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The China Digital Times notes that New Year’s Day marked the 30th anniversary of official China-US relations. Prior to January 1, 1979, the United States recognized Taiwan’s Republic of China government as the official government of China.

Chinese president Hu Jintao noted the occasion with words of praise and calls for increased cooperation; I’m sure American leaders would share similar sentiments. After all, the policy has largely been successful, perhaps the most successful policy shift in post-war American history.

If anything, this year should be the 49th, rather than the 30th, anniversary of Sino-US ties. In 1960, Maoist China split from the USSR in a diplomatic row concerning many issues, one of which being Moscow’s refusal to help China construct a nuclear bomb. At the time, cementing ties with Beijing would have made eminent sense.

Alas, it would not happen until the next decade, when Nixon and Kissinger engineered a thaw with Mao and Zhou Enlai in 1972.

Two factors explain why. First, most experts on China (and Vietnam, notably) were purged from the US government during the 1950s McCarthy campaign due to suspected Communist ties. This meant that people making foreign policy decisions lacked expert advice, a fact that haunted both the Kennedy and Johnson administrations in Vietnam.

A second factor had to do with the US policy of lumping all Communist states together despite regional and circumstantial differences. China’s brand of Communism differed mightily with Russia’s, even when the two states got along. Also, the Communist movement in China was largely nationalist, as the competing Nationalist Party was riven by corruption and impotence against the occupying Japanese before and during the Second World War.

So in effect, the 1960s were a wasted decade in Sino-American relations. One wonders; had the US and the West brought China into broad international recognition, would China’s travails in the 1960s been avoided? The period of time between the Sino-Soviet split in 1960 and 1979 was extremely tumultuous for China, with the Great Leap Forward, Cultural Revolution, failed coup attempt by Lin Biao, death of Mao Zedong and Zhou Enlai, power struggle, rise of Deng Xiaoping, and the launch of economic reforms. Of course, these were tumultuous times in the West too but the comparison isn’t apt.

Anyway, it’s impossible to tell what would have happened. Let’s hope this degree of stability will last another thirty years and beyond.

Posted 04 January 2009 † matt_schiavenza § History ‡ Comments (0) °

Oops- Comment Snafu

I have just realized that my two most recent comments, one by Chris and one by Jason, have been deleted accidentally. I am not sure how I did this, but all I can say is that I’m now using Wordpress 2.7 and am still figuring out how to operate it.

Anyway, sorry fellas and please resubmit if you can be bothered!

Posted 03 January 2009 † matt_schiavenza § Uncategorized ‡ Comments (0) °

Salvadors Update

I’ve been in touch with one of the four owners of Salvadors recently and have heard an update that sheds a little more light on the Christmas Eve bombing.

Evidently, the police have concluded that the bomb detonated while still in a backpack on the bomber’s back, and that the bomber was on his way out of the shop at the time. He had apparently ordered a mocha and a waffle, and so the police surmise that he had gone there merely to eat on his way to bomb a different target.

Also, the police believe he was acting alone, despite the existence of a piece of paper with nine different fingerprints.

Anyone who has been in China long enough treats police announcements with a fair amount of skepticism, but in this case the Salvadors guys believe them. They’re also heartened, understandably, that their cafe does not appear to be the target.

And as unfortunate an incident this was, I think we all can be grateful that the bomber only succeeded in killing himself and that no one else was even injured.

Posted 03 January 2009 † matt_schiavenza § Uncategorized ‡ Comments (1) °

Eight Years of Bush

I suppose I should have waited another three weeks to write this post, when the Bush presidency officially ends. But I couldn’t wait. Like a child peeking at his Christmas presents, sometimes one can’t resist doing things a little bit early.

The Bush presidency is the first for which I have been politically aware throughout its duration. I remember nearly all of the Clinton years, and some of Daddy Bush, but the Bush era is the first that occurred entirely after I became an adult. When he entered office in January 2001, I was a second-year university student in San Diego, California, still majoring in Literature and studying Italian as a foreign language. As Bush’s second term ends, I begin my fifth year living in China. A lot has happened in the interim.

