Absurdity, Allegory and China

An old joke: first day in prison a young inmate sits silently in the cafeteria spooning his gruel. The rule for all meals is a firm ‘no talking.’ As everyone quietly slops it in a guy jumps up and yells, “Fifty-six!” and quickly retakes his seat. Everyone breaks into hysterical laughter (gruel spraying through the [...]

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I am unsure what more China Central Television (CCTV) can possibly do to damage their reputation with the people of Beijing, especially among the residents of Hu Jia Lou whose neighborhood is in the process of being razed to make way for business. Those who have not yet been displaced are awaiting their turn to [...]

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Two photos of the CCTV project A few years ago we spent several weeks in Tuscany, mostly and delightfully in Florence, with several days in Orvieto and a week in Cortona. We returned to Florence for our flight back to Paris, and unfortunately were booked on Meridiana Airlines and spent more time in Florence than [...]

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At sunrise this past Wednesday (July 29, 2009) the legal scholar Xu Zhiyong, an elected legislator from Beijing’s Haidian District and founder of the Open Constitution Initiative (Gongmeng), was taken into custody by uniformed police officer and five plainclothes men. Evan Osnos at The New Yorker tells us why this is a big deal, as [...]

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The NYT ran a story a few days ago – a mother-daughter banter across a dozen time zones – entitled Swine Flu Diary: Caught in a Beijing Dragnet by Sheryl Gay Stolberg (mom) and Olivia Robinson (daughter). It is an emotional piece that documents a parent’s worst nightmare: being half-a-world away as your child is [...]

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It has been quiet here, I know. For variety of reasons I have taken a little break. I did a bit traveling late in June to Bangkok, though mostly I’ve been in Tianjin during this first summer of swine flu and the second consecutive summer of failed ethnic policy. Anyone who has spent a summer [...]

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