More on Ai Weiwei from The Peking Duck
Our old friend Richard provides a glimpse into how the state-run Chinese newspaper The Global Times is dealing with the Ai Weiwei:
Nine days ago, Hu Xijin, the editor in chief of The Global Times, assembled all of the Chinese staff into the paper’s large conference room and shut the door. As is nearly always the case with such meetings, the expats, known as “foreign experts,” were not permitted inside.
Hu had a direct and simple order for his
shock troopsstaff: They were to go to their desks and seek out any Chinese comment threads, any discussions on Chinese BBS’s and portals and blogs — any discussion on the Internet at all — about the detention of Ai Weiwei and counter them with the party line, as expressed so clearly and ominously in a recent Global Times editorial, namely that Ai Weiwei is a self-appointed maverick who deserves to be detained, and who is being used by hostile Western powers to embarrass, hurt and destabilize China. This was not a request, it was a direct order. It was compulsory.
Sinister, but unsurprising.
UPDATE: James Fallows also cites Richard's post and asks "how much of the current crackdown reflects over-confidence by the government? How much reflects its nervous insecurity?". I would say "nervous insecurity" is the key driver in most decisions made by the Chinese government. There's a common misconception that because it's authoritarian, the Chinese government is highly stable. If anything, the opposite is true, hence the obsession with "security". To Westerners, a character like Ai Weiwei seems harmless because our societies tolerate eccentric members with unorthodox political opinions*. Yet in China the Communist Party fears that by allowing a few dissidents to speak out against the State with impunity would simply embolden others and threaten the Party's grip on power.
*Lest Westerners- or just Americans- start to feel good about ourselves it's worth remembering that eccentrics with unorthodox political opinions weren't tolerated during the McCarthy era, for one. Again, insecurity was the driver.
New Dish
Andrew Sullivan's blog "The Daily Dish" has moved from The Atlantic to The Daily Beast. Since I only read him through RSS these days, I barely noticed. Today though I checked it out and it was terrible! Just a clunky site with poor layout. That aside, Sullivan's is the only blog that I still read from the glory days of blogging, from the days before every major newspaper had blogs and a solid majority of people didn't even know what they were. Most of the other bloggers either stopped or stopped being good. I do miss Sullivan's earlier style, which was heavier on writing and lighter on linking, but it seems like that's just par for the course on the Internet these days.
Kudos
And while we're on the subject of foreigners, allow me to commend fellow laowai blogger Brendan O'Kane, an occasional commenter here whose eponymous blog has long been among my favorites. Brendan is the subject of a new China Daily article which discusses his remarkable experiences living in China.
While I was in Beijing last month I had the opportunity to meet Brendan, who came out with Chris and I for a few beers in a cafe in a somewhat random shopping complex (or perhaps it wasn't random, but everything in Beijing seems random to me). He's certainly too modest to say this himself, but Brendan is just as clever, witty, and humane as he appears on his blog. If ever publicity is richly deserved, it certainly is in his case.
Brendan doesn't update his English blog very often (ahem!) but those of you interested in fresh insights about learning the Chinese language would be wise to click through his archives. Actually, the China expat blogosphere is an incredibly rich resource for understanding Chinese in general. Between Brendan, John, Chris, Chinese Pod, and Lost Laowai (to name just a few) a discerning reader can amass a considerable amount of valuable material entirely for free.
(China Daily link via The Peking Duck)
The Laowai Rant Blogs
The English language China blogosphere is remarkably rich- and for proof just look at my blogroll. These blogs range from media analysis to thoughtful observations to personal diaries to unraveling the mysteries of the Chinese language. An hour or so spent reading these blogs would be an hour spent immersed in the many facets of what it is like living as a foreigner in this massive, mystifying country.
The "Laowai rant blog" is one particular species that tends to be very popular. And hell, it's easy to see why: most people love a good rant. There are many aspects of Chinese life that nag, annoy, and outrage us, and it's only natural for someone to want to air it in public. In fact, I'd say it's healthy- a blog that only described China in flowering terms would get old pretty fast.
In my three plus years in China, there have been two big laowai rant blogs. The first was called Talk Talk China, and the second Sinocidal. Oddly, both lasted for a relatively short period of time and then expired. Both were pretty much the same, although in my opinion Talk Talk China was more consistently funny. And both were enormously popular, eliciting hundreds of comments to even relatively mundane posts.
