Blogs » Society » ‘China’s Prospects on the Eve of the 18th Party Congress’: Brookings

---

• ‘China’s Prospects on the Eve of the 18th Party Congress’: Brookings
• Tech news: HTC pushing Windows phones hard in China, iPhone 5 smuggling, China Unicom boosts its 3G market share
• Saturday Morning Cartoon: Can I Have My Gun Now?
• Are Japan-related books being banned in China?
• Sotheby's to auction overpriced art to awful rich people in China now too
• Presented By:
• South Korea fires on North Korean ships because there isn't enough tension in East Asia at the moment
• Automatic sperm extractor
• What if Tibetans borrowed CCP's legal argument for sovereignty?
• Against national education – reflections on the Hong Kong hunger strike
• Friday Night Musical Outro: The Gar – Love For Life
• Shenzhen TV host posts call for peace between Japan and China on Weibo, removes it because of threats
• Children attacked at day care centre in Guangxi by man with axe, three dead
• China becoming key issue in US election
• China Joint Ventures That Make Sense
• Obama's evolving views on China, Asia
• En-masse expat exodus, Ctd
• Jargon explosion holding back green agenda
• Friday Links: Snoop Dogg (or is that Lion?) on Weibo, Japan faces China in basketball, and holy White Deer Plain preview
• Convenience Store Cashier Negotiates Her Way Out Of A Robbery

‘China’s Prospects on the Eve of the 18th Party Congress’: Brookings Posted: 21 Sep 2012 07:00 PM PDT Just yesterday Brookings put on a star-parade of China experts to talk about 'China's Prospects on the Eve of the 18th Party Congress.' Today, the Institute published the entire conference. Here it is, in sequenced videos:

Tech news: HTC pushing Windows phones hard in China, iPhone 5 smuggling, China Unicom boosts its 3G market share Posted: 21 Sep 2012 07:00 PM PDT HTC announces deals with all major Chinese carriers for new Windows phones. Smuggling of the iPhone 5 from HK to Shenzhen gets under way. China Unicom chips away at its rivals share of the 3G market. [ more › ]

Saturday Morning Cartoon: Can I Have My Gun Now? Posted: 21 Sep 2012 06:16 PM PDT Our favorite talk show host, Gao Xiaosong, is at it again, this time talking about gun use and laws in the US in Episode 28: America Under Gunpoint. (Short synopsis: there are a lot of guns in America.) This one's not nearly as jaw-dropping as the first two episodes of Saturday Morning Cartoon. Enjoy it for the animation quality, I guess. Youku video for those in China after the jump.

Are Japan-related books being banned in China? Posted: 21 Sep 2012 05:00 PM PDT The Japan Times reports that Japanese publishers in Beijing are being warned of an "apparent ban on book publishing in Beijing" of Japan-related materials. [ more › ]

Sotheby's to auction overpriced art to awful rich people in China now too Posted: 21 Sep 2012 03:00 PM PDT Auction house giant Sotheby's has announced the signing of a 10-year joint venture agreement which will allow it to form the first international auction house in China. [ more › ]

Presented By: Posted: 21 Sep 2012 03:00 PM PDT

South Korea fires on North Korean ships because there isn't enough tension in East Asia at the moment Posted: 21 Sep 2012 01:26 PM PDT South Korean patrol vessels in the Yellow Sea fired warning shots at North Korean fishing boats on Friday, the fisherman reportedly fled without casualties. [ more › ]