I often divide the Bush presidency into little sectors defined of how I thought of him at the time. From his inauguration until September 11, 2001, I found him goofy and irritating but largely harmless. Then, after the national shock of 9/11 and the broadly popular Afghanistan War, I approved of the president, whose staunchness was needed in those days.

I soured on him after the Axis of Evil speech, delivered in January 2002, and from there my distate for Bush evolved into visceral disgust. The whole Iraq War buildup felt like a farce to me, as otherwise intelligent people threw their weight behind the war mostly just to cover their asses in case it succeeded. People now say that they were “duped”, but there was sufficient cause and evidence to oppose the war then, as millions of people (including one Barack Obama) did. I never shook the sense that Bush approached the war with excitement rather than reservation, as if the casualties that would surely come would be mere footnotes to the glorious invasion. He was a “war president”, after all, one called upon by the imagined father in the sky to impose his vision on a distant land.

This disgust for Bush carried me through the subsequent presidential election, in which the smug, benighted Texan was re-elected without undue difficulty. His supporters in the blogosphere, hiding behind the safety of their computer screens, flippantly called for additional Middle Eastern campaigns, like sex-starved college freshmen playing a game of Risk. Syria is next. Then Iran! And while we’re at it, let’s take out Saudi Arabia and a few of those pissant gulf states, too! But no- it isn’t about oil! We’re doing them all a favor! We have to destroy their countries in order to save them! It’s just like ‘nam, brother!

Then, around 2005, the Bush edifice began to crumble. First, his efforts to privatize social security went belly-up and woke up the doddering Democrats. Then, the vision of black Americans floating dead in a pool of stagnant water for days in New Orleans shook the concept that he was in any way competent to deal with disasters. Around this time, the Bush swagger was gone, and his popularity sank so low even submarines couldn’t find it. My disgust with the man turned to a weird sense of pity, like watching a quarterback throwing interception after interception.

This pity, misplaced as it is, evolved into indifference once again over the past two years. Once the 2008 presidential campaign kicked off in earnest, Bush more or less ceased to matter. The nation was already looking ahead, and what Bush thought of Putin’s antics or the environment or abortion meant practically nothing. To me, the defining moment of Bush’s winter in office was the image of him goofing off in Beijing at the Olympics, staring at the tight rear ends of the women’s beach volleyball team and looking every bit as dignified as a Chinese cadre staggering home from a night at the karaoke bar.

And so, we’ve come full circle- back to stage one, irrelevance. In a matter of weeks Bush will shuffle back to his Texas ranch, blissfully content in the belief that he will be vindicated by the forces of fate. But this, I think, will be unlikely, and his legacy will likely be the long lines of people at American airports, removing their shoes and belts at security checkpoints while our swarthier compatriots get pulled out for having the misfortune of looking vaguely like a “terrist”.

Good riddance.

Posted 02 January 2009 † matt_schiavenza § Uncategorized ‡ Comments (1) °

2008 Retrospective

I remember a scene in the early 1990s film City Slickers in which Billy Crystal, Daniel Stern, and Bruno Kirby are horseback riding slowly through the desert. They were having a discussion about the best and worst days of their life, but couldn’t agree on how to measure it. Daniel Stern’s character said that you had to consider the whole day, and its various ups and downs, before deciding. Bruno Kirby’s, though, had another idea: the measure of a day is in how it ended. His best day, he said, was the day his father died because by the end of the day he felt a new purpose and direction in his life, as painful as the death of his father had been.

I always favored Kirby’s approach, which is why I view 2008 as a pivotal, important year for me despite its share of disappointments and negative experiences. For it was this year that I made the decision to stop studying Chinese and to begin working for my present employer. My decision resulted not from careful, months-long deliberation but rather from being presented with a great opportunity and seizing it.

I could not have gotten my job, though, without the practical experience of writing this blog. In addition to being an outlet for my thoughts and opinions, keeping this site has honed my writing skills, introduced me to new friends, and given me opportunities in the writing field that I would not have gotten otherwise.

