Wang Xiaofeng: Fang Zhouzi and China as a modern medieval state

Posted on 2010-09-04 by Julian
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Bruno didn’t behave either (Wikipedia)

In late July, “science cop” Fang Zhouzi, known for exposing academic and scientific fraud, was attacked by thugs wielding an iron hammer and anesthetic spray. The case has been widely reported in Chinese and western media, and most commentary has called for the capture of his attackers. In a blog post that labels China a modern medieval state, journalist and author Wang Xiaofeng writes that it’s most important to identify not the attackers, but their accomplice.

Who is the accomplice?

by Wang Xiaofeng/ translated by Julian Smisek

Professor Fang was attacked. People are all very upset and wish the police to capture his assailant. I feel this will be hard. Even if the police capture someone, my guess is it won’t be the mastermind behind the attack. In the end, a scapegoat will be locked away for a couple of years. He’ll certainly receive considerable compensation given that he probably has a lot of nasty things to say about the true culprit.

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Lightning strikes Nanjing

Posted on 2010-09-03 by Joel Martinsen
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Modern Express, September 3, 2010

Nanjing was visited by 370 lightning strikes yesterday, nearly 50 of them in the main urban area.

One such strike hit the Jiaozishan landfill at roughly 4pm and left two scavengers dead. The two, a Mr. Dong and the wife of a Mr. Sun, had been among the few who dared to continue picking through the rubbish as the rain picked up. They had been holding wood-handled metal prongs.

Over on the Yangtze River Bridge, a tourist named Li also died during the storm, but the newspaper was unable to determine whether he was hit by lightning or electrocuted.

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The front page of the Modern Express practically screams the news: “One thundercrack takes down two Nanjingers.” That eye-catching image? A composite…

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Spoof video for 7-Up by Hu Ge

Posted on 2010-09-03 by Jeremy Goldkorn

A video commercial for 7-Up by spoof video king Hu Ge. For more information, see Ads of China, He Ge’s Sina page (Chinese) or this Danwei post about Hu Ge’s first hit. Video also in Youku.

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Li Ao’s son enrolls in Peking University

Posted on 2010-09-02 by Alice Xin Liu
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Shanxi Evening News, September 2, 2010

Yesterday marked the start of the school year. Today, many front pages show students － Shanxi Evening News featured the son of Li Ao (李敖), the Taiwanese political commenter, novelist and essayist, who had enrolled in Peking University.

Li Ao is a political activist who was instrumental in campaigning for the democratization of Taiwan. Now, he criticizes both parties and had many books banned. His program on Phoenix TV, Li Ao Wants to Talk (李敖有话说) is a popular political program.

Li Kan (李戡), his son, made headlines recently for choosing to study at Peking University rather than in Taiwan. Li Kan was born in 1992 and was accepted to both Taiwan National University and PKU, but chose the latter after being disappointed with his home province’s education system (detailed in his first book).

Other items on the front page:

  • Japan begins to destroy chemical weapons left in China
  • An interview with Taiwan pop queen Jolin
  • Are many mountain names in Nanjing Shanxi clones?
  • Fishing boat sunk by Korean cargo ship. All members missing
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Formerly blacklisted actress Tang Wei to play Mao Zedong’s first girlfriend in Party film

Posted on 2010-09-02 by Jeremy Goldkorn
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Tang Wei as Tao Yi, the Chairman’s first girlfriend

Actress Tang Wei (汤唯), who was blacklisted from appearing in Chinese films or on TV for a time, has been rehabilitated: she is to play Mao Zedong’s first love in a new film called The Founding of the Party, a prequel to the state-produced smash hit The Founding of a Republic that was produced in 2009 to celebrate 60 years of the People’s Republic of China and Communist Party rule.

Popular husky-voiced actress Zhou Xun who did not appear in The Founding of the Nation will also be in the new film. Liu Ye plays a young Mao Zedong.

From the blog Roast Pork Sliced From A Rusty Cleaver (link below, post includes plenty of photos of cast):

A press conference was held at Beijing Film Studio with many of the cast members in costume but Tang Wei and Zhou Xun were clearly the highlight of the event. Lu Chuan and Sheng Ding will direct parts of the film besides chief director Huang Jianxin. And unlike last time, the cast will not be working for free but receive basic compensation and expenses.