Automatic sperm extractor Posted: 19 Sep 2012 10:55 PM PDT Key | September 19th, 2012 Recently an entry on Weibo about an automatic perm extractor went viral, it says, "A hospital in Nanjing introduced an automatic sperm extractor. The screen on the machine plays artistic movies and with surround sound in the room. There is a massager at the bottom of the machine with adjustable speed and frequency. Now you can make that money standing up!" Zhengzhou evening news claimed in a report that hospital in Zhengzhou also has this machine. Reporter went to Zhengzhou Central Hospital, affiliated to Zhengzhou University. Directed by hospital urology department head Zhu Guoxin, reporter finally saw the "amazing machine". Just like the pictures on Weibo, the machine had a display screen on top and automatically played artistic movies when the machine was switched on. The "massage pipe" in front can be adjusted according to the height of the user. Users can also adjust speed, frequency, amplitude and temperature etc. Machine is also equipped with headphones and two handles on both sides. However as to what was said on Weibo "make that money standing up", Zhu Guoxin stated that this sperm extractor was not used for sperm donation but rather it was used on infertility patients. "When male infertility patient come for treatment, we must first fully inspect the sperm which requires sperm extraction." Zhu said, "This machine is only recommended for patients that had difficulty retrieving perms, user must use a condom, but lubricant and chemicals on condoms will affect the accuracy of the test results." Zhu then said, "Perhaps netizens misunderstood the usage of the machine, and thought it was used for sperm donation. In fact, sperm bank has very high standards; donors must go through strict medical examination and they will definitely not use a sperm extractor."

What if Tibetans borrowed CCP's legal argument for sovereignty? Posted: 21 Sep 2012 11:48 AM PDT Could Chinese arguments for sovereignty over the Diaoyu Islands be equally applicable as a basis for Tibetan independence? [ more › ]

