aciremA and anihC

What a difference a few years make! So America started last year with the classic reversal of fortune. First, as the center of the most important capitalistic society we got ourselves ensnared in a financial crisis not at our making, but certainly as the leading catalyst. China, whom America has scolded on many occasions for their command economy has emerged from this downturn in relatively decent shape thus far. Now word that the swine flu has emerged from Mexico, right at the doorstep of America. This after years of suspicion that the avian flu will likely emerge from China due to the perceived backward lifestyle and little attention paid to public welfare. The tables have certainly turned this time around and don't think the world has not taken notice. This is not to say that every thing China has done in recent years has been the gold standard and America has become the leper of the world.

This points to the fact that complacency has insidiously crept into the American mindset. After all, complacency only exists when one has success and America have experienced a long period of success on the world stage. This has led to the mindset that what we do must be correct and the best way to do things. This has led to the current state of complacency that is in the process of humbling us. We should no longer be as arrogant to believe that whatever we do is the best. We can still lead, but it requires us to consider that others may have good ideas as well and not to be quick to dismiss. One hopes that the current Obama administration is on that road and can turn this around.

Civilized or Ingenuous

In America, we view ourselves as "civilized" and likewise, I think of myself as being a civilized person. I personally believe that in modern society, we should have certain rules and structure in place to make our lives more livable and comfortable.

That being said, sometimes you find yourself in situations where civility might have to take a back seat to primal urges. The classic example is the need to urinate with no bathrooms in sight. I would dare say that most Americans would probably hold their urine as long as they can while searching for the loo until succumbing to nature. This problem is really no problem at all here in China. If one, especially a man has to go, he probably will just head towards the nearest dimly lit corner. Some men are even more brazen and would do this with no peripheral cover into some greenery. Such activities are not just restricted to dark alleys, sometimes you can see this in relatively busy streets in front of women and children. These sights are not even worth a second look from passerbys

Another example is the expulsion of gas. I think we all have had experiences where after a meal, especially a hearty one where one needs to expel some gas. We in the civilized world will either try to belch quietly or swallow one's gas until they are in the company of oneself. Here in China, diners have not qualms about belching during the meal. This is viewed as a natural bodily function and it would not be helpful to suppress it.

In many ways, I understand why we in the civilized society want to take such painstaking care to keep these activities private. However, from another perspective, I find that the attitude of the Chinese toward some of this is quite refreshing. There is no pretension when it comes to such bodily functions. After all it isn't as if you are the only person in the world to have these things happen to your body. So why bother to hide or suppress them?

mirror reflection

Last night Major League Baseball and baseball fans (including me) around the world received earth shattering news that the best baseball player in the world and perhaps one of the greats in the history of the game tested positive for performance enhancing drugs. Alex Rodriguez currently of the New York Yankees reportedly tested positive for steroids in 2003. The history and records of baseball is very integral part of being a fan of baseball. Currently the sacred record of baseball - all time home runs is held by the notorious steroids user Barry Bonds. Alex Rodriguez was to be the player who embodied the ideal athlete who through diligence and talent was to restore the integrity of the sacred records of baseball.

Listening to the New York sports radio stations over the internet, the disappointment of the fans is palpable. For fans, sports is the diversion to escape from the rigors of real life. It affords people to be entertained by seemingly larger than life heroes who one can live vicariously through.

Unfortunately, the sports world is very much part of real life populated by real people like us all. The competition is high and the payoff for the top performers like any other industry can be very high. Its actually not surprising that people are willing to take the risk and take performance enhancing drugs to give them the best chance to succeed. This sort of thing happens in all walks of life. Here in China, parents line up to buy Chinese medicine reputed to enhance cognitive activity in the days leading up the College entrance exams for their children. Scientists are engaged in genetic engineering that may one day produce intelligent babies. What parent wouldn't want a child like that? How many people lie on their resumes in hopes of getting their foot in the door of a better job?

