Chinese “Flowers” meet a “Cul De Sac”

—-to those who love tennis

The first carnival for tennis fans this year or tennis season, the French Open, dancing in the rain. But to the Chinese player Zheng Jie and other two “Flowers”, it is far from only a muddy road to go,but as [...]]]> China Impression—-(Four)

Chinese “Flowers” meet a “Cul De Sac”

—-to those who love tennis

The first carnival for tennis fans this year or tennis season, the
French Open, dancing in the rain. But to the Chinese player Zheng Jie
and other two “Flowers”, it is far from only a muddy road to go,but as
I’ve been anticipating all the time,a cul de sac! You have to admit,
they made and making a great progress, an even amazing step into your
sight.But it occurs to me that when the golden age Chinese Women
Soccer Team just missed the championshiop of the World Cup by losing
to America, I sighed and said, “unfortunately this is the best chance
in next decades to win the world cup for China!” It is very simple,
you may win it by a stealing strike when you go first, but you can
hardly win it when the stronger and more athletic weastern women
soccer players wake up. You may occupy some holy field like PingPang
or Diving,but Some special game you can not easily beat, just like
soccer, and some other sports games, like tennis.

The cul de sac for Chinese tennis players comes mainly from the
body-build, the born athletic ability. Even when the “Chinese Tennis
Flowers” go very deep in some tournaments, masters or even grand
slams, to my opinion, dues to more luck than ability. Chinese players
trained systematic and hard,you can tell from their swift steps,
stable baseline strikes, but some very talent required tactics
especially service, smash,lob, drop shot, volley, half volley etc.make
them different from the top players, and maybe permanently, ’cause
they are growing old before catching that up.

The world is changing, who knows what would happen, let’s see, there
may be excitement to see a Chinese grand slam champion some day! But
not today, obviously.

–
Will Liu
Will’s International Biz Consulting Firm
Dalian Office:
1-6-1, 9#  East Wei Ye Street,
Gan Jing Zi District, Dalian, China P.O.116113
Tel:011-86-411-8649-1912
Fax:011-86-411-8647-7717
Cell1:011-86-133-2221-1965
Cell2:011-86-139-4098-3965
US Cell:1-310-218-3682

After finishing a piece the other day on the apparent torpedoing of the south Korean cruiser, I began to try to find an answer for my own question.  Why would North Korea do that?

After just a little [...]]]>

We're here for the "guns for cheeseburgers" exchange!

North Korea – a call for help?

After finishing a piece the other day on the apparent torpedoing of the south Korean cruiser, I began to try to find an answer for my own question.  Why would North Korea do that?

After just a little reading I discovered that South Korea is the North’s biggest trading partner, to the tune of almost one and a half billion dollars a year.  I discovered that both Korea’s want to get back to being one country, although each on it’s own terms.  I also did some research into this very secretive country’s current state.

It’s not great.  After a decade of floods, droughts, failed farming practices and serious economic problems, they are doing better, but it’s still no garden spot.  For the last 20 years the US, South Korea and China have been pouring in aid.  Although the North Koreans stopped taking US aid in 2006, no doubt to teach us a good lesson, their other neighbors are still pouring it on.

Why is everyone doing that? Because even before they had the Bomb, they were refining nuclear material.  North Korea has a strong industrial capacity and great mineral wealth.  No one want either bombs or nuclear material up for sale, from a country that’s falling apart.  You can’t talk or deal effectively with an unstable state.

Not that North Korea isn’t selling nuclear technology and possibly nuclear material.  We know that had a reactor deal going with Syria, the Israelis bombed the hell out it of last year.  Those Israelis, always got their “naughty” on.

But that still leaves the question: Why torpedo one of your only trading partner’s cruiser?  The one who is trying to restrain other nations from taking an even stronger stand against you.  Were they just having a “Hey! Get off my lawn!” moment?

As it turns out no one knows much about what’s going on inside North Korea.  They don’t let anyone have Internet, or cell phones.  Radio and television are strictly state or party controlled and they do their best to jam any other broadcasts.  North Koreans can go to jail for receiving or sending any information  to or from an outside source.

The “good” guessers

However, there are some media analysts, scholars of North Korean studies, and intelligence experts (for all of the above think: good guessers) Who think this might mean something very bad.  It may well not have been a North Korean government action, some low level commander may have ordered it.

They have a million person army in North Korea, an army that depends on conflict and threat for it’s existence.   They are increasingly dependent on aid from China, the same China that counsels slow and thoughtful action.  Which is not uncharacteristic of the Chinese, “Slow and sure wins the race” is almost a Chinese maxim.

Of course it doesn’t hurt that the more time passes, the more China invests in North Korea and the more that country becomes dependent on them.  Reunification with South Korea probably isn’t very high on China’s list of priorities.

Let’s say you were a North Korean whose country had been cut in half for the last 50 years.  Your half is not so pleasant, kinda sucks really.  The other half, where some of your family still lives, has cell phones, the fastest internet on the planet and a booming economy (Plus good jobs and enough food).  Would you consider starting a war with them so you could loose?  Or would you rather be Chinese?

Copyright Prentiss Gray 2010

Prentiss Gray is a writer and columnist and currently writes the Domesti-Tech Blog for Gannett.  He can be reached through his website at www.prentissgray.com

Ever wonder what the North Koreans are thinking?  I do.  Here’s a country that has spent a huge portion of their tiny country’s income on developing nuclear weapons and a missile technology to deliver them, and they can’t feed their own people.  I guess they decided on guns over [...]]]>

Hey! Quit oppressing me!

Ever wonder what the North Koreans are thinking?  I do.  Here’s a country that has spent a huge portion of their tiny country’s income on developing nuclear weapons and a missile technology to deliver them, and they can’t feed their own people.  I guess they decided on guns over butter.

A couple of months ago a South Korean ship exploded and sank, killing 46 sailors.  They suspected the North Koreans.  The North Koreans said “Nah, not us.”

Yesterday the results of further investigation revealed parts of a torpedo among the wreckage of the ship with North Korean markings on them.

“Nah not us,” say the North Koreans. “And if you do anything to retaliate, this means WAR!”

That’s a big bummer for South Korea, Seoul is within artillery range of North Korean gun positions.  Yes, the South Koreans can prove the torpedo sank the ship.  Yes, they can prove it was a North Korean torpedo.  They can even show satellite photos of a North korean submarine leaving port 2 days before the sinking.  But can they do anything about it?  No.

The South Koreans are taking their complaint to the UN.  But what will that accomplish?  More sanctions?  North Korea is already starving and has a rapidly collapsing infrastructure.  Power and water flow failures are a part of everyday life for North Koreans.  The country is falling apart, which makes the situation even scarier.

From independent news reports, we do know that most North Koreans believe themselves to be in a perpetual state of siege.  Surrounded by a sea of enemies, In their minds they’re desperately hanging on to the last vestiges of their sovereignty.  That’s good for the current government, because otherwise starving people revolt.

I guess if you have nuclear weapons, and are very aggressive, a government can pretty much do whatever it wants.  Is it any wonder that most of the world fears Iran having the same ability?

