I've never been a fan of mass media reporting financial and economic news, but I have to say that the jon stewart of the daily show
has constantly done a fine and educated job with it.
here are a couple of my favorites, probably the best overall..
On the back cover of Jonathan Spence's To Change China, one reads:
"To change China" was the goal of foreign missionaries, soldiers, doctors, teachers, engineers, and revolutionaries for more than three hundred years. But the Chinese, while eagerly accepting Western technical advice, clung steadfastly to their own religious and cultural traditions. As a new era of relations between China and the United States begins, the tales in this volume will serve as cautionary histories for businessmen, diplomats, students, or any other foreigners who foolishly believe that they can transform this vast, enigmatic country.
And finally, with much fanfare and anticipation from those within China and out, Beijing will host the 29th Olympiad. On official levels a sign of peace and world unity, of course, has always
been an event that can be better described as anything between a propaganda campaign and a public relations spin-off. Given the profile of something such as the Olympics, it is inevitable that the
Chinese government's policies will become a focal point by millions of people. Some of them are supportive, and, in the age of freedom and opinion, some will be critical.
China should take this chance, disciplined by the rest of the world, to reassess its policies in the way it handles opposition within and outside its borders.
The most vocal of these critical voices has been China's policy toward Tibet. Of course, it is impossible to trace when and where Tibet has, or is, part of China.
Indeed, agreements were made in the 1950s between the Chinese Communist government and the Tibetans, upon the inclusion of Tibet into the People's Republic of China.
While this does argue against Tibet as being a separate country, one must point out that the Chinese central government has, time and again, failed to honor its agreement
(one can freely use the term, Heavenly Mandate), in offering the so-called Tibetan Autonomous Region true autonomy. While such suppression has and is blanket-applied
throughout the nation, regardless of Tibetan, Han, or Hui, one cannot help but ask when the Chinese government will right its wrongs: the Great Leap Forward, the Cultural Revolution,
June Fourth-Tiananmen Square, Falun Gong. It is all-too alluring for the government to slip these under the carpet, even to force its people to "forget" that they have ever happened,
but is this really the way to run a modern, responsible government? Even where accountability is not a requirement to gain office in this nation, where has the vision and foresight gone?
How can one possibly prevent such "hush-hush" politics from being a long-term timebomb?
While I believe that Tibet really needs the rest of China in order to endure its historical mission of a land spiritual-augmentism in this money-infested age,
China should guarantee her true autonomy. In fact, the return of the Dalai Lama, which garners great respect amongst both the Tibetans, and the Han (I'm talking about the vast diaspora
scattered around the world), is probably the only viable option to balance the calls for unity by the Chinese government, and the independence-leaning Tibetan youths.
The question, therefore, lies on China's fear of Tibetan independence. I have great sympathy for the Chinese government's concern. For the past two centuries, the nation has been
bullied into treaties that have resulted into divisions, subdivision, and annexations, causing great loss and harm to the country. While China has finally embraced Capitalism,
it has had great reservations to political and social change. Imperialism is still a great fear by the general folk, and many believe that full western-styled democracy would
lead to the loss of autonomy (for the nation as a whole) and subject to manipulation by the other economic powers (unfortunately, the United States has not been a good role model in this regard).
How can one change China?
The protests in London and Paris, and the media fallout that has occurred, has been a disappointing turn of events. It has been a war of words between the Western-media,
which have been more sympathetic to the Tibetan cause, and the state-controlled media within China. While in its beginning, the global newswires have seemed to be more lop-sided toward the
Tibetan cause, the lack of press freedom within China has made the Chinese alternative less than convincing.
Press freedom is, in theory, a self-adjusting moderator, that prevents information to be towards one extreme or another. Indeed, China is a 1.3-billion person conglomerate.
It is futile to believe that one can dictate the government how to run its country. After all, it is their game: they control the laws, they control the media, and they can control what
comes in and out of the country. They can do it relatively well too. To change China, one needs to use terms that are audible to the Chinese government.
The nature of state television has nurtured a monster within the nation of China. Let's take the Olympic-torch events/protests as an example. The fallout of protests within China,
the vastness and speed of which protests have erupted, should have raised alarm bells within Zhongnanhai (the residence of the President of China). This is solely the result of the
lack of alternative media and opinion within the country. Under normal circumstances, this has served as benefit to the central government: it can, at will, control the flow of information.
But it has been prone to disaster for the government; as such protests occur approximately every two years (the last one being the anti-Japanese protests).
The Chinese-rednecks, most of them youths, and often referred to as the Angry Youths, use these events as a point of venting their anger, first at the officiated target,
be it the Japanese, the West or the Tibetan "Separatists", but quickly turn their heads to the Chinese government itself.
Another problem with this antiquated model of state-media is the problem of commercial interest.
Media, information, is a lucrative business. In raw this comes in the form of prices, rates, and forecasts, which can be monetized through trade mechanisms such as long, short, or arbitrage.
Whoever controls information within China, or any country, is on the seat of an extremely lucrative business. In this case, it is whoever controls the Central Propaganda Department.
In this current configuration, the Central Government itself, or, the Chinese people, is prone to the personal priorities and interests of the governing body of this department (read blackmail).
It is better that the government can at least begin by setting up multiple bodies that can compete against each other, so that no one can have a monopoly to information, thus hedging against this risk.
Over time, these bodies can be deregulated to give true free press.
It takes decades to change a country and the way it runs itself, let alone a country as large as China. The government itself, to maintain its present legitimacy, often needs to take a generation
before it will formally write-off its past wrong-doings, primarily after its protagonists have all passed away. It also takes an entire generation before any progressive thoughts catch-up
to the political level of Chinese government. For better or for worse, the world, and the world economy, does not read in these terms. Wealth and prosperity being the most pragmatic point of
world-unity, China will one day find the dire need to change in order to stay competitive, especially that its population will age extremely quickly within the next few decades,
and its tax-paying population will start to ask for greater efficiency, accountability, and fairness in the tools that allow one to prosper. It is until then that China can finally become a
robustly democratic society. Of course, this is a projection for decades into the future, probably not to be experienced by the adults of today. One is reassured however, that such organically-grown
sense of freedom and civility is of the type that is most perpetuating.
Finally a sneak peek at the iPhone SDK! It looks intuitive and interesting, and for $99, might be a good hobby to pick up.
I was very impressed and excited with the games that are coming out, especially with the utilization of the 3-axis accelerometers and, of course, touch. Might be as evolutionary of a step as the Wii.
Here's a clip of Scott Forstall, VP of iPhone software, demoing a game resulting from 2-week charette. Very cool.. and although its a simple demo, I totally want to see this on Firmware 2.0.
Also, the enterprise stuff is interesting too... support for 802.1x will let me connect to AirPennNet by summer, since they're phasing out Wireless Pennnet in September... just in time!
Push calendar would've been good if somehow Google Calendar supported it (which will never happen, since it's based on the Exchange Server), but BusySync is a fair substitute at the moment, although it can't update stuff on-the-fly.
I'm really excited to find out the founder of Bloomberg, LP, and New York City Major Michael Bloomberg will be speaking at UPenn's commencement in May 19, 2008.
This is a really great speech and Q&A session the Bloomberg made in 2007 at the Googleplex, Mountain View, CA. It gets really exciting about half-way when he starts to talk about the problems in our modern society.
Gone Baby Gone, the first film under the direction of Ben Affleck, is a touching yet tearing story set in the disenfranchised neighborhood of South Boston. While many remember the inspiration and intrigue set out by one of Mr. Affleck's earlier works, co-written with his longtime friend Matt Damon in their 1997 film Good Will Hunting, Gone Baby Gone is of an augmented class in sophistication, craft, and insight into the intricacies of human conscience.
The film starts with the abduction of Amanda (Madeline O'Brien), with her mother, Helene McCready (Amy Ryan), a drug addict that has also gone astray into the business of drug dealing, desperately trying to search for her. Patrick Kenzie (Casey Affleck) and his partner Angie Gennaro (Michelle Monaghan), both private detectives, are hired to investigate in parallel with the Boston Police, led by Captain Jack Doyle (Morgan Freeman).
Like matters of such nature in the real world, the plot of the film is multifaceted and twisted. The renditions from all the actors, most notably that of Affleck-the-younger, Freeman, and Ryan reach a level of depth par excellence. This has in turn permitted the viewer to be totally immersed in the twisted, selfish-ridden complexities of the broken family; to be torn by the crime-infiltrated, drug-induced city, revealing a dark, daunting, and insecure face to a city that is oft-hailed as the Athens of America, the Cradle of contemporary intellectualism, or in John Winthrop's words, a City Upon A Hill.
Mr. Ben Affleck's talents have stretched beyond the clean and well-choreographed frames of the film. Having written the screenplay with Aaron Stockard, based upon Dennis Lehane's novel of the same name, Mr. Affleck also deserves great credit for his role in casting Mr. Casey Affleck for the story's main character. The density of the storyline, along with the complexities of balancing human greed and benevolence, the portrayal of which, for such a young director, is a great achievement indeed. The mirror reflection of the acts of its characters upon the silver screen are so representative of confusion in the human mind, that its narration tears apart both the young and wise viewers' minds.
