Attacking by oblique means and stealthy feints since 2007
From Xinhuanet: China hopes Mexico understands its necessary precautions against influenza A/H1N1 include uncerremoniously booting a bunch of Mexicans out of the country.
From Ma Zhaoxu, China’s Foreign Ministry spokesman: “The measures concerned are not targeted at Mexican citizens and there is no discrimination”
From Truth From Facts: Happy Cinco de Mayo! Are the tequilla specials still on tonight?
Have you ever witnessed a suspicious “friending” between two of your FB friends whom you’re sure don’t actually no one another? How about a predatory friending, like when your handyman middle aged guy friend of the American south adds your young and attractive former Chinese teacher in China as a friend? And then immediately posting a “hey beautiful” on her wall upon her acceptance of the request. The link of how he found her is so clear since you’re the only mutual friend between them.
That just happened to me.
This MSNBC story on child abductions in China prompted me to write up a recent experience. Earlier this month, my girlfriend and I celebrated my birthday over Japanese teppanyaki on Nanyang Lu （南阳路) in Shanghai, right behind the Plaza 66 shopping mall and Ritz-Carlton hotel.
We had managed to ignore the old man peering in through the window, beckoning alternately to sell flowers to us, have a glass of our plum wine, or just for a cash handout. But as we headed for the exit at 11pm, the stirring activity outside caught my peripheral vision. I put my girlfriend on notice ~ if they accost us, I’m not backing down.
About 10 steps out onto a road, a boy who looked about 2 and a half (but turned out to be 5) came up begging for money. Shooed him away a few times wasn’t working. Then I froze and looked around. Where the heck is his adult handler? There is no adult. That’s it!
Next thing we both knew, the little boy was hoisted up in my arms. We’ll either find out where the adult is or we’ll walk him to the police station. Either my Mandarin or my muscles are about to get a workout.
Ever do a google search for “Cal Ripken” and “steroids”? Maybe that’s how you landed here. I found nothing serious on the subject out there, and what is there are Cal-has-nothing-to-prove blog entries, like this one:
- Fact: Cal played in the Steroids Era.
- Opinion: Cal Ripken may have used performance enhancing drugs. I’ll bet he probably did.
- The 1990s are still a dark age for tangible and detailed information on juicing.
Remember the late Ken Caminiti, the fella won the MVP in 1996 and later told Sports Illustrated that he used steroids that year, and that he estimated 50% of players were using steroids that year.
So let’s talk about 1996. Remember that 1996 Oriole team? I do, because it was the first time as their fan they made the playoffs. You remember the ’96 team – it’s the one in which 12 year old Jeffrey Maier snatched a long Jeter drive from OF Tony Tarasco, making it a home run. But another highlight of that team and year is that every starter had 20 HR or more, and the Orioles set the then all time record for team home runs.
In 1996, Ripken hit over 50% more homeruns than he did in either of the previous 2 years, or for the rest of his playing career. In 1999, at age 39, he was repeatedly injured, but the .276 career batting average man had a smashing year statistically: .340 b.a., same number of doubles in that partial season as he hit in full seasons towards career end (27) (except for ’96 when he had 40), and was on a 32 homeruns pace over a 600AB season (the most HR he ever had was 34, in his MVP year of 1991). Lest it be overlooked, Ripken holds the MLB consecutive games played streak, from May 30, 1982 – Sept 20, 1998. That huge guy (6’4″, 193cm) played the hardest position physically after pitcher and catcher, and kept the energy up for every game.
This proves nothing, but Ripken’s sidestepping the steriods question in 2006 doesn’t help make sense of his secure place during the steroids era.
But Cal’s remarks in 2006 are of the same ’gee whiz’ nature that convicted steroid users use when lying about or minimizing extent of their usage, e.g.:
- “I’m curious [whether McQuire used steroids], but I don’t feel that I’m in a position to judge,” Ripken said at the baseball winter meetings. “History will judge us all in some way. And, if you’re content with the truth coming out, then whether your judgment day is now or 50 years from now doesn’t matter.”
