Links » Crème » Top 10 Search List (November 27, 2012)
Links » Crème » Top 10 Search List (November 27, 2012) |
- Top 10 Search List (November 27, 2012)
- Trust But Verify, or Paranoia Won’t Destroy You
- Top 10 Search List (November 26, 2012)
| Top 10 Search List (November 27, 2012) Posted: 27 Nov 2012 03:19 AM PST
2) 林志玲激吻黄渤(Lin Zhìlíng jīwén Huáng Bó, Lin Zhiling kissed Huangbo) – Taiwan actress and model Lin Zhiling (Lin Chi-ling) pretended to 'share a French kiss' with actor Huang Bo, co-host of the 49th Golden Horse Awards ceremony held in Taiwan on Saturday night. The two are going to star in the upcoming movie "101st Marriage Proposal". Chinese story here. 3) 京台高速事故(Jīngtái gāosù, Jingtai Highway accident) – A pile-up on the Jingtai Highway left 22 vehicles damaged, 7 dead and 35 injured. The highway was congested for more than 10 hours after the accident. Chinese story here. 4) 马拉松冠军贾晓松(málāsōng guànjūn Jiá Chāofēng, Malathon champion Jia Chaofeng) – Jia Chaofeng from Gansu province clocked 2:27:40 to claim top honours in the women's contest of the Beijing Marathon on Sunday. The race was staged in freezing conditions as it was held much later than the normal mid-October date. When asked about the weather, Jia said as someone born and raised in Gansu, she deals with the cold better. Chinese story here. 5) 鞋油 假牙(xiéyóu jiáyá, shoes polish and denture) – A piece of investigative reporting recently revealed that some denture factories are operating without a license and using shoe polish to polish the supporting frame of the dentures, posing a serious health hazard to users. Also, the hospitals and dentist clinics are selling them with an outrageous markup. Chinese story here. 6) 吕明英(Lǘ Míngyīng, Lv Mingying) – Lv Mingying is the director of the Department of Land and Resources of Guangdong Province and is being investigated by the disciplinary committee at the provincial level for serious violation of regulations. Chinese story here. 7) 网络作家富豪榜(wángluòzuòjiā fùháobáng, the list of richest online novel writers) – A list of online novel writers was published by a newspaper recently. These writers make tens of millions of yuan per year writing mostly about imaginary lands where characters master both magic and martial arts. Chinese story here. 8）金喜善女儿被吐槽(Jīn Xíshàn nǘ' ér bèitúcháo, Kim Hee-sun's daughter said "ugly") – This story made our list yesterday. Kim Hee-sun, a South Korean actress, recently revealed on a television show that she deeply regretted posting her daughter's photo online and the malicious comments on the baby girl's look were so bad that she wanted to move out of the country. Some of the comments said that the face of her daughter is the best evidence that Kim has gone under the knife for the beauty she has. Chinese story here. 9) 鸟叔上春晚谣言(niáoshūshángchūnwán yáoyán, Psy performing for the Chinese New Year Gala a rumor) – There have been rumors saying organizers have offered tens of millions of yuan to invite K-Pop star Psy, whose "Gangnam Style" has been a sensation, to perform at the upcoming Chinese New Year Gala, an annual variety show with billions of audience. The director of the show said on her weibo that this is a rumor and they did not approach the singer as many local networks have done. Chinese story here. 10) 黄奕怀孕( Huángyì huáiyùn, Huang Yi pregnant) – Huang Yi, an actress, was seem shopping for baby clothes in the US recently. The photo taken by a witness showed that she was about six-month along. Her boyfriend was believed to be Huang Yiqing, the son of a rich businessman. Chinese story here.        |
| Trust But Verify, or Paranoia Won’t Destroy You Posted: 26 Nov 2012 11:52 PM PST This article first appeared in Agenda magazine. Check out the latest issue here.
Unfortunately, imperfect as we human beings are, very often one or both of the parties to a deal will rush into that gap, taking advantage of misunderstanding, vague language and erroneous assumptions. If one of the parties is hopelessly naïve and trusting, things can get ugly. Once you have seen this play out a few times, it tends to make one a tad bit cynical and suspicious. That being said, this kind of negative outlook does not necessarily lead to a string of failed business relationships. What is the solution, the happy middle ground between blind trust and paralyzing suspicion? Trust but verify. So be on your best behavior out there, unless of course you spot one of these red flags:
No, I am not going to talk about how important relationships (guanxi) are in China. Go get a cheap "Doing Business in China" book at the airport if you want that old speech. Instead, I will simply caution you that hucksters have been lying about guanxi in this country for thousands of years and are very good at it. Because China is not exactly the paragon of transparency, such boasts about business connections are often difficult, if not impossible, to verify. Personally, I tend to disregard all of these kinds of statements, but if guanxi is important to your business deal, find some way for the other party to back up his boastful claims.
It sure is easy to promise something when you have no intention of ever fulfilling that obligation. It is even better when the other party assumes that you are acting in good faith. Ah, there is indeed a sucker born every minute. My all-time favorite from the world of China investment is the old "Hey JV partner, don't worry about the land. The local government assures me that we'll get the certificate within a few months." The lesson here is obvious: future promises are worthless unless you not only have them in writing, but also when you map out worst-case scenarios in advance. In contracts, these are called conditions precedent. So with that land transfer example, I would want a provision stating that if that land use rights certificate never materializes by a specific date, certain rights are conferred upon the other party automatically.