Because of its non-standard storyline, the film brings out the darkest of all human emotions and responses-- for both the protagonists and antagonists. Like all matters in life, nothing in the film is a clear-cut black or white, instead it is a myriad of shades of gray. The viewer, upon leaving the cinema, cannot help buy ask himself of the constitution of good will; whether good intentions necessarily facilitate good outcomes, or are in fact masked excuses for so-called morality.
Hands down, Google is the greatest company and brand in the early 21st century. They stopped by at TEDTalks in the Bay Area in 2004 and talked about some of their interesting projects.
A lot can happen in 10 years, but the past 10, depite the many ups and downs for the people of Hong Kong, have passed by quickly. The city, an economic miracle, weathered through political instability, its soveriegnty handed over to the People's Republic of China in July 1, 1997.
But Hong Kong is a special child. It has a lot to be proud of, as it has been fighting it alone, through the Asian Economic Crisis of the late 20th century, then the dotcom boom/bust, 9/11, and increasingly formidable rival Shanghai, and, most disasterously, SARS. Yet, with the help of China, it has picked itself up, and business is better than ever. The cold has made the city yet stronger than it was ten years ago. It is the freest and most cosmopolitan city in China, if not of all Asia, bar none.
Yet there are many who still sigh at the future of Hong Kong. Some look over the border and see an increasing number of competitor cities, most notibly Shanghai, and most certainly so for the forcoming decades. They want more integration, they want China to acknowledge Hong Kong as one of their own.
Others feel that it is changing too much. They look at the social ills of the city, the widening gap between the rich and poor, and point out that what Hong Kong needs is a more robust political system, one based on the ballot.
I have been observing the past decade, and I am surprised at how pessimistic and cynical both extremes seem to be. I am surprised at how many underestimate the resilience of Hong Kong, as a city. I am more surprised to see that many do not realize how amazing its people have made it become, how close it is to becoming a truly international and cosmopolitan melting pot.
Hong Kong needs a vision: a city in China that's not Chinese. A Hong Kong that welcomes all, and solicits ideas, opinions, and risk-takers from all corners of the globe. A Hong Kong that is blind to one's color of skin, and judges only by one's diligence, entrepreneurship and character.
This is my resolution for Hong Kong in its second decade of Chinese soveriegnty.
Ever since I saw an NBC special back in '94 on Bill Gates, and later in the turn of the 21st century migrating to macs, I've been huge fans of both Steve Jobs and Bill Gates, their passion of what they do, and the contributions they've made in the tec industry, and teaching me great skills in business and life.
This is basically the first time that the two great titans of the tech industry, probably the greatest feud in the history of computers, shared a stage at an interview. I have to say that as much respect I have had for both of them in the past, I am greatly impressed, and look up to both of them as really great leaders. Steve and Bill are very different people, without doubt, but it is admirable to see their respect for each other.
I really encourage everyone to look at this interview, which is from Walt Mossberg's D:All Things Digital Conference held by the Wall Street Journal. These two people are probably the only two big shots in the tech industry that have weathered through all the storms and waves in the past few decades.
Recently, a student publication from the Chinese University of Hong Kong was labeled as "indecent" by a government
advisory panel, after the student organization had circulated writings of sexual drama, along with a survey with
regards to incest and inter-species sexuality.
For the topic of sexuality to surface within a college campus ought to have been a non-issue. First, Hong Kong society
in the past decade has become increasingly liberal and welcoming to people of different backgrounds, sexual preference, and
behaviors, especially amongst the younger generation. It is the insistence of the stubborn and conservative few that inhibit the
progress of societies and human discovery into the sciences and humanities.
Secondly, it is the very responsibility of
stirring debate and opinion that a high-level institution's foundation is based upon. Had the university's role been to pass and
inherit dogma, it would have been a mere technical college, not a place of scholarship.
Thirdly, it is the governments fault into
keeping its antiquated and vague laws regarding indecency, and the Chinese University's fault in failing to defend the freedoms of its students
by exerting unnecessarily strict and confrontational actions against them.
Fourthly, the government panel on indecent media publications,
the Obscene Articles Tribunal, ought to be a panel solely concerned to "indecency" in the visual realm. Its justifications also need to be
more educated, culturally sensitive, secularized, and less wrapped in religious dogma. For this, I find the recent challenge by
the public in petitioning the government to label the Bible (yes, the Bible) as indecent as an extremely amusing and provocative
of debate. I find it very appropriate in the light of incompetence and mediocrity of the Tribunal, and it reveals the
double-standard of the panel's definition of indecency. It certainly reminds us of the absurdity several years back, when
the panel labeled Michelangelo's David as indecent, a move that not only discredited the Tribunal,
but is an act only comparable to the likes of neo-conservatism in the United States.
To end the first ten years of Hong Kong's handover to China points out the unfortunate turn of events for the city in the past decade.
Paradoxically, it is not the explicit restrictions of freedom by the Chinese government that have led to this, as they have kept by there
word and gave the territory true autonomy in matters and the freedom of speech. In fact, the social ills and silliness of the
Hong Kong peoples seem to have been threefold: the strengthening of the corporation overtaking business issues, the
stubornness of the "moralists", led by religious organizations such as the so-called Society for Truth and Light,
and the self-correcting conservatives, led by the HKDAB political party, Tsang Hin-Chi, and its cronies.
To be fair, Hong Kong has seen an unprecedented economic and social transformation that has augmented it
from a mere regional entrepot in 1997 to, at the lower end, a vibrant, magnetic megalopolis of Asia, and, on the higher
end of the scale, the imminent and up-coming World Ciy and international financial center. However, the government's
favoritism toward the conglomerates, as exhibited in the so-called Cyberport project and is inability to limit the Chinese
government's meddling into private business affairs (i.e. PCCW), are signs of the overpowering of corporations and possibilities
of injustices reminiscent of nineteenth-century America.
The moralists fare no much better. Although politically they seem to be opponents to the establishment (which itself is a
paradoxical proposition), there are a number of conservative church groups that have breached the freedoms endowed upon the
citizens of Hong Kong, as seen most evidently in the Chinese University Incident. Over the years these moralists have failed to
make an educated distinction between artful taste of the literati, and the gross ejaculation of the vulgar. The result, a group of
socially conservative, awkward, and medieval Hong Kongers that have, in the name of morals limited the city's potential
and bid to become Asia's World City.
As for the political conservatives, I have criticized much about them in the past (albeit, never enough).
All I can say is that when the political scene in China does change for the better, they will be scrambling to find a place on the ballot.
Hong Kong and its people must look beyond convention and dogma in order to strive in the times.
As a mere city, it is and will have no leverage over its own economic destiny. But, having nurtured under a generally benevolent western power,
it has the greatest potential in leading China into modernity-- Not merely in the material sense, but into being a true hub of intellect and
forward thinking, for the progress of humanity is the search for light and truth.
bryan and kirsten were talking to me about this clip on the daily show the past few days, and today I found a clip of it online. To summerize, the topic of discussion between Jon Stewart and Aasif Mandvi was the gates of Hell, and Mandvi described the gates of Hell were in Philadelphia! (and quickly corrected himself, "South Jersey"). Absolutely hilarious.
But to be precise, Rodin's The Gates of Hell is indeed in Philadelphia!
A tribute to the late Architect, Master Builder, and Teacher Louis I Kahn. Admired by his students at Penn, revered for architectural excellence, and built to stand the test of time.
This is a production by Mathias Wu's Zuni Icosahedron in Hong Kong, and the second, after Ludwig Mies van der Rohe of his multimedia production series in homage to great architects of our time.
So many things to highlight... what a great second semester it has been. On top of the trip to new orleans, it has been a spring term of many challenges, excitement, and fun.
Included are many of the fantastic photos that have been taken in the past 4 months, some at Penn, some during trips to other places.
in the 19th and 20th centuries the developed and industrial world was defined the the night satellite poster of the world. the glow defined areas of progress.
in the 21st century it is defined by the digital divide: this google visualizer shows the number of hits from around the world over a period of several days, with peaks of hits following the path of the sun (ie, the daytime).
I just went on an alternative spring break to New Orleans with friends from Penn. It is hands-down the most meaningful, and arguably the most enjoyable trip I've had in my life. On one hand I had the hammer and the circular saw, and on the other I partied through the night with my friends.
Back here at Penn we're all trying to recover from such a fabulous trip. Trying to go back to urban life in a building for most of any day.
I miss the southern breeze, its magnificent sun, the hospitality, and above all, the cool Southern accent that I've been close to acquiring. It was my first time in the American South, and now i know why people love it so much.
The article is written by Mr Yu Keping, an academic of the Compilation and Translation Bureau of the CPC Central Committee of China, and said to be a consultant to Chinese President Hu Jintao.