Judging from the photo above, Wa Haha mineral water is the chosen drink of the The Founding of the Party actors.

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Wen Jiabao corrects a geography textbook

Posted on 2010-09-01 by Joel Martinsen
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Beijing Times, September 1, 2010

The eye-catching front-page photo on today’s Beijing Times comes from the scene of a massive accident on Beijing’s north Fifth Ring Road. Early yesterday morning, an overturned truck spilled its cargo across all eastbound lanes near Guangze Bridge, blocking traffic and leading to two five-car pile-ups. There were no deaths, and the roadway was cleared by 5 am.

The Beijing News also featured the accident on its front page, but the story was oddly nowhere to be found on the cover of the Beijing Youth Daily.

Although the Beijing Times does cover today’s big news stories — mobile phone service now requires an ID, a China Express airplane that scraped a wingtip on the ground while landing at Beijing Airport — the paper’s top story is a local follow-up report about Premier Wen Jiabao and a geography textbook.

In 2009, at the beginning of the fall term, the premier paid a visit to a Beijing middle school where he studied math, literature, geography, research methods, and music with local students. During the geography lesson, Wen pointed out that the school’s textbooks included Shaanxi and Gansu as part of Northern China (华北), when they clearly belonged to Western China (华西).

The textbook in question has been revised, and students this term will learn that Shaanxi and Gansu now belong to “The North” (北方), which unifies Northern China and Northeastern China into a single geographic unit.

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“Northern China” (dotted) vs. “The North” (image from Beijing Times)

This edition also eliminates standalone chapters for Taiwan Province and Hong Kong & Macau, which are now treated as part of “The South.”

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Second trial of home appliances tycoon upholds original ruling

Posted on 2010-08-31 by Eric Mu
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Daily Sunshine, August 31st, 2010

Huang Guangyu, former president of Chinese home appliances chain GOME has been appearing on newspaper covers frequently since his arrest in November 2008.

Yesterday, Huang’s second trial concluded in Beijing’s high court. The court upheld the ruling of his first trial including a 14-year jail sentence and a fine of six hundred million yuan.

In his original trial held between April 22 to May 18, Huang was convicted of insider trading, bribery and illegal operation. The same court also found Huang’s wife Du Juan guilty on insider trading and dealt out to her a sentence of three and half years plus two hundred million fine.

Yesterday’s trial reduced Du’s sentence to three years and she was freed on parole. The alleviation of sentence was decided on the grounds of Du’s timely payment of the fine and her show of penitence. Yesterday’s ruling is the final.

The top headline announces the meeting of last Friday between President Hu Jintao and north Korea leader Kim Jung-il in Changchun, Jilin Province. Kim visited Jilin, Chuangchun and Harbin during his three-day sojourn. He was quoted as saying that he was “impressed by the change and development”.

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Microblogs react to Fang Zhouzi’s violent ordeal

Posted on 2010-08-30 by Alice Xin Liu
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Dongguan Times, August 30, 2010

Fang Zhouzi (方舟子), a crusader against fraud in academia, escaped being beaten up by thugs yesterday. Today’s Dongguan Times reflects concern in the media world at yet another anonymous attack. The headline reads “Who beat up Fang Zhouzi?”

In the article inside, the microblog comments of various media personalities were collected:

Ai Weiwei (famous artist): Support Fang Zhouzi all the way! Punish the gangsters severely!

Luqiu Luwei (Phoenix TV journalist): Law implementation organs have a responsibility to investigate any citizen attack and to apprehend the attacker. Judiciary departments have a responsibility to impose sanctions on the law-breaker, whether the motivation was revenge or a fight. And the reason that Fang Zhouzi was beaten is due to the work he has been doing all along, which obviously belongs to the public sphere, and therefore the truth needs to come out to the public.

Ning Caishen (writer, script-writer): If the metal hammer had hit his head… I can’t imagine it. Call on the police to quickly solve the case!

Wang Kai (CCTV presenter): Even though I don’t agree with some of Fang Zhouzi’s ideas, we must condemn these dirty actions!