Via Chris, Sinocidal appears to be active again. Chris is not impressed, to say the least:
I thought Sinocidal had stopped posting€¦
I thought wrong. They have continued the inevitable slide from "occasionally funny venting session" to "rarely funny and almost never useful vent if you're a cynical expat unhappily stuck in China" to "stupid, boring and pathetic racist drivel". Not that that slide takes particularly long€¦ Anyways, such sites can kinda serve their purpose and are actually kinda useful in their early, frustrated and venting expat stages, but it really doesn't take too long before they sink into the "I'm a superior Westerner stuck in inferior China" bullshit. I'm sitting here wishing I'd never clicked on that link I should've (and very early on intended to) delete from my bookmarks.
Interesting. I must confess that I don't necessarily agree with Chris about Sinocidal, and to be fair most of their material is harmless satire. But they do have the unfortunate tendency to wallow in outrageous bigotry, and I'm always distressed by the legions of commenters piling on like bullies in a schoolyard fight. It amazes me how the anonymity of the Internet tends to bring out the worst of human nature.
I'm reminded of an American I know in Kunming. He's about my age, is married to a lovely Chinese girl, and speaks Chinese very well. He's also an expert ranter. Very few social occasions go by without one of his rants, which most other laowai find hysterically funny. He'll take the floor and speak rapidly, peppering his sentences with bad language and politically incorrent observations. Any attempt to challenge him elicits a rude retort. Even people who don't agree with him tend to admire him for telling the so-called truth, as if his baldly racist and bigoted remarks required any amount of courage.
Political correctness has become so entrenched in our society that loud bigots are now considered a refreshing change of pace. But there's a difference between being politically incorrect and being an ignorant blowhard. The "slide" from one to the other is all too easy, as Chris points out. Why is it that nuanced opinions seem mealy-mouthed and unconvincing, while simplistic, hateful speech is branded as "honesty"? An idiot with a loud megaphone is still an idiot.
PS- Although I must say that the Sinocidal "Open letter to Air China" is still one of the funniest things I've ever read on the internet. Can we all agree to direct our venom toward Air China?
Quote of the Day
When I think of women who have sex with lots of men, my attitudes are
entirely positive. For reasons perhaps also relating to my sheltered
upbringing, I find these women fascinating and exotic. My utilitarian
ethical views reinforce this conclusion. In an era of condoms and the
pill, promiscuous women are responsible for substantial increases in
the general happiness. They ought to be lauded, not scorned, for their
socially beneficial actions.
- from "Neil the Ethical Werewolf"
Silly Blog Battles
I had the dubious honor to contribute to a rather heated discussion in this Peking Duck thread with none other than Ivan, a TPD co-blogger dismissed rather colorfully by Chris here. I won't bore you with details, but needless to say, Ivan felt compelled to attack me personally for a comment I made and I'd like to clear up any misperceptions of who I am or what NBNL stands for.
Ivan and Richard (the proprietor of the blog and the author of the post in question) did not appreciate a comment I left accusing the latter of being overly sensitive to critical comments. In fairness to Richard, TPD does not engage in censorship and his blog is a free-wheeling forum of ideas. I should have noted that in my comment, but did not. Richard was correct to call me on it and said so in a reasonable comment beneath mine.
What Ivan said, though, was certainly not reasonable. He attempted to ridicule me by citing my rather modest readership and small core of commenters. His implication was that because NBNL is a little-read blog, I had no right to offer any advice to Richard whose blog is far more popular. This is not only an unmerited personal attack but also a grave misunderstanding of how the blogosphere works.
I began No Borders No Limits with the intent of keeping a record of my thoughts and activities over the period of time I spent in China. My blog is public and comments are allowed because I enjoy hearing feedback, both positive and negative. That most of my readers are family members and personal friends does not bother me in the slightest- I have never promoted NBNL and have invested very little financially in the project. It is not a job, but rather a hobby of mine to write in this space. I do it because I enjoy it and not because I seek fame or money.
Ivan was under the impression that I am envious of Richard's success because he attracts more readers than I; this cannot be further from the truth. Yes, TPD and NBNL have some things in common. We both discuss Chinese and American politics a great deal. Perhaps that accounts for Ivan's confusion. He's welcome to read my long, rambling posts on music and sports if he feels that I try hard to mimic TPD.
