at one point. But no. Fung Shui masters are too awesome to touch, at least until now. Tony is of course only his English name, we discovered a while ago that his real Chinese name is ‘Gah Chu suk-Ah’. Something Macau’s last Portugese Governor Vasco Joaquim Rocha and HK Lawmaker Abraham Shek-Lai-him probably also realised at one point. Hey Tony, in exchange for our support (and face it buddy, you ain’t got much of that), can we borrow the private jet for the weekend? Cheers. Read this article on the community site

A lot has been said about the Nina Wang/Tony Chan case. But hey, who doesn’t like hearing about a story of a rich, old and crackpot woman worth billions who gets seduced by a young bachelor claiming to be a ‘Fung Shui master’? The Standard reports that the court battle has finally lifted the lid on this city’s obsession with this ancient Chinese energy system. Turns out a consultant can charge several thousand Honkie dollars to look at a typical 500-square-foot flat, with the best-known masters charging much more. Bling indeed.

The Wang family has been nothing short of pissed off of course, Nina’s sister proclaiming that Chan was nothing more than a eunuch (castrated servant) to Cash Cow Nina. Snap! But angry the Wangs may be, we still give Tony an A+ for effort in his noble endeavor to get the cash. A man with a smile like this and able to convince retarded white collar workers seeking luck and fortune to literally burn their money is a special type of douche. With a son named ‘Wealthee‘ (the name ‘Wealthy’ was apparently denied by government officials, prompting this creative twist), you’d reckon some eyebrows would have been raised at one point. But no. Fung Shui masters are too awesome to touch, at least until now.

Tony is of course only his English name, we discovered a while ago that his real Chinese name is ‘Gah Chu suk-Ah’. Something Macau’s last Portugese Governor Vasco Joaquim Rocha and HK Lawmaker Abraham Shek-Lai-him probably also realised at one point. Hey Tony, in exchange for our support (and face it buddy, you ain’t got much of that), can we borrow the private jet for the weekend? Cheers.


]]> Fri, 03 Jul 2009 01:02:00 -0500 TheDarkSide.HK http://thedarkside.hk/2009/07/03/tony-chan-nina-wang-trial/ court disputes hong kong money nina wang I'm apparently goodlooking without the glasses :: Shopgirl's Shanghai http://www.metrobloggen.se/jsp/public/permalink.jsp?article=19.10390959 Today I went to the market outside Yuyuan Garden to buy some stuff for my apartment (pillows, wardrobe gadgets, rugs, etc.) I got a lot of stuff for only 230 kuai. Amazing! I love China, haha. Anyway, I asked a seller in a shop where I could find bathroom stuff, and he then told me where to go, when I was just going to leave, he stopped me and took off my glasses with his hands, and said: Waaaaaaaaaa, without the glasses you are a mei nv (beautiful woman), but with them you are not. [Ehhhhhhhhhhhhhh............OK...help?] I am currently wearing my glasses :-) Read this article on the community site

Today I went to the market outside Yuyuan Garden to buy some stuff for my apartment (pillows, wardrobe gadgets, rugs, etc.) I got a lot of stuff for only 230 kuai. Amazing! I love China, haha. Anyway, I asked a seller in a shop where I could find bathroom stuff, and he then told me where to go, when I was just going to leave, he stopped me and took off my glasses with his hands, and said: Waaaaaaaaaa, without the glasses you are a mei nv (beautiful woman), but with them you are not. [Ehhhhhhhhhhhhhh............OK...help?] I am currently wearing my glasses :-)

]]> Fri, 03 Jul 2009 00:59:00 -0500 Siyan http://www.metrobloggen.se/jsp/public/permalink.jsp?article=19.10390959 Worst pizza ever :: ISpyShanghai.com http://ispyshanghai.com/2009/07/03/worst-pizza-ever/ Well just after stoking a raging inferno of comment fire on the merits of Italian restaurants in Shanghai, this delivery menu landed on my desk. I’m guessing they didn’t fly a top pizza chef in from Tuscany to come up with the “Abseriction Orchard”, and I do wonder how many other ingredients they tried alongside “Meat Gut” before they decided that pineapple was just the ticket. The potato special sounds particularly insipid It sounds so bad that it would be worth trying- sadly though they only deliver to Pudong. If anyone in the ‘Dong is feeling brave, I’d love to hear what these things taste like. In fact I DOUBLE DARE YOU. “Share My Way” Pizza tel: 5844363 (open 10am-10pm) If you liked that, you might like... Wujiang Lu (0 comments) Where to stay in Shanghai (5 comments) Tragedy at M&S Shanghai (22 comments) Read this article on the community site

Well just after stoking a raging inferno of comment fire on the merits of Italian restaurants in Shanghai, this delivery menu landed on my desk.

worst pizza ever

meat gut pizza

I’m guessing they didn’t fly a top pizza chef in from Tuscany to come up with the “Abseriction Orchard”, and I do wonder how many other ingredients they tried alongside “Meat Gut” before they decided that pineapple was just the ticket.

worst pizza toppings 2

The potato special sounds particularly insipid

It sounds so bad that it would be worth trying- sadly though they only deliver to Pudong.