Is this one too obvious? You would actually be surprised how often promises are made without detailed agreements. This includes trade deals – no, people, a purchase order is not "good enough" – free licenses, and anything involving long-term partners. Just because you never had a problem with a distributor, licensee or buyer does not mean you will not be taken advantage of tomorrow. And by the way, the "local custom" excuse (i.e., an informal understanding is the norm) no longer applies here. These days, the local custom in China is to have a formal written agreement.
You ever perform due diligence on a company and receive a box full of unsigned agreements? I have. Sometimes this is simply poor internal organization, like when someone misplaces the executed versions, but in other cases, it might point to shady practices. The best way to minimize that contract liability from a potential buyer? Only turn over a "sanitized" version! Knowing this might happen, it is best to accept only executed originals, to the extent possible. In some cases, you can even demand that agreements are executed again.
Why would you ever rely on a translation given to you by the opposing party? It might just be possible that the translation is: 1) poorly done; 2) purposefully vague; or 3) different from the other version, and not in your favor. I have seen promises made in one language version of an agreement that were essentially stripped out in the translation. If you do not have an independent professional checking accuracy (e.g., a translation company or a lawyer, not your Chinese-speaking secretary), you are playing with fire. Okay, I know what you are thinking at this point. How can I sleep at night with such a twisted, tortured outlook on life and so little faith in the goodness of my fellow man? Actually, so long as I question every oral statement, and scrutinize every written document that crosses my desk, I sleep like a baby. Give it a try. © Stan for China Hearsay, 2012. | Permalink | No comment | Add to del.icio.us |
| Top 10 Search List (November 26, 2012) Posted: 26 Nov 2012 03:48 AM PST
2) 罗阳(Luó Yáng, Luo Yang) – Luo Yang is the chairman and general manager of the Shenyang Aircraft Industry Group, which develops the J-15 carrier-based fighter-bomber. The 51-year-old engineer died of heart attack yesterday. As the man in charge of the development program, Luo was there to witness two J-15 fighter jets landed and taken off from the Liaoning carrier and was rushed to the hospital after the carrier returned to Dalian Port. English story here. 3) 航母style(hángmú style, carrier style) – Two months after China's first carrier, the Liaoning, entered service, two J-15 fighter jets deputed in a landing and take-off exercise, marking a milestone on the vessel's path to full combat ability. As the exercise was broadcast on TV, internet users started uploading photos of them posing like the engineers in the exercise and naming the meme "Carrier Style". Chinese story here. 4) 干露露(Gān Lùlù, Gan Lulu) – Gan Lulu is a car model who became well-known after modeling for an auto show with her body barely covered by a small piece of fabric. Making public appearances in a near-naked state has been her signature ever since. Yesterday in a local TV variety show, she said she is going to help her younger sister become famous. Her younger sister was often seen in photos with her, also in near-naked clothes. Chinese story here. 5) 撞人裸女(zhuàngrénluǒnǘ, the naked female driver who hit people) –Zhang Yan, a local university teacher who hit two of her neighbors, a mother and her daughter, near their home, stripped herself naked and lied in front of the ambulance to block rescue. Zhang also snatched the little girl from the ambulance and pulled her to the ground. The four-year-old later died in the hospital and the mother is in a coma. Five months after the tragedy, an evaluation for Zhang's mental state concluded that she was suffering from acute mental disorder and should not be held responsible for what she did. The victims' family accused Zhang of faking a mental disorder to avoid punishment. Chinese story here. 6) 邯钢坍塌(Hángāng tāntā, Handan Steel Group construction collapse) – An under-construction facility in Handan, Hebei Province collapsed and buried eight construction workers on Saturday. Three of them have been extricated. An under-construction overpass collapsed in the city three month ago, burying four workers. Chinese story here. 7) 林志颖妹妹大婚(Lín Zhìyíng mèimèi dàhūn, the wedding of Lin Zhiying's younger sister) – Taiwanese star Lin Zhiying (Jimmy Lin) showed up for the wedding of his younger sister, who, according to Lin's fans, looked like his older sister from the wedding photos posted on his weibo account. Chinese story here. 8）146职位无人报考(146 zhíweì wúrénbàokáo, 146 posts have no applicant) – 1.5 million people attended the national civil service exam over the weekend, hoping to enjoy the money and stability brought by one of the 20,800 civil servant jobs. Also, 146 posts, usually positions in more remote regions, have no applicants. Chinese story here. 9) 王志文妻子(Wáng Zhìwén qīzí, wife of Wang Zhiwen) – Wang Zhiwen, the mainland actor has been seen playing with golf with his wife recently, who is said to a rich business woman worth hundreds of millions. Chinese story here. 10) 金喜善女儿(Jīn Xíshàn nǘ' ér, Kim Hee-sun's daughter) Kim Hee-sun, a South Korean actress, recently revealed on a television show that she deeply regretted posting her daughter's photo online and the malicious comments on the baby girl's look were so bad that she wanted to move out of the country. Some of the comments said that the face of her daughter is the best evidence that Kim has gone under the knife for the beauty she has. Chinese story here. |
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