It is probably one of the clearest implications of the inner debates within the Chinese Communist Party-- that the current political structure is unsustainable, and would most certainly have to be evolved and augmented in order to cope with the needs of the 21st century, especially that being of a modernizing China.
Democracy is our destiny. It is simply a matter of time.
Remember the last time you wish the computer was more clever so that it could understand your logic? The time has finally come.
Recently I've been fiddling around with a software called GenerativeComponents, by Bentley Systems of the UK. It's still in beta so the functions aren't totally finalized yet, and so far MIT, Columbia and Penn, along with Foster and Partners and Arup are the only ones beta-testing the software. One of the heads of the team has been at Penn and showed us some new programming-models that the guys there have just done. I kid you not, he showed us a model that Arup was working on that was basically a programmed twisting tower. With that the team was able to automate the structural derivation (including the columns, floor plates, and exterior cross-bracing). Even if the tower was elongated the structure and floorplates were able to reconfigure realtime!!
The guy also told us that the Arup team was able to program GC so that it would complete (yes, complete) the plans and sections of the building in 20 minutes!
I have to say that this is the first time for a long while (maybe since, umm, I was shown 3D Max back in 2001?) that I've been truly impressed by the capabilities for design by software.
It was the first time in quite a while that I've seen something that can truly revolutionize the architectural and design industry, and it is certainly the first time I've seen (finally) that someone has been able to combine computer programming with modeling. This means that potentially, we can program snippets (like when programming, say, server-side scripting like .php, or C etc) to be used in a global basis across the board, meaning that I can program GC for a snippet function that could cross-brace any model that's applied to it!!
Not to mention the convenience of actually having the Arup snippet that derives plan-section-elevation with a click.
So it's been about 4 days of fiddling with GC and I think I'm starting to get the hang of it... here's a gif of a digital sunflower that I've managed to figure out, basically it tracks the "sun" (the yellow ball), and the plates decrease in size the closer the ball is!
Finally something that combines my interests in computers and architecture!!!!
The rumors are finally proven to be true! Renzo Piano visited UPenn last Friday to give a short Q&A with the school, laying out what he thought was important for the new design building, and also answered questions from students. Needless to say, everyone is excited about the project, although most of us will not be here to use the new building, or even be affected by the current Meyerson Hall's demolition.
I have to say that I am very glad for the school's choice. Other than being a mega-star architect, Mr. Piano's projects of late have begun to look deeper into the relation between form and sustainability. His great eye for detail is also something that has allowed his designs to become very magnificant buildings as well. The High Museum in Atlanta, which was completed recently, even exibits the beginnings of parametric properties to derive design, that Penn is currently looking into.
Mr. Piano's seemed to be quite the scholarly person. I was particularly impressed by his acute sense of observation, which, I haven't seen in an architect in person for quite some time. Also worth mentioning is his good sense of humor.
The new design school for Penn is expected to be completed in 4 years. Before then, we will wait patiently for Mr. Piano's designs to emerge.
gary hack, dean of the school of design (left), with architect renzo piano (right)
OK, I'll admit that I've seen this video since october 2006 and it hasn't been until recently that I've realized how revolutionary this technology is. It's called multi-touch and it basically is a high-resolution, inexpensive, and scalable touch screen. The only thing is that it allows many fingers to touch the screen at once (as for its namesake). This technology was recently used in Apple's iPhone.
You should all see this demo by Jefferson Han from NYU, as he uses a relatively large display and demos a number of apps that interact with the multitouch technology. Yes, it is very much the software as much as the hardware, and it is certainly a result of the processing power and artificial intellegence technology increases in the past few years.
The significance is that this is the first time that humans are able to interact with the computer with zero-interface. It is probably the greatest innovation in this regard since the mouse-plus-GUI configuration of the 1980s.
I can certainly see that in a decade or so, architecture schools and firms will be replacing box-and-LCD machines with screens with multi-touch technology. Let's just hope that someone writes 3D modeling software for it!
So one thing that I truly don't understand about our (that is, Hong Kong) government. They keep on trying to come up with what they call "attractions" by pouring millions into projects that are kitche and cheesy at best, and on the other hand neglect the potential of existing, genuine buildings and places in the city.
I know I'm a little too late in writing this blog, but I can assure you that my tears for the Star Ferry were wept back earlier this year (ask my dad, he's witness). There is a certain purity in the architecture, not only because it's of a very modernist style, but also one of the few public spaces that aren't infested by mechanical air conditioning... and what happened to that? What happened to the government's promotion of green architecture? What happened to responsible spending by our government?
There is also no sense that the government wreck-ball the building and so savagely smash it in our landfills, as if it were a non-object. Why wasn't the building dismantled and stored for a while? And for that matter, what was the hurry to pull down the building in the first place? Doesn't it realize that this is a really bad publicity stunt that only credits the preservationists? what happened to the so-called 'politician' in government hill? what happened to Sir Donald's spin doctors?
I am truly disgusted by this whitewashing of Hong Kong's heritage by the government. There is a discerning trend of it trying to somehow deny that Hong Kong was once a colony, that once upon a time China was communist, that Hong Kong started from more-than-humble beginnings.
I am also really bothered when the Chinese talk about all their economic progress and forget of all the contributions that Hong Kong (and Taiwan) have made to the phenomenal development of China. We have done more than enough to deserve free access to the Chinese market, to have Chinese travel freely into Hong Kong. I am appalled when the Guangdong government so rudely speaks of Hong Kong, as if we were lesser beings. Who was it, anyway, that opened the first hotels in China? That trained its people what the heck capitalism was? Everything from production, quality control, financial instruments, to toilet seats, microwaves, and Mercedes-Benzes was brought in by Hong Kongers.
We owe the mainland nothing for asking for a bit of respect of who we are. Nothing.
And don't forget that behind all the so-called patriot's mouths, all of them drive foriegn cars, own foriegn passports, send their kids in schools in the UK or US, and travel to Aspen or the Alps every winter. These people are so hypocritical as to call Hong Kong people 'unpatriotic', whatever that's supposed to mean.
Hong Kong will thrive only if it is open. It will only thrive if the people's minds are global-oriented. Not (just) China-oriented. There is little wonder why we are beginning to lag behind even many second-tier Chinese cities-- we always try to second-guess what the Chinese government is thinking, and doubt on what is best for us. We don't understand that what is best for us is actually the best for China. It is the only way China will modernize. It is to become more encompassing to different people with different minds.
The Star Ferry and Queen's Pier are vital to our history: one is the place where the '67 Riots began, and the other was the embarkment point for colonial officials. Both are more than significant for Hong Kong's history, for left, center and right.
Let's hope that we've learned from China's bloodly and tear-wept 19th/20th century.
I'm inching closer to the holidays finally, and i can't believe that i'm about to claim survival first semester here at UPenn! I really like it here at penn... a lot of the work we do here is really inspiring especially having worked for a year.... the people here are really friendly and there's definately less hostile competition than i thought there would.
i'm also exciting to have published all three studio projects that i've done at portfolio.veuda.com .... another great place to see our work is penndesign.net, and rhett (my instructor) said that people have been hired from their work on the site before!
very excited that i'm going to toronto and maybe even quebec for the holiday, yes canada!
looking back going to china was definately the best choice i've ever made in my life.... i can see this as something that i've really taken the risk and actually got a lot out of... given that i really had nothing to lose in the first place... but it's helped me learn a lot about the country, and i feel that i've really gained a lot of experience that has been helpful here at school, and my view of life..... it's one of those moments where you suddenly realize what you want to do, and that you feel that passion again.
A tribute to Milton Friedman, one of the greatest economists of our time. Advocate of the free-economy, father of the Chicago School, and die-hard fan of Hong Kong.
After a year of adventure at China, meeting friends and family at San Francisco, Chicago, and Champaign, I arrive at Philadelphia on a rainy day-- quite an anticlimax mind you. Luckily it was sunny through the Labor Day weekend (which is a holiday over here in the US), and I've had time to stroll around campus and the city.
Though not as magnificant as Chicago-- I'm typing these words as I stare at my Chicago skyline poster with both pride and longing-- Philly's historic district and UPenn's campus both have a pleasant northeastern/Ivy League taste to it. I think I'll come to like the place.
I've prepared some photos of initial impressions of the place. Here.
This is a song I really like, I can still remember hearing Stephanie Sun live at a concert in Hong Kong. It was definately one of the greatest moments of my life.
I was really nice to be back. Somehow over the years I've never noticed the high humidity here. Maybe it has something to do with the fact that this time I stopped by in San Francisco for a week before heading to Chicago.
Champaign, and Chicago feels like my second home. I really like it over here... My friends are all here, and it was really nice to be back.
Obviously it was magnificant to get to chat with Matt again. Sort of the thing between architecture students not feeling embarassed/silly talking about buildings, architects, trusses with another person.
I came down to Champaign with Jesse on his new Civic sports car, which was pretty neat, and that evening I went to ICCF and saw Jessica. It was really nice to see her... I also met her roommate Emma.... It was nice. Jessica invited me back to CCCC and it was pleasant to have the chance to chat with everyone at church.