- “A smarter person will have suspicions when you look around and see people coming back a lot bigger than they were,” he said. “I realize that steroids were an issue in other sports. But no way did I know it was as big as it’s starting to show it was.”
- “I think we all were very disappointed that steroids came flying out into the game of baseball. The integrity of the game was in question,” Ripken said. “It’s sad that a cloud is over baseball. Maybe the whole story has not been told yet. I believe the story will come out in time.”
Contrite remarks coming from squeaky clean Rip on his way to Cooperstown. Ripken is smart, though, and knew from Palmerio’s finger jabbing in the air before Congressthat he shouldn’t go on any record with too much that could haunt him later. Speaking of Palmiero, Cal’s quotes above remind me of the hillarious situation Palmiero was in 2005, when on July 15th he got his 3,000th hit, but barely celebrated because his positive steroid test was under appeal and not yet publicly known, though he knew it would be soon (and it was on Aug 2).
Palmeiro cried privately in the dugout and cleared the locker room as fast as possible because he “had to go get his rest”. In that twightlight zone of post-3000 hits but pre-steriod suspension, he said in this interview “I still don’t put myself in their class.” “You’re talking about two of the best players in history. I’m in a group with them now but that doesn’t mean I belong in their class. Hank has about 200 more home runs than I do. Mays has about 100 more home runs. I shouldn’t be anywhere close to this group.”
I remember thinking how unnecessarily modest he was being for a man who just joined the 3000-500 club. And I never forgot that, just as I haven’t forgot the way Ripken answers questions related to steroids use.
Finally, for a bit of guilt by association, history shows that the Orioles went on to become a steroids infested team after Ripken’s retirement (Rafael Palmeiro, Miguel Tejada, Sammy Sosa, Brian Roberts, Jay Gibbons, Gary Mathews Jr., Jerry Hairston Jr, Larry Bigbie, Jason Grimsley, David Segui, Manny Alexander, Jack Cust…gawd let me just stop here, before I go into the obvious-but-not-provens, like Brady Anderson.
No one, including the Baltimore Sun, investigates Cal because he was a great player, he “saved baseball after the 1994 strike”, is a local Maryland hero, involved in the community and a decent and likable guy.
But possibly also a PED dabbler too…
–SHTig
UPDATE: Truth From Facts focuses primarily on China, but since Cal Ripken did visit Beijing in 2007, by extension…
Trying being white and walking into a Bank of China on Shanghai’s Nanjing Road or other commercial center. “Hello, money change, 换钱” is a greeting you’ll get. Usually it’s a passive effort by one of the 2 or 3 dudes in black plether jackets congregated near the doorway.
The last few days, though, I’ve noticed them getting aggressive. On February 5th, I was identified by them well before I got to the bank’s door, and one guy walked along with me giving the standard greeting but with much more urgency in his voice. Dismissing him, but before inside the bank, another guy gave me the same pitch, and actually walked one step with me inside the bank. Once safely inside the bank, I looked out and saw yet another guy pacing around like a caged tiger and clutching a huge stack of crisp RMB notes.
Are they trying to dump their RMB? Do they know something? Is RMB depreciation on the way?
After I completed my bank business – which did not involve “changing money” – I stepped outside and asked one of the guys why they were trying so hard to actively change money. Did they expect the RMB to depreciate? The Read the rest of this entry »
This story on the TMC new website notes that Motorola’s latest round of layoffs will included “hundreds” of Chinese this time. I got a message today from one Shanghai based Motorola employee who received notice of her termination today.
Motorola has been struggling in China for years. The Harvard business school even has a case for its MBA students about the company’s missteps in the China market (mercifully changing the name of Motorola, but that doesn’t do any good for the company’s workers who are out of jobs as of today).
Notwithstanding this, for now, the scene on the street in downtown Shanghai does not reveal obvious signs of economic strain.