Trying to get an edge on the competition is an inherent character trait that all species have. I think it is safe to say that at this point, humans has gained such an advantage over the rest of the animals that it has become unfair.

So just how unfair is what Barry Bonds and Alex Rodriguez have done? That is a tough question to answer, as they are only doing what we humans are programmed to do. Just like any other subset of society, sports is just a reflection of who we are. Sometimes we don't like looking in the mirror because we might not like what we see. Unfortunately, heroes are just creations based on standards and ideals that nobody can never live up to.

Charity

There has been an incredible amount of sympathy from Chinese citizens showered upon their compatriots who have suffered through this earthquake. People have found many ways to help out the victims. The government has dispatched upwards of 150000 troops to the region to help in the rescue effort. There has been stories of regular citizens who have made their way into the area to help in the rescue effort. For the vast majority of the people, going into the earthquake region to help is not a realistic option so many have donate money to various charitable organizations.

During this period of time, there are inevitably certain expectations made of the rich and famous to do their part. What has surprised me is the close attention the Chinese has paid the the contribution of the wealthy. There has been lists made of famous Chinese and their contributions on the internet, The ones who made contribution that seem small has been roundly criticized on internet BBS and forums. This has led to the practice of people dissecting every celebrity's contribution in comparison to their perceived wealth. I understand that human beings love to gossip like this, but I don't ever remembering discussions about this topic to the extent that they do here in China compared to the US. Some celebrities like Yao Ming who initially contributed 500,000RMB ($71500) changed his contribution to 2,000,000RMB ($290,000) after a shower of criticism from netizens. After all, Yao makes about $10,000,000 right?

I find this type of behavior very counterproductive and petty. The extent of the peer pressure in Chinese society has exceeded my expectations. Even though I did not live through the Cultural Revolution (1960's - 1970's), I am starting to get an idea as to the mentality of the Chinese mass that let to it. Even though Mao was the instigator of the whole episode, it was the mass who exacerbated the situation. If it wasn't for regular people reporting "counter-revolutionaries" to the government, the Cultural Revolution would not have gone to the extent that it did.

So now if a person like Yao Ming does not contribute his "fair" share, he is branded a traitor. People were declaring that Yao is not Chinese anymore, he has become American. I have heard instances where workers of American companies being angry because they believe their employer's contributions were too low.

In some regards even though I grew up there, I sometimes feel like an outsider in America. But in many more regards, I am relieved that I am not an insider in China.

Chinese solidarity

When a nation suffers through a tragedy, national unity usually follows. This is what is going on in China. Scenes of unspeakable tragedies are being transmitted into people's home via various medium. Massive outpouring of sympathy has been showered upon the citizens of the earthquake affected areas in China.

Today there was a 3 minute moment of silence throughout the country on the 1 week anniversary of the earthquake at 2:28PM. Anybody in control of a horn were encouraged to use it during this 3 minute period. Cars stopped on the streets, people stopped what they were doing, trains stopped running. For 3 minutes sounds of car horns and air raid sirens were ubiquitous. I guess it had the affect of a country wailing.

I don't think I have observed people in China so emotional about any other subject before. I observed and felt a similar experience on 9/11/2001. I think human beings are all the same everywhere. We all may have different ways of doing things but ultimately people want the same things out of life and when certain things happen to take that away, we react in the same way.

Earthquake update

The situation in the Sichuan and Gansu province is growing more grim. The primary earthquake and the numerous aftershocks have cause massive damage to many parts of the region especially the towns in the mountains which were close to the epicenter. There were many towns that were developed in the valleys of this mountainous region. Unfortunately, while the valleys were perfect for habitation during normal time has proven to be a death trap after a massive earthquake. Roads leading into the towns have been blocked by landslides and much of the stones that were jarred loose from the earthquake have dropped into these valleys. These factors have exacerbated the initial problems of the earthquake. The people who were not killed during the initial quake are now either buried but alive or free but injured. Rescuers are having a very tough time getting into these towns and the equipment necessary to dig out the buried are even tougher to get into these areas. So far over 20,000 are confirmed dead with another 30,000 buried or unaccounted for. The death rate is sure to be higher than 20,000.

