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Anonymous.
Rob_Hugo@PortNWAn article on the front page of today's L A Times (Jul 8th.'06) caught my eye "Ultimate Penalty in Graft Case -- A Chinese businessman is executed..."
It is a pretty lengthy reading about reportedly the 'richest man in China' who was executed in March this year within a few hours of the provincial court in North Eastern China giving him the death penalty and 'Just three hours after the death sentence, authorities delivered the ashes from Yuan's cremated body to his wife'!
It makes a pretty good reading about the present socio-legal system in China as the country goes through its economic boom. The topic, though not suitable for MS I think, but it can definitely be opened up for discussion while teaching 'U.S. Government' in HS.
Thoughts, opinions, etc......?
AnonymousThat is interesting. Why was he executed?
AnonymousHe was executed for using corrupt means to move his business forward. A section in the article mentioned that he had refused to fulfill a favor asked of him by an official, as a result he was 'framed'.
The thing that struck me the most was the speed with which his sentence was carried out. It can be a great point of discussion in HS while teaching 'due process' and 'rule of law' under US Government.
AnonymousAn article about Cambodia caught my eye and I checked the site. If you go to the following web address, it will display the article plus others by Kevin Sites who seems to cover regions which are witnessing - or have recently witnessed - conflict and change. Besides Cambodia, he has written a first hand account on Nepal (the country boasts of 8 of the 10 highest peaks in the world) and Afganistan. I liked his write-up of "Nepal: I Am A Dog". Hope you will like his articles.
AnonymousIn the past few months, there have been several articles in the Los Angeles Times about China displacing residents to make way for redevelopment. Saturday, July 22, there was an article titled "Shoved Out, Some Chinese Push Back."
I just returned from the study tour of China and Japan, and now it is more apparent to me the bias with which we see world events. In China, our Shanghai guide pointed to a large section of land (currrently occupied by shipping & industrial facilities) and proudly said, "Come back in a few years and that will be the location of the 2010 World Exposition. Everything will be moved and all new facilities will be built."
What I noticed was the ease with which a totalitarian government can decide to move everything in an area and build new facililties. Throughout Shanghai and Beijing, there is a building boom going on. Sets of huge apartment buildings are being constructed in what used to be neighborhoods of houses. The government owns all the land in China, so it has the power to oust/relocate tenants and build anew. It is very efficient -- no EIR's (environmental impact reports), meetings with residents, plans approved by the community, costly delays -- and this freedom has enabled China's large cities to expand rapidly. Like our guide, many people are pleased with the progress and the availability of housing.
Yet, we in the U.S. are interested in the smaller scope, the personal story. What about the people being relocated? Were they given adequate notice? Compensation? Another home? Our guide didn't bring up these personal issues, yet the U.S. newspaper prominently features the problems with construction. illustrating the article with chains and padlocks in front of houses.
Of course, the U.S. media doesn't want to glorify China's methods -- perhaps we like to show the warts of other countries just as we show our own warts. And, this kind of story is another look at the "inhumanity" of a Communist regime. Yet, I think it is important that we see multiple sides of an issue. Even though Communism is seen as a terrible form of government by the "free world," perhaps its efficiency makes sense in a huge, diverse, developing nation with a recent history of exploitation by outsiders. Yes, I would be very upset if I were forced to move on short notice (or worse, yet, come home to find all my belongings in a moving van with no destination) from a home that had been occupied for decades by my family. There is a sense of ownership in a home, even though the Chinese are aware that the government owns the land. However, after my study tour of China, I am not so quick to judge the Communist government negatively. Some of their socialist policies look to benefit large numbers of peoples, even though they upset smaller numbers. (And, since they control the media, they have the added advantage of not having to inform the populace of how upset some people are.)
Would the U.S. be a better country if we looked out for the benefit of large numbers of people more than the interests of the wealthy and well-connected? In a Chinese newspaper, our policies could be legitimately criticized.