McDonald’s price cut for 4 of its set meals made international news last week in the New York Times and elsewhere. Layoffs are underway, and not just in Dongguan and Shenzhen. Intel is closing its Shanghai plant, laying of 2,000 workers.
Less than a year ago, one of the economic concerns to me in Shanghai was rapid appreciation of the RMB and inflation. Now it seems unlikely that the RMB will gain anything – if it doesn’t actually give up some gains its made since 2005 – and deflation may be on its way? The Coffee Bean chain in Shanghai is peddling its mugs with a promotion of getting a free “cuppa” with the purchase, and the bilingual encouragement of “Don’t let the economy get you down! 不要让经济风暴打垮你”, and bars like the Mexican Adobo offering a daily Economic Recession Happy Hour, with beers for 5 yuan and hard liquor for 7.
Here’s a funny email circulating around China this week. To appreciate it, you have to understand the obsession among some Chinese about double vs. single hooded eyelids, and that the traffic situation leading up to the Olympics in Beijing has frustrated and infuriated some drivers.
(SHTig translation)
Urgent Notice from the Beijing Traffic Administration Bureau
Although the implementation of even/odd license plates entering the city has greatly reduced congestion, the number of pedestrian traffic has increased substantially, adding to pressure on pubic transportation. Therefore, the Traffic Bureau is implementing measures as of July 25 for the area within the 6th ring road for single and double hooded eyelids. Single hooded eyelid people may enter the area on odd days. Double hooded eyelid people may enter the area on even days. Those with one singled hooded and one double hooded eyelid may enter only between the hours of midnight and 3am. We ask that all city residents arrange their schedules accordingly.北京市交通管理局紧急通知……
7月20日实行单双号限行后流量大幅下降，但出行人流量降反升，公共交通压力加大。
为此，交管局决定，从7月25日起，
全市六环以内，市民实行单双眼皮限行措施，
单眼皮单日出行，
双眼皮双日出行，
一单一双只能夜晚0~3点出行。
望广大市民合理安排出行时间。
I’ve been watching for the past two nights the “Haier Cup Inaugural Foreign Exchange Students in China Chinese Competition”, a new program on CCTV4 (10-11pm in China, from July 10-17 with the finals on July 18. There is a CCTV4 website about the program where you can view the bios of all the contestants
and get more info about the program. A related article says there are 30 foreign contestants in total from 20 countries.
The Program
The format is that 4 foreigners compete individually on a stage with two Chinese hosts, a panel of 5 judges, and an audience. There are three parts to the competition. The first and easiest part is a self introduction of 1 minute. The next part is a 5 minute simulation where the contestant and a host pretend to be in a certain place like in a taxi or buying items in a grocery store. During this part the host throws in certain idiomatic expressions and sayings to try to confuse and trip up the contestant. And these are hard(!), more on that in a minute. The third part which I think is the most difficult but arguably easier than part 2 is where the contestant watches a short video and then talks about his or her “feeling” in response to the video. On the first night, the videos were about famous places in China, like the Yangzee River, Yellow Mountain (Huang Shan), etc. Last night the videos were about traditional Chinese craftsmanship.
Judging
After each contestant completes each part, they are awarded between 1 and 5 “lights” (打灯) from the judges. One light is given by default even if no judge actually thinks the contestant was succesful. The hosts choose a judge at random to comment on the contestant’s performance. If they choose a judge who gave a light, he usually says something encouraging to the contestant. But they also choose judges who don’t give lights, and some of the comments are harsh, i.e. “actually none of you performed well whatsoever”. At the end of the program, only 3 foreigners remain, with 1 cast off but told that they “might” be able to come back in a later round, so some how there seems to be a second chance for them. I assume the 3 survivors each night will compete again in a semi-final match.
What SHTig is saying
The show is hard, and the contestants clearly understand almost nothing that is being said to them. As a fellow Chinese language learner, it’s a sad thing to see (if not a tad redeeming). Some of the contestants are so out of it that they’re just babling about something only tangentially related, if at all related, to what the host/video is talking about.