If anyone in the ‘Dong is feeling brave, I’d love to hear what these things taste like. In fact I DOUBLE DARE YOU.

“Share My Way” Pizza

tel: 5844363 (open 10am-10pm)


If you liked that, you might like...

]]> Fri, 03 Jul 2009 00:00:00 -0500 Swiss James http://ispyshanghai.com/2009/07/03/worst-pizza-ever/ freshness shopping Small funds, big story? :: Editors' Journal - China Economic Review http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/chinaeconomicreview/XKod/~3/usEGPUEvL6Q/Small_funds_big_story.html The cover story for China Economic Reviews newly published July issue, focuses on Chinese strategies for outbound investment in oil and gas. However, throughout the reporting of the story, CER staffers conducted interviews with analysts and insiders regarding outbound investment in a broad range of natural resources. Much of what [...] Read this article on the community site

The cover story for China Economic Reviews newly published July issue, focuses on Chinese strategies for outbound investment in oil and gas. However, throughout the reporting of the story, CER staffers conducted interviews with analysts and insiders regarding outbound investment in a broad range of natural resources. Much of what [...]

]]> Fri, 03 Jul 2009 00:00:00 -0500 joonian http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/chinaeconomicreview/XKod/~3/usEGPUEvL6Q/Small_funds_big_story.html Capitalist Roader Fund: BUY-Jiangsu Expressway Co Ltd (600377, Shanghai) :: Editors' Journal - China Economic Review http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/chinaeconomicreview/XKod/~3/ToHL9FtQxhM/Capitalist_Roader_Fund:_BUY-Jiangsu_Expressway_Co_Ltd_600377_Shanghai.html Damn the torpedoes and the long-term threat to the economy posed by a non-performing loan crisis! We're back in the market, and we hope it's full speed ahead for our purchase: Jiangsu Expressway (600377.SH), operator of, well, expressways. We bought 200 shares today at RMB6.63 (US$0.97) each.Why this target and [...] Read this article on the community site

Damn the torpedoes and the long-term threat to the economy posed by a non-performing loan crisis! We're back in the market, and we hope it's full speed ahead for our purchase: Jiangsu Expressway (600377.SH), operator of, well, expressways. We bought 200 shares today at RMB6.63 (US$0.97) each.Why this target and [...]

]]> Fri, 03 Jul 2009 00:00:00 -0500 joonian http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/chinaeconomicreview/XKod/~3/ToHL9FtQxhM/Capitalist_Roader_Fund:_BUY-Jiangsu_Expressway_Co_Ltd_600377_Shanghai.html Ramones Fans in China? :: SinoPenn http://www.sinopenn.com/2009/07/03/ramones-fans-in-china/#utm_source=feed&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=feed Well… probably not really.  Not these guys anyways.  In the last couple months, I’ve caught about 5 different people wearing these Ramones shirts, mostly in the colors below.  I only managed to snag 2 pics but I’ll continue to be on the Ramones hunt. Ramones Fans in China? Read this article on the community site

Well… probably not really.  Not these guys anyways.  In the last couple months, I’ve caught about 5 different people wearing these Ramones shirts, mostly in the colors below.  I only managed to snag 2 pics but I’ll continue to be on the Ramones hunt.

ramones

Ramones Fans in China?

Ramones Fans in China?

]]> Fri, 03 Jul 2009 00:00:00 -0500 skyline5k http://www.sinopenn.com/2009/07/03/ramones-fans-in-china/#utm_source=feed&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=feed music sinopenn strange Some other exciting graduation photos :: Happy Rianbow http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/HappyRainbow/~3/vxrsg25jIc8/some-other-exciting-graduation-photos.html Not sure how you think of yesterday graduation photos. Well, there are some other special one like those below.... Cheong sam...... And even those 1940's or 50's student dressing..... I like the last one, so special.... Check out my blog for more updating" Read this article on the community site

Not sure how you think of yesterday graduation photos. Well, there are some other special one like those below....


Cheong sam......
And even those 1940's or 50's student dressing.....

I like the last one, so special....