I don’t pretend to be able to recommend any course of action here.  This is the kind of problem suited to mightier minds than mine.  I’m just hoping that North Korea doesn’t get so desperate in their delusion that they decide their only option to survive is to attack a neighbor.  It’s pretty obvious which neighbor they’d pick, and I doubt it’s China.

But, back to the sinking of the ship, what exactly was that supposed to accomplish?  What is going on in the minds that conceived the attack?

“We’re so sick of you imperialist bastards with your fancy cell phones and instant kim chee, take that!”

Are they hoping that South Korea will be provoked into attacking them?  I doubt that is going to happen, South Korea is a peaceful nation with a booming economy, Even though they lost 46 sailors from an unprovoked attack, they are not risking Seoul.  Besides, how would a conflict with South Korea help North Korea?

I wonder if anyone really understands what The North Koreans are thinking?

Copyright Prentiss Gray 2010

Prentiss Gray is a writer and columnist and currently writes the Domesti-Tech Blog for Gannett.  He can be reached through his website at www.prentissgray.com

By Alan Caruba

As the sun begins to set on an America whose dollar set the standard and whose capacity for manufacturing was unchallenged, a new superpower is emerging and it is China.

Many of the economists and China-watchers have been quick to seize on any bad news coming out of the [...]]]> Superpower China

By Alan Caruba

As the sun begins to set on an America whose dollar set the standard and whose capacity for manufacturing was unchallenged, a new superpower is emerging and it is China.

Many of the economists and China-watchers have been quick to seize on any bad news coming out of the Asian giant, but for the most part they have marveled how, since the new century began, China has proven adept at maintaining a fast growing economy. Indeed, so fast, it is beginning to show signs of protectionism.

In July 2007, an article in The Washington Times noted that “China, this year for the first time, has dislodged the United States from its long reign as the main engine of global economic growth, with its more than 11 percent growth eclipsing sputtering U.S. growth of about 2 percent, according to the International Monetary Fund’s 2007 projections…”

Further down in the article, the IMF’s deputy director of research, Charles Collyns, was quoted saying, “if you add together Russia and India as well, you get over half of global growth coming from the emerging-market countries.” 

C-Span recently aired a segment in which John and Doris Naisbitt answered questions from a group of students at Tenafly High School (NJ) when they launched a tour to promote their book, “China’s Megatrends: The 8 Pillars of a New Society.”

Why, I wondered, start a book tour in a school, but it later occurred to me that these students will grow up and live in a very different world than either their parents or grandparents. It will be a world in which China will be a superpower and American may be in decline if current trends continue.

Up until the death of Mao Zedong in 1976, China had suffered grievously from the communist takeover he had led, beginning with the founding of the Peoples Republic of China (PRC) in 1949. Prior to that from the 1930s on through World War Two, the Chinese had suffered from Japanese occupation. Mao, a dedicated Communist, was clueless regarding how to create a successful economy.

The story of how China embraced capitalism while retaining its communist government is quite remarkable, if for no other reason, than the progress it has made. John Naisbitt authored “Megatrends” in 1982, a book that was on The New York Times bestseller list for more than two years, was published in 57 countries, and sold more than eight million copies. Many of those copies were bought by an emerging generation of leaders in China after Mao had decimated much of the nation’s educated classes.

Naisbitt, long before most others, knew that China was embracing change on a scale that most Americans and others could barely comprehend. He and his wife began to spend a lot of time there. Today, his wife Doris is the director of the Naisbitt China Institute in Tianjin and is a professor at the prestigious Nankai University where John is also affiliated.

My generation enjoyed all the fruits of the post-WWII bounty that accrued to an America that had no real economic rivals. Along with the Soviet Union, China was regarded as a threat because it was communist, but to his credit President Richard Nixon understood China should not be ignored and began the process that has led to an extraordinary economic partnership.

The Naisbitt’s book focuses on how China rose from the ashes of Mao’s horror show, asking “Why has ‘autocratic’ China succeeded while many other, democratically governed states have failed to make economic progress? Why is it that despite all efforts by westerners to push China toward western-style democratization, there is no similar outcry for such a shift in China?’

They conclude that “the constancy of the Communist Party has worked not against but for the well-being of the Chinese people. Long-term strategic planning could be carried out without the distractions and disruptions of elections that characterize western democracies.”

That transformation has been overseen by Deng Xiaping, Jiang Zemin, and Hu Jintao, three remarkable CEOs who created “an entirely new social and economic society with a ‘company culture’ that serves the needs of the enterprise and its people on its own path to modernity and prosperity.”

In the process, the Communist Party itself changed, adapting a “top-down, bottom-up” approach to governance that set the objectives at the top and allowed the people to introduce their “bottom-up” answers. As a result, “China, often thought as a monolith, is actually decentralizing power more than any other country in the world.” It has unleashed a torrent of entrepreneurial activity.

When one considers how the battle over healthcare “reform” has torn apart Americans in the struggle to avoid turning the nation into a European-style socialist economy and society, China’s “highest goal is a harmonious society and governance that is based on trust.”

This has worked in China because “Chinese gain power and self-confidence in the family, in a group, in the network in which they are integrated.” Not surprisingly, “The first reforms took place in agriculture, where today 40 percent of the Chinese still work…” What is often overlooked, however, is that by 2008 two-thirds of China’s economy was in the private sector!

Some of the results are remarkable. With a population of more than a billion people, “China has a literacy rate of 90.9 percent; life expectancy at birth is 73 years; and the per capita GDP is $5,962.” India, often noted as the other emerging economy, still has a lot of catching up to do. Its literacy rate is 6l percent, life expectancy is 69 years, and a per capita GDP income of $2,762.

It is not my purpose to load you down with statistics. It is to say that, while America suffers from a surfeit of too much government spending and borrowing—debt—the Chinese are forging ahead and doing so, ironically, with an economic system that has to be considered western in origin.

It is folly to not recognize the economic and societal miracle that has allowed the Chinese to move from a rigid system to one in which its people had a GDP in 1980 of $209.3 billion to about $1.2 trillion by 2000. A decade later, it continues to show growth.

Some time ago my nephew asked me what language his little girl should begin to study. I told him it should be Chinese.

Alan Caruba blogs daily at http://factsnotfantasy.blogspot.com. An author, business and science writer, he is the founder of The National Anxiety Center, a clearinghouse for information on “scare campaigns” intended to influence public opinion and policies.

© Alan Caruba, 2010

I read Tim Bryce’s post and laughed at his claims and opinions because he sounds like so many others from his political camp—that he is right and everyone else is wrong. It seems to these far right conservatives that their opinions are facts and nothing else is worth [...]]]> What has Tim Bryce been sniffing?

I read Tim Bryce’s post and laughed at his claims and opinions because he sounds like so many others from his political camp—that he is right and everyone else is wrong. It seems to these far right conservatives that their opinions are facts and nothing else is worth hearing.

No wonder he shut off the comment section. He doesn’t want to hear from the “enemy” he is declaring war on. After all, in his opinion, they are wrong before they open their mouths. 

He is accusing the left of doing what the right has been doing for decades. For example, Rush Limbaugh or Ann Coulter, who calls liberals godless—these two are experts at name-calling and insults.

