Latest posts by John Kennedy from June, 2006
China: When studying hard doesn't get you into college, there's always corruption
The obsessive amount of attention paid to Gao Kao (高考)—China's university entrance exams—each year suggests either collective national psychic trauma or an education system ready for some reform. Although the majority of related blog buzz could be seen surrounding the two days of testing earlier this month, in which eight...
China: Revolution’s victims’ stories blogged, not forgotten (2/4)
Chinese blogger-journalist Ran Yunfei (冉云飞) has spent a large part of his life researching the stories of those painted, purged and persecuted as right wing elements during China's Cultural Revolution; unable to have the stories published in any official media, he's turned to his own well-known blog. Early last month...
China: Internet access in Tibet
Virtual China has a guest blogger today, Kathrine Hoersted, who brings us a post looking at the young Tibetan woman with whom she lived during her graduate research in a small village in Tibet, and how despite severely limited internet access there the two have managed to keep in touch.
China: University students riot
In response to backpedalling administrations and denial of access to watching World Cup games, students at two universities in China rioted this week, leaving widespread and costly damage. Translations [#061] from EastSouthWestNorth‘s Roland Soong and some perspective from OneManBandwith‘s Lonnie Hodge, looking at the conditions under which many students—and professors—end...
North Korea: Holocaust-style camps
As North Korea prepares to test-fire an inter-continental ballistic missile—”The US and Japan have warned the North Koreans not to test-fire their ICBM; but the lunatics in charge of the failed Stalinist state, led by the Hitlerian tyrant Kim Jong-il, have insisted on their right to fire away.”—China Confidential‘s Confidential...
Japan: Motorbikes, scooters banned
When Rising Sun blogger GaijinBiker walked out onto the streets of Tokyo this morning, the first thing he noticed was the missing motorcycles and scooters, as described in his post ‘A law meant to be broken.’
Japan: Smoking minors penalized
“No Smooking,” says a misspelt sign posted by JP at Japundit, preceded by a post telling of a mother in Japan charged for neglecting the law which makes her two sons’ smoking illegal.
China: Blogs for the ladies and the superstars
If a Chinese-language version of something called Blogerati existed, portal website Sina.com would most likely be it. Is it a surprise that two of Sina's three top bloggers are women? At third spot is media mogul Hong Huang (洪晃), ex-wife of Farewell My Concubine director Chen Kaige and daughter of...
China: Revolution's victims’ stories blogged, not forgotten (1/4)
For a good number of years, Sichuan-based blogger-journalist Ran Yunfei (冉云飞) has been collecting the stories of those persecuted as right wing elements during the Cultural Revolution, another part of Chinese contemporary history largely left unexplored even to this day. Early this year Ran began posting his research findings on...
North Korea: Missile test coming
“Congratulations, North Korea!” blogs Robert J. Koehler at The Marmot's Hole in response to news that North Korea will soon test-fire a missile capable of striking America. “Soon, you might have the capability to ensure the Americans turn South Korea into an island in the event of an emergency. And...
Japan: Simplified characters or traditional?
Danny Bloom at Japundit hosts a quick but thorough discussion on the division over simplified Chinese characters (mainland China) and traditional characters (Hong Kong, Taiwan, Chinatowns worldwide): “What’s your take on all this? Will China's system take over, and if it does, will it have an impact on Japan's writing...
Japan: Internet beauty queens
An internet beauty queen has been chosen, writes Tokyo Times‘ Lee, from 5,500 entries: “[I]n a bid to make sure that the victor didn’t turn out to be a balding and bearded middle-aged man living with his parents and known online as Judith, the organizers asked the 20 best contestants—chosen...
China: University entrance exams
A seldom-heard stance on China's tough university entrance exams (Gao Kao) from Raymond Zhou at Not only movies just days after the testing period ended: “It may sound paradoxical, but I'm not for abolishing the gaokao system. For all its quirks and partiality, it is one of the few mechanisms...
China: News anchors replaced
Outside In blogger and old China hand Jo turned on the nightly communist news early last week and was surprised to see two new faces reading the news: “I thought maybe a wrinkle had occurred in the universe. In the universe of the party propaganda machinery, I guess it had....
China: Activist news roundup
Arms trading, Tibet, environmental concerns, Chinese president Hu Jintao's recent meeting with American counterpart Bush and Google executive Sergey Brin admitting to censoring search results in China all in Celia's weekly roundup at China Activist Weekly.
Taiwan: Ma's assassination called for?
Did a Taiwanese underground radio station just call for the assassination of the island's Kuomintang leader and possible future presidential candidate Ma Ying-jeou? Blogging from EastSouthWestNorth‘s Roland Soong suggests this is unlikely [#036], but a post from The View from Taiwan‘s Michael Turton shows that thoughts of political assassinations are...
Japan: The shape of state buildings
Kotaji blogger kotajihwa blogs on some interesting sights found using Google Earth to look down on Japanese and South Korean government buildings in ‘Archigraphy.’ via Kerim and Pinyin News.
China: Miss media mogul
Today on Danwei TV comes the second part of an interview with the returnee daughter of a Mao-era higher-up turned Capitalist media mogul, one of China's most successful, from Danwei‘s Anna Sophie Loewenberg, Jeremy Goldkorn and Fernando Fidanza
China: Netgame proxy players
Possibly the strongest unifying force for Chinese men under 30, fierce competition in internet-based roleplaying games has led to the development of an unusual new meta-occupation: proxy player. Translates Virtual China‘s Lyn Jeffery: “As the article explains, proxy player shops “网游代练”公司 arose to serve those who love online games but...
China: Terror alert issued
The American consulate in the southern Chinese city of Guangzhou issued a warning last year of potential terrorist attacks against its citizens there. As seen on Guangzhou-based Lonnie Hodge's blog OneManBandwith, another terror alert has been released: “I think we are relatively safe,” the professor-blogger writes. “I am loathe to...
China: Oil, diplomatic relations
Bingfeng Teahouse blogger is back with a post which takes a humorous look at China's approach to diplomatic relations, particularly those of which Chinese authorities take advantage.