Later on in the weekend I met up with Mr and Mrs Spodek for dinner; Laurie and the rest of the arch people at Temple Buell Hall. Later on, Johnson, Sean, and three of Johnson's friends (cool people from Serbia, Germany, and France, respectively) had a dinner and really good-atmosphere place in Urbana. In a nutshell, I met a lot of friends.
It was interesting talking to people of my year in China. It was, concisely, an "adventure"; and China really felt like "wild wild West". It's hard to describe. You have to see it to believe it.
It's hard to put it in words, but I feel like I'll be around in Champaign often. At least my heart will drift back.
It is unbearably hot in Hong Kong. I guess the good thing is that we have had fresh air and blue skies lately. It's such a nice city when there's no air pollution blowing in from China.
Because of school requirements, I'll be getting a macbook pro, instead of the macbook that I was wishing for before. It's unfortunate because the macbook is a much better deal (essentially paying $1000 more for a better graphics card, a larger screen, and a backlit keyboard), but I'm definately not complaining since i'm still getting a new mac.
I just came back from Taipei last week. It's a pretty nice city, sort of a mix between Tokyo and Shanghai, minus the big bustling city feeling. Taipei's more of a mid-sized city. the subway was pretty good, very clean, and very Japanese (i.e. 2 rows of handles in carriages, generally white-tiled stations, extremely clean)
I was most impressed by the bookstores. My mom and I managed to visit 3 of the Eslite (誠品) bookstores, including the 24-hour one at the Xinyi district near Taipei 101. Very very nice.
Taipei 101 was OK. It didn't surprise me as any better/worse than I imagined from looking at the photos. It's sort of similar to IFC in hong kong where there's a giant shopping mall at the base of the building, except that IFC seems a lot more people friendly. I still maintain that Taipei 101 is really ugly (albeit, impressively tall). However, I have to say that it is sort of sad to see the tower only half-occupied (half of the lights are off during the night/no visible sign of activity). They have a huge PageOne in the shopping center though. The food court's also really really nice. Otherwise there's nothing much special in the shopping mall.
Of course, who goes to Taipei for its shopping malls?
Other than the bookstore, my mom and I also made the pilgrimage to the famous Din Tai Fung (鼎泰豐), a well-known eatery of Chinese dumplings. I have to say it was really really good, the skin was tender and just the right thickness. It was certainly better than the other Dingtaifung branches I've been to in China. We also went to a restaurant called "Green Leaf" 青葉, also a well known eatery of Taiwanese food. The food a pretty nice and the store was in a quaint neighborhood.
Taipei's pretty nice. It's a city you can stroll leisurely without bumping into too many people, and everything's at a more human-pace. Although it's not the sort of city I would want to live in (not enough hustle and bustle, and hot), it's a nice place to fly to once in a while to visit the bookstores.
In a few hours our city's Legislative Council will vote for the approval of a $5.1 billion package for funding of the
new government headquarters at Tamar. Much seen as a mere formality at this point, we expect the package to
pass without much fanfare, as both the pro-Beijing groups, as well as the Democratic Party have signaled support
over the past few weeks. While we believe the scope of funding to be way too generous, we see the Tamar project
as the only method for Sir Tsang to maneuver murky political waters, if you will, a check mark on the score card to
allow him another term next year, that is, at the expense of taxpayers' dollars. The ill-structured political system
of our city has forced the Chief Executive to be accountable to the central government, and not the citizens that it
governs. In that sense, it is reasonable to show some sympathy for the CE and his tendency for lavish spending.
However, politics put aside, there is no reason for the government to move its headquarters, let alone relocate
it to such a prime location, which otherwise would have been better utilized. First, does it not sound illogical
that a government, whose size has decreased from 190,000 during the handover, to the present 160,000, need
more space? Even if the new premises shall translate into cost savings from renting out office space throughout
Central, would it necessarily cost $5.1 billion? Taken into consideration that the project now only encompasses
the Chief Executive's office, the legislature, and high-level offices, the government would still continue to rent
out office space in the Central district after spending billions on a new building!
Secondly, it is a grave waste of resources for the government to heave such a valuable resource for itself
(i.e. the value of the Tamar site itself, as well as the money used to build the new buildings). The models
and renderings so far tell us nothing of the project; other than the building's height, there are no concrete
guidelines to limit the size of the building, the amount of greenery, and the quality of the greenery (i.e. I
personally prefer large quantities of trees and grass, than bushes that are fenced off from the public). In
this perspective, the legislature is essentially authorizing the use of $5.1 billion plus the price of the site,
for an unknown product.
Thirdly, I must voice skepticism toward the unwillingness of the government to elaborate upon the future of
Government Hill. Government Hill is one of the greatest architectural resources in Hong Kong, not because
of its buildings, but because the entire neighborhood, Battery path, the existing government offices (less the
fence surrounding it), St Johns, and the Court of Final Appeal create one of the most pristine and tranquil spots
in our business district. People come here for lunch, they sit here, they walk along Battery path to get some
fresh air. It isn't about certain trees, it the entire path, the lack of density that make this essentially an urban
walk and experience. That put aside, the neighborhood is an imprint of our Colonial past, whether you like it or
not, it belongs to the Hong Kong people. We have already decided to pull down Wan Chai Market, Central Market,
Queens Pier, and the Star Ferry; in the past we pulled down architectural jewels such as the General Post Office
and the Tsim Sha Tsui Railway Station; I urge that we do not repeat our mistakes. Government Hill is a great
example of what a small government ought to be: discreet and human scale. The full preservation of the
neighborhood is essential to the quality of our citizens.
At the same time, our government is proposing a colossal mammoth that lacks human scale, and, looking at
the model, is no different from any government headquarters project in China or any authoritarian regime. For
these reasons alone, I feel that the Civic Party's concerns are fully justified.
I understand that the Tamar project is inevitable. Donald Tsang is an administrator that shall do much good to
the city. If this is essential for his tenure, then we have no choice but to commit little sin in order to bring about
greater good. In that light, it is necessary to ask for terms in order to limit the projects collateral damage: draw
up guidelines to limit building on Tamar; sell the Murray Building site to subsidize the project; skim down the
budget; elaborate on the quantity and quality of greenery on Tamar; fully preserve Government Hill; and
renovate the existing government headquarters in order to maximize its use.
As for the building design, the government's suggestion of design-build is in serious contradiction with the fat
budget that it has proposed. Design-build is done to ensure maximum cost savings and efficiency; at the same
time the government is proposing a $5.1 billion budget: isn't there something strange here? Or does our
government have some sort of hand-eye coordination problem?
I propose that the Tamar project be an open competition, maximize the transparency by commissioning a board
of architects and urban planners to oversee the competition and shortlist its applicants, set strict sustainability
guidelines for the building's design, and include a public consultation process that involves simple, and
easy-to-understand questionnaires to raise specific statistical support shall a final design be chosen.
The world has many great examples of government buildings. Price is not necessarily the greatest issue in the
process. Tokyo, London, and Chicago have their city halls located in prime real estate. Even as the buildings have
come as a result of great financial cost, the spaces created have become public squares for community performances,
fun fairs, and lunchtime rest areas. All of these projects are the result of a process. At this point, our government
has not given us guidelines of the process that it envisions; it has not shown us how the money shall be used, and
where the checks and balances are. Whether we trust the government or not has nothing to do with our stance
toward funding for Tamar, but it is most certainly crucial that we have written obligations in return for our
authorization for the use of funds.
PCCW (0008), which controls what is formerly known as Hongkong Telecom, has been undergoing a soap-opera
like drama this week as Australia's Macquarie Bank and US-based Newbridge Capital have been said to be fighting
over the sale of the company. The entire situation is bizarre to begin with, as Mr Richard Li's generally
money-losing business would attract investors of trust funds.
Logically speaking, the only business that would have interest in PCCW ought to be a company looking to
build its assets further in the respective industries, either eyeing Mr Li's telecom network, or its NOW cable
TV service. As assets themselves, neither of them alone are growth opportunities: Hong Kong's overly
deregulated fixed-line telco industry is dwindling as mobile and IP-based communications are becoming
increasingly popular; at the same time cable TV service in Hong Kong is already saturated, and content
sales to the mainland are highly regulated thus pose no easy market. At the same time, one cannot help but
ask himself why a fund manager would be willing to buy into a money-losing business with a bleak future.
Why would one be so lame as to do it at the expense of face-conscious Chinese stakeholders?
It makes no sense.
So it is more than obvious that Mr Richard Li is trying to create ripples on his little fish pond by using a surf-maker.
Playing with speculation, Mr Li is poised to maximize the sale price of his shares, at the same time get rid of a
liability. Strictly attaining to business, there is nothing legally wrong with the transaction, but it is sort of
appalling for us poor folks to see rich kids spend so lavishly, lose a bet, and still exit from the game at the
expense of so many.