When the camera pans to shots of the audience, you see some ear-to-ear grins from some folks. This means “it’s so fantastic and honoring and fun that foreigners can speak Chinese”. Others have a thick face with glossy eyes, which expresses “I have no idea what they are saying and I might be bored as well”. Then there are others with slight scowls. These are the ones who disturb me. Could they be thinking “why the hell are these bafoon foreigners up on a stage parading their awful Chinese around? Their Chinese is terrible and they are a disgrace.” It disturbs me because I can think ahead to one day in the future, when China is the superpower, and all the current niceties towards foreigners and their Chinese learning pursuits are turned upside down, i.e. the day when people are expected to know Mandarin well, and anything less is unacceptable. Listening to the critques from some of the judges I can also sense this sentiment. However, for now, the view in China as evidenced on this program is “it’s such an honor that these foreigners are learning Chinese language and culture.”
What the Chinese Blogs are Saying
A blogger named wushanshanmai has already posted his experience of watching the show in Chinese here (warning, he inexplicably splits his post describing this program with a young lady in her underwear… I am lobbying nator, Mul, ODB and uncleronald to let us do the same here on Truth from Facts). Anyway, I am delighted that wushanshanmai, who describes himself as “an authentic Chinese person” agrees that much of the content is difficult to understand. He is sympathetic to the foreign contestants, and pleased that they are studying.
Or maybe his concluding remark is his true intent:
坚决支持这样的文化推广工作！特别欢迎外国的美丽妹妹来学习中国文化，当然也欢迎”定居“中国的外国上门女婿！(I strongly support these types of efforts to promote Chinese culture! I especially welcome pretty foreign chicks to come study Chinese culture, of course I welcome them to “set up house” here and [I] can move in with them.)
Well, if he can arrange to send that girl in her underwear to us here at Truth From Facts, we might be able to find a foreign girl for him. Not that I, ODB, Mul or nator are available, but uncleronald may be interested…
Have you ever noticed the “help wanted” signs in China, you know, the ones that say “wanted, female, ages 18-25″? These jobs invariably involve minor clerical or waitress type work. It’s more important that she be a certain height (often 160cm) than to have any formal schooling certificates.
Today I had lunch at the “Steak & Eggs” diner in Shanghai (the American-run restaurant that started in Beijing). There was a new waitress who was very polite, decent, and – most amazing for China – she hustled. I mean, she really moved swiftly around the two story dining room. Judging by her face she had to be at least 35 (though from behind she could pass for 22, ohhh Chinese women…). The main point was not how attentive she was, but that she was “old” for this line of work. It helps that the owners are an American-Chinese mix, I believe, and that they themselves are late middle age. That is, we’d expect less age discrimination in this set up. But it led me to come here to ask what has crossed my mind from time to time. What do these girls do after they hit 28 or so and leave their original job? Obviously some enter the throes of motherhood and homemaker, but what about the rest? What does a woman in China do who has no education beyond high school, doesn’t know English, and doesn’t have tangible job skills?
NATOR ADDS: Hotpoter kind of said it in the comments, but I’ll be more specific: they get married. An American woman in a similar situation would probably think marriage is her best option; the typical Chinese woman will be a lot poorer and thus more likely to look to marriage. Also, China remains very conservative about certain things, and marriage is one of them. (Though I’d add with more emphasis on “till death do us part” and less on ”to love and to cherish”.) And finally, Chinese women are increasingly outnumbered due to the combination of the one child policy and a traditional preference for males. More than ever before, China’s women will be able to “marry up”. So I think Hotpoter’s point is valid. Most of these women are going to want to get married, and they will get married, and they’ll have a better (financial) life than before.
I’m far more worried about China’s men with little education. What will these men–and there are already tens of millions of them–do when they get older and can’t even find a wife?
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