From 1984 to Tibet --- BB is watching

The row between Tibet and China has been the hot news these days. Aside from assigning one of my students to be my PA on gathering the essential information on this issue, I've decided to find out about the consensus on this issue.

The NYTimes reported that the Chinese Nationalism campaigners are protesting against all the foreign media and government, that are venoming the image and the good nature of the Chinese government and supporting the rebellious Tibetan monks and minorities.

By the blocking all information about Tibet and barricading all reporters from entering Tibet, the western media logically compared the Tienanmen Massacre in 1989 to the crackdown of Tibet.

However, most people in China have not made the link between the two because the propaganda machine is working in full fledge said a Chinese petitioner, Mr. Liu, who helped the drafting of a controversial petition telling the Chinese government to lay off Tibet's freedom.

In contrast, the sentiment from most Chinese people who consider the unrest in Tibet was caused by the 'violent and malicious monks and minorities' is frightening. Which intrigued me to ask all mainlanders of why and what is going through their minds. (This is still an on-going process) And those who are able to tell me, said they agree that the Tibetans are to blame and they even used James Miles's interview on the CNN.

James Miles, the Economist journalist who first was interviewed on the issue by CNN, noted that the Tibetans sporadically started off the riot and that they targeted the ethnic Chinese stores.

He went on to say the triggers of this incident were: the anniversary of the 1959 uprising of Tibet, so it's a sensitive time for the Tibetans; the Tibetans are using "golden opportunity" of the Olympics to get the attention of the international community about Tibet; and last, its sluggish economy, which was promised to be improved by the Chinese government upon the completion of the Lhasa - Beijing railway.

As a sane and sound person would ask: so what was the real motive? Why isn't there any real interviews with the locals or rioters, but merely clips of violence, Tibetans and white scarves? Why has the Chinese government blocked all access to Tibet if they really were the 'victim'?

Instead, the Chinese government sealed everything related to Tibet and promoted negative news about foreign media and Tibetans. As a result, most Chinese believe the government because --- BB is always right.

PS. Here is an interesting website that synthesises information on what some of the foreign leaders or countried have done to pressurise the Chinese government over the weeks.

As tall as the trees

I don't understand the obsession about height with Taiwanese mothers of sons. This, however, was never an issue in my family. Though ever since I can remember, I've seen commercials for Chinese medicine or machines which stimulates growth for teenage boys.

The basic plot of the ad since the dawn of time has been one mother with a short and unfortunate looking boy, and the other with a taller boy. While the short boy's mother complains to the tall boy's mother, admires the the boy's height and complains how short her own son is, the pathetic looking shrimp looks ever so whimpy besides his taller counter-part. An image which hammered into each growing boys' mind since the 80's to now.

But as time progresses, conventional 20 second commercials turn into 10 minute infomercials. Now, they invite 'real-live-witnesses' of the product and have thankful mothers crying while telling the audience how grateful she is with the product now that her son has grown into a real-size person.

After seeing such bewildering scene, I suppose I'm blessed with good genes away from shortness. Even though I don't understand the rationale behind it, I believe there is an explanation in evolution behind this height-obsession. Nonetheless, the height-marketing will always be an imprint of my memory and to some of the Taiwanese people.

And the Horse has won the race

Can we?

In the dusk of Nationalist's (KMT) victory of the presidential election in Taiwan, the streets are filled with a certain air of excitement and anticipation and so does my house. My dad, with his usual poker face, was sitting at his two seater of a throne as I entered the house after drinking for 3 hours. While the teevee showing the result of a 17% victory and Ma enjoying with his compadre.

As for Ma, like Obama, a charismatic and physically attractive man, who comes from an elite academic background of Harvard law school and a job at the KMT since the 80's. I'm sure he has acquired much experience in various realm in politics over the years.

Despite the recent row over his green card incident, he's still the golden child of his party, and in some Taiwanese people's mind. Like Obama, he also campaigned in 'change', though not a phrase as catchy as "yes, we can!" As a result of the election, many Taiwanese people seem to put faith in him and are betting on the fact that he'll open up the market to China even more, try (somehow) to improve the economy of Taiwan, boost the unemployment rate of a modest 3.8% and make the sky bluer in these four summers. On top of that, he's won the big seat and have the majority of the legislative yuan on his side, but also, he has the current president, Chen Shui Bein's, mess to clean up and the hope of Taiwan is on his and his vice president, Shao Wan Chang's shoulders now.

So far, no one is running out of Taiwan or talking about a dooms day, so I guess we're ok at the moment --- at least Dad is now happier and full of hope under his tanned freckled skin.

Making it or getting some?

In the past weekend, I've had some exciting things happening for a change. First, I had an elementary reunion, but only the three of us who were close and have stayed close during these years. Other than rekindling the friendship, it was also a chance for a first hand experience to knowing what Taiwanese 20somethings are doing with their lives.

Some do the same as I do, which is drinking, playing pool, watch movies, go to KTV or hang out with friends. Some would stay at home and hang out with the computer, which I do sometimes too. But what they all have in common is that they aren't making much money as a whole. An average salary for an average office worker at entry level is around NT$23K to 35K (US$800-1200) a month, which isn't a lot no matter how you look at it.

But since Taipei isn't a big city and the idea of independence from one's family is a bit frowned upon- because families should stick together - living at home is widely acceptable if you're "trying to make it". Then I wonder, "What about if you want to bring someone home?" I assume not many mothers would find it tolerable if a strange girl walks around in the house on a Sunday morning no matter how close the family should stay together.