Doesn’t Bryce see that he is calling for censoring the left and the media, an act that is very neoconservative but contrary to the Bill of Rights which guarantees freedom of the press. The only time the media is liberal is when they don’t support the right. The neoconservative camp believes in censorship.  The founder of the neoconservative movement said as much and I read it on the neoconservative home page months ago.  Censorship and the noble lie are the foundation of neo-conservatism and are very much alive.

And what about China—a successful mix of socialism and capitalism Chinese style. In 2012, the current generation that rules China will be stepping down and younger people will take their place. There is a debate in China now between two camps—those who want to become more capitalistic in the American conservative ideal and those who want to have a mix of the best of Maoism (meaning socialized medicine, etc.—not another Cultural Revolution) with a mixture capitalism with a market economy that in a few years may surpass the GDP of the United States at the pace China is growing.

It’s easy to see from Bryce’s words that he must admire the Chinese ability to censor their media and shut out the voices they don’t want to hear.

Here’s my opinion. China is learning the hard way as they are dealing with protests and riots from the working class “have nots” in China who want shelter, food and a little bit of what the rich have. That doesn’t mean those so-called “have nots” want to sit around and watch TV while getting fat off free food handed to them by the government. Many of those “have nots” work hard for little pay and have no medical. I read recently that there are now thirty-million Chinese millionaires and thousands of billionaires.

Bryce also seems to forget that under President Reagan, the deficit grew faster than at any time in American history.  If I had the time to waste, I could come up with a long list of Reagan’s sins. He was not the great president the right wants us to think.

Recently Republicans controlled the White House and both house of Congress for six years. What did we get—two wars (one based on lies) and the deepest economic collapse since the Great Depression.  However, if you listen to Limbaugh and Beck, I’m sure you will hear it wasn’t the Republicans fault even though they controlled every branch of government for Bush’s first six years in the White House.

Here’s my opinion. The United States needs a balance between socialist programs for the so called working class “have nots” as we see from Wal-Mart where the employees are paid minimum wage and are taught how to file for food stamps and other government aid so they can eat and have enough to pay rent.

Does Bryce know that the majority of the so-called liberal media are mostly owned by conservatives like  Rupert Murdock? I wonder how Bryce would respond if he saw how many of those so-called liberal media outlets are owned by Rupert Murdock—the list is very long.

 http://www.americanprogress.org/issues/2004/07/b122948.html

MURDOCH THE NEOCONSERVATIVE: Murdoch owns the Weekly Standard, the neoconservative journal that employed key figures who pushed for war in Iraq. As the American Journalism Review noted, the circulation of Murdoch’s Weekly Standard “hovers at only around 65,000. But its voice is much louder than those numbers suggest.” Editor Bill Kristol “is particularly adept at steering Washington policy debates by inserting himself and his views into the discussion.” In the early weeks of the War on Terror, Kristol “shepherded a letter to President Bush, signed by 40 D.C. opinion-makers, urging a wider military engagement.” [Source: AJR, 12/01]

I have news for the Tim Bryce’s of America. If this “revolution” becomes a shooting war between the far right (16% of the population) and the rest of America (84%), there will be at least one former Marine and Vietnam Veteran who knows how to fight and will be ready to stop that 16% from taking over America.

When George Washington was asked to become America’s King during difficult economic times, he declined and said, ‘leave the country alone. In time, the people will work things out’, and Washington, who didn’t belong to any political party, was right.

What Bryce is advocating is an American Cultural Revolution with his political camp in charge. We already know what happened in China when that country had a Cultural Revolution and close to 40 million died because Mao brainwashed or killed anyone that didn’t agree with him. Is that what Bryce wants? Because that is what his words sound like.

(2010-02-27 15:13:09)

Chapter Two: Chinese New Year

Now, more and more people, especially young people celebrate Christmas Day.Nevertheless,we still take the Chinese New Year as our major and overwhelming Holiday which we call the Spring Festival. Like the Christmas Season, we have a long Chinese New Year Season, typically the government approve [...]]]> China Impression

(2010-02-27 15:13:09)

Chapter Two: Chinese New Year

Now, more and more people, especially young people celebrate Christmas Day.Nevertheless,we still take the Chinese New Year as our major and overwhelming Holiday which we call the Spring Festival. Like the Christmas Season, we have a long Chinese New Year Season, typically the government approve a legal vacation of 3 days since the New Year’s Eve till January the 2nd according to the Chinese lunar calendar. But usually we combine the 2 weekends together and have 7 days off. In fact, traditionally,the season ends till 15th of January, the Chinese Lantern Festival, though people begin to work after the 7th day.

I would like to give you some amazings:

It is amazing that over a billion people watch the same TV program at the same time, the Chiese New Year Eve. That is the special Spring Festival Celebrating Variety Show,begins from 8 pm. till after midnight bell ring, including singing, dancing, humor talk shows & short play etc.

It is also amazing that the whole nation burn out billions of dollars of the fireworks & firecrackers during the season each year.On the Eve,firecrakers and fireworks lasts from evening till after midnight nonstop. Afterwards,people still enjoy it for days. Maybe that is the reason to explain why on the Opening Ceremony of 2008 Olympic Games China burned more than 4 times of fireworks than the last 28 games total together!!!

Another amazing is that in most area of China, you can find some people burning a kind of yellowish paper, called “sending money to the passed away ancestors”. Couple of pounds weighing each family,though I think that is not a good habit,waste,poisoning and pollution.That habit kept year after year for thousands already.

In China, we name each year by a different kind of animals,12 years a round, 12 animals total. For example, last year is Chinese Bull Year, this year is Tigger Year.

Routine Process of Chinese New Year:

Usually, on the day of New Year’s Eve,before noon,people stick some fortune words or characters on or around the doors and windows to welcome wealth and health of the upcoming new year.

In the afternoon, people go to the cemetery to “invite their ancestors to celebrate the New Year together” by burning some yellowish paper at the cemetery as “sending money” and leave some wine, some food and fruit there.

In the evening, people begin to prepare and have the Eve’s dinner, after that, we usually make a lot of dumplings while watching the TV show from 8 pm through midnight.

Most people stay up after midnight. When the midnight bell rings, people begin to greet the elders, the colleagues and the friends, also we eat dumplings, play fireworks and firecrackers and burn some yellowish paper for ancestors.Traditionally, the married sons and unmarried daughters spend the Eve with their parents.Wives usually stay with their husbands. Dilemma has appeared dues to Chinese one-child policy on this situation.

The first day of lunar January, young couples visit the husband’s parents,the second day visit the wife’s parents, the third and later, relatives and friends meet for a party. The first day is also the time for people’s “walk greetings”, means no party, no meal,just visit,greet then go.

Usually Chinese people begin to work on the 7th of Lunar January. The festival carnival atmosphere fading, but not ended untill the Lantern Festival which is on the 15th. Again, fireworkers, firecrackers, latern shows and meetings,ball-shape glutinous rice dumplings.

We have this year after year and tomorrow will be the Lantern Festival. My wife and I plan to go for a large scale fireworks show.