I’d like to conclude this post by thanking you, my readers, for stopping by my little corner of cyberspace this year. In particular, I’d like to thank my commenters for their intelligent and interesting contributions. While I may not always agree with what you say, I’ve learned a lot from you, and I’m proud that 90% of my comments have been constructive and intelligent.

I’ve put off making cosmetic improvements to the site for long enough, so in 2009 this is on the agenda. Unfortunately, my technological idiocy means I’ll have to have someone lend me a hand, but ultimately the site will be more attractive. The crux of the writing won’t change, though…it’ll still be my mix of personal observation and news analysis of China.

Finally, let me just wish all of you a very happy new year and if you’re of the persuasion, drink a lot of water before you go to bed tonight so you won’t get a raging New Years Day hangover.

Posted 31 December 2008 † matt_schiavenza § Navel Gazing § Reminiscence ‡ Comments (0) °

Back Live

Apologies for going dark (or, as a friend pointed out, white) for about 24 hours. I made a technical mistake while trying to upgrade to the latest version of Wordpress and inadvertently killed the blog, or thought I did. Fortunately my server host and friend was able to fix things up in no time. Amen.

Regular posts to resume

Posted 29 December 2008 † matt_schiavenza § Housekeeping ‡ Comments (0) °

Hong Kong at Night

Hong Kong must be one of the weirder major cities in the world. I think it might actually be possible to traverse all of Hong Kong Island, for example, without ever setting foot outside. Every single square inch of the island and Kowloon is devoted to commercialism. There are beautiful parts of the city, and no one can deny the spectacular skyline- possibly the best in the world.

Posted 28 December 2008 † matt_schiavenza § Photography ‡ Comments (0) °

Smoked Out

So I guess those non-smoking signs on the Beijing-Tianjin high speed trains are more than just decoration:

A man was given three days in detention for breaking a non-smoking rule on a new high-speed rail line, Chinese state media said, an unusually severe punishment in a country where smoking bans are routinely ignored.

He was caught smoking in the toilet just after the train had left Tianjin for Beijing, triggering an alarm and causing the train to stop, the official Xinhua news agency said on its website (www.xinhuanet.com).

The high-tech line connects the capital with neighboring Tianjinin. It opened in time for this year’s Beijing Olympics and features carriages more luxurious than usual in China, including swivel chairs and spacious, plush interiors.

No-smoking signs and rules are generally given short shrift in China and about half of all Chinese men smoke.

“It is strictly forbidden to smoke on the Beijing-Tianjin Express, and they hope everyone respects the rules, travels in a civilized manner and ensures the train’s safety and punctuality,” Xinhua said.

What I find so funny about this is that the Beijing-Tianjin journey takes less than a half-hour. It’s one thing to be caught smoking on a ten-hour journey, but surely the poor guy couldn’t wait a half-hour?

Posted 26 December 2008 † matt_schiavenza § China Culture § Current Events ‡ Comments (0) °

Scary Bombing in Kunming

As some of you know, a small bomb detonated inside Salvadors’ Coffee House in Kunming on Wednesday, fatally injuring one man. No one else was seriously injured, as the bomb exploded at 10:30am when there were few customers inside. The police have come but thus far a clear explanation of what happened has not emerged.

The injured man was taken to the hospital where he took responsibility both for the Salvadors bomb and the bus attacks that rocked the city in July. Evidently, he had 8,500 RMB in cash on his person and a piece of paper with nine red fingerprints scattered across it, suggesting that others may be involved.

Hopefully more details will emerge later; at the moment, the foreign community remains shaken. Salvadors is an institution here; it was one of the first–if not the first– wholly foreign-owned food enterprise in Yunnan, and a successful, popular joint for both foreign and Chinese patrons. At lunchtime and in evenings the place is normally quite crowded, as a group of regulars sit outside on sunny days and drink coffee, tea, and beer.