Against national education – reflections on the Hong Kong hunger strike Posted: 21 Sep 2012 09:57 AM PDT This is the Thinking China Digest, a weekly roundup of recent essays and articles published on the Chinese web, with links to translations on the Marco Polo Project. In the first week of September 2012, a group of high schools students from Hong Kong organised a public hunger strike to oppose new 'national and moral education' classes – dismissing them as a form of brainwash. More protesters joined them, including a 63 year old teacher, attracting considerable attention from Hong Kong citizens and the media. After ten days of protest, and hundreds of thousands of supporters attending a wide range of events, the government finally made concessions, proposing to no longer make these classes compulsory, but leaving schools to decide whether they should be implemented. 1510, in collaboration with the news website CoChina, published a special magazine issue on this event. This week's post proposes to follow the course of events presented in that issue, and a text engaging the questions raised by mainland Chinese internet users regarding the events. Protesting national education By CoChina, 30 August-09 September 2012 From 30 August to 8 September 2012, Hong Kong saw ten days of protests against new 'moral and national education' classes. The movement started with three high school students' decision to stage a hunger strike opposite the government headquarters. Many people described the movement as a miracle, not only because it was orchestrated by students, but also because of the level of support it attracted. CoChina proposed a short summary of events for each day of the protest, and a one-word label for each. This is how the protests unfolded: Day 1: Hunger strike. Three high school students from the group 'Scholarism' (学民思潮) staged a hunger strike on the square opposite the Hong Kong SAR government headquarters, and found an echo chamber for their protest online. Day 2: Theatre. Leung Chun Ying went out to meet the students on the square, but was politely rejected by them – his conduct denounced as 'theatre'. Meanwhile, the education minister claimed he had 'silent support' from the majority of Hong-Kongers, which caused a massive outcry. Day 3: Evening party. This third day – originally planned to mark the end of the movement – climaxed in a range of forums, activities and a concert on the square. New hunger-strikers joined the original three, giving fresh energy to the movement. Day4: Stubborn. The government announced that their role was to be 'stubborn' and not give in to protest, which resulted in larger support for the movement. Day 5: First day of school. ATV broadcast a biased report on the movement, denouncing the original strikers as 'destructive forces', and talking of foreign manipulation. This report attracted strong criticism from intellectuals and artists. Day 6: Media ethics. As ATV received numerous complaints on their coverage of the event, and more public figures expressed support for the strikers, Eric Ma, professor at the school of communication and journalism, joined the hunger strike. Day 7: Intensify. The Hong Kong Student Federation issued a call for strike on September 11, and a group of 40 young scholars issued a collective letter of support for the protests. Day 8: Support. While vice-chancellor Joseph Sung voiced his support and Hong-Kongers in Britain organised a march, the strikers were joined by hunger strike veterans from the 70s. Day 9: Climax. The evening of that day marked a climax of the movement, with 120,000 people gathering opposite the government headquarters to support the movement. Day 10: Concession. Leung Chun-ying announced in a press conference that the proposed 'national education' programme would no longer be made compulsory within three years. Schools would independently decide when and whether to implement it. After ten days: evacuate and reorganize. Following the partial victory represented by the government's concession, the strike organisers called an end to the occupation, and prepared for a continuation of the movement – with a student strike on September 11 as its first step. Marco Polo translation: Protesting national education Original link: 占领十日——"反国民教育科"全记录 A letter to the Chinese mainland youth By Ye Yin Chung, 16 September 2012 As news of the Hong Kong movement spread on the net, some mainland netizens expressed doubts or even negative reactions to the protest. In this post, academic Ye Yin Chung addresses the most often recurring questions in the form of a Q&A. 1. Why didn't Hong-Kongers rebel against the British 'brainwash' that made them colonial subjects? Although there were oppositions to the British government in Hong-Kong, no similar circumstances ever occured, as The British education system had no particular 'patriotic' element, and did not try to make Hong-Kongers into British subjects. On the contrary, it encouraged ongoing connection to Chinese culture and history. 2. All governments brainwash their citizens, so why shouldn't the Chinese government do it? Although foreign government did try to instill patriotism in their citizens in the past, since the Second World War, the trend has been to replace 'patriotic' national education with a broader 'civic' education model, which gives space for numerous identities – gender, religious, class, etc – beside national identity. China is one of the few countries that still retains a strong focus on 'national identity', and the Hong Kong demonstrations may therefore appear as an oddity in the context of China, but not in a broader context. 3. The contents of the curriculum guide seem rather neutral, and do not deserve the cries of 'no to brainwashing' often heard. Aren't Hong-Kongers just too nervous? The word brainwashing here does not refer to totalitarian techniques of extreme ideological pressure, but people had concerns about the way this education would be conducted. First, scholars have pointed out that mixing 'national' and 'moral' education, starting from primary schools and possibly kindergarten, pose a risk of replacing critical thinking with etiquette. Second, as teachers have no training in this domain, people fear that schools may delegate the delivery of that 'national' curriculum to pro-Beijing 'red' education organisations. 4. Isn't it irrational that so many Hong-Kongers shouted against brainwashing who hadn't read through the guidelines and curriculum material? People may not have read the full curriculum, but they were relatively well informed by recent covered in the media, though they had not been aware of the problem earlier. Few people pay attention to the details of curriculum development. Before the protests, the government relied on experts, feigning that they represented the 'silent majority'. Once informed, the 'silent majority' ceased to be so, and expressed their opinion 5. How come no-one opposes the religious brainwashing of Christianism and other religions? It is true that many primary and secondary schools in Hong Kong have a religious affiliation, and the criticism of religion as 'brainwash' is not without reason. However, there may be two reasons why patriotic national education caused particular concern in Hong Kong: the first is that there are a number of religions in Hong-Kong, making it unlikely that one would dominate; the second is that religion has no political power in Hong-Kong. 6. Isn't this protest a more radical instance of Hong-Kongers rejecting everything that comes from the mainland? There is a tendency from certain Hong-Kongers to reject mainland China, but the relationship between the two is deep and complex. Hong-Kongers feel a deep sense of belonging to Chinese culture: a few participants who rejected learning about contemporary China supported the idea of learning more about Chinese history, and this was a well-received thought. What protesters rejected was a Chinese identity defined by the Chinese Communist Party. Other factors played in, such as concern from the protesters that the new courses would replace critical and independent thinking with a respect for power and etiquette, and more general anxieties about the education system in Hong Kong. The movement should therefore not be interepreted as a rejection of China by Hong Kong, but an expression of their complex relationship, as well as other idiosyncratic factors. Marco Polo translation: A letter to the Chinese mainland youth Original link: 叶荫聪：谈香港反国民教育科运动——给中国大陆青年的一封信 To better understand the movement, you may wish to read the initial hunger strike declaration, and the final message issued by the protesting students. You might also wish to read a young man's letter to his family, explaining his reasons for supporting the movement. All articles in this digest and a large range of other Chinese readings are accessible at Marcopoloproject.org. Some are available in English, French and Spanish translation. (You can join the project if you'd like to help with translations.) Danwei is an affiliate of the Australian Centre on China in the World at The Australian National University. This posting is a result of one project that is part of that on-going collaboration. China Heritage Quarterly and East Asian History are two other publications supported by the Australian Centre on China in the World.