Wang Shijun (TVS presenter): Fang Zhouzi is an impoverished person, but he didn’t go get wealth using his fame. He is different than the rest for his nobility. He will even offend the media. Some friends want to help him in his frequent lawsuits, so they established a small fund to help him. He regularly appears in the media to stand by his scientific knowledge, but is often angered by the edited montage. Some people say he is Don Quixote, indeed, he is fighting with a windmill.

Xu Xiaoping (one of the founders of New Oriental): Attacking Fang Zhouzi is the same as declaring war on civilized society: “Indeed I was exposed by you, the ugly deeds that are despicable to the public, but I will carry out these ugly deeds to the end, I want to see the death of you.” Attacking Fang Zhouzi is attacking all the people who agree with him, and it’s attacking truth and reality, it’s attacking social conscience and society’s norms. I know my blame is worthless, but I call on the Beijing police to try all they can to capture the criminals, and tell the public how they are progressing.

Pan Shiyi (SOHO China Ltd. CEO): My regards to Fang Zhouzi! Hope that the police will catch the culprit. Fang Zhouzi and your family, please take care! Get well soon. Anyone with a sense of justice will support you.　　

Yang Jinlin (Phoenix TV presenter): Regards. Against violence. We should punish the criminals! I hope the Beijing police will quickly solve the case and find the truth, which will be good for the victim and for society.　　

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Wang Li on mealtime hospitality

Posted on 2010-08-28 by Julian
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Just say no (Wikipedia)

Many consider Wang Li (1900-1986) to be the founder of modern Chinese linguistics. Along with other linguists, Wang Li developed a new Chinese framework of linguistic analysis, and after 1949, he worked extensively on reforming the Chinese writing system. In addition to his linguistic contributions, Wang Li also wrote several essays. Below is “Mealtime hospitality,” originally published in 1943.

Mealtime hospitality

by Wang Li / translated by Julian Smisek

Mealtime in China is the best demonstration of our cooperative spirit. Ten or twelve people can share a dish and a soup. At banquets, we emphasize a synchronous use of chopsticks. Each person simultaneously places food in his mouth, with only a few chewing out of rhythm.

An old joke goes like this: once upon a time, a foreigner asked a Chinese person, “I hear you Chinese have banquets where 24 people share food around a table. Is this true?” The Chinese person replied: “It’s true.” Astounded, the foreigner exclaimed, “But many of the dishes would be too far away. How can the chopsticks ever reach?” To this, the Chinese person replied, “We just use three-foot-long chopsticks.” “But doesn’t that cause problems?” the foreigner asked. “How can you bend the chopsticks around to put food in your mouth?” The Chinese person said, “We help each other out. You feed me, I feed you!”

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The people want positive news

Posted on 2010-08-26 by Joel Martinsen
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Dragon TV

The website of the Shanghai Municipal Party Committee publishes a selection of feedback it receives from the public.

Earlier this month, a Beijinger wrote in Secretary Yu Zhengsheng to complain about news reports broadcast by the local satellite TV station, Dragon TV (东方卫视):

Greetings, Secretary Yu –

I am a Beijinger, but because I am currently in Shanghai and I am quite concerned with Shanghai’s development, I frequently watch programs, particularly the news, on Shanghai’s Dragon TV. Regrettably, the daily news broadcasts on Dragon TV are chock full of “negative” news: all kinds of disasters and fatal accidents from all over the country and the world make up the majority of the content of Dragon TV news programs, and you rarely see anything that reflects Shanghai’s development and progress, much less any news that is relevant to the lives of everyday people (except for negative news about everyday people).

Those of us from out of town want to see how Shanghai is developing and making progress. We want to see the new changes that are taking place every day, as well as the new climate and new social customs found in the lives of ordinary Shanghainese, so that we can learn from the good ideas, excellent methods, and positive experiences Shanghai has had over the course of that development. And frankly, the “negative” news reported in Dragon TV’s news programs is something we can now learn from CCTV and Internet media, so there is no need for it to be rehashed on Dragon TV.

In my opinion, Dragon TV must adjust its way of thinking, and its starting point must be Shanghai’s service and promotion. To become an impressive station, I hope that Dragon TV can learn from Beijing TV’s example!

Zhuang Yaozhong

Beijinger

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