–

Will Liu

Will’s International Biz Consulting Firm

Dalian Office:

1-6-1, 9#  East Wei Ye Street,

Gan Jing Zi District, Dalian, China P.O.116113

Tel:011-86-411-8649-1912

Fax:011-86-411-8647-7717

Cell1:011-86-133-2221-1965

Cell2:011-86-139-4098-3965

US Cell:1-310-218-3682

Chapter One: Differences Among Cities

This Chinese New Year Season,something did surprise me.

As a rule, every year this time, I must make the trip to the hometown of my wife, where her father still lives in. What astonished me is that I could not find anybody smoke in the bus! Just [...]]]> China Impression

Chapter One: Differences Among Cities

This Chinese New Year Season,something did surprise me.

As a rule, every year this time, I must make the trip to the hometown of my wife, where her father still lives in. What astonished me is that I could not find anybody smoke in the bus! Just last year and before, that was what tortured me most. You cannot avoid smoke, no matter on a bus or in a cab.Even you sucessfully dissuaded the smoker, the cab or bus already been deeply smoked. That does not mean a common situation in China. The city where I grew up and staying is more popular and advanced, so I have not seen any people smoke in a bus for many years. In China, a modern city can differ very much from a less popular city.

Such different circumstances occured again when I took the train back home right before the Chinese New Year’s Eve. The train car almost empty! No more than 10 passengers in the car which can hold 300! But on the opposite,the train from my hometown city to my wife’s hometown was crowded and stuffed in more than 400 people each car! Why? Very simple, some popular cities have more jobs and people rush to pan for gold, and their parents and families usually stay home waiting for the workers return home to meet them every Chinese New Year season as to China tradition and custom.

China economy is booming, but you can still see the poverty, you may enjoy the modern science and advanced life in some popular cities, but you can also find some cites hanging behind where people live their lives with lower living standard.

–

Will Liu

Will’s International Biz Consulting Firm

Dalian Office:

1-6-1, 9#  East Wei Ye Street,

Gan Jing Zi District, Dalian, China P.O.116113

Tel:011-86-411-8649-1912

Fax:011-86-411-8647-7717

Cell1:011-86-133-2221-1965

Cell2:011-86-139-4098-3965

US Cell:1-310-218-3682

by Bob Grant

About any time, day or night, in major Chinese cities you can see any type of vehicle – transporting all imaginable products – on the roads.  There are trucks carrying ocean containers and Mercedes carrying people.  I have traveled to England, Ireland, Holland, [...]]]> Transporting Goods – by Road – in China

by Bob Grant

About any time, day or night, in major Chinese cities you can see any type of vehicle – transporting all imaginable products – on the roads.  There are trucks carrying ocean containers and Mercedes carrying people.  I have traveled to England, Ireland, Holland, Italy, Canada, Mexico, Indonesia, Malaysia, Korea, and China.  I would not call myself a “world traveler” but, of all the countries in which I have traveled, I found China to be the most diverse in terms of the types of vehicles that transported goods on their roads.

Regardless of where my travels took me in China – rural or city – there were always a lot of people transporting goods in any type of vehicle that could move or its own, by animal,  or under human power.  The fact that people were busy – working – was not of particular note.  It was the diversity of their means of transportation – within a single view – that was of interest to me.  Also, they all seemed to move with purpose – whether carrying large or small items.  I suppose that is really not so different than any other parts of the world – for some reason it just struck me as another admirable quality of the Chinese people. 

Most of the smaller commercial trucks are blue – I have no idea why?  I asked a couple of times but really did not receive an answer.  Maybe there was a sale on blue paint?  I am certain there is a reason, but since I don’t know it, I can’t share it with you – rather just make reference to it.

I will say that – with all those vehicles on the road – it did add to the air pollution.  In most states – in the U.S. – vehicles have to pass safety inspections before they can be licensed.  I am not certain this is a rule in China – if it can move it is road ready. 

In my travels, inside China, for business I found the Chinese to be very capitalistic in nature – certainly contrary to how I viewed the Chinese people prior to me actually visiting the country.  The diversity – in the means of transporting their goods – is just one example of this fact at least in my mind.

by Bob Grant

One of the aspects of my trips to China, that I truly enjoyed, was seeing all of the flowers, greenery, and gardens along the way.  I wanted to specifically mention this fact, and state, the photos you might have seen of typical Chinese landscapes are true.  In [...]]]> Flowers, Greenery, and Gardens

by Bob Grant

One of the aspects of my trips to China, that I truly enjoyed, was seeing all of the flowers, greenery, and gardens along the way.  I wanted to specifically mention this fact, and state, the photos you might have seen of typical Chinese landscapes are true.  In fact, there were many more beautiful sights – of plants and flowers – than I had anticipated.  I saw them in cities – in the country – in hotels – in restaurants – in offices – and other places too numerous to mention.  Our office was in southern China – with a tropical climate – so there were flowers and greenery there any time of the year I visited.  As you go farther north, in China, there are the four seasons; however, even when it was too cold for outdoor plants there were many indoor ones wherever I went.

I do not enjoy planting or maintaining plants but I certainly like looking at them.  The growing scenery I saw in China always gave me a feeling of tranquility.  I had once thought about buying a condo in Shenzhen so I could stay longer when I visited.  One of the condos had a small patio (this was a multistoried condo building) and each patio came with a beautifully planted garden with flowers, plants, and trees.  It was a place where I would have enjoyed going every evening and just sitting.  It was covered so I could have enjoyed it in most types of weather.

Because I never stayed in the Western type hotels – rather staying where my Chinese associates stayed – I was treated to a unique insight on how some of the Chinese population lived.  Some of the hotels – where I stayed – were literally right next to apartment buildings.  I could actually look out my window into those apartments.  I can’t say that I saw anything “personal” in nature but I did get to see how some Chinese decorated their apartments and balconies.  I could also see the gardens many planted on the rooftops of their apartment buildings.  Staying in those places certainly gave me even more appreciation of the Chinese people in that I saw a side of their lives that most “Westerners” would never see unless they stayed in places where I stayed.

I will always have fond memories of the many beautiful things I saw growing in China – it is a picture that will remain with me forever.

by Bob Grant

Wherever people normally congregate in groups – shopping areas, elevators, subways, airports, city streets, and the like – there are a lot more people in China congregating in those same places.  Again, I can only use my own experiences – in these types of crowds in China – [...]]]> Tolerance to Infinity

by Bob Grant

Wherever people normally congregate in groups – shopping areas, elevators, subways, airports, city streets, and the like – there are a lot more people in China congregating in those same places.  Again, I can only use my own experiences – in these types of crowds in China – but I was amazed how tolerant people were of each other.  In some cases I was squeezed to the people next to me so closely that I could almost feel their hearts beating.  In these situations – personal space was at zero.  I was crammed into a subway once and could literally stand – without holding on to anything – because we were packed so close together (not that I really had anything to hold on to anyway).  The exit from this subway was orderly and people were polite to each other – and me.  At our stop we had to ask people to move, which was difficult for them, but we got off with no problems or delays.