Friday Night Musical Outro: The Gar – Love For Life Posted: 21 Sep 2012 08:50 AM PDT The Gar exploded onto the Beijing music scene in 2007 and entrenched its reputation as indie heavyweights with the release of its self-titled album two years later. The members went on a three-year hiatus with the departure of bassist and founding member Wen Jie, but it appears they're now back, with a new bassist in Zhu Boxuan (formerly of Hedgehog). The band is nearing the end of a month-long tour to promote its newest EP, City of Burning Identities, and will play tomorrow at Yugongyishan starting at 9 pm (60 yuan presale, 80 at the door). Our music contributor calls The Gar "easily the most talented of the mid-2000s Beijing / Maybe Mars Chinese indie explosion," and notes that "everyone will be there to cheer on The Gar" tomorrow. Can you tell she's a fan? Youku video for those in China after the jump.

Shenzhen TV host posts call for peace between Japan and China on Weibo, removes it because of threats Posted: 21 Sep 2012 09:34 AM PDT The top post on Weibo on Thursday was a poignant call for friendship and peace between China and Japan, until its author was scared into removing it after receiving countless threats and insults from angry nationalists. [ more › ]

Children attacked at day care centre in Guangxi by man with axe, three dead Posted: 21 Sep 2012 08:17 AM PDT Sad news out of Guangxi province; three children have been killed and 13 injured after a man with an axe attacked them in a day care centre in Pingnan County. Xinhua reports that the man burst into the centre on Friday afternoon and "slashed 16 children" with a wood chopper. The suspect, surnamed Wu, has since been arrested. [ more › ]

China becoming key issue in US election Posted: 21 Sep 2012 07:54 AM PDT China, whilst not as foreign to Americans as say, any Muslim country, is still pretty damn foreign, in addition to being a massive economy controlled by a non-democratic government, and it's therefore not much of a surprise to see it become an issue in the upcoming US election. [ more › ]