I criticize TPD because I enjoy it so much and hope my criticism makes its content stronger. Literally anyone is able to leave a critical comment on my blog, and I want to encourage everyone to do so. Feel free to tell me that my ideas are bad, my writing is no good, or anything else. I hate echo chambers and do not want to be part of a community where everyone constantly agrees with each other.
The beauty of the blogosphere is that you don't need to be a well-paid columnist to publish ideas in a public space. Again, literally anyone can start a blog and have their opinions read, and literally anyone can criticize their opinions for any reason whatsoever. This was simply not possible in the age when the only opinions available in the public domain were those of professionals. So when Ivan implies that only popular bloggers may dare criticize others, he misunderstands what blogging is all about.
So here is the comments policy. I welcome all and any comments, provided they are not abusive. If you leave an abusive comment, I reserve the right to delete it and warn you not to do it again. If you choose to ignore that warning and continue, I reserve the right to ban you from commenting here. This has never happened before, and I hope it never does because frankly I have better things to do than police my readership.
Ivan wrote that TPD readers like me were dispensable. I'd like you, my little coterie of fans, to realize that none of you are dispensable. In fact, should Ivan grace us with his presence and want to contribute here, he's more than welcome to. Now let's have a group hug and move on.
Talk Talk China Will Say No More For Ever
88s laments the demise of the China blog Talk Talk China, formerly a regular stop on my blog-reading daily tour as well.
I had a feeling the end was nigh. TTC's postings became less frequent and less biting, and you have to wonder whether at one point they just got sick of being cynical. Who knows?
Someone will fill the niche- there is an enormous reservoir of material, lord knows.
Also: when traveling you meet a lot of people who refuse to criticize whatever country they're in because "we're guests in this country, and they're not going to change, and we don't understand their cultural, and blah blah blah".
These people drive me nuts. First, they say these things in a vain attempt to act superior to all of the other travelers who deign to utter an honest truth about a particular place. Second, not everything is relative- what is the value of traveling someplace if you refuse to assess it honestly?
Talk Talk China felt no shame in laying into the less pleasant aspects of Chinese life, and even if their criticism wasn't always spot on, you had to commend them for that.
Arianna’s Cesspool
Most popular blogs have large communities of commenters that offer their two cents in the margins beneath a particular blog post. I love reading blogs, but reading comments can truly be a mixed bag. Sometimes, commenters make insightful observations or rebut an logical fallacy presented in the original post. Often, though, the commenters sling mud at each other and reduce themselves to the cyberspace equivalent of a screaming match.
Arianna Huffington's celebrity group blog is known for having, ahem, one of the least civil commenting corps in the business. So long as someone writes an anti-Bush screed, the minions are kept happy. Occasionally, a brave man or woman steps up to the plate and dares criticize the company line. The results are not pretty. Imagine a slab of meat thrown to a pack of starving greyhounds. You get the picture.
Today I clicked on an item titled "Why I Left the Left" written by a jack-of-all-trades type named Seth Swirsky. His story, as you might imagine, concerned his eventual drift from the Democratic Party to the Republican, catalyzed of course by 9/11. His post started out well but soon became a tendentious rehash of the usual Reaganesque "the party left me" arguments, and in ordinary circumstances I would have stopped reading after about the fourth paragraph. This time, though, I slogged through the rest of it just to see what sort of reaction Swirsky's piece would get in the comment section. I now present to you what I consider to be a fairly representative selection of what the commenters had to say:
"The party didn't leave you, your sanity left you. Proudly voting for
Bush is like proudly proclaiming insanity, or admitting to prefer a
pretty fantasy over reality"
"Leaving the Democrats to become a Republican makes about as much sense as using bulimia for weight control"
"If you think that selling Times Square to Disney and forcing all
artists, musicians and working-class families out of NY was a big
bonus, then you are a Yuppie Asshole and the Republicans deserve you."
And my own personal favorite....
"Don't just leave the party. leave the planet."
I should add that a few other people stepped in to defend Swirsky and a few made criticisms that weren't laced with hatred and vitriol. But generally, you would have thought that this guy was a child molester given the reaction he go.
Yes, yes, comment sections on some of the right wing blogs are equally bad- if you ever doubt racism is dead and gone, for example, head over to Little Green Footballs sometime (no link- I won't even direct my meager amount of traffic over to that crowd- the truly curious can Google it if they want).