AnonymousWhile we like to view Asia's criminal justice is up to par with ours in America, part of the problem in international relations is that each culture has their own judicial history with ugly side effects. If some of you remember the outcry a few years back regarding an American teen sentenced to caning for vandalism. International leaders and figures were in an uproar putting pressure on Singapore. China is notorious for public executions and if many could see what happens on a yearly basis, many would be horrified. I remember seeing an academic book on Chinese torture that showed "1000 ways to slice" a human. A 1000 cut torture was sometimes used on a crucified prisoner and kept alive for a few days. The other fact that always catch my eye is the placement of signs on the executed for the crimes they committed. I see so many parallels and ugliness like in "The Scarlet Letter," or the stars on the Jews in Nazi Germany, or even the Salem witch trials.
I know that gender-related laws have areas to catch up in modern Asia. Divorce rights for women? Custody? Job Harassment? Money is being made in many forms in Asia. From the tallest offices of Shanghai and Tokyo to the sweatshops in Bangkok and Ho Chi Minh City, the criminal underside is ever present in the homeland of Asian triads and organized crime. Land speculation is only one ill-fated investing strategy in the white collar world. How about the quality of life issues such as urbanization and education for the masses?? I think Asia will soon realize, if it already hasn't, that instead of catering to the Western business world and their needs, the region will have to lead in both economic development and human enrichment. When we begin to see the big philanthropist making difference for the masses like in some parts of the Western world, then I think "modernity" will be equal in many aspects of human existence with us in the future. The true cause celebre in Asia is the masses, not one specific culture or region in Asia. Human power should lead to a neo-modern reflections of traditional cultures, just like the Greeks and the Romans began to see their downfalls...
AnonymousIn N. Korea, Weapons Are Key Instrument of Power
Kim Jong Il has made arms projects a top priority at the expense of other needs, enabling the failed state to give even superpowers pause.
By Barbara Demick, Times Staff Writer
July 30, 2006
The article discusses Kim Jong-Il’s recent testing of nuclear missiles and his ability to build a nuclear arsenal through praise of his scientists, offering them prizes and luxuries not available to normal Koreans. The article states that he has been able to attract top scientists including those from a fallen Soviet Union despite having no funds to pay them. How so? Demick states that “the missiles were given especially high priority because they were not just for self-defense but also for making money. Until recently, North Korea was believed to be bringing in as much as $500 million annually from sales of short- and mid-range missiles to Iran, Syria, Pakistan and Yemen, among other customers.”
I find it ironic that “although the North Korean army at one point was so poorly equipped that soldiers didn't have socks, funding for the development of weapons of mass destruction — particularly for the missiles and nuclear arms — has increased.”
The article points out that the N. Korean leader does not care if he bankrupts his country as long as he has a nuclear arsenal that will allow him to maintain power. After the Clinton administration gave aid in exchange for N Korea aborting its nuclear program, Kim Jong Il fortified his ego with the idea that “the United States was very weak and that all it took was one missile for them to give in to us."
According to a defector Kim Duk Hong Kim Jong Il needed the latest tests to “cement his power.” Kim Duk Hong believes that is more interested in the semblance of strength rather than anything else.
AnonymousAnother way that we like to judge "modernity" for a country is often the success of their space programs. As Japan and China continues to develop their rocket programs, and even space travel like the Chinese, we also recognize their use of space technology for military and covert purposes. First the nation must have the funds and the brains to take on such endeavors. Second, the nation must have scientific purposes beyond the military/business interest to generate world acceptance. Finally, the nation must have the support and dreams of the people of its nation, always pushing ourselves to outdo one another to be "first" at something in the space race.
What scares me in this characterization of "modernity," as well as the irony is that rockets rose out of Hitler's missile technology to bomb England. What can be used to expand the human experience could also be used to end everything with a couple of attached nuclear warheads.... Is North Korea, Iran, and even the new China, preening themselves for the wars of the future, or is it the natural evolution of Einstein's nightmare?
Finally, is 'modernity' such a prize to be had, as we quickly bypass the rich traditions of the past??? How did we preserve the rich histories if modernity becomes judge by mere material wealth???
AnonymousRe: "...judge "modernity" for a country is often the success of their space programs. As Japan and China continues to develop their rocket programs..." Add to this a country from South Asia - INDIA!
To take this discussion further, besides 'old-timer', the United States which has been the biggest atmospheric polluter so far, the two most populous countries in the world - China and India - who are experiencing immense economic growth (modernity?), are also getting the dubious recognition of become substantial donors to atmospheric pollution. We are already seeing (experiencing) increased global warming leading to human and animal deaths here in the West. In Europe, last year, they attributed to about 30,000 human deaths to global warming and, this year ,the climate had been real warm again (normally cool London had a 'heat wave' for the last three weeks of about 90 deg.F).
