« October 18, 2009 - October 24, 2009 | Main | November 1, 2009 - November 7, 2009 »
At Salon, Andrew Leonard explains how ginseng came to North America:
Ginseng exports have a long history in North America -- in fact, one could argue that ginseng, as possibly the first trade item ever exported to Asia from the Americas, was a key factor in embedding the colonies in what passed for globalization in the 18th century.
Eric Abrahamsen writes for The National about China's reception at the Frankfurt Book Fair:
Speaking under condition of anonymity, one writer said that officials from the General Administration of Press and Publication had spoken to all the authors beforehand, wanting to know what they planned on saying. “They asked us, ‘What do you think of so-and-so? What do you think of Ma Jian? What do you think of Rebiyah Kadeer?” the writer recalled. “Then they offered to ‘help’ us draft responses to various potential questions. We said, ‘no thanks, we can handle it ourselves!’ That’s progress, though. Ten years ago that would have been an order, not an offer.”
The writers’ assessment of the German media was almost equally disparaging. They had answered interview questions about censorship, political prisoners and Tibet – everything except their novels.
Adam Cathcart translates some netizen opinions on how North Korea is portrayed in Chinese and western media:
...a rather strange story in the Chinese press...held up an idealized view of North Korea. Why was Xinhua holding up the DPRK as a kind of patriotic utopia, and what would be the response of the largely young readership of the Huanqiu Shibao, a publication known for its nationalism?
The New York Times reports on the results of tests of Chinese-sourced drywall that has been the focus of homeowner complaints in the United States:
Federal investigators reported Thursday that imported Chinese drywall that homeowners have linked to health problems and odors had higher levels of some chemicals than its domestic counterparts.
The investigators, however, were unable to link the chemicals, sulfur and strontium, to the health problems and smells in thousands of homes built during the recent housing boom, and said further testing was under way to determine any possible connection.
China Daily reports:
The chief architect for the new headquarters for China's state broadcaster said Wednesday that preparations are under way to begin reconstruction on part of the complex that burned in a massive fire triggered by illegal fireworks earlier this year.
Architect Ole Scheeren said in an interview with the Associated Press that the high-level investigation into the fire that damaged a China Central Television building is "almost near its conclusion" and plans are under way to begin rebuilding soon.
"The reconstruction has not yet officially begun," he said. "However preparations are underway for the start, but no specific date has yet been set."
Xinhua reports (also at the China Daily):
Groups of students were found infected by the disease and the arrival of flu season also challenged A/H1N1 flu prevention and control endeavor, said a statement issued after an executive meeting of the State Council.
The State Council, or the Cabinet, ordered government departments at all levels to beef up measures to prevent large-scale outbreak of the disease and vaccine producers to speed up their production.
husunzi at the China Study Group reports on a protest by construction workers at a hotel in Chengdu.
Reuters reports:
China has begun looking for the remains of a U.S. Air Force bomber and its crew that crashed over the southern part of the country some six decades ago during the Korean War, state media reported.
The B-29 "Superfortress" caught fire and came down in Raoping county, Guangdong province, on November 5, 1950, Xinhua news agency said in a report late Monday. Villagers found 15 bodies, four of which were buried on the site of the crash.
The Wall Street Journal Real Time blog discusses the fiasco between People's Daily Online and Google. People's Daily Online accused Google of exacting revenge for the accusation that they were infringing the copyright of Chinese books:
And the drama continues. Now, the Web site of the People’s Daily is accusing Google of “malicious revenge” after Google searches for the People’s Daily Online’s books section turned up warnings that read: “This site may contain malicious software that could harm your computer.” An article posted on the People’s Daily books page, from the Beijing Times (in Chinese), quoted an official with the People’s Daily site as saying he had received numerous calls from readers who said they were unable to access the site through Google.
From The China Daily:
The parents were under the mistaken belief the salesmen were trying to smuggle children.
GoChengdoo has news about a tubby taxi-grabber, who help the desperados of the city grab a taxi:
At 5:33, a taxi rolls into the square, and while it's still moving, he grabs onto it with both hands. When it finally comes to a stop, he pulls open the door, lets the passengers out, and then the woman at his side steps in.
In this month's New Yorker magazine, Peter Hessler has a piece on art production in Lishui. A multimedia package outlines the article, which is subscription only.
Veteran journalist Qian Gang of the China Media Project asks "How should we best understand the extravagance that marked China’s recent National Day celebrations?" and answers it by looking at the four anthemic songs chosen for the parade.
Jonathan in China writes about a 1985 New Yorker feature on the life of John Zeidman, an American who visited China in 1979, came back as an exchange student in 1981, and died of Japanese B encephalitis in 1982:
C. Custer at ChinaGeeks posts some photos of propaganda slogans from Wang Keqin's blog post on an Aids village.
The New York Times reports on a rule imposed on kids in a provincial county:
Education officials promoted the saluting edict to reduce traffic accidents and teach children courtesy. Critics, who have posted thousands of negative comments about the policy on China’s electronic bulletin boards, beg to differ. “This is just pitiful,” wrote one in a post last year. Only inept officials would burden children with such a requirement rather than install speed bumps, others insisted.