I am not certain the Chinese people have a choice living – and working – among that many other people.  However, I saw it as another attribute of China and its people.  As a “Westerner” I could have easily been accosted by anyone in these large crowds as most of the time I was the only non-Chinese among them.  But this never happened.  No one stared at me or otherwise acknowledged me as anything other than one of them.  Perhaps I am reading too much into these situations but I will go with my feelings here and believe this is a nation of extremely tolerant individuals. 

Places I went did not always have these types of crowds, but in the locations where large crowds congregated, I was always impressed by the politeness of my fellow “Crowdies.”  I can’t say the same for other crowds, in which I have found myself, in the US and other parts of the world.  I think China is unique in this area and its people have Tolerance to Infinity.

by Bob Grant

On October 1, 1949 the People’s Republic of China was formally established in a speech given by Mao Zedong from the Imperial Gate at Tiananmen Square. I stood at the very spot where Mao gave his speech and took the photo at the right.  From speaking with [...]]]> Are You Your Government?

by Bob Grant

On October 1, 1949 the People’s Republic of China was formally established in a speech given by Mao Zedong from the Imperial Gate at Tiananmen Square. I stood at the very spot where Mao gave his speech and took the photo at the right.  From speaking with people – in China – who lived through his reign it was beyond believable.  What he put his people through is an unforgivable act of power and brutality.  However, it is images from Mao’s era that some – outside of China – still have of the Chinese people.  Nothing could be farther from the truth!

I never met a Chinese government official – did not even see one at least that I can recall.  What I did meet were the people of China – the people with whom I had my business and personal interactions.  I did not ask them questions about their government nor did they ask questions of mine.  The only political statement – that I ever heard – was a reference that China’s policy would probably change when the younger generation came into power, someday. 

In meetings, over two years ago, I heard about the oil pipeline being built directly from Iran to China.  None of the people – in that meeting – expressed an opinion one way or the other regarding this pipeline.  It was a decision the Chinese government made.  Maybe my associates did not approve of dealing with Iran – maybe they did?  The point being here is their government made this decision – not my associates.

Whether the officials in power – in the US – are republican or democrat they have all made decisions of which I don’t agree.  They did not consult me or ask my opinion – am I my government in these situations?

The point I am trying to make is that I found the Chinese people – I met – just like me in a lot of respects.  I enjoyed doing business with them – learning their culture – and becoming their friends.  No government – or its actions – is ever going to change that for me!

by Bob Grant

As I write about my personal experiences in China I again want to note that they are strictly that – my “personal” experiences.  I am certain there are people – who have visited China – who could contradict everything that I have, or [...]]]> Not All Factories in China are Sweat Shops

by Bob Grant

As I write about my personal experiences in China I again want to note that they are strictly that – my “personal” experiences.  I am certain there are people – who have visited China – who could contradict everything that I have, or will, write.  The products I imported perhaps did not lend themselves to the typical “Sweat Shop” stereotype in terms of the factories that produced them?  However, I never saw – or visited – any factory that, in my mind, would fit that definition.

If the factories were not what I would call “modern” – they were certainly clean.  The employees (factory workers) wore uniforms at most places I visited.  They seemed proficient in their work and the products produced, and for the most part, were without quality problems – certainly no different than products produced in other countries.  Most of the factories tended to be in an Industrial Parks and quite large.  Usually, the factories were a “small city” into themselves.  There was housing provided for the employees on the factory grounds along with areas for recreation.  I don’t suppose there was another way of doing it – but I saw a lot of laundry hanging from outside the housing units plus commercial apartments buildings I saw throughout China.

Most factories had certifications that were either the same – or similar – to those held by US factories.  I saw elaborate R&D sections in most of the factories I visited.  The office space was usually as modern – and pleasant – as any I had visited in the US.  A ritual that I truly enjoyed was at every meeting hot tea was served – sometimes the owner, or general manager, had tea to make in their office and other times it was brought in.  However, I can’t recall a meeting where tea was not offered.

Being a non-smoker another ritual I did not enjoy was in almost every meeting I attending – most of the parties present – smoked.  I heard a figure once that 85% of Chinese men smoked – I can attest that this is probably a good estimate.  Once inside the office – or meeting room – the smoke became quite thick and uncomfortable for me; however, I was their guest and felt I could put up with the discomfort in the course of conducting my business affairs.

I have fond memories of my factory visits and discussions – I think the fact that I came to China, and met with the factory personnel, aided my business immensely versus doing business in name only.

by Bob Grant

During my trips to China I wish I had taken more photos of the places I passed, to and from, the factories I visited.  In lieu of those photos – I am going to mix some that I found on the Internet with those that I took.

by Bob Grant

When I first started going to China I was warned not to fly on Chinese domestic airlines.  I was told they were old cast off planes – or old military planes – and that people were crammed into each plane with barn yard and other [...]]]> Flying the Friendlier Skies in China

by Bob Grant

When I first started going to China I was warned not to fly on Chinese domestic airlines.  I was told they were old cast off planes – or old military planes – and that people were crammed into each plane with barn yard and other animals.  Before I felt daring – and took a domestic flight one day – I was under the influence of yet another case of Chinese stereotyping. 

In all honesty – over the years – I have not had an uncomfortable or unpleasant flight anywhere inside of China.  To get to our meetings we had to fly quite a bit.  We went, mainly, to cities up and down the western coast; however, we did fly – occasionally – to inland locations.  Some flights were long – some were short – all were without mishap.

I found the service provided – once inside the plane – to be exceptional.  I was always greeted in English even if I was the only non-Chinese on the flight which occurred many times.  I was even handed Chinese newspapers – in English. The flight attendants were quite efficient – on most flights we received drinks, a snack, more beverages, a hot Chinese meal (which was always good), and then a last set of beverages.  I never paid extra for my checked luggage – the snacks – drinks – meals – or great service.

I was also impressed with the screening, security, and overall terminal experience.  There “are” a lot of people in China – most seemed to be flying on the same days that I flew.  However, in going through the document check (passport for me – identity cards for my Chinese associates) and then the security check which is similar to the security checks I have been through in other countries including the US – I found the process to be quite efficient.  I am an “early get to the airport” type of guy – my Chinese associates are not.  They gave me much concern – on numerous occasions – when we would arrive at the airport a half hour before our plane departed.  Fortunately, we never missed our flight and never really had to run to catch it – we went through all stations in such an efficient manner that I should not have bothered to worry (but I always did).

Again, as with my other posts regarding China – I can only speak to my own experiences.  I am certain other travelers have horror stories about flying domestically within China.  My main reason for offering this insight is – for me – it was just another example of incorrect information when it came to China, its people, and it’s functioning.

by Bob Grant

When I first traveled to China I was warned about the food from many well meaning people – some who had traveled to China and some who had not.  I was told that I would starve if I did not take food [...]]]> I Ate no Dog – I Ate no Cat

by Bob Grant

When I first traveled to China I was warned about the food from many well meaning people – some who had traveled to China and some who had not.  I was told that I would starve if I did not take food in my suitcase – so I did.  I took trail mix and hard candy – nearly overloading my suitcase with them.  It was just one of the stereotypes – of China – that I had heard, and believed, before I experienced true Chinese food for myself.  For that first trip – I ended up throwing away most of the food that I had brought because I did not want to lug it back to the U.S.