I frequently go to Salvadors; in fact, for about six months I taught three of the waitresses English in exchange for unlimited food and non-alcoholic drinks. The four owners- three Americans and one Japanese- are friends of mine. Even today, with both my residence and work a fair distance away, I make time to go to Salvadors at least twice a week. I always know there will be a friend there to talk to.

Yet what makes this bombing so unnerving is the high probability that foreigners are being targeted. We’re a soft target here, as most of us do not blend in with a crowd of Chinese people. Foreigners tend to cluster together and frequent the same locations, usually bars, cafes, and restaurants. Salvadors sits at the corner of two roads that constitute the heart of the foreigner neighborhood, near Yunnan University and Green Lake.

An additional hangout just four or five doors down from Salvadors is The Box, an Italian-owned pub/restaurant that specializes in pizza and gelato. Like Salvadors, The Box is popular among foreigners and has a dedicated crowd of regulars, me included. Last week, three Chinese men armed with crowbars entered the bar and smashed a table where several people were sitting. They then threatened to strike the Italian woman on duty at the time. The police were called but didn’t apprehend the men; in fact, they were light-hearted and laughing. When my friend asked one of the policemen for his badge number, he was told to shut up and be careful- he didn’t have his passport on his person and could be arrested.*

The next day the men came back and apologized, explaining that a foreigner had been rude to them and they wanted retaliation. They were extremely drunk at the time and regretted it. The policemen failed to show up, though apparently one did write up the incident and cited the men; they will likely be punished for it.

Has Kunming, or China, become unsafe for foreigners? Is there a movement against us, borne out of resentment at our high salaries, our loutish behavior, or our intermingling with the locals?

I’ve never felt unsafe in China; in fact, I’ve always felt it’s one of the safest countries in the world for a foreigner to live in. Most of the young women I know can walk home at night alone and not feel threatened. Most of the Chinese I’ve met are friendly, open, and eager to meet us.

What is to be done? Most prudent people would suggest that we avoid certain places or large gatherings. But that would be giving in. Terrorism is only effective if people become frightened and alter their life patterns. The odds of being killed in an act of organized violence remains very small.

Salvadors will be closed for awhile; a month, I’ve heard. When it re-opens I’m sure some people will be wary. Not me, though- I’ll be back for my coffee and burritos in no time.

In any event- Chris is covering this story carefully. Keep an eye on GoKunming.

UPDATE: I have just read a long note from Colin, one of the four owners of Salvadors and the one who was present at the cafe when the bombing occurred. Apparently, DNA from Salvadors matched DNA from the July bus bombing, suggesting that the bomber’s confession may be legitimate. In addition, the man had a criminal record and served nine years in prison for assault. Frighteningly, the police believe the 10:30 detonation was an accident and that the bomb had intended to go off during the evening, when there would have been more people. That nobody but the bomber was injured is indeed a miracle.

Posted 26 December 2008 † matt_schiavenza § Current Events ‡ Comments (2) °

China Blog Additions

A few new- or new to me- China blogs for you to feast on, though only one of them is in traditional blog format. Drumroll please…

1. Chinasmack- what Chinese 姑娘 and 伙子 are saying on the internet- a useful summary of the more interesting trends on the Chinese interwang, translated into English.

2. Sexy Beijing- a video podcast series, Sexy Beijing concerns the adventures of one Anna Sophie Loewenberg, a Jewish-American princess who roams the streets of the nation’s capital talking to locals about sex, love, marriage, and life.

3. Opposite End of China- The China you hear about most is the coastal part of factories, mega-cities, and urban blight. Thousands of miles away lies Xinjiang, an “autonomous region” larger than Western Europe. Not a whole lot is known about Xinjiang, few Westerners live there, and fewer still blog. So that’s what makes Opposite End of China unique and interesting. Plus, author Michael Manning recently ran afoul of a Chinese ultra-nationalist dude. Funny stuff! His whole blog is worth bookmarking.

Posted 18 December 2008 † matt_schiavenza § Useful Links ‡ Comments (0) °