China Joint Ventures That Make Sense Posted: 21 Sep 2012 07:35 AM PDT Been writing a lot about China Joint Ventures of late, for many reasons.  First, I am going to be speaking in Hong Kong in mid-October on this very topic.  Second, there has been of late a sort of mini-resurgence in China JVs.  Third, others, including Rich Brubaker over at All Roads Lead to China, have been commenting on the JV uptick as well. Brubaker came out with a really interesting (for me anyway) piece the other day, entitled, Who Is Up for Another Round of Joint Ventures?  In that post, he talked of recent announcements by Pfizer and Merck  that they have both entered into JV agreements with local firms to distribute their generic drugs in China."  He then goes on to note how both deals have the following "characteristics" he felt "important to highlight: Both deals are structured around generics. Both deals ultimately represent a structure that plays off the strengths of each firm.  foreign brand, process, and QC … local distribution Both deals will insulate the firms from any decline in market, as well as speed up their entry to the market Both deals will insulate the firms from a number of risks, not the least of which are the legal risks brought on by the well documented business practices that take place within the industry. He then goes on to say that he is seeing similar activity in "auto, insurance, and energy" where companies with whom Rich have spoken see "potential for JVs" that can "insulate [against] risk, increase speed to market, and be kept separate from other investments/products in China. I think Rich is really on to something.  China is getting more difficult for foreign companies. It just is. It is getting more expensive, more political, and, overall just a lot less friendly to foreign businesses, from a legal, tax, and business perspective.  I am finding myself giving the following "lecture" just about every day now: It is almost always better to fully control your business than to share your business with someone else, particularly when that someone else comes from a very different culture than you and particularly when you do not really know that someone else all that well.  But in terms of strictly business reasons, there are definitely times where a Joint Venture will be better able to compete than a WFOE.  This is particularly true in those industries where there is strong government involvement, such as banking, healthcare and the environment.  This is going to be far less true for a consumer good like clothing or toasters. If you want to sell goods or services to China, you should be aware that there is a hierarchy of businesses in China in terms of being favored by the governments there.  Again, the strength/importance of this hierarchy is going to vary depending on the particular industry and it is going to be up to you to figure out where your industry fits.  First comes China's own domestic companies.  They are going to be most favored. Then comes a Joint Venture.  Next comes a WFOE, followed by a Rep Office. Selling your product or service from the comforts of the United States comes last. Not to say selling from the United States cannot work, because it can. We have clients who do quite well selling their products from the United States, but it seems that they are in industrial related businesses selling fairly high ticket items (USD$100,000 to USD$2 million) for which they are known as being at the top of the heap and for which being in China confers little to no benefit.  So really, you just need to figure out where your business fits. Back to Pfizer and Merck. Those joint ventures seem to make good sense.  Distributing in China is tough. Really tough.  And I can only imagine it being way tougher still in the healthcare sector.  But what makes these ventures so interesting to me is their limited scope. As far as I can tell, both the Pfizer and Merck joint ventures are pretty limited in their scope. Neither involve developing or producing any product; they simply involve distribution (and marketing?). And this makes sense.  Pfizer and Merck have essentially outsourced the portion of their China business they are probably least equipped to handle as well as a local. What's so interesting though is that they outsourced it via a Joint Venture, which almost certainly gives them more control than if they had outsourced via a distributor relationship.  In fact, in some ways, this joint venture might be almost the opposite of the stereotypically China Joint Venture in which a Western company is brought in for the technology and the big threat is that once the Chinese side masters the technology, it will boot out the Western company.  Might Pfizer and/or Merck be positioning themselves to boot out the Chinese side once they (Pfizer/Merck) master the art of China pharma distribution.  Don't know, of course, but this sort of deal certainly bears watching. What do you think?

Obama's evolving views on China, Asia Posted: 21 Sep 2012 06:44 AM PDT The New York Times has published an extensive review of President Obama's changing relationship with Beijing and especially his administration's "rebalancing" towards Asia. [ more › ]

En-masse expat exodus, Ctd Posted: 21 Sep 2012 05:56 AM PDT Could the "why I'm leaving China" trend of last month be a worrying indicator of financial troubles to come? [ more › ]