So who is the black knight in the background? The first in the list would be Singtel. Having (wittingly) lost the
original bid for HKT in the telco days, it has been flush with cash and so snapping up telco assets throughout
the region. Adding PCCW would only add to their strength. But seeing Vodaphone spin off their Japanese and
US assets, we know that telco is not necessarily a "bigger-the-better" industry.
Knowing the conspiracy-prone Chinese partners of PCCW, who some claim represents Beijing's official stance
(everyone claims to represent Beijing nowadays), they would try their best to either take the matter into their own
hands, or persuade a Hong Kong partner to swallow this big pill. And who would that be? Yup, that's right, it's
Mr Li Senior himself.
The latter situation, however intriguing, it very unlikely to happen: The merger would never come to fruition
since it would mean the monopoly of fix-line business for Hutch, which the government would never approve.
But wait, aren't there two funds fighting over the bid? Who's behind all this?
And why has PCCW been doing this start-stop nonsense with its stock trading? Why has it been suspended
3 times in the past 4 days? Why are there all these rumors of a $6.30 offer price per share?
A very nice pat in the back Richard, for using it as a way to force a better offer! I don't know if you behind the
price rumor mills, but if you are you deserve a place in politics!
The Financial Times claims that the sale may go for as much as $6.30 per share. Wait, that�s a $1.5
premium over it's closing price last week! And would I pay for a 30% premium to own a couple of copper
(or glass) cables? No. That is, unless a) it would grow my business by consolidating competition; or, b)
my client is telling me to do so to force the real buyer to reveal himself!
So, it remains a question of whether this transaction would close so easily. Even if Richard Li is strictly
business, the Chinese aren't idiots, they see this as a sale of national security (why, I don�t know), at the
same time likely losers in control of PCCW. As much as I have reservations toward Richard Li as a businessman,
I must applaud him for having the guts to execute business tactics, at the expense of strategic partners and
already-angry shareholders.
One of our clients in Beijing was a major state-owned enterprise tightly related to the PLA, which a well-informed
friend of mine later told me, was the only company in the country legally allowed to both import and export firearms.
Good government relations, ample political power, and an almost inexhaustible checkbook have allowed the
company to be a huge spender in construction. Several years ago the company even paid a hefty premium for
3 bronze head statues that were auctioned off in Hong Kong. The heads were presumably housed in the Yuan
Ming Yuan Imperial Villas, but sacked and taken by European forces in the turn of the last century.
Anyways, we were escorted from Beijing Capital Airport to an American suburb-like compound (our clients
claimed it to be the first of its kind in China, built in the 80s). There we met one of the company�s managers,
a six-foot, tough-build, chain-smoking, cursing, and sinister old bag. Throughout our hour-long meeting he went
from criticizing another project of ours, to talking about the lavish spending of some of his daughter's Chinese
classmates in England. In between he managed to briefly explain to us the point of our visit, a cultural hub
facility in the environs of the Chinese capital.
That is one of the things you learn from Chinese meetings. The Chinese like to hold these long, pointless
meeting to test if you are patient enough as partners. They test your endurance in order to judge if you are
trustworthy. If you're unlucky, alcohol is used in the torture process.
It is another cultural trait of them to boast their "credentials", their lavish spending (whether it be at some
poor Chinese farmer's expense), or some unknown official praising their work, or how much they spent on their
new car. They're clothed in Versaces, LV, Lacoste, Armani, you name it. They're the one time when one
realize that it is possible to wear designer clothes and have poor attire and manners at the
same time.
It is a cultural of boasters and bull.
The good news is that, over time, you become immune to the garbage talk and bad taste. You begin to
develop this amazing ability to summarize a lengthy, hour-long meeting into a just couple of sentences.
The general was quite a strange guy though. Tough on the outside, I was shocked when he asked my big boss
to take a bath with him the next day. Apparently, the general would ask his target companion (in this case, my
big boss) to prepare a warm bubble bath for him. Then, presumably, invite his companion to share the tub with him.
Weird. Very weird. The general is definitely a good case study for psycho-analysis.
Nonetheless, it was nice to have a chance to see Tiananmen Square and the Forbidden City. I'm planning to visit
Beijing next week. Beijing is definitely my favorite city in China.
Today we shall take a bit of a tangent and discus one of my most avid interests-- money management.
The world economy of late has been into much of a roller coaster ride. Although my speciality is in Hong Kong/China stocks and economy,
it is necessary that we discuss the macroeconomic fundamentals of the US.
Given the recent distrust between the Fed (Ben Bernake) and the market, it wouldn't be surprising (actually, increasingly worrying) that
Dr Bernake may overreact to quell signs of regulatory weakness of the Fed's newest chair. Given the latest, worse-than-expected employment
figures, in addition to the increased labor pool post-graduation season, any sudden halt in monetary policy may be catastrophic. The
recent 200-point drop in the Dow offer news of rising interest rates by the end of the month is good evidence of this.
A slowdown in the US economy is inevitable. The real question lies as to whether it would be a gentle landing
(good news) or a sudden stop (bad news). Over reacting on interest rates would likely stop housing purchases that have amounted over the
"boom" that has accumulated over the past few years. While a drop of 5-10% is tolerable (indeed, would not affect the overall economy), a drop beyond
would have significant impact in the pockets of citizens.
We should view the economy as a cycle, like the seasons. The cycle of nature tells us that summer arrives in an annual basis. At the same
time winter occurs in a cycle. On top of that you have larger cycles: over a period of decades certain summers might be warmer, or winters colder.
These may be delayed but are not stoppable. Likewise, the lowering of interest rates after September 11th has artificially propped up the economy,
which ought have been recycling itself after the internet bubble. In a way we have delayed an all out recession, but that has only created a more
imminent threat over the forseeable future.
The political processes have certainly not helped the natural cycle of the economy. Not only because of 9-11, the reelection bid of the Republicans,
but also a fallout of overspending by the government toward the so-called "war on terrorism". Without discussing the war on terror as a geopolitical
tool, from the prime viewpoint of the economy, the war has created a black hole of billions for the government. Not only has this eliminated the budget
surplus from the Clinton administration, but also made the United States more debt ridden in its history.
It is true that the stability of the United States economy is supported by the central banks of Japan, China, Taiwan, Korea, Hong Kong etc.
In other words, these East Asian nations are financing the US spending spree.
While the credibility of the US remains fairly high compared to other economies, waning consumer demand would inevitably convince bankers to put
their eggs in other baskets. In order to support the nation's massive budget deficit, Dr Bernake would have to raise interest rates, slowing
consumer spending further. The only way of stopping this nagative downward spiral would be to A) cut (not just cap) government spending;
B) cut costs of operation in the US to attract foriegn investment; C) propel the US economy into a new industry which the world relies on (like
the concept of a "killer product" in business terms).
Option A is unlikely as long as the US remains in Irag, and takes such cost inefficient ways of anti-terrorism spending. Instead, the Bush
administration, for its remaining 2 years, ought to move toward a more modest, less agressive foriegn policy. Improving relations with the
west of the world would, over the long term, allow overhead costs of occupation be spread, or even eventually cut. While this scenario is
unlikely, at least the US government has realized that it cannot repeat its mistake with Iran.
Option B. Recent support/debate concerning illegal immigration is sound proof that the government is committed to remain competitive in the world market.
As other countries contine to increase productivity, the US sees the need to legitimize a szable labor force that can do labor intensive (and un-mechanizable)
work. Personally, I think that the talent pool in the US is one of the best in the world. In other words, the US is still highly competitive.
The only worry is the rice of protectionism. The CNOOC-UNOCAL bid by China, as well as the Dubai Ports-P&O deal are both worryingly irrational signs of how isolationist
US policy makers and voters. While the problem ought to have been the easiest to solve (an impartial system of takeovers), it has become the US's most
potential weakness.
Option C. R&D remains high amongst US companies. While the issuance of dividends (such as that of Microsoft) cause some to worry, I think the incident(s)
are isolated and have less to do with overall market sentiment toward reinvestment than stock revitalization. But the rest of the world isn't sitting on its
bottom to wait. Singapore and South Korea have pro-active governments that are supporting reasearch that may potentially surpass the capabilities of
the US. Indeed, government incentives, a talented work force, and lowering of legalistic and moral barriers have given investors more choice over the US.
In this field, trivial legal barriers, moral debate, and corporate monopoly/greed (as seen in the energy sector), are much to blame for the future demise of the US economy.
Gold prices have, in the past few months, set decade-long highs. Such a situation has been unseen since the 70s. With this analysis, the recent fall of
gold
prices have signified that the bullion's bull market stage 2 has most likely ended, meaning that we would encounter(ing) a period fluctuation in the short
term.
The 70s was also a period when oil prices skyrocketed (the Oil Crisis), and when the dollar depreciated uncontrolably. Gold hit an all-time high of about
$800
at that time. While the rise of gold can be explained because it is an alternative to the dollar (as a standard currency), would gold's rise signify the
depreciation
of the dollar, and thus force a rise of interest rates? Or have I gotten my priorities wrong by making it seem like the tail's wagging the dog?