I will admit that the food is different from what I normally eat – to be honest – it is definitely healthier.  I found there to be a lot of vegetables, fish, and chicken – I never ate Dog or Cat at least to my knowledge.  I ate at restaurants and I ate in factories.  I ate what was put in front of me and I stayed in places where my associates stayed.  I had customers who went to China on their own – for other products.  They would not stay in anything but “Western Style” hotels and would not eat anything but “Western Style” food – there are places, in the larger cities, which have both.  Some of them would even go as far as to not eat during the day with their hosts – rather waiting until they returned to their hotels for their “Western Style” food.  I always felt that was rather rude – to say the least – and a bit disrespectful. 

As for the food itself – I found it to be, for the most part, rather tasty.  I took my hosts advice and did not drink the tap water.  I drank bottled water, their very excellent hot tea, and a lot of their extremely appealing Chinese beer.  The food was normally brought out as it was prepared and put on a Lazy Susan.  Everyone turned it until the food they wanted was in front of them and then put it on their plates or ate it over, or on, a bowl of steamed white rice.  We ate a lot – in restaurants – in private rooms which I truly enjoyed.  There was no outside noise and the atmosphere was more personal.  When I ate in factories it was what the employees ate and in their dining area – each experience was unique and enjoyable.  I learned to use Chopsticks – at least enough to get food from the plate to my mouth.  Although people keep bringing me utensils – I stuck with the Chopsticks while in country.  I “never” got sick from anything that I ate or drank in China which is more than I can say for my normal diet.

The food is just one of the misconceptions of China and its people.  I believed what I was told until I experienced it myself – not unlike other things in my life that I have been told by others only to be dispelled once I experienced it personally.

by Bob Grant

One of our US government officials reportedly made a comment with the word “retarded” in it.  There was also an attempt to make a joke using “Special Olympics” on a TV show in the past.  Why do people say the things they do?  Why have I said [...]]]> They All Look Alike

by Bob Grant

One of our US government officials reportedly made a comment with the word “retarded” in it.  There was also an attempt to make a joke using “Special Olympics” on a TV show in the past.  Why do people say the things they do?  Why have I said some of things I have said?  When I have made comments at the expense of others – I either thought it was funny or it made me feel important in some perverse way.  As I have gotten older experience has taught me to think before I speak – at least a little more than I did in my younger years.  What someone says as a casual statement – or an attempt to make a joke – can offend others on a multitude of levels.

There are a little over 1.3 billion people in China from the figures I have seen.  I have had people say to me, “With that many people – how do you tell them apart?  They all look alike.”  After having an association with specific Chinese people – since 1998 – I take great offense when someone says something like this to my face or within earshot.  To me – they do not all look alike.  They may all have similar physical features but I see each person I have met – in my business dealings – as a singular, and unique, individual just as I would feel about anyone I met throughout the world.  As you meet people – speak with them – get to know them – I think everyone has personal features, mannerisms, personalities that make them different from other people in the world.

In terms of my feelings for China, and its people, it is only based on those who I have met personally.  As I view it there are values, I have found, that all of these Chinese possess – the reverence of family and respect for their elders.  I wish these values were more evident in the US.  With 1.3 million people milling around China how can they have these values when there are so many of them?  I once worked with a product that was to replace the toxic cleaner Nitric Acid.  In most instances the shipping tanks – in the ocean liners – have to be cleaned out after they are emptied.  They send “Chinese People” into these tanks to spray them out.  One contact actually said, “There are so many Chinese that when one dies from being exposed to the Nitric Acid there are a million more to take their place.”  It was all I could do to keep my hands from going around his neck or punching his lights out – being older at the time I felt he was not worth the hassle.

I believe the respect for family, and elders, in China is not something just confined to my small group of acquaintances there.  I think this is something that is country wide and I feel this is a virtue beyond description.  During one of my visits – my friend, and primary associate, invited me to a party to honor his new young son.  We held this event in a large private room within a very nice restaurant.  There were many people there – and as I have written regarding other situations – I was again the only non-Chinese in the room.  I felt completely at ease and extremely honored he would invite me to such an important “family event.”  The photo above shows me with my associate, his wife, his mother, and his new young son – I did, and still do, feel part of their family.  To me they remain friends – family – associates and they “certainly” do not all look alike to me!

by Bob Grant

How can you embrace an enemy of the USA?  More important – why would you?  If these questions have not been outright asked of me – they have been implied.  Why I chose to speak highly of China, and its people, is something that I [...]]]> I am not the Manchurian Candidate

by Bob Grant

How can you embrace an enemy of the USA?  More important – why would you?  If these questions have not been outright asked of me – they have been implied.  Why I chose to speak highly of China, and its people, is something that I do willingly and with pride.  I am not the Manchurian Candidate.  I was never brain washed during my visits there.  I was not tortured or forced into my feelings in any way.  Subliminal messages were not piped into my hotel room at night.  I did not have bamboo shoots shoved under my fingernails.  I was not drugged or impaired in any way unless it was done willingly by drinking too much of that fine Chinese beer.

Within my small circle of business contacts, experiences, and associations I would say it is Western business people who are trying to brain wash the Chinese.  As I developed my business relationships – I both read and experienced failures mainly because Western companies tried to “Westernize” their Chinese business partners rather than adapting to their Chinese partners way of doing business.  Maybe it has been different for others who have done business within China – but for me, personally, my successes came from letting the Chinese conduct business in “their way” and I tried to educate my customers in their methods and ways.  I won’t say it was not frustrating at times – in fact, it was frustrating most of the time.  However, in the end it was what worked best for me while others failed.  Honor and “saving face” are very important to the Chinese – I tried not to put any of my associates in a position that threatened either.

Again, just from my experience I have to say that people – from any part of the world – can work together to achieve a common goal if all parties can be flexible and understanding.  From my perspective – this is the true receipt for success among the world’s population.

by Bob Grant

I have been traveling to China since 1998.  I would not consider myself a seasoned traveler to that country – making around 25 visits total.  When I traveled there I usually stayed between one and two weeks – never during any of my visits [...]]]> I Never met a Communist in China

by Bob Grant

I have been traveling to China since 1998.  I would not consider myself a seasoned traveler to that country – making around 25 visits total.  When I traveled there I usually stayed between one and two weeks – never during any of my visits did I ever see, or meet, a “Red” Chinese person.  I saw no one wearing an “I am a Communist” sweatshirt, ball cap, t-shirt, sun glasses, button, or anything else physically labeling them a Communist.  I saw no street banners, bumper stickers, store front displays, mass gatherings, or any other public notice that I was among Communists.  What I was among were just people – regular people.

All of my visits were for business purposes.  I met with business people – only – and traveled to see their factories or offices.  I did not take much time to “sightsee” which was a mistake in retrospect.  With my business I tended to visit locations where I was the “only” non-Chinese person within miles.  I never felt threatened or out of place.  No one ever stared at me or pointed – “Look at that non-Communist person.”  I found “most” of the people with whom I came in contact – both during business meetings and other activities – to be very pleasant, warm, humble, honorable, respectful, and charming.  I will have to admit that I did have some dealings with business people who were other than honest; however, China does not hold a monopoly on those types of business people.  As a rule I found the Chinese people – with whom I had my dealings – to be extremely hard working, dedicated, and honest.