Check out my blog for more updating"


]]> Thu, 02 Jul 2009 23:33:00 -0500 rainbow http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/HappyRainbow/~3/vxrsg25jIc8/some-other-exciting-graduation-photos.html china girls wearings Best Discounts and Deals in Shanghai for July3-9 :: City Weekend Shanghai Blog http://www.cityweekend.com.cn/shanghai/articles/blogs-shanghai/style/best-discounts-and-deals-in-shanghai-for-july3-9/ Date: Jul 3rd 2009 12:31p.m. Contributed by: tracyyou “It was the best of times; it was the worst of times.” The summer sales are officially here. I walked down Huaihai Zhong Lu this morning and found heaps of discount offered by big names. Check it out during this weekend but try not to overspend your budget. Clothing & Accessories H&M continues their mega season-end sale. An average 50 percent discount is offered on selected items. Go early for a wider collection to choose from. H&M’s next door neighbor C&A is also treating you with their season-change sale with an up to 50 percent discount. At the other end of Huaihai Zhong Lu, Spanish fashion tycoon Zara is knocking down their priceline. Find hip S/S pieces with an average 30 percent discount. Homeware To celebrate their first 10 years as the 'Hai go-to homeware boutique, Simply Life is offering a storewide sale with up to 80 percent off items from July 4 to August. 2 and a special CD, "Life is a Celebration." O’Blu is offering a mid-year discount till July 23. For fans of Armani, the shop is giving 20 percent off jeans and 40 percent off ready-to-wear items and accessories. Get up to 30 percent off other denim labels like Citizens of Humanity, Denime and Antik Denim. Head over to any store of Quiksilver & Roxy in town (outlets excluded) and pick up two new summer arrivals and get 20 percent off. Purchase three selected items and get 30 percent off. Lingerie For those missing out on the July 4 sales bonanza in the U.S., have no fear, underwear boutique Lingerie & Me is having its own celebration. Starting from July 2-5, come in and get 26 percent off on all the collections. Malls&Department Stores City Plaza is holding their swimsuits festival ... Read this article on the community site

Date: Jul 3rd 2009 12:31p.m.
Contributed by: tracyyou

“It was the best of times; it was the worst of times.” The summer sales are officially here. I walked down Huaihai Zhong Lu this morning and found heaps of discount offered by big names. Check it out during this weekend but try not to overspend your budget.

Clothing & Accessories
  • H&M continues their mega season-end sale. An average 50 percent discount is offered on selected items. Go early for a wider collection to choose from.
  • H&M’s next door neighbor C&A is also treating you with their season-change sale with an up to 50 percent discount.
  • At the other end of Huaihai Zhong Lu, Spanish fashion tycoon Zara is knocking down their priceline. Find hip S/S pieces with an average 30 percent discount.
Homeware
  • To celebrate their first 10 years as the 'Hai go-to homeware boutique, Simply Life is offering a storewide sale with up to 80 percent off items from July 4 to August. 2 and a special CD, "Life is a Celebration."
  • O’Blu is offering a mid-year discount till July 23. For fans of Armani, the shop is giving 20 percent off jeans and 40 percent off ready-to-wear items and accessories. Get up to 30 percent off other denim labels like Citizens of Humanity, Denime and Antik Denim.
  • Head over to any store of Quiksilver & Roxy in town (outlets excluded) and pick up two new summer arrivals and get 20 percent off. Purchase three selected items and get 30 percent off.
Lingerie
  • For those missing out on the July 4 sales bonanza in the U.S., have no fear, underwear boutique Lingerie & Me is having its own celebration. Starting from July 2-5, come in and get 26 percent off on all the collections.
Malls&Department Stores
  • City Plaza is holding their swimsuits festival ...
]]> Thu, 02 Jul 2009 23:31:00 -0500 cityweekend http://www.cityweekend.com.cn/shanghai/articles/blogs-shanghai/style/best-discounts-and-deals-in-shanghai-for-july3-9/ a e g h i l n s t y Boys Babes and Belvedere Black Raspberry :: Happy Rianbow http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/HappyRainbow/~3/H91VFR47XZs/boys-babes-and-belvedere-black.html Aberdeen, Top Deck on the Jumbo – June 15th 2009. Top Deck Summer Lounge presents BOYS, BABES & BELVEDERE BLACK RASPBERRY. Launch party with DJ Arun R, DJ P Grant and DJ Romi, Saturday 4th July 09 - 4pm till late. The objective of the Summer Lounge events is to combine great entertainment with a fabulous selection of food and drinks in a relaxed and ‘al fresco’ atmosphere - on top of the Jumbo, HK’s legendary floating Restaurant The big launch kicks off at 4pm on the 4th July with free flow Belvedere signature cocktails and complimentary snacks for 2 hours, complemented by some of HK’s most reputable DJ’s from Entertaining Asia and Playback, including Arun R, Romi and P. Grant. To top it off, Latin Percussionist Aldo de Bongo will be jamming under the sun with the DJs. As the night starts to heat up, temperatures will soar when guests are treated to hot swimwear and fashion shows from Sabina Swims, Villebrequin and Kanchan Couture, showcasing what the Summer of 2009 holds for these 3 fantastic brands. Feeling lucky yet? There will be a fun lucky draw to follow with exclusive “must have” prizes. Furthermore guests are encouraged to wind down, chill out and enjoy the summer grooves from HK’s hottest DJs, exotic cocktails and fabulous food in this perfect al fresco environment. Check out my blog for more updating" Read this article on the community site