Jargon explosion holding back green agenda Posted: 20 Sep 2012 08:50 AM PDT A new study suggests fragmentation of language across the sustainability field is accelerating. It's already causing problems, argues John Elkington. Think of the state of the sustainability agenda and it's hard not be reminded of one of the defining stories in western literature, that of the Tower of Babel – found early in the book of Genesis, which opens the Christian Bible. As many will recall, the narrative runs like this: after the flood, which the Bible tells us swept the known world and drowned most people, a united mankind came together, speaking one language, to build a massive tower with its "top in the heavens".  But that's where things got sticky. God, spotting what they were up to, came down to inspect the works. Concerned there would be no stopping the builders' ambitions should they be left to complete the tower, God decided to confound them – by mixing up their languages and scattering them across the Earth. At its best, language can be a great unifier, but it can also create divisions and spur deep misunderstandings. We are not there quite yet, but my sense is that the fragmentation of languages across the sustainability agenda is already causing problems, and these are likely to get worse. So, while it may seem impossible, maybe it's now time to think about how we might run the Babel story in reverse, creating a unified language and vocabulary for all those who are working to drive our economies in more sustainable directions. The events of 2012 have only fuelled my concern. Recall the UN Rio+20 summit in June, where one of the key targets was meant to be "green growth" to spur the development of the "green economy" – but where some Asian countries, particularly China, expressed concern about the way such concepts are currently defined.  "Towards Zero Impact Growth", a new study by our colleagues at Deloitte Innovation in The Netherlands suggests that the proliferation of languages across the corporate responsibility, accountability and sustainability agendas is, if anything, accelerating. There's nothing intrinsically wrong with the evolution of language – evolving fields of science and technology always spur the evolution of new (and often competing) concepts and terms. We also see the emergence of competing platforms, as in the early days of information technology, when rivals like Microsoft and Apple went head to head over their different versions of the future, for example whether open or closed architectures would prevail. The same is now happening in the sustainability space as it becomes more commercial, and the clues include the growing array of terms now in use, a spread of language which many business people just getting involved say they find one of the hardest things to get their brains around.  Just as different types of computer found it impossible to communicate and share data in the early days of the IT revolution, so we may now be running the risk of evolving different sustainability platforms that find it hard to communicate. How, for example, should we best connect such exciting fields as the triple bottom line, cradle-to-cradle design, base-of-the-pyramid business models, the circular economy, behavioural economics, biomimicry or zero-based targets? Each of these concepts – and many others – are used by different communities, some overlapping, others not. In many cases, the concepts and terms are used as a badge of entry, linking to set views on related issues. For example, if you subscribe to the cradle-to-cradle theory of design, your aim will be to get to the point where all the materials used in a supply chain or an economy are completely biodegradable, or are captured by recovery and recycling systems that ensure an almost completely circular economy. Zero-based targets may be seen as a distraction, even when the very nature of cradle-to-cradle design implies driving the use of all toxics to zero. In some cases, however, it may make sense to keep potentially toxic materials in the system, as long as they are not handled or discharged in ways that potentially cause problems. That is the approach that companies like Adidas, Nike and Puma are now taking with their innovative roadmap towards zero discharges of hazardous chemicals (ZDHC) in their supply chains in China. To try and avoid confusion, Deloitte Innovation lists some of the things that "zero impact growth" is not. It does not, for example, mean "zero growth" or zero targets for everything. Instead, it aims to help set the boundaries for sustainable capitalism.  The Deloitte report quotes World War II American general Omar Bradley, as follows: "It is time we steered by the stars, not by the light of each passing ship." The point being that we need a North Star definition of what we are trying to achieve if we are to avoid descending into confusion and inaction. To get a better grip on where leading corporations are on all of this, Deloitte surveyed companies that are members of the UN Global Compact, the Caring for Climate Program or the CEO Water Mandate. Using only publicly available information, the analysts investigated 65 companies, representing 10 core industries and 25 sectors.  The top scorer overall was Unilever, because of the ambitious targets embedded in its Sustainable Living Plan.  In terms of best practice, there were various headings. Under "collaborative actions", the spotlight fell on the six companies driving the ZDHC Roadmap project: Adidas Group, C&A, H&M, Li-Ning, Nike and Puma. And Puma was also spotlighted for best practice under the heading "internalisation of externalities", for its Environmental Profit & Loss work. As far as key barriers to further progress are concerned, the analysts point to one strongly reminiscent of the Tower of Babel. Their research, they say, "revealed a lack of consistent definitions and descriptions that companies use to explain their sustainability efforts." This gets in the way of both accurate analysis and, they suspect, effective implementation of the relevant corporate strategies. So clearly there is much work still to do here, but any attempts to converge the sustainability languages used will only be successful if they also help converge scattered expert communities and build real critical mass for transformational change.   John Elkington is executive chairman at Volans and non-executive director at SustainAbility. He blogs at www.johnelkington.com and tweets at @volansjohn. Homepage image by Greenpeace