I had no fear going out on my own – in any part of China that I visited – day or night.  I was never threatened or accosted in any manner.  One day I was walking around a city on a Sunday afternoon – alone.  I felt a tug on my shirt sleeve and turned to find two young girls at my side.  One asked me if they could speak with me – in fairly good English.  I did not suspect their reasons for talking with me to be anything other than honorable so I said “sure.”  The girls were students at the university and their English professor had given them an assignment to stop – interview – and take a photo with any “Westerner.”  They said they had been looking for hours and I was the only “Westerner” they had seen.  I was happy to answer their questions – one of the girls took my photo with the other girl – they thanked me, and went on their way.  These were just two young students – with an assignment – and I felt honored that I was able to help them complete it.

Perhaps I am being a bit naive – I was obviously around Communists during my visits to China – but I never felt that I had really “met” one.  I had been fortunate enough to meet people from another country – and culture – and they had accepted me at face value.  I enjoyed each one of my visits to China and care a great deal for China and its people.  I truly believe if people could meet – and work – with other people around the world that a lot of the world’s problems would be solved.  Perhaps this is a bit Pollyanna of me but this is how I see things from my myopic point of view and experiences, with China and its people, and I will stand by them.

Let’s look at a few facts. America may be the [...]]]> The Reasons Why China is Studying Singapore

“The joke among China hands goes like this,” says Michael Economides. “If the Americans and the Chinese start talking about a major project today, in two years the Chinese will be done and the Americans will still be talking and applying for permits.”

President Obama loves to travel. He cannot wait to descend the steps from Airforce One to the sounds of welcoming bands, honor guards, and awaiting dignitaries. On his whirlwind November 13-19 trip to Asia, however, he is likely to be sternly lectured behind closed doors from Tokyo [...]]]> China Will Surprise Obama

By Alan Caruba

President Obama loves to travel. He cannot wait to descend the steps from Airforce One to the sounds of welcoming bands, honor guards, and awaiting dignitaries. On his whirlwind November 13-19 trip to Asia, however, he is likely to be sternly lectured behind closed doors from Tokyo to Beijing and Seoul. It will come as a surprise to him.

That’s because he will be around grownups who don’t much like the way the United States’ economy is being overseen and directed these days. All that splash and dash that keeps Americans thinking that everything will get better doesn’t work in Asia. Worse yet, Obama will arrive with very little to offer.

Already we have seen him in his usual holier-than-thou mode lecture the Chinese on their need to extend more freedom and be more tolerant; themes that must sound naïve to his hosts who must meet the challenge of providing a better life for more than a billion Chinese.

The most amazing aspect of the story of modern China is the way, following the demise of Chairman Mao, they threw communism overboard, except politically, in favor of capitalism.

In early 2009, observers wondered if the recession that hit the United States and rippled out around the world would also set back China. By October, however, they were marveling that its aggressive stimulus had led to a growth of its GDP by 9% by its third quarter. Meanwhile, other economies, including the U.S., saw their GDP fall.

The Chinese mix caution with risk well. As The Economist noted in October, “Until recently China’s recovery was driven largely by state spending, but thanks to a rebound in construction, private-sector investment rose by 30% in the year to August, double its growth rate in December.”

Unlike the U.S. stimulus that has barely had an impact on our economy, the Chinese stimulus was directed to new infrastructure, especially railways and roads, both of which are expected to improve future productivity, moving people and goods more swiftly around the huge expanse of that nation.

Noteworthy as well has been China’s forward thinking energy program, building coal-fired plants at a brisk pace to extend electricity and, with it the prosperity that comes from affordable energy. By contrast, Obama recently visited and lauded a $150 million Florida solar power array that will only produce electricity for an average of four hours daily.

Most of America’s “shovel ready” projects are still waiting for the first shovel while most of the stimulus money spent to date was a bailout of states to cover Medicare and other federal mandated costs.

My concern is that Obama is probably clueless regarding economic issues and realities. If it doesn’t involve unions, Obama isn’t much interested in the welfare of American industry. He has even less knowledge of agriculture.

When General Motors was bailed out before and after declaring bankruptcy, Obama made sure that it was the unions that were put in charge. Quietly, Chrysler recently announced it would not be manufacturing electric cars. The auto company that refused government assistance, Ford Motors, is thriving.

Someone has probably briefed Obama on the fact that China is both America’s key trading partner and rival. China has been paying a lot of attention to trade of late, signing what Business Week described as “a bewildering variety of free-trade pacts with neighbors.” It is even making nice with Taiwan while talks are underway to liberalize trade terms with South Korea and the Persian Gulf states.

While the U.S. trade deals cover lower tariffs they also tend to incorporate all manner of other objectives such as intellectual property rights, government procurement rules, and even labor and environmental codes. The Chinese focus on more narrow, achievable goals. As Business Week noted, “Most manufactured goods made in Southeast Asia will now enter China duty-free, but goods shipped from the U.S. will still face average duties of 9%.”

Many U.S. manufacturers will decide to set up shop in Southeast Asia in order to have better access to China. Increased exports to China cushioned Japan’s economy as its exports to the U.S. plunged.

So, what is the Obama administration doing to improve the situation at home? It has proposed a healthcare “reform” to take control of one-sixth of the nation’s economy. It has a “cap-and-trade” bill that will impose higher taxes on all energy use. The proposed cap-and-trade bill will make it nearly impossible to sell one’s home without pouring thousands into it in order to meet environmental and energy conservation standards.

The first job for all Americans these days is to survive the Obama administration long enough to rescue the nation from further losses at home and abroad.

Alan Caruba writes a weekly column posted on the Internet site of The National Anxiety Center – he blogs daily at http://factsnotfantasy.blogspot.c

Under Mao Zedong (1893 – 1976), China suffered for twenty-seven years. During Mao’s Great Leap Forward and the Cultural Revolution, thirty-seven million died—many from starvation. Mao’s form of communist socialism did not work. 

On June 30, 1984, Deng Xiaoping said, “Given that China is still backward, what [...]]]> Economy 

Under Mao Zedong (1893 – 1976), China suffered for twenty-seven years. During Mao’s Great Leap Forward and the Cultural Revolution, thirty-seven million died—many from starvation. Mao’s form of communist socialism did not work. 

On June 30, 1984, Deng Xiaoping said, “Given that China is still backward, what road can we take to develop the productive forces and raise the people’s standard of living? … Capitalism can only enrich less than 10 per cent of the Chinese population; it can never enrich the remaining more than 90 per cent. But if we adhere to socialism and apply the principle of distribution to each according to his work, there will not be excessive disparities in wealth. Consequently, no polarization will occur as our productive forces become developed over the next 20 to 30 years.” 

Deng Xiaoping may have been right. Bruce Einhom writing for Business Week, Countries with the Biggest Gaps Between Rich and Poor, October 16, 2009, listed the top countries with the biggest gaps. America was number three on the list. China wasn’t on the list—yet. 

What does this mean for America? (CBS/AP)  The Census Bureau reports that 12.5 percent of Americans, or 37.3 million people, were living in poverty in 2007, up from 36.5 million in 2006. 