Nonetheless, it is necessary to raise interest rates in order to support the waning dollar. Recent signals of raising interest rates have caused gold prices to
puncture below the $630 support levels. It is likely that the fluctuation reflects a longer-term trend in gold, so prices in the short term may fall around the
$560-$580 range (chart).
I very rarely talk about religion, so I would make this concise.
While talking with my collegue today we bumped into the issue of religion. My friend was curious as to why/how I became a Christian. Actually that was a pretty good
question because thinking about it I really don't know what event actually enlightened me. I guess in the past my testimonies involved things like talking
in the shower, how I overcame difficulties, etc etc. Really, looking back at it there isn't a single or a group of incidents that evangelized me. Certainly
my friends were a great part in the process, but I think that religion seeps into you slowly. As you understand more about the world, whether it be
how people live in society, art, and to empirical things like science, mathematics, you slowly realize that God definately exists (think about it, we won't
need to come up with weird theories like ether, and solve the 90% mysterious mass that exists in the universe!). Furthermore, God isn't really an issue
of proof/disproof. It isn't about codes hidden in the Bible (as my school pastor once said, why would God want to hide secrets from us?). It has everything
to do with the elegance of the universe as a construct, and as human beings, our inner virtuous state of mind.
I think it's OK if you don't believe in any religion in your 20s. Nobody is "weird" or "misinformed" if they are indifferent to religion as youth.
Believing is a process, it is like a romantic relationship. One falls
and stumbles along the way, and the outcome is believing (or marriage, to carry the metaphor). The end is important, but not the point. The process
builds the foundation to which one's faith is set upon, and its by-products over time carry far more importance than any actual incident in time.
In a way, religion and romance have one thing in common, and that is love.
Cathay Pacific (0293.hk) and 5 other related stocks were suspended from the Hong Kong Stock Exchange Monday, sources say that a merger between itself and
the city's second largest carrier, Dragonair, is imminent. The merger would involve a structural reorganization of British (Swire) and Chinese (CITIC, etc)
parties, as well as some sort of strategic alliance between Cathay and Air China, China's flag carrier. This signifies that Cathay Pacific would finally be
able to regain the much vied China routes. With oil prices, over the mid-term set to decline (probably to around $50 per barrel), it would definately be
good news for Hong Kong's flag carrier. The stock price before suspension was $12.95, near a low point for the entire year. The news is definately good for
Cathay in the long term, with mid-term target price of +15%, which makes it at around $14~15. Short term is still unknown (ie depends on the details). Any
transaction involves a lot of cash, and a buy out from Cathay would mean large one-time costs, and reissuance of stocks. Fluctuations of oil prices may
further pressure the stock price down in the short term, post-suspension. Again, it depends on the merger details. Until then we'll wait for negotiations
to conclude.
Well, I haven't really seen the new MacBook yet, but I'm extremely excited
about the new MacBook. It seems like just the right size (I really enjoyed using my iBook, until the graphics card broke down on me).
It's as thin as the Titanium I'm using right now, and it's actually pretty inexpensive considering how highly-powered it is. I wasn't
expecting such high-speed chips, and not even the SuperDrive option.
I consider myself a pretty prudent money-saver.... until, of course, I'm compelled to get myself new Mac toys.... :P
Well, with only one month left in Shenzhen I feel that I'm obliged to write something about it. Strangely I think that I actually
might miss China, quite a lot too.
I just finished reading a book called One Billion Customers: Lessons from the front lines of doing Business
in China, by James McGregor. It is hands-down one of the best books on China that I've ever read. The thing is that it doesn't go to too much
technicals, so it suits very well pretty much anybody who actually wants/is/will do business in China, anyone who's interested in China in general,
and anyone who's interested in economics, people behaviour, and history. One of the greatest incentives in reading the book is the ability to
look into many high-profile business deals that have proliferated in the news over the years, much through a well-researched, anecdote-like
narrative. This way the author has made the otherwise caste-specific book into an accessible bestseller.
There are few numbers in the book other than the stats that actually count, and it was such a pleasant read that I actually had
trouble putting the book down during the week-long read. It is highly-recommended to any regular China Series reader.
It would have been very very very unlikely that I would have headed to Guiyang, Guizhou if it were not
for a business day-trip for what would likely be my last assignment while in China. I have to say that it was
probably (and interestingly) one of the most anticipated trips this year.
Set in south-western China, it is one of the poorest provinces of the country. Landlocked as it is, it's
main industries are aluminum, precious metal mining, coal, and tobacco. Of course, to have had such a short
trip it was hard to see any signs of poverty in the city, especially as the seat and largest city in the
province.
I have to say that I was quite impressed with the city. Unlike Beijing, it doesn't have many
historical or even natural sites of interest (within the city). I suspect it was my pre-travel impression
that the city would show many signs of backwardness, but almost startled the hustle and bustle of the city.
Still, the city's apparent development and receptiveness to western brands was not as impressive as the
feeling of development and a brighter future throughout the city. This is one of the rare occurances that I've
felt in China, as first-tier cities such as Beijing and Shanghai are becoming economically-mature (relatively-speaking), and
second-tier cities such as Xi'an and Changsha begin to develop to its critical mass, you truly feel third-tier cities such as Guiyang
are one of the best investment opportunities.
ve.
From Left to Right: Downtown Guiyang | An underground Walmart: under People's Square and ironically facing a giant Mao statue | Tianxiang Pavilion, a former school of the Ming Dynasty
On February 21st, 2006, China Daily reported that the former spokesman to UN secretary-general Kofi Annan,
Frederik Eckhard, would be teaching as a faculty member in Zhejiang University in Hangzhou, China.
No offense, as I think that it is great news that our fellow Chinese students will become exposed to an
"insider" to world politics, and in fact Zhejiang University is known in the country as one of its top
institutions. However, as the role of tertiary education is becoming a hot topic in Hong Kong and throughout
East Asia, I think that it's worth me to express my two-cent's worth of comments on the issue.
Ask any professor who studies East Asian society and they would tell you that while secondary education
is ruthlessly tough, tertiary education is relatively easy, and some even say impossible to fail.
The philosophy of commanding discipline while young inherently has no problems, but why, may I ask,
would countries like China not sport top-of-the-line researchers, scientists, philosophers (modern, not
Confucius or Lao Tzu), and architects within its nation's boundaries? Surely the time-and-again mentioned
fact that East Asians score well in secondary school math and science scores must have some in-roads to the
advancement of knowledge? Certainly the expertise would have trickled-into society by now.
Then we turn the table to another discipline of personal affection: history. Recently the closure of the Chinese
weekly Bingdian (Ice Point) spurred outrage in China, Hong Kong, and overseas media. The crisis began
with an article written by Zhongshan University professor Yun Wei-Shi, with criticisms of the 19th century
Boxer Rebellion, much revered by the Chinese Government as a symbol of patriotism, but in fact nothing but
hoards of farmers of the late Qing Dynasty who fanatically murdered and burnt in order to rid China of the
"foreign barbarians". Only later to be suppressed by the European, American and Japanese armies under Qing consent,
it was a rather brutal chapter in Chinese history.
Of course, the article, later republished in Hong Kong's Ming Pao, briefly touched sensitive issues such as the
Cultural Revolution, which was probably the main reason why Ice Point was ordered a closure by the Chinese
Censor's Bureau. It was allowed to resume publication after its editor and management were sacked. The original
article was renounced by other "scholars" in Ice Point's republication issue.
Preposterous, it is, that such a historical issue can be of imminent threat to the Chinese Government.
But this episode precisely exhibits the problems of education in East Asia, whether it is in China, Hong Kong,
or even Japan. If a kid said that he wanted to become the Chief Executive of Hong Kong when he grew up, the
typical reaction would be "good that you have ambitions"; recently, when a Legislative Council member told the
press that he and his party aims to one day become the ruling party in Hong Kong, he was immediately ridiculed by
conservatives as childish!
Superimpose this with the Icing Point incident, and it begs the question: does the Chinese Government,
or moreover, the Chinese culture, allow personalities to challenge authority? Is there tolerance to different
opinion?
I remember my first lecture for my American History Until the Civil War class. The professor, Kristen
Hogenson stated a very important principle in her instruction: that history was more about the analysis of facts
and viewpoints, in order to foster a hypothesis/conclusion, and less about politically correct "yes men".
She prudently exhibited this spirit of analytical thinking towards previously undisputed issues such as the purity
of Boston Puritans, and the happenings at the Alamo. Sure, such predominantly singular views of history exist
everywhere, and media bodies like of Disney have distorted history through media (as seen in "Remember the Alamo").
Differing views of history, as shown by Professor Hogensen, only promote independent and creative thinking
amongst our college graduates. It is undisputable of its importance towards the respect of knowledge, and
advancement in human thinking. The world cannot afford to lose a Galileo, Da Vinci, or Martin Luther of the modern
day.
More thought needs to be given to the role of tertiary education: of course, how it is executed is always an
issue under debate. Regardless, the nurture of today's children will become the basis of pillars that serve our
society in the future. Convection Chinese wisdom promotes the mass-production of "followers", while it is of
better interest to allow the growth of independent thinkers.