Friday Links: Snoop Dogg (or is that Lion?) on Weibo, Japan faces China in basketball, and holy White Deer Plain preview Posted: 21 Sep 2012 05:30 AM PDT Unfriendly mooncakes, found on Weibo. Beijing's consecutive-blue-sky-days streak ended yesterday, sadly. That's OK — we have links. Top Weibo post, for a while, advocated Chinese-Japanese friendship. And then… "In a follow-up message, the author says she deleted it herself (see comments) due to threats and pressure of some sort. [我删了。我自己也吓一跳 = I deleted it. I was a little scared.]" [Blocked on Weibo] Corollary: The post: "A few days ago a friend went on a business trip to Japan but had trouble leaving the country [2]. This morning he sent me a text [3] saying that last night he and a co-worker had been eating at a Japanese bar when it was uncovered that they were Chinese, after which they got a dish that had some words written on it. When I heard this, I was worried. But who would have thought it would be these words [4]. The bar owner said, 'Thank you for being so willing to come to Japan, I hope there will be peace and friendship.' … I certainly was surprised. Patriotism: must we use xenophobia and hatred to express it?" So… it was his back? "Xi Jinping, the Chinese president-in-waiting, mysteriously disappeared for two weeks because of a back injury suffered while swimming, according to Tung Chee Hwa, the former Chief Executive of Hong Kong. // 'He hurt himself in sport and he's now recovered and he's now back at work,' Tung said in an interview with CNN's Christiane Amanpour Tuesday." [CNN] Yup, it is that easy for people to lose interest in protests. "It doesn't get any clearer than this. The protests were acceptable, indeed laudable, to the authorities until today. Now they are banned. // Sure enough, when we reached the street corner i had to check the road sign to know whether i was in the same place as i had been the past few days. It was full of fast(ish)-moving traffic, and there was not a single five-starred red flag in sight." [South China Sea Conversations, with a video of bagpipes] A movie I want to watch (trailer embedded below). "The protagonist of director Lou Ye's latest film murders a garbage collector. But when the film board told him that the death, which he envisioned as a brutal killing, had to be limited to two sharp blows, Lou was furious. // 'It's ridiculous to keep only two hits, which would make the audience think that he is an experienced killer,' said Lou. 'This seemingly minor change can alter the meaning of the whole movie and lead to a completely negative portrayal.'" [Global Times] Female-led Muslim congregations in China. "While their precise numbers are unknown, China has dozens of female imams—more than anywhere else in the world, according to leading scholars. Most are in Henan province. They first appeared in the 17th century, in a doctrinal adaptation likely born of necessity. According to Shui Jingjun of the Henan Academy of Social Sciences, this owes to the land-locked province's geography and history." [Kathleen McLaughlin, ChinaFile] Auto show models bare all. "Dressed in little more than body paint and a sarong, Haikou Auto Show's practically naked models led to increased use of the term 'breast milk exhibitions' and for good cause. (A somewhatNSFW gallery here.) Making previous antics in Beijing and Chengdu look like Disney movies, topless models sucked all the attention away from the cars." [Brand Channel] Snoop Dogg is on Sina Weibo. "In his inaugural post, Snoop writes to his Chinese fans: 'Ni Hao to all my fans in China! Big Snoop Dogg here, so blessed to be on Sina Weibo, and to see my Chinese fans – follow me @Snoop_DoggCN for much more coming up. '你好'，Snoop Dogg在这儿和大家打招呼，很高兴来到这儿与你们互动。赶快关注我吧！" [Shanghaiist] British man helps the poor. "A British engineer sold 3 companies, a mansion, 2 sports cars, and came to Xi'an, China to hand out steamed stuffed buns to the homeless. Like that, 7 years have passed." [chinaSMACK] Surprise, surprise… Hong Kongers protesting again. Lots of photos, videos, and excerpts of Hong Kong's protest against "locusts" (again). [BadCanto] Japan vs. China in basketball. Ha! "Said deputy director of the CBA, Hu Jiashi, 'This is just a game… I hope the fans won't put too much pressure on the players [to win].'" [NiuBBall] Alright, that's it. You've won the internet, PSY. "The North has posted a video on its official Uriminzokkiri website of a horse-dancing PSY character that has a photo of conservative South Korean presidential candidate Park Geun-hye's face transposed on it. // The lyrics have the character satirically defending Park's late dictator father, Park Chung-hee." [AP] White Deer Plain preview interlude (Youku version): Finally… A much-too detailed account of Wang Lijun's trial. [Xinhua] Beijing to open the CBA season at home in Wukesong vs. Shanghai. [NiuBBall] Impact on Japanese brands. [The Bergstrom Group] Bat causes four-hour flight delay. [Global Times] Asian American StoryCorps. [8Asians] Finally, finally… Catwoman delivers in Shanghai, via MIC Gadget