Greenpeace publishes an interview:
Greenpeace: What can China do to persuade its growing middle class not to have the same environmentally-damaging aspirations as the West – eg. multi-car ownership, international travel, a house stocked with the latest electronic gadgets?Monbiot: It’s very hard, especially as the West has made no serious moves in this direction. If our governments had demonstrated that they were serious about this, China might be more inclined to follow suit. But we are in a very weak position when it comes to lecturing other countries about how much they should consume.
Xinhua does a special report:
During the 22 hours in Pattaya, Wen used all possible chances to hold talks with the leaders at the summits and meet journalists, transmitting China's determination and confidence in overcoming the global financial crisis and pushing forward East Asia cooperation...
During the following six months, the Chinese government decided to set up a 10-billion-U.S. dollar China-ASEAN investment cooperation fund, establish the China-ASEAN Free Trade Area, and provide financial support to ASEAN countries. Trade between China and ASEAN has entered into the period of recovery since September.
There are a series of reports on Xinhua on the topic.
Peter Ford reports at the Christian Science Monitor: young people like diamonds more than gold jewelery to signal love:
Fueled by the growing popularity among young couples of diamond wedding rings, Chinese imports of polished diamonds rose 12.7 percent over the first six months of this year to a record $300 million, according to the state-run Xinhua news agency.
As diamond sales in Japan slump because of the economic crisis, "the Chinese market will inevitably grow because Chinese people's love of diamonds is growing," says Wang Fei, a researcher specializing in luxury goods at the University of International Business and Economics in Beijing.
A foreign man just released from Beijing No. 1 Detention Center sent Danwei a description of his daily life there.
The Strait Herald reports on Shi Liliang, a monk who has trained himself to race across thin plywood sheets laid out across the surface of a lake.
From The China Daily:
A blog that falsely proclaimed that a Hebei province woman is HIV positive was a hoax by an ex-boyfriend intent upon revenge...
...The [Beijing] local government is considering holding a press conference to reveal the latest development of investigation.
The hoax that emerged on the Internet last week accused Yan of being a prostitute and said that her 279 cell phone numbers belonged to "former clients."
The IP address of the blog and the photos' IP address are from Beijing, the police said.
Beijing Chaoyang District Police Bureau was not available to comment the case Monday.
From The China Daily:
A TV producer who struck sex deals with teenage twins and other girls seeking acting roles was sentenced to 10 years in prison after a Beijing court found him guilty of organizing prostitution yesterday.
Hu Weidong, a 49-year-old from Henan province, had coerced Beijing twins, Qin Qing and Qin Yun, known as "Baobao and Azi," to have sex with him, his assistants and wealthy clients before the twins legally became adults at age 18...
...Hu appeared angry after he was sentenced and immediately decided to appeal.
"The girls are valuable commodities. It is inevitable for them to have relationships with investors and directors," the man told reporters outside court.
From The China Daily
China is attempting to rein in overcapacity in the country's solar energy sector despite the government's ambitious goal to increase solar capacity from 50 megawatts in 2008 to between 10 and 20 gigawatts by 2020.
Enterprises flocking to boost markets in industries such as steel and cement have been common in recent years, with the government then stepping in to correct potential overcapacity.
The central government last week announced plans to curb the expansion of six industry sectors by withholding approval for new investments and tightening financing.
Surprisingly, considering its role in the fast-growing renewable energy sector, polysilicon, which is used to make solar panels and wind power equipment, was included in the industry sectors targeted by the government.
From ARTnews, the story of unauthorized 19th Century Chinese copies of classic works of art, including Gilbert Stuart's classic portrait of George Washington:
The situation bothered the painter so much that collectors of his portraits had to sign an agreement stating that only he had the right to reproduce the image. There was no American copyright law covering works of art, and forged and unauthorized copies of Stuart’s portraits of Washington had become something of a growth industry.
“There was also a considerable demand for the Chinese Washington portraits in oil on canvas,” wrote Crossman. One popular subject was the Apotheosis of Washington, which shows the president born aloft by angels. A glass version is in the collection of the Terra Foundation of American Art in Chicago. The original engraving, Apotheosis of George Washington (1802), was by John James Barralet (1747–1815).
Crossman noted that China trade paintings on glass based on American prints were also sought by American collectors. Among the favorites were Liberty, John Paul Jones, America, Battle of Lexington, and The Landing of the Pilgrims.
Adam Cathcart looks through the Stanford University archive of the papers of Iris Chang, which show her approach to writing Rape of Nanking and her reaction to the book's immense popularity.
Part 2 is here.