11.20.09
Posted in Economy, Israel, Laowai, Manners, Politics, Religion, USA at 14:10 by Nator
ODB just passed along a great interview from the new English language edition of China’s Global Times newspaper. GT’s Lu Jingxian talks with Jack Rosen, chairman of the American Jewish Congress and American Council for World Jewry. (It’s unclear whether or not Mr. Rosen is related to the well-known Dr. Rosen in Los Angeles.)
The tone of the interview reminds me of countless conversations I have had on politics here in China. The Chinese interviewer gets right to the point with a blunt statement and question:
American Jews are known for their formidable lobbying power in the US. How is this accomplished?
I get in a Beijing taxi and tell the driver my destination. He puts the car in gear and looks at me in the rearview mirror as the car starts to move. “Which country are you from?”
“The United States.”
“You Americans love to start wars!”
GT: The AJC is a powerful political group in the US. China is also learning to build more lobbying power there. What stage are Chinese currently at? What are your suggestions?
Rosen: The primary objective of the Jewish lobby has been in keeping US values.
If you go back 40 years, the Jewish lobby was lobbying on behalf of individual rights and civil rights. And they did it for African Americans, they did it for Latin Americans, and they did it for Chinese.
Working hard for the rights of individuals is a core US value. The Jewish lobby gained that influence by lobbying on behalf of issues that 90 percent of Americans would agree with.
Then there is the issue of Israel. Why are Jewish groups so successful in lobbying for Israel? Again the American public is very supportive of the only democracy in the Middle East, the only country in the Middle East that gives equal rights and freedom to everyone. Woman have equal rights in Israel.
So it’s easy to lobby for Israel, because 90 percent of Americans believe in what you are lobbying for….
That sounds about right.
If you ask if the Chinese community has a strong lobby, I don’t believe so, because they don’t lobby for those kinds of issues. What do they lobby for? “Love us Chinese?” It’s a nice idea, but it has no substance.
We don’t say, “We are Jews, love us, and make us powerful.” We have specific issue that we fight for. And the result is we become the leadership. We are very active in government in very high positions.
Usually it’s someone over 40. I can tell at the beginning of the conversation if the question is coming or not. I can feel how bad he wants to ask it, but he doesn’t seem sure how to put it. “So….do you like China?”
A thousand thoughts pass through my mind from the last fifteen years of study, life, work, travel, and thought about China. This question will take another fifteen years to answer properly. I suspect my face is betraying panic and confusion and try to maintain a casual expression. I take the easy way out. “Ummm…Yes? Yes, sure.”
GT: For Chinese to lobby in the US, obviously we have ideological clashes. How can Chinese remove that barrier and win the hearts and minds of American public?
Rosen: You have to understand there are differences. The US people understand you have something to offer, and they accept the differences. They disagree with you publicly sometimes, but we have to find things in common.
We do have ideological differences, but they don’t matter compared with things we cooperate on. They won’t affect Chinese investment in US and US investment in China. They won’t affect economic policies, and they won’t matter where we support each other over issues of concern.
They will matter if there is an issue. Regarding Sudan, Americans care about humanitarian issues. You need to take the time, make the effort, and get the American people to understand you.
China’s position on Sudan aside, Rosen has a point. A couple of recent Global Times articles (one from September 30 and one from November 10) on Sino-Sudanese relations rely almost solely on official (and generally positive) Sudanese government statements; comments from the Chinese side, whether from the government or the reporter, are conspicuous in their absence.
GT: Inside the US, what is the general attitude of the Jewish population toward China?
Rosen: It’s a positive one. We know China has no anti-Semitism. We are always thankful of Chinese people for that and for those Chinese who saved Jews in World War II.
No anti-Semitism? Not so sure about that. At the very least there’s a tortured mix of admiration and envy — a less negative version of common Chinese attitudes toward the US and Japan.
GT: Last year, several Jewish groups in the US called for boycotting the Beijing Olympics. How should we see this?
Rosen: They probably didn’t call for boycotting Beijing Olympics because of Jewish issues, but for some other issues….
The Jewish community tends to be very liberal and they may disagree with certain issues in your country or countries you support. American people and some in the world oppose that, and some of them are Jewish.
The taxi driver again: “Why are you wearing that uniform?”
“I’m going to play soccer.”
“But you’re American!”
(neither of us knows what to say next)
GT: There are some Jewish politicians in the US who take a strong stance against China. What’s their influence on US policy toward China?
Rosen: The fact that they are Jewish is not relevant. They are politicians, American politicians, and they represent Americans. They may happen to be Jewish, and they may disagree with some Chinese issues, but connecting the two is not correct…
At this point the reporter seems to be trying hard to restrain himself from shouting, “Why don’t you Jews love us Chinese?!?”
GT: Chinese companies may meet local resistance when they try to expand in the US market. How should they work to avoid that?
I don’t think Chinese companies are particularly anticipating these problems, working through them, and doing the right public relations campaigns.
Rosen: I don’t think Chinese companies have problems in the US. Some Chinese companies have problems entering into the US market. It depends on the industrial sector they operate in. Chinese entrepreneurs are quite welcome in the US and they shouldn’t be fearful of that.