Convenience Store Cashier Negotiates Her Way Out Of A Robbery Posted: 21 Sep 2012 02:14 AM PDT What does it mean to live in a guanxi society, where so much depends on interpersonal relationships? Part of it is honing an ability to talk your way into or out of a wide range of situations. It could mean getting an official to accept a hongbao — a bribe, as the more righteous among us call it — but it can also be simpler, like getting a vegetable seller to round down, or (here's a common one) a parking attendant to knock a few kuai off the parking price in exchange for keeping the receipt (in which case, he could pocket the money instead of reporting it to his bosses). Sometimes, a silver tongue can also be the difference between getting robbed or not. Witness this incident from last Sunday in Jiangbei, Zheijiang province. Just after 3 am, a young man in a yellow t-shirt and jeans approaches the counter of a deserted convenience store, ostensibly to buy a bag of chips and soft drink. After the female cashier has bagged the products, the man grabs her wrist and presses a knife to her back. Here's what happens next, as told by the cashier in the video: When I wasn't paying attention, he suddenly charged in. He jabbed a knife at me and said, Give me 500 kuai cash. Most people would panic and fork over everything in the register. Not this one though. And then I said, Don't have that much cash. So then I said, I don't have that much cash, so is it okay if I just lent you 100 for now? She cleverly plays the pity card: It's not easy for me working here, I'm working the night shift. A classic bit of bargaining ensues: And then he says, 100′s not enough, how about 200? Lest you've forgotten, we're in the midst of an armed robbery. I said, OK, first put your knife away, there're cameras here, what a shame if you were to be caught. And then he puts away his knife and stands there. And… waits. And then I had a chat with him. I asked him, Why are you robbing? He replied that his friend got in a car accident at Shangtang, needs the money. Moments later, a sedan pulls up to the front of the store and another man walks in. The guy in the yellow t-shirt scoops up the bag in front of him — we're not sure whether he paid for his chips and soft drink — and walks out. It's all too tempting to call him a "dumb" criminal, but let's take a moment to appreciate what happened here. A man tried to rob a convenience store for a measly 500 yuan — about 75 dollars — so he can help out his buddy whose car needs repair. Unable to convince the female cashier to give him 500, he decides he's willing to take 200. Unable to wait out the other customer who walks in, he leaves with a bag of chips and Coke, possibly 5 kuai poorer (again, not sure whether he paid). The Jiangsu police department publicized a cash reward for information that leads to this man's arrest. We kind of hope he escapes though — that is, as long as he doesn't try to pull this stunt again. The criminal line of work doesn't suit him.

You are subscribed to email updates from Update » Blogs » Society To stop receiving these emails, you may unsubscribe now.	Email delivery powered by Google
Google Inc., 20 West Kinzie, Chicago IL USA 60610