When I left India about 25 years ago, people were still using bicycles to commute to work. Now, there is a huge increase in cars and motorcycles/scooters jostling to get around each other and one barely sees any bicycles. In Shanghai, I still saw people on bicycles - and I'm sure it is still being used more inland - but the frenetic activities and rushing around of a metropolis ilifestyle is very apparent. These two countries, besides competing to procure oil in the world market and driving up the cost of gas around the world (don't we in SOCAL know about this!), have become gross contributors in global warming.
So, what is the cost of 'modernity' and where can we draw a line?
AnonymousIt is really amazing to what extent Chinese food has permeated the cuisine scene of every major cities in the world. I am visiting Auckland, New Zealand, at the moment and every block in downtown I go to has more than one Chinese food restaurant. Some of the plazas have Chinese, Japanese, Vietnamese, Indonesian and Indian food!! There is such a high sprinkling of "Oriental' folks walking around in downtown, that you can easily take it as being at the mall in Shanghai, Singapore or Bangkok!
G'day Mates!
AnonymousWe are going to see fewer and fewer bicycles on the streets of China as we have seen a doubling of new car sales in China over the last year and an expected doubling next year over this past year's increase. We will see this trumpeted as "modernity" as the Olympics approach and a sign of China's increasing affluence and influence in world affairs.
13 of the 15 most polluted cities in the world are in East Asia and in my experience the United States is far far ahead of China in its pollution control. If you have been to China, the everyday experience of air pollution is very evident. I used to live in Riverside, CA growing up and it is obvious to me as I return quite frequently that Southern California has done a great deal to clean up the air pollution over the last twenty-five years.
Those bicyclists are taking their lives in their hands nowadays, aren't they?
AnonymousMexico City has recently started trying to deal with pollution too. I hope China does not allow the same mistakes made in south California and Mexico to be repeated. Go Padres!
AnonymousCHINESE GARDEN OF FRIENDSHIP
Darling Harbour, Sydney, Australia
"Designed in China to celebrate the Bicentenary (of Australia), the CGofF. at Darling Harbour is a peaceful and tranquil oasis in the heart of Sydney. Winding pathways, saterfalls, lakes and pavilions follow centuries old traditons of landscape design. The CG of F. offers an insight into the rich heritage and culture of the Chinese people and is one of the few traditional public Chinese gardens created out side mainland China."
-from the brochure on C.G. of F.
http://www.sydneyvisitorcentre.com
I visited it earlier this month; photos are attached. (Apologise in advance for slow download)
AnonymousAn article about the Japanese Royal family caught my eye. It had a modern twist to it.
Since it has been four decades since the royal faimly has had a male heir, the prime minister had support of reforms to allow a woman to take the Chrysanthemum throne. However, according to a friend of the Prince Akishino, his wife, Princess Kiko is about to give birth to a boy in about 1 week. According to the article found at:
http://www.iol.co.za/index.php?from=rss_Asia&set_id=1&click_id=126&art_id=qw1157011561563B215
"Japan has been holding it's breath for months...". It does seem that the friend is just speculating passed on a conversations with the Prince. There has not been any confirmation to what his friend claims. I think the issue or accepatnce/ support of possibly allowing a women on the throne shows how times are changing. It might be interesting to pursue more about how that came about.
AnonymousInteresting news stories of late concerning North Korean leader Kim. I believe that the N. Korean system of government is the only modern model in which the leader is deifed. Kim is seen as the "benevolent father", feared leader, and as a god.
It is interesting to note the shift in perception concerning Kim. I can clearly recall reading several stories in recent years that portrayed him as a party-loving, hard-charging bohemian (of sorts). The emphasis was on his personal habits- excessive drinking, womanizing, crazed spending etc., along with damning critiques of his leadership abilities. He was primarily portrayed as a reckless oaf who had stumbled into his position- a bumbling pretender trying to fill Daddy's considerable shoes. That has changed. More recent portrayals paint Kim Jr. as a calculating, methodical, and perceptive leader, or at the very least, as someone who has mastered the art of maintaining power. Kim has graduated from being the class clown to the star pupil in the Western press.