This doesn't seem to phase my old classmates, they seem to be living in a semi- or no relationship situation quite happily with the company of each other. I guess at the end of the day, for a guy in his late 20s, saving money is the most important thing at hand.

The Noble Audience

Inspired by the recent incident of Edison Chen, a pop star who got criminalised by the media over his explicit photos with various female stars, I've noticed how people can be unforgiving with things that happened in the past. And the hypocrisy of

In the case of Chen, the viewers were upset from mainly how the media portrayed him and his behaviour. Analysing his motivation in photographing his sexual encounters, condemning the behaviour but not the fact that these are private property that are being violated, and even detecting what kind of video equipment he used, are the tactics the media used to prove that he is as much of a perv as they say he is.

As a result, with the publicity, this piece of news has become the biggest news in Taiwan other than the presidential election and it's also the topic at the dinner table.

"So sick! What a hypocrite!" While the downloading rate of his photos has never been higher. Some even took it in as a business opportunity, giving it out as an extra for pornography order, a boost for the Taiwanese pirating industry.

While people making a buck and satisfying their perverse needs on the internet, the star made his farewell to the entertainment industry.

Maybe this whole thing will all blow over soon and Chen will be able to regain his career in the show-biz, but who is the real perv? A man who photographs intimate encounters or those who thrive and gets off by sharing someone else's pain and violation?

Fridge Nightmare

Normally I'm quite a domestic person who enjoys cooking and cleaning around the house. Though, since I start to get used to the fact that now my dad has a wife, I've passed the baton onto her and hoping for the best.

Frankly, I never had any faith in her with the domestic chores simply because she's a woman of career and consumerism, and being the youngest in her family, I have no doubt in my mind that she is indeed a princess.

However, a sudden change as I left the house undone was the increase of fresh fruit and produce in and out of the fridge. Sometimes, there's even the banging of the wok and turning of the stove as I come home. Dishes that I would not dare to try - simply because they're more laborious than a pot of curry or stew that can last me for a week - are now being presented and left in the fridge.

Boasting and cheering, she even bragged to my dad on the phone with her new-found ability in life. I, too, enjoyed the success. Maybe I was wrong, maybe she's not a princess afterall.



For a while I enjoyed this metamorphosis, but as the Tupperware starts to accumulate rapidly, my worries reappear. The first sign was the occasional peculiar whiff as the fridge door is opened. As shown in the picture, the three circled items have been in the fridge for more than a few weeks, particularly the box on the right - Azuki bean soup (red bean soup) for more than a month ago. How do I know? Because she cooks it during her menstrual period.

As for the pot, I wouldn't dare to look into it because the last time I looked, it was stewed pork and bean curd all curdled and smelled like foul sewage. Gordon Ramsay would definitely need to kick some ass here.

After seeing the fridge, I have no doubt that my immune system has been well trained for the worst. This incident should boost my domesticism and it did, which led me in cleaning the floor and maybe I'll even dump out the food to make it clear that I'm back.

"What do I have to do..."?

Little did I know how stupid teenagers can be sometimes, or how stupid I was sometimes when I was a teen. My sister came home today in tears because she's now an outcast by her clique due to her ratting out on one of them, moreover, she lied about ratting her out.

In tears and much agony, she told me the story and her discontent. To my surprise, she was only a bit remorseful of her dishonesty. Though I also learned how to be honest when being interrogated till later years, which was also a hard pill to swallow at first, I wasn't impressed with her reaction.

After hearing her out and knowing that her fear has driven her to only one conclusion - running away, I told her to stick to her own doing and see it through. But looking at the high school students on the MRT, I have no doubt that each year, the endurance of the 15-18 are diminishing as their habit of communication is getting more and more advance.

Unfortunately, their communication skill and content did not improve but rather succumbed to triviality. Since gossip is human's way of bonding, with the advancement in email, sms, msn and cell phone are the essentials in a teenage life, every bit of gossip and news is spread within seconds. This somewhat leads to the growth and flourishing of gossip mags, rumour spreading and bad mouthing all over the world.

At a vulnerable and innocent age, this easy access technology is not necessarily a good one.

Finally, after much persuasion and talk and consolidation, my sister said she would think about writing an email to the girl and apologise to her but not speak to her in person.

This goes to show that actual human contact has been overlooked and underdone, more and more trash is being trafficked in seconds, the same time learning to be an adult is harder by the minute, while sorry still seems to be the hardest word.

Selling shit but definitely not a shit seller

"Does probiotic really boost your health?" I, too, often wonder if it's true that the poo fairy is really related to the spoilt milk, the same way I wonder if Bush is related to bin Laden.

As it goes to show, with NYTimes article, yogurt does make you regular, but it doesn't boost your immune system. But in a Chinese/Asian medicinology --- a good poo gives great day, and a great day leads to great mood which gives you a better health. We believe that the wholesomeness of health is a lot more important than the singularity of it, that's why we also think that pain killers are bad for you.

Personally, I do think it's wrong for a big corp like Dannon to imply that Activia can be beneficial to health and had all these oversized women on TV talking about their bloatiness in public, but shame on those who don't google for fact! It is indeed wrong to make people believe that yogurt can be medicinal, but it is even a greater sin to be so lazy and believe in whatever you believe on teevee.

There's a saying that "money is the root to all evil", but actually it's that "ignorance is the root of all evil", because ignorance people start to believe in things that aren't proven, they follow what others say without questioning it and they end up bombing a whole country because of a hunch. If it isn't the root of all evil, I don't know what is.

So Dannon, well done on the art of deception, or PR. I'm sure you and yours alike will find better ways in wording and more convincing bloated individuals to sell their product.