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Monthly Archives September 2009

On Bike. Off Grid.

It’s that time of year again. The Chinese National Day holiday begins tomorrow, and for those of you outside of China keep your eye on the scene in Beijing; I imagine the display of jingoism will be breathtaking. Nevertheless the Chinese do know how to put on a spectacle, so it all should be worth [...]

Posted 30 September 2009 † matt_schiavenza § Uncategorized ‡ Comments (0) °

The Laowai Lexicon

I was thinking it’d be fun to have a laowai lexicon, a glossary of terms in both English and Chinese often on the tip of the tongue of the average laowai. Perhaps with a bit of collaboration and effort we can make it more like the Ayn Rand lexicon! So let’s start with a few: [...]

Posted 23 September 2009 † matt_schiavenza § Uncategorized ‡ Comments (5) °

Why People Like Ayn Rand

This excellent Jonathan Chait-penned essay on Ayn Rand has generated a lot of praise and criticism, in addition to some well placed barbs, including this particularly funny one: There are two novels that can change a bookish fourteen-year old’s life: The Lord of the Rings and Atlas Shrugged. One is a childish fantasy that often [...]

Posted 20 September 2009 † matt_schiavenza § Uncategorized ‡ Comments (12) °

Tribalism in US Politics

I’ve really been enjoying the spectacle of thousands of American conservative cranks descending onto our nation’s capital to vent their hatred of Barack Obama. Now, if you take the protestors at their word you may come away convinced that they were a united band of citizens concerned about runaway public spending. But this isn’t true. [...]

Posted 14 September 2009 † matt_schiavenza § US Politics ‡ Comments (5) °

Whatever Happened to Matt?

Well- this space has been quiet lately, hasn’t it? Apologies. I will admit that having a dyfunctional comments section sapped my motivation to post. But due to the genius of my web operator in Melbourne, Australia, things have been fixed. Fresh posts will be back up again soon, but in the meantime I’ll include a [...]

Posted 11 September 2009 † matt_schiavenza § Uncategorized ‡ Comments (2) °