After 2000, the situation in America deteriorated quickly (with President George W. Bush in the White House)—all of the gains in middle-class economic security since WWII were erased within a few years.  

PBS reported in “Middle Class Squeeze” (December 13, 2002), the shape of income distribution in America is changing and many are finding it increasingly difficult to afford housing while keeping up with necessities such as food, clothing, transportation, and health care.” 

What does capitalism, Chinese style, look like? Under Deng Xiaoping’s economic policies, China became the world’s factory floor.

Prior to 1979, the year China opened its economy to world trade, it was rare to find anything made in China. Since then, exports from China have increased 10,000%, and this year China’s economy become the second largest in the world as Japan slipped to third place.  

In the last decade, something happened in China that Mao thought he had destroyed. China grew a middle class with between one-hundred to one hundred-fifty-million people.

A middle-class family in China usually owns an apartment, a car, eats out and takes vacations. National Geographic in the May 2008 magazine, said, “they owe their well-being to the government’s (Deng Xiaoping’s) economic policies…” 

Current estimates show China’s growth will continue and grow between five and eight percent a year. China’s real GDP growth accelerated on a year-over year basis by a full percentage point, rising from 7.9% in the second quarter to 8.9% in the third quarter (reported Oct. 22, 2009) 

by Lloyd Lofthouse

My wife landed in Seattle in 1984. She was born in China during the Cultural Revolution and was twenty-seven when she arrived in America. She came prepared for the worst with a suitcase full of toilet paper. The state controlled media in China [...]]]> China in Transition, Part One in a Series

by Lloyd Lofthouse

My wife landed in Seattle in 1984. She was born in China during the Cultural Revolution and was twenty-seven when she arrived in America. She came prepared for the worst with a suitcase full of toilet paper. The state controlled media in China fed the people twenty-seven years of propaganda saying the working class in America was treated like slaves by rich capitalists and were starving. When my wife saw overfed, brightly dressed Americans everywhere she went, she learned the truth.

Fast forward to 1999, my first trip to China. I expected to meet dour people dressed in dull, olive-green uniforms marching in lines like ants. To my surprise, I found the Chinese people as different as my wife found the Americans when she arrived in the United States fifteen years earlier.

Over time, I realized that the mass media in the West, including America, was not reporting an accurate picture of China. That’s still true today. Westerners have been and still are being spoon-fed propaganda from a biased Western perspective.

Since 1999, I’ve traveled to China often. When in China, I don’t hear much about the government there. Many Chinese don’t watch government TV either. There are choices now. The Chinese people are connecting to the Worldwide Web and will soon outnumber the population of North America on the Internet if it hasn’t already happened.

There are a few points to think about before you believe what you read or hear from our media.

1. America is considered the only super power on the earth today.

2. China was a super power for more than two thousand years. During the Han Dynasty, China was more powerful and technologically advanced than the Roman Empire at its strongest. It was the West and Japan that knocked China off its throne starting with the Opium Wars during the 19th century and ending with World War II.

3. This year, China moved past Japan to become the second biggest economy on earth.

4. China moved seven places this year to rank as the 92nd most developed country in the world due to improvements in education as well as income levels and life expectancy. This ranking comes from the UN Development Programme (UNDP) index that ranks 182 countries.

5. The United States dropped one rank to the 13th spot.

6. China has several hundred nuclear weapons and the largest army on earth close in size to that of the United States. They are modernizing their navy and air force and America is selling them advanced technology to do it.

7. China owns more than one trillion in U.S. debt, and is investing several hundred billion dollars in US companies annually.

8. China is considered the “factory floor of the world”.

9. The Chinese tend to work harder, longer hours for less and save more than people from other countries do.    

What is your image of China?

Lloyd Lofthouse is the author of ‘My Splendid Concubine’. He earned a BA in journalism after fighting in Vietnam as a U. S. Marine. He then taught English and journalism in the public schools by day and for a time worked as a maitre d’ in a multimillion-dollar nightclub by night. He now lives near San Francisco with his wife, and they have a second home in Shanghai, China. His first novel, ‘My Splendid Concubine’, won an honorable mention in fiction from the 2008 London Book Festival; another honorable mention in general fiction from the 2009 San Francisco Book Festival and a third honorable mention in fiction at the 2009 Hollywood Book Festival. His short story, ‘A Night at the Well of Purity’, was a finalist for the 2007 Chicago Literary Awards.

by Lloyd Lofthouse

Many similarities exist between the way the emperors of old treated minorities inside China and the way the Communist government treats minorities today.

The law now applies to all fifty-six minorities in two areas. The first law is that an elementary education is mandatory for [...]]]> Minority Treatment in China, Part 4

by Lloyd Lofthouse

Many similarities exist between the way the emperors of old treated minorities inside China and the way the Communist government treats minorities today.

The law now applies to all fifty-six minorities in two areas. The first law is that an elementary education is mandatory for all children. There are no exceptions, and children under sixteen are not allowed to work.

The Tibetan minority has problems with this. Many of the old leaders in exile don’t want mandatory education for Tibetan children, because it goes against the way the Buddhist Lamas ruled a feudal Tibet prior to 1951. The National Geographic Magazine for October 1912 does an excellent job showing life in Tibet was before Mao’s reoccupation. 

The second law is that all civil law must be obeyed. For example, you cannot destroy the forest or sell your children, which was once part of Chinese culture under the emperors.

China’s government provides financial support to minorities under certain circumstances. Money goes toward developing the tourist potential in the minority areas and some minority people are paid a stipend to continue living in their traditional lifestyle as long as it does not violate Chinese civil laws. Tibet gets the biggest slice of this financial pie. 

If a minority person decides to leave an autonomous region, he receives monthly food coupons to help maintain a decent lifestyle. If a minority person wants to attend college, she is allowed entry over better-qualified Han Chinese students and receives financial support to succeed.

The mainstream western media seldom reports these facts about China. We mostly hear bad news and accusations without much evidence to support the claims. A recent series of pieces in American magazines reveals the real China.

I suggest you read the May/June 2008 issue of Good magazine; the May/June 2008 issue of Poets and Writers Magazine’s “Beijing Book Report”, and the May 2008 issue of National Geographic Magazine.

A recent book by American photojournalist Tom Carter, China: Portrait of a People, captures the heart and soul China. He spent two years walking thousands of miles through much of China to discover the real China—not what most in the West have heard.  

It is always good to have the facts before jumping to conclusions.

Lloyd Lofthouse is the author of ‘My Splendid Concubine’. He earned a BA in journalism after fighting in Vietnam as a U. S. Marine. He then taught English and journalism in the public schools by day and for a time worked as a maitre d’ in a multimillion-dollar nightclub by night. He now lives near San Francisco with his wife, and they have a second home in Shanghai, China. His first novel, ‘My Splendid Concubine’, won an honorable mention in fiction from the 2008 London Book Festival; another honorable mention in general fiction from the 2009 San Francisco Book Festival and a third honorable mention in fiction at the 2009 Hollywood Book Festival. His short story, ‘A Night at the Well of Purity’, was a finalist for the 2007 Chicago Literary Awards.