This is the latest in a series of unfortunate events in China during 2008, the Olympic year:

1. The collapse of the stock market. Even though the market has recovered a bit lately after some government action it is still 40% below its high.

2. The Tibetan uprising and the subsequent world-wide protests including the embarrassing reception (or lack thereof) of the Olympic torch.

3. The snowstorm of the century affecting much of the country including areas in the south which were severely ill-equipped to handle it.

4. The highest inflation rates in many years (over 8%). This was exacerbated by the snowstorm which disrupted much of the food production in China for a good period of time.

5. The outbreak of the Hand, Foot and Mouth disease which has killed over 30 children. While the casualties have been low, this is an embarrassment for the government since the outbreak was covered up by local officials in the area where the outbreak initially occurred. This is especially embarrassing since the country will be welcoming thousands of people from around the world for the Olympics.

6. There was a suspicious bombing of a bus in Shanghai.

7. The biggest earthquake to hit China in a populated area in over 30 years and casualties will be well into 5 figures.

Some of these problems were just tragic events that no government could prepare for but some were problems that the country created.

Lets just hope the rest of the year will turn out better. I also hope China learns from their mistakes and emerge stronger and better equipped to handle problems faced by a world superpower.

Sean Bell and Guns

During my trip back to the NY, the biggest news item to come out of the city was the Sean Bell trial. Since I have been away from the city for two years now, I had to read up on the story to find out what had happened.

It seems like a typical American police tragedy. Bell, an African-American attended a bachelor party at a strip club and got into an argument. He then proceeded to leave the strip club and said he was going to get his gun to resolve the dispute. Undercover police were at the strip club to look for prostitution activities which was unrelated to Bell's party. Bell got into his car and drove away where it crashed into the undercover police car. The police who overheard Bell's threat proceeded to shoot Bell over 50 times, Bell dies at the scene but was found to be unarmed. The trial concluded last week and found the 3 officers doing the shooting to be not guilty. The African-American community is up in arms and is calling this a racial issue. The media coverage of this events focuses on the race issue.

What the media and the government does not address is the more important issue - guns. Yes, guns don't kill people, people kill people. While that statement is true, what is missing is that guns make it extremely easy for people to kill people and very often people are not in the right state of mind when the gun is used. Once a life is taken, it will never return so there is a finality that should not be reached especially in the heat of the moment.

Should 3 police officers have take over 50 shots at an unarmed man? Absolutely not. There is an environment in America where guns are everywhere. Americans have by far the highest gun ownership rates in the world (http://www.mibazaar.com/gunownership.html) This breeds a very tense environment.
Therefore if the police officers operate in an environment where they potentially encounter citizens with guns it is understandable how they could be quick with the trigger. Especially when they have already overheard a person say that he is getting his gun to settle a dispute. If somebody has a gun in his hand and believes that they are facing somebody who is also armed, don't you think it is possible that they will shoot first and ask questions later? He certainly does not want to be killed by the other person.

Is it possible that these police officers were incompetent to be working the beat? Absolutely. If people put themselves in that position, I am sure that many would have reacted the same way that these officers reacted regardless of their race. Does that mean that these officers should not be disciplined? Absolutely not. These officers should probably be off the street and be working behind a desk, but I don't think they deserve to go to jail. These officer are doing work that most of us would not be willing to do. The problem for them is that if they make a mistake at their job lives could be lost. How is that for accountability? How many of us want to take on that kind of responsibility? The action of these officers is a symptom of the gun culture/problem in America.

Growing up in the US, I was not aware that the gun environment is not the same throughout the world. One of my former co-workers who is from England told one day that he was shocked at how heavily armed the New York City police officers were - that they carry guns. I thought at the time it was a strange question, thinking to myself "don't all law enforcement personnel carry guns?" He informs me that the police in England just carry sticks and they don't carry guns. Judging by the murder rates in England compared to the US, I say that they don't carry guns because they don't need to.