Aberdeen, Top Deck on the Jumbo – June 15th 2009. Top Deck Summer Lounge presents BOYS, BABES & BELVEDERE BLACK RASPBERRY. Launch party with DJ Arun R, DJ P Grant and DJ Romi, Saturday 4th July 09 - 4pm till late.

The objective of the Summer Lounge events is to combine great entertainment with a fabulous selection of food and drinks in a relaxed and ‘al fresco’ atmosphere - on top of the Jumbo, HK’s legendary floating Restaurant

The big launch kicks off at 4pm on the 4th July with free flow Belvedere signature cocktails and complimentary snacks for 2 hours, complemented by some of HK’s most reputable DJ’s from Entertaining Asia and Playback, including Arun R, Romi and P. Grant. To top it off, Latin Percussionist Aldo de Bongo will be jamming under the sun with the DJs.

As the night starts to heat up, temperatures will soar when guests are treated to hot swimwear and fashion shows from Sabina Swims, Villebrequin and Kanchan Couture, showcasing what the Summer of 2009 holds for these 3 fantastic brands.

Feeling lucky yet? There will be a fun lucky draw to follow with exclusive “must have” prizes. Furthermore guests are encouraged to wind down, chill out and enjoy the summer grooves from HK’s hottest DJs, exotic cocktails and fabulous food in this perfect al fresco environment.



Check out my blog for more updating"


]]> Thu, 02 Jul 2009 23:30:00 -0500 rainbow http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/HappyRainbow/~3/H91VFR47XZs/boys-babes-and-belvedere-black.html clubbing fun Mixing it up :: SHE in China http://sheinchina.blogspot.com/2009/07/mixing-it-up.html I try to mix a lot, even though I don't always understand the people I am mixing with... especially not when they speak local dialect... One thing is funny when there are westerners and Chinese people working at the same company. Although they would often benefit from spending more time together, they rarely do. At least that seems to be the case where I’m working now. The big boss in an exception, he’s everywhere all the time, but then there are 2 young guys (one from Shanghai and one from Hebei) who are sitting in silence in their own little corner and who rarely speak to anyone but each other. Or OK, well that was the case until I came along. Keen to practice my Chinese and make new friends I headed over the second day and scared the Hebei guy with my (slightly nervous) rambling about anything and everything. The following day I set my sight on the Shanghai guy and I was surprised of how everyone else (in the office) responded: “You know the Chinese guys?!” “Wow, I’ve been here for 6 months and I’ve never talked to them!” “I didn’t even know they speak English?!” “Oh, you can speak Chinese…. Well then no wonder” (complete bulls**, these 2 guys have lived in Finland for 2-3 years and speak perfect English). I’m not simply blaming the western guys for not including the Chinese crew. I know for a fact that unless I had taken the first step, these 2 guys wouldn’t have started talking to me. However, since they eventually realized that I wasn’t some dangerous creature (?) and stuff they decided to join us for lunch, which created even more raised eyebrows among the staff: “You had lunch together with the Chinese guys!?!” “The Chinese guys joined you in the PARK?” “They ate a sandwich and not rice!?” Yeah, wo-ho, how exotic and everything… (not). Same thing happened yesterday when a guy was making a feature about a Chinese pop band. He was having troubles retrieving information from the net and asked me if I knew the group. I didn’t. “But I’m sure the Chinese guys do! Let’s go and ask!” “Oh, no no, not necessary!” “Eh…. Yes, VERY necessary! And very simple! Just watch.”Five minutes later I knew everything we needed to know and the Chinese guys (helpful as ever) had even offered to do an Internet search for us. And all we had to do was just to ask. Funny how it can be so hard sometimes. Read this article on the community site

I try to mix a lot, even though I don't always understand the people I am mixing with... especially not when they speak local dialect...