But on some sensitive business, China has to be thoughtful of what the reaction would be. They have to anticipate the reaction and work to limit the damage of that reaction.
Chinese business can’t just parachute into America. They have to anticipate the problems involved. The technology sector is probably problematic.
That’s good advice for both sides.
Bonus link 1: Here’s a “foreign view” published in the Global Times in August that discusses the lingering stereotype of the Wealthy Jew in China.
Bonus link 2: There’s a tiny link on the Global Times article for True Xinjiang, which appears to be ssimilar in concept to the entertaining China Tibet Information Center and ChinaTaiwan.org.
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11.18.09
Posted in Beijing, Economy, The Second Tier, Traffic and Infrastructure, Wuhan at 14:19 by Nator
Wuhan is rationing natural gas, according to Reuters:
BEIJING, Nov 17 (Reuters) – Central and eastern Chinese provinces faced the worst natural gas shortage in years as supplies were diverted to snowstorm-hit northern China, while producers lacked incentives to expand output because of poor margins, a state broadcaster said on Tuesday.
Gas supplies for taxis in Wuhan, capital of the central province of Hubei, were halted from Monday while 11 industrial companies in Hanzhou, capital of eastern Zhejiang province, were shut as a result of gas shortages, China National Radio said.
The gas shortage in Wuhan reached 600,000 cubic metres per day and pressure in the gas pipeline was at only half the usual level, it said….
Wuhan is one of the ten largest cities in China and a key transportation hub. One would think the city would have a bit more fuel in its reserves.
Things are bad in nearby cities as well:
The supply deficit in Nanjing, capital of eastern Jiangsu province, had reached 400,000 cubic metres per day, 40 percent of its planned consumption volume, according to C1 Energy, an industry information provider.
Emergency measures to curb consumption had also been taken in other cities including Chongqing, Rizhao, Xi’an, Yichang and Yangzhou, but demand was set to rise further because of expected colder weather, C1 Energy said….
Since it’s only mid November, it seems reasonable to expect colder weather in the weeks and months ahead.
The reason for all this chaos, of course, is the recent snows in northern China:
Unseasonably early and heavy snow in northern China had caused 38 deaths as of last Friday and a surge in energy demand.
The power load on the Northern China electricity grid surged to a high of 127.5 gigawatts this month, 26 percent higher than a year earlier. On the Beijing-Tianjin-Tangshan grid networks, the load increased 24.7 percent from a year earlier late last week.
So far I haven’t seen any acknowledgment of a problem up here in Beijing. My apartment has had heat for a couple of weeks now and is warm day and night. At the office it’s downright hot, and we have to keep the windows cracked just to get some relief. The heat is oppressive even when we turn the adjustable-flow radiators — the first I have seen in China — to the lowest setting.
So let’s sum up:
- The government either induces or tries to take credit for snowstorms in northern China in order to counter an ongoing drought.
- In part because the government neglected to sufficient warn citizens of its intent, daily life is disrupted, transportation grinds to a halt, and dozens of people die.
- Tens or possibly hundreds of millions are affected by fuel restrictions in central China, while Beijingers lounge around in their toasty apartments and offices.
- Indoor heating is still not required in buildings in those same cities, which can get every bit as cold as Beijing.
- We’re about two weeks into a 4-5 month period of weather this bad and, at times, much worse.
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11.17.09
Posted in Economy, Law and Order, Politics, Shanghai, USA at 14:59 by SHTig
You don’t actuallyneed to read this. The issue is that the mayor of Baltimore used gift cards not intended for her to make purchases for herself, family and cronies.
Think about it. The sitting mayor of Baltimore is on trial for petty theft.
Meanwhile, while American city mayors are bogging their cities down by committing criminal activities, Shanghai is emerging as world economic center. Well, I suppose Shanghai did have its Chen Liangyu.
Here’s hoping Dixon meets the same fate.
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10.03.09
Posted in Beijing, Economy, Industry at 22:59 by Nator
Saw an interesting interview in Newsweek with the Xiang Bing, the dean of Cheung Kong Graduate School of Business (CKGSB). Interesting observations on China, especially this:
You’ve also mentioned that you see China as too entrepreneurial. How can that be?
Entrepreneurialism is in our blood, and that makes us open to new ideas and new people. But it means we can also be impatient, and without focus. In Chinese companies, middle managers are always trying to figure out how they can ultimately take over the company, or start their own company. This may also be because Chinese companies aren’t as good at taking care of their employees. Compare China to Japan in this respect. It’s difficult to imagine a Chinese company creating the next Toyota, let alone the next Google.
Hard to argue, but give it another 5 or 10 years, and I bet it will be much easier to imagine a Huawei, Alibaba, or some other Chinese company being a global leader in both sales and innovation.
Cheung Kong Graduate School of Business in Beijing to turn out a new kind of Chinese global leader. Cheung Kong has since become the country’s top business school, with graduates like Alibaba chairman Jack Ma and CNOOC president Fu Chengyu. Here the school’s dean, Xiang Bing, tell
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02.11.09
Posted in Economy, Money/Banks, Rumors, Shanghai at 20:20 by SHTig
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 »
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Posted in Economy, Industry, Media/Internet, Shanghai, Technology at 19:00 by SHTig
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.
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