As for those commentators going "Non, non, non", for those who stress the nation-state over the diversity of
opinion, it is inevitable that one is ultimately confronted with a very touchy subject: the mandate of governance.
This would likely be the root to political skepticism toward China.
The reason that the Chinese conservatives are fretting about the issue of free press is because they see it as an
ultimate threat to their authority: that free press will one day become the hole on the hull of their ship.
From this we see a lack of self-confidence amongst these petty few that realize the deteriorating
(or at least trend-deteriorating) credibility to its mandate over the nations sovereignty. Back in the days of the
Chinese Empire, the Heavens endorsed such mandate upon the Emperor. Shall the Emperor show inability to rule,
it would be the sign for its peoples to renounce its mandate, and begin a new dynasty. In consequence, the
Emperor maintains its mandate through virtue towards its people.
The current ruling party won its right to rule as a third solution over the deteriorating (actually, then already
non-existent) Qing monarchy, and the Nationalists (rather weak, with not much visible-presence but a bunch of
power-hungry warlords). Revolution-after-revolution, Communist purges and the destruction and murder of Chinese
culture into anarchy, the party sought to win-back its legitimacy to the mandate through economic reform,
pulling many out of poverty, and transitioning into an economic powerhouse as never seen before.
Now that its economy is set on course, many ask what the solution to the next legitimate mandate is for China.
I think that the solution is obvious, as popular mandate, as a political system, has worked in many
countries. There is certainly much validity to applying it, and there is no reason why China and Chinese are of
any difference to the rest of the world. If the British, Canadians, Iraqis and Palestinians can do it, it ought
to be pretty good a solution! Of course there are still many steps toward popular mandate, but ultimately it
would occur to everyone that it is the simplest and best solution.
So it is pretty obvious to the reasons for my reactions upon hearing the news of Mr Eckhart and Zhejiang
University ("how would he possibly be able to speak freely?" "Does a celebrity make a university good?"
"Are its independence and credibility more important?"). With the issue of Icing Point, one is even more
suspicious of the magnitude of a free hand for our fellow scholars in China. Then, if China really wishes to jump
out of its infinite loop, there is need for a more whole-hearted change in mentality of its peoples. There is
always need for more respect for those who think different.
I have been very fortunate to have had the chance to travel a bit for business purposes. Recently I was able to visit Xi'an, the ancient capital of China (in fact, one
of the most endured seats to the government in the history of the Dynasties). Of the 8-hour whirlwind tour of the city, 3 hours were spent on sites, and we managed
to see its most famous cultural relics, leaving only the Terracotta Warriors for a future visit.
Left: The Wild Goose Pagoda, built during the Tang Dynasty (618-907 AD), one of the finest architectural works of that period | Right: Our site, 1 km south of the pagoda
Left: The bell tower, of the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644 AD), is located at the center of the city
Right: The drum tower, west of the bell tower
Left: A well-preserved and very quaint street, near the drum tower | Right: Built during the Ming Dynasty, the Xian wall is one of the best surviving city walls in the world
Happy Lunar New Year to everybody.... it's again the end of a long holiday and i'm all recharg'd up and ready to get back to work.... 4 more months to go and i'll be packin' up to get back to the states. i guess it's been quite a nice holiday so far, as i'be been able to get plenty of family time, as well as relaxation in coffee shops, book stores, the movies and around hk in general... heard news of the media center mac coming up in a couple of months,... and i can't wait since it seems the most attractive of of all upcoming intel macs.... and since i've just received a nice fat bonus i should be able to afford a little bit of something.... maybe that or a PSP would be nice..
went to lamma island yesterday... by the way, if you're planning to go to lamma island some time soon you should check out the new windmill out there (well, that's really a romantization, since it's technically an electric wind turbine)... nonetheless it's very impressive, especially as it is set on the top of the lush green hills amidst the great blue sea..
Few artists of our time are able to capture the vibrancy and positive attitude as Singaporean
singer Stefanie Sun Yan-Zi. Making her third appearance at the Hong Kong Coliseum within half a
year, she has once again been able to capture the crowd with great satisfaction.
Her rather simple but well-designed stage once again reflects upon Stefanie's no-frills
approach to her work. Fashion-wise, she maintains the short, red hairstyle as seen in her
latest album A Perfect Day (). However, I must say that I prefer her wardrobe of tank tops
and jeans to the yellow dress she wore during her performance of Wo Yao de Xing Fu ().
Nonetheless, the performance was much more than expected, with exceptional interpretations of
Wo Yao de Xing Fu (), Lu Guang (), and Silent Al These Years.
Cai Jian-Ya, Lam Yut-Fung, and Andy Lau made guest appearances, each performing one song
while Stefanie was at backstage changing outfits. While all of the guests were able to capture the
crowd, their performances were not very startling. Incidentally, when Andy Lau appeared, the crowd went
wild, with fans storming the front lines to catch a glimpse of him up-front. His singing was slightly
disappointing, although I later learned that Andy had been with director Ang Lee at the premier for Brokeback
Mountain before arriving at the Coliseum.
A competent singer as Stefanie Sun, she sang with great thrust, and, surprisingly, a great ability to dance.
Her proteges on the dance floor also did a well-done job, well-choreographed dances and not-so-bad outfits.
Personally, it was great to be able to experience two touching points within the performance.
The first was Wo Yao de Xing Fu (). Leading into the song with a simple, but very cool
statement of the name, the melody was led by her and two others on the piano. Her rich voice added to the
coolness of having three full-size pianos on stage. The only thing that would have made it better would have
been if she wore a tank top with jeans.
Left: The Artist performs Wo Yao de Xing Fu () - Right: Audience at the Coliseum
Stefanie's health has been a rather well-covered issue amongst the press for many months.
In fact she had to catch breath after singing Lu Guang, and, surprisingly, was given a Wrightean
chair on the middle of the stage to sit on. With such a move (or lack thereof), she was able to introduce the song Silent All These Years, a song
that greatly captured my attention in her album . Again, it was performed with great coolness and control.
In general, Stephanie Sun's latest concert was very pleasing.
While the guest appearances were rather unexpected, her performance still was the most rewarding experience of
the evening. While she is unlikely to perform again for some time, I look forward to see her again at the
Coliseum.
Work has been rather busy the past month. So today I'll tune in to more casual topics to get
the stress out of my system.
I was looking through the South China Morning Post last Friday, to find out that a
teacher of mine, Mr Micheal Rippon, had passed away two years ago. I later learned that he
had been suffering from a long-term illness. Mr Rippon was the head of the school choir at my
school, Yew Chung International School, while I was a choir member in primary school. I still remember
his strong voice and the fun I had throughout our events in the school, Hong Kong, and later on a choir
tour to Shanghai. I still remember that I was one of the three selected to perform with him at a bar near
Lan Kwai Fong (although it never realized).
I take this chance to express my most heartfelt thanks for Mr Rippon's time and work in our choir.
* * *
With the MacWorld expo over, and the unveiling of the new intel-based iMac and MacBook Pro,
I must say that I am rather disappointed with the relative lack of significant announcements during
the event. I do speculate however, that Apply will rolling out a new widescreen iBook (the "MacBook"?),
as well as a media-center iMac.
* * *
Cafe Luna
Cafe Luna offers an exquisite palette of American, French, Spanish and Italian dishes in a rather
bistro-esque setting. A person like myself, who enjoys good food in small quantities would adore
the bistro, as it is one of the few of its kind (if not the only) in campustown, Champaign,
Illinois, USA.
Located along the busy intersection of Green and Fourth, Cafe Luna is located in a rather
unpronounced brick building, half a story above grade. Despite being a rather small eatery,
probably only able to serve a dozen tables at any given moment, the setting is intimate and
very cosmopolitan. For this I must say that the owner? have done a great job in its location,
as most restaurants in the area are fast-food cafeteria-style settings, more in tune with the
average perception of the campus eatery. Thus, Caf?Luna is a great place to eat, whether it
is for your date, friend, or family. For the four months between learning of the bistro, until
my graduation from the school, I had already eaten there at least 4 times: twice with my
roommate and his family, once with a faculty friend, and once with a date!
As for the menu, Cafe Luna offers an exquisite, precise, and well-balanced palette.
It is best known for its tapas during the evenings, of which I highly recommend the artichoke,
which is carved, sliced, and dipped into Swiss cheese, molten into the shell of the artichoke that
produced it. The cheese is well selected, with strong, pungent aroma; the artichokes themselves
very fresh and fine; the combination of the two, magnificent.
The steaks served in the bistro, for my taste, rather toward the rare-side when ordering for
"medium-rare". Hence be prepared for that when ordering. Despite the slight difference in
interpretation of preparation, the beef is tender, and the sides well composed and exhibited,
considering the bistro? location within a campus setting.
As for wines, it is here where I was introduced to the Beaujolais-Villages, and since then become
addicted to it. As I cannot call myself a wine connoisseur, I can only say that Caf?Luna has a
wine cellar suited for my tastes.