One thing is funny when there are westerners and Chinese people working at the same company. Although they would often benefit from spending more time together, they rarely do. At least that seems to be the case where I’m working now. The big boss in an exception, he’s everywhere all the time, but then there are 2 young guys (one from Shanghai and one from Hebei) who are sitting in silence in their own little corner and who rarely speak to anyone but each other.

Or OK, well that was the case until I came along. Keen to practice my Chinese and make new friends I headed over the second day and scared the Hebei guy with my (slightly nervous) rambling about anything and everything. The following day I set my sight on the Shanghai guy and I was surprised of how everyone else (in the office) responded:

“You know the Chinese guys?!”


“Wow, I’ve been here for 6 months and I’ve never talked to them!”

“I didn’t even know they speak English?!”

“Oh, you can speak Chinese…. Well then no wonder” (complete bulls**, these 2 guys have lived in Finland for 2-3 years and speak perfect English).

I’m not simply blaming the western guys for not including the Chinese crew. I know for a fact that unless I had taken the first step, these 2 guys wouldn’t have started talking to me.

However, since they eventually realized that I wasn’t some dangerous creature (?) and stuff they decided to join us for lunch, which created even more raised eyebrows among the staff:

“You had lunch together with the Chinese guys!?!”


“The Chinese guys joined you in the PARK?”

“They ate a sandwich and not rice!?”

Yeah, wo-ho, how exotic and everything… (not).

Same thing happened yesterday when a guy was making a feature about a Chinese pop band. He was having troubles retrieving information from the net and asked me if I knew the group. I didn’t.

“But I’m sure the Chinese guys do! Let’s go and ask!”


“Oh, no no, not necessary!”

“Eh…. Yes, VERY necessary! And very simple! Just watch.”

Five minutes later I knew everything we needed to know and the Chinese guys (helpful as ever) had even offered to do an Internet search for us. And all we had to do was just to ask. Funny how it can be so hard sometimes.
]]> Thu, 02 Jul 2009 22:52:00 -0500 Jonna http://sheinchina.blogspot.com/2009/07/mixing-it-up.html experienced Shanzhai eye: Save the Pandaphants :: Shanghai Ginger Guy http://shanghaigingerguy.com/2009/07/02/shanzhai-eye-save-the-pandaphants/ Life’s tough when you’ve got to compete for cuteness on the A-list of endangered species. Wrinkly old elephants at the Royal Elephant Kraal zoo in Thailand are being dressed up as pandas to remind visitors that it’s not all about the new cute panda cubs born at the zoo recently. Via Xinhuanet.com Related posts: Shanzhai Panda Video: Shanzhai Movie – Kung Foo Bear Read this article on the community site

Life’s tough when you’ve got to compete for cuteness on the A-list of endangered species. Wrinkly old elephants at the Royal Elephant Kraal zoo in Thailand are being dressed up as pandas to remind visitors that it’s not all about the new cute panda cubs born at the zoo recently.

pandaphants

Via Xinhuanet.com

Related posts:

]]> Thu, 02 Jul 2009 20:45:00 -0500 Cankles http://shanghaigingerguy.com/2009/07/02/shanzhai-eye-save-the-pandaphants/ odd Blogging the other way… :: The diary of Jakob Knulp http://www.giacomobutte.com/?p=1094 From Liberia an example of physical blogging, or simply black board in public space.Just to show that ideas and needs are much alike everywhere.Check also out the site Afrigadget Read this article on the community site

From Liberia an example of physical blogging, or simply black board in public space.Just to show that ideas and needs are much alike everywhere.Check also out the site Afrigadget

]]> Thu, 02 Jul 2009 20:31:00 -0500 bttgcm http://www.giacomobutte.com/?p=1094 africa creative curiosity design innovation Freedom Days! :: Chinglish Adventures of Chairman Mao http://longlivemao.blogspot.com/2009/07/freedom-days.html Chairman Mao cannot understand why Canadia and Americaland celebrating same freedom from Englandland on two days so close to each other. Why does one country need two freedom celebrations? Strange customs some laowai has. Here's wishing you happy America everyday! Read this article on the community site

Chairman Mao cannot understand why Canadia and Americaland celebrating same freedom from Englandland on two days so close to each other. Why does one country need two freedom celebrations? Strange customs some laowai has.

Here's wishing you happy America everyday!


]]> Thu, 02 Jul 2009 20:09:00 -0500 Chinamatt http://longlivemao.blogspot.com/2009/07/freedom-days.html