Here in China, the police also does not carry guns. The police are armed but they are not the personnel who patrol the streets. The guns are back in the police station and when there is a need for them, they will be called upon. Gun ownership and murder rates are extremely low in China.

The NRA and their proponents always say that gun ownership is a right protected by the constitution. The constitution was written over 200 years ago in a very different environment. Do people seriously think that they still need guns to protect themselves? From whom? I think they are protecting themselves from other gun owners. So take the guns out of the hands of all civilians and people would not think they need guns to protect themselves.

Perspective

I was on the phone with my parents the other day and my mother brought up the topic of this blog. She told me vehemently to stop writing this blog. Since I never told her about writing this blog, I realized that she found out from one of my sisters. Just her tone of voice made me realize where this vehemence is coming from.

My parents were people who lived through the turmoil of the World War II and the Communist revolution. They experience the former on mainland China and the latter in Taiwan. These are people who left China precisely because of the turmoil that was going on. I would say that they were lucky (and so were me and my two sisters) to have left China at that time for Taiwan. Some of the most tumultuous times occurred after the rise of the Communist Party led by Mao Zedong. This played out on a stage that I am sure captivated not only the mainland Chinese but all of the overseas Chinese as well.

My parents are a product of that environment. I think for any ethnic Chinese living or not living on the mainland the most horrifying period must have been the Cultural Revolution. This is a period of time where rights were taken away and people faced persecution from their peers for saying or believing the wrong things.

I think it is from that perspective that my mother gave me that kind of reaction about my blog. Somehow, I think her perspective about China will never change no matter how great the changes are. In some ways, I find this to be true in China even to this day. Even though much has changed I still feel the distrust the citizens of China has for their government, especially among the middle aged and elderly. It is not always obvious, but every once in a while you hear or see something that makes you think.

Being in Taiwan for the first 6 years of my life then growing up in America, I also heard plenty of bad things about mainland China. Just before my first visit in China in 2002, I had trepidation about what I would say to people during the trip because all that I have heard from my parents. But during the trip, I found that things were quite different from what I perceived. Then I spend 6 weeks backpacking in China in 2005 and again no obvious evidence of this oppressive regime that I heard so much about. Now having lived here in China for over a year, again I don't notice anything in my everyday life. I know that the Chinese government will censor the internet and other modes of communication that they deemed to be bad for the "harmony" of the country. This is not always obvious in everyday life. I think that there is certainly a degree of control that the Chinese government will exert on the population, however it is not the same China as it was 30 years ago.

Grace is one of my co-workers here in China who told me of an interesting experience. Grace is a middle aged Shanghainese woman who had spent her entire life here in Shanghai. I would categorize her as a middle class person with a husband and a grown daughter who lives a comfortable life. She went to America - Los Angeles for the first time in her life a few years ago for training. She took the opportunity to take a few extra days to do some sightseeing and joined a city tour of Los Angeles. In the tour group she was the only person from mainland China and everyone else were Chinese-Americans who were probably around my mother's age (60's). These were probably first generation immigrants to America who became naturalized citizens. They noticed immediately that Grace was from mainland China and became friendly with her during that day. At the end of the day right before they said good-bye, a few people in the group told her that she already made it this far (meaning she somehow got herself out of China) and that she should just stay in America. They told her that they know people who can help her to settle in America. I think these people somehow saw Grace symbolizing relatives that they left behind in China and that she was still living in that horrible world that they had left. Grace was amused and politely turned down their offer. She had friends, family and a comfortable life waiting for her in Shanghai. This just show you that as you gain perspective on things surprising results will follow.

Despite my mother's warnings, I will continue to maintain this blog as I value the freedom of speech too much. I also know that I am operating under a different China so I would not expect to be arrested for writing on topics that I am writing about. However, what I will take from my mother's comments is that a degree of vigilance is always something one should maintain.