Absurdity, Allegory and China

If you don’t know the Global Times you should. Here’s a brief sample from their About Us page: Global Times particularly focuses on expressing Chinese people’s real feelings, sharing their opinions and standpoints on significant international issues and promoting their understanding of the global views on China. When I see “Chinese people” and “real feelings” [...]

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Coming clean: I have watched Chinatown more than I’ve watched any other film. I have—more often than I could or care to quantify—played Chinatown roulette: pop in the VHS (80’s – 90’s) / DVD, hit fast forward and stop it at random and watch five minutes for a guaranteed hit of really great art. The [...]

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Many have been questioning the morbid over-reporting of the swine flu alert (as well as the insane reactions to the news reports by Chinese officials regarding Mexican and Canadian nationals who have come to visit China). As usual, Hans Rosling has something to tell us about it. If you do not follow Hans Rosling at [...]

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It took eight (8) months, but I was finally able to get the Guardian to correct two stories from mid-August, 2008. I wrote about this incident both here and here. So, today they finally published a partial correction: A news story published during the Olympics in China reported that two protesters had abseiled down the [...]

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I don’t need to remind anyone who has been in China for longer than it takes to clear customs that sloppy and/or false reporting can do a lot of damage. Today I read the blog post of a man in Shanghai, who was “quoted” by AFP concerning the most recent blocking of Youtube here in [...]

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CCTV’s Rui Chenggang, the host of a popular nightly financial news program hates the word “propaganda,” and accurately compares CCTV to Fox News when the GOP held all the cards. According to a feature in the NYT, Capitalism Finds Voice in China, Because his positions often parrot Beijing’s critiques of foreign journalists, Mr. Rui is [...]

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The Chinese drywall problems in Florida (USA), continues to gain steam, lawsuits are flying, and at least one class action lawsuit has already been filed. One large homebuilder is temporarily relocating people so they can tear out the defective drywall and replace electrical wiring. Finger pointing, unaccountability and corporate fear in these times of economic [...]

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In the world where “green” has generated all flavors of snake oil and salesmen, Fast Company’s Danielle Sacks takes a very sharp look at William McDonough, the former dean of the University of Virginia’s School of Architecture and self-promoting megaphone behind the failed Chinese eco-village, Huangbaiyu, in Liaoning province. This is a cautionary tale that [...]

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A week of staggeringly brainless news: – Single mother of six, living with her parents, adds eight more to the brood through in vitro fertilization. – Model has nine breast enhancement surgeries and fills it out to 38 KKK. – Dick Cheney gives an interview spreading more fear of nuclear destruction and torture support. When [...]

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More from Mary Wozniak from the Fort Myers, FL News Press, January 20, 2009, Lennar replaces Chinese drywall in homes Residents inhabiting a dozen Southwest Florida homes are being relocated so the builder, Lennar Homes, can rip out Chinese drywall that corrodes interior fixtures and may cause long-term health hazards. Lennar is paying all costs [...]

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