Call me naive, but I think self-described liberals should rise above this sort of garbage. I don't expect much of many conservatives and so I'm not as easily disappointed when they wail and gnash their teeth. But christ- wishing a guy died because he likes Bush is taking things waaaaaay too far.
Through The Chinese Blogosphere
I occasionally hear from readers that they consider my blog a useful source of information about life in China. I sincerely am flattered, mind you, but would also like to point toward blogs that I believe do a far more effective job of providing a glimpse into China than mine does. NBNL remains a repository of my many disparate thoughts, to which anyone who slogs through my baseball and politics posts can attest. These sites are far more focused on China, so I'd like to introduce them to you. These are the blogs I check daily:
EastSouthWestNorth- Blog kept by one Roland Soong, a Hong Kong native and resident who nonetheless spent decades living in the US. Soong often translates various documents and newspaper articles from Chinese to English so thus provides an interesting look into the Chinese media. He writes mostly about culture, life, and media.
The Peking Duck- Richard is an American citizen living in Taipei. His blog is a blend of news commentary on both Chinese and American politics. He's an outspoken liberal and so sometimes writes highly earnest, emotional rants that are painful to read. Nonetheless, for readers interested in following China-related news stories in the English language media, TPD is a good resource.
Simon World- Simon is an Australian economist living in Hong Kong. His blog focuses mainly on HK issues, but like The Peking Duck he comments on much of the China-related English language media.
Danwei- Media and advertising in China
SinoSplice- John is an American graduate student in linguistics living in Shanghai. His subjects range from daily life in China to linguistics. John's fluency in Chinese gives him an insight into the culture that many other expats lack. He also blogs in Chinese.
Chris Waugh- Chris is someone I know personally through the three work seminars I've been to with WITT, so I read his site partially just to see what he and the others are up to. Even if I didn't know him, though, I'd still find his site interesting. Chris speaks a lot of Chinese, is engaged to a Chinese girl, and has been in China for quite awhile. His blog is a bit like Sinosplice in that he talks about linguistics, but it has a distinctive New Zealand flavor full of colorful turns-of-phrase that I think anyone could enjoy.
Matthew Stinson- Like Chris, Matt is an ESL teacher in Tianjin. Unlike Chris, he's an American and he writes about politics and pop culture more often than China-related stuff. Matt is a staunch conservative, but he's quite honest and fair and writes very well. My only complaint about Matt's blog is that he doesn't update it enough.
Shanghaiist- Part of the Gothamist network of city blogs, Shanghaiist is a group site providing news, commentary, and updates about China's most exciting city. Great resource if you live in Shanghai, or plan to visit soon. Even if you, like me, dislike their annoying "royal we" writing style. The editor, Dan Washburn, is an American journalist who also keeps a personal blog called Shanghai Diaries.
Talk Talk China- By their own admission, the TTC trio tailor their blog to readers having a "bad China day" If you're looking for a place where foreigners bitch about China, this is it. I personally find most of their shtick pretty tiresome but every now and then they write that's spot-on brilliant.
There are lots and lots of other sites I could plug, but these are the main ones. I hope you don't abandon NBNL, of course, but if you're interested in China and would like to supplement your blog reading a little, I suggest taking a look at these sites. Enjoy.
Wolcott
James Wolcott, by day, writes long cultural criticism pieces for Vanity Fair magazine. By night, though, he retreats to his laptop and maintains what must be the most viciously funny, pleasurable blog out there. The targets of Wolcott's wrath? Right-wing talking heads, bloviating bloggers, and the nitwit gang that writes for that august chronicle of conservatism, the National Review.
Wolcott's own politics, needless to say, are far closer to Che Guevara than Bill Clinton. When he approvingly cites a Counterpunch article or something else from the left's lunatic fringe, I scowl and furiously scroll on. Before long, though, I always find a choice skewering of a Republican who certainly deserves one.
I usually hate bloggers who describe themselves as "bombthrowers", and so avoid sites like Pandagon, Atrios, Oliver Willis, and Altercation like the plague. The world of punditry has far too much heat and not enough light for me to bother with obnoxious partisans. Somehow, though, Wolcott does it with just enough style and flair that keeps you coming back for more.