Cafe Luna offers a great environment for selected dishes, which would have otherwise not been
offered in the area. It is a great place to bring your date or family on special occasions.
For faculty, a good place to go to once in a while, although there are similar eateries in both
downtown Champaign and Urbana. Nonetheless, I give a pat in the back for the owner? bravery to
open such a restaurant in campus.
As we have mentioned earlier, other countries have no ability to compete with developed
countries and their dumping of agricultural produce at the developing world. The latest
row between the US and EU, each pointing fingers at one another and promoting themselves
as philanthropic angels.
They have first offered to cease food-based aid and instead offer monetary support to nations
in need. Knowing this, we should ask ourselves: is that the best way to solve the problem?
Of course, the monetary offers most likely will have strings attached, for instance, the
contributors will have a say in how the many is spent, US dollars for US products, Euros for
European produce. If this is so, the monetary aid is a brute brush of colors with little substance.
If the poorer nations do have a say in how the money is spent, it is necessary that NGOs participate
to offer advice on how to improve farming methods for its farmers, and the development of small,
home-grown industries that produce according to local traditions and talents. This model has argueably
been more preferable as I have leant in my geography class in grade 8.
Yesterday our farmer friends from Korea staged a protest that inevitably touched many hearts in Hong Kong.
Between Victoria Park and the Wan Chai North, a distance of over a mile, they got on their knees and kow-towed
for every 3 steps they took--a similar approach of principle exhibited by pilgrims to the Potala Palace in Tibet.
The few days of the Ministerial Meeting in Hong Kong have been a valuable lesson for many Hong Kongers,
of the relation between politics and economy in developing countries, as well as an educational opportunity
to learn about the effects that globalization may have in these places and their peasants.
Regardless of whether you were in the front line or behind the TV set, I believe that every Hong Konger
has undergone an evolution of mentality, much in sympathy toward the protesters, especially the farmers from Korea.
Certainly, their strength and unbelievable discipline are things that we as citizens of "Asia's World City"
should learn from. Their restraint and matter of principle stand in stark contrast to the many new rich: the
greedy, impolite, and uncultured people in Mainland China.
I think, for the 257 million dollars spend by the government, the least that our taxpaying,
child-bearning middle class citizens can do is to bring our children to Victoria Park and teach our
youngsters--and ourselves--of this global phenomenon that will inevitably have great consequences in
our country in the near future.
Halfway through the biannual WTO ministerial meetings, it is assumed that the impasse between the industrial rich and poor are not to thaw anytime soon.
To be honest, the thinking of the Hong Kong government toward the WTO is superficial and mediocre at best. For starters, Hong Kong's success in thus far
has nothing to do with the WTO. In fact, if the world was really to be all "free trade" A) Hong Kong would be obsolete, and B) the respective government
would deflate their currencies in order to artificially improve its exports. The establishment of the WTO in 1995 was to replace the various international
trade treaties in order to regulate trade. Most importantly, as a platform to settle disputes in a "civilized" manner, and not to resort to
violence and aggression as seen in the World Wars that have scarred us in the past century.
The most crucial disagreements, although not lone, are the disputes between the developed and less developed countries concerning agriculture.
Hong Kong, having eradicated its agricultural populace for over a decade, is an outsider to the issue. Thus it is not surprising in a way that the
Hong Kong government maintains to the sophistication of merely cheaper oranges in its pro WTO advertisements. While mainstream media have reported on
issues regarding the issue of agriculture, few have done so in depth.
Although I am unable to comment in depth of this issue, I'll try and give my few cents' worth of understanding.
In addition to the massive farm subsidies that countries like the US give to its farmers, one gets another clue just by studying
at a university quite literally in the middle of a large cornfield. Driving from Chicago to Champaign, one observes the vast plains
of farmland. This abundant natural resource--vast fertile land has blessed the United States since its conception and is the prime reason
for its economical and technological superiority.
Your average Chinese farmer, if brought to Illinois, will be startled. They would ask: "where are all the people?"
Indeed, technology has made the United States a prime producer of agricultural products. In fact, for a population of over 200
million, the country produces so much food that it literally dumps food to other countries, either by cheap agricultural produce or as form of aid.
The mechanization of farmland, from tractors to irrigation systems to dust cropping and chemical fertilizers, make the US farm
yield enough to intimidate any other farm at any other corner of the world. Farmers in the country benefit greatly from this,
as they are able to work upon their hobbies (my friend's father is a farmer, and he writes books on Javascript and .Net for O'Reilly in his spare time).
Farmers can concentrate on business, and such education brings in even more profit. The second issue regards the collection of information.
The widespread use of the internet, satellite imagery, and close communication between researchers, markets, academics, and producers allow a
seamlessly efficient management style that ensures farmers of the produce of cash-crops. That's why corn and soy dot the Illinois landscape--these
staples are commodities that pin the basis of South American and Asian diet, respectively.
In fact, the process is so efficient that China imports soybeans from the US!
The third issue regards distribution. Distribution is the prime reason for the success of many corporations in the US:
Walmart, Dell, and Coca Cola are very good examples. Some so-called economists in China often brush over this point, and instead they only concentrate
on branding as a main reason for success. Thus, Chinese corporations are continuously plagued by distribution bottlenecks, especially when you move away
from the industrial south and east coasts. In addition, probably more importantly, are the vast inefficiencies due to unclear expenses and corruption.
The United States has an extremely low-cost distribution network: usually by truck on its Interstate network, but also by rail distribution.
Soy and corn for instance, is transported to silos in Illinois, put on trains owned by Canadian National (which is in turn partly owned by Bill Gates),
and transported either to Chicago for redistribution within the US, or to New Orleans for export.
Even at the hay-day of the 1920s, without the interstate network, America greatly relied on its canal systems and waterways.
The La Salle Canal put Chicago on the map, and the Erie Canal is what made New York the great trading port of its time.
Indeed, farming in many other countries, especially those outside the G7, are greatly disadvantaged. It is therefore reasonable for
small nations and their farmers to speak out of their hardships. Violence, unfortunately, is the only method to have their voices heard in the public,
as it is easy for the bureaucrats to easily brush aside these issues. For a place like Hong Kong, in the past many decades so fortunate to have carried
economic growth after economic growth, its peoples and its government is incapable of understanding life under such oppression, and the necessary struggle in order to survive.
While free trade and globalization is inevitable, governments have the responsibility to its citizens to provide a path for survival, either by restructuring
its employment structure, increase its anti-corruption and judicial systems, or by greatly improving farm efficiencies.
In a sense, Chinese farmers should have been the largest demonstrators in this meeting:
firstly because it began as a socialist state, secondly for its unbelievably large agricultural population.
The 500 million farmers of China face unprecedented challenge in the coming years, with the mass liberalization of agricultural imports.
Their lack of time to adapt, modernize, and their lack of support for the government will only lead to great disputes in the near future.
If 97% of these people are not able to become blue-collars, and if the remaining 3% cannot consolidate their farmland and massively increase yields in time,
the economical structure of the populace will meet very challenging times.
With such widespread debates, inflammatory rhetoric, and vicious coercion from both sides,
the Hongkonger is once again placed at a crossroad. As we move closer to December 4th, the media buzz has surrounded
around nothing but the question of how many people will take the streets this Sunday. The unfolding of
events of late: the poorly received Commission on Strategic Development, the language of a philanthropist,
a knight and a gambler, and yet another audit scandal, point to us that odds in favor of the pan-democrats
is mounting.
With this taken into consideration, and claims that the President is to take the protests in a "relaxed" manner,
it is sensible for the pan-democrats to sit down and take a look at their cards. They will gain badly needed
political capital following Sunday, and it is important for them to come up with a strategy and united front,
shall they successfully lead many to the streets. In other words, given that it is possible for Beijing to
play along with their game, they must conclude with reason what exactly they are struggling for.
More importantly, a plausible alternative strategy for constitutional reform, and a mode of conduct fellow
democrats shall follow strictly when dealing with the administration.
Anyone on the streets know that direct elections on 2007 are ruled out. While some argue that it is still
"possible" to have direct elections at such year (as 2007 has not arrived yet), only the stubborn, misled, naive,
and utterly brainless will keep on insisting that it is possible. Stubbornness only reveals that one is too
concerned of the details, and has lost the big idea, thus wavering from the original aim of democracy. It is possible,
however, that measures can be taken in lieu of direct elections in 2007, measures that will facilitate to the betterment
of elections in the future.
Secondly, if Beijing and the Tsang Administration are willing to put a revised edition on the table, the democrats should
do their best agree to the new terms: as Beijing is willing to take a step back, they'd expect you to return the favor!
Knowing so, to avoid Beijing from ceasing the chance to blackmail the democrats, and to avoid embarrassment on either
side (certainly a lose-lose situation), representatives from the democrats (or would-be traitors) should cross the line
to broker a deal, under the counter, before it is exposed to sunlight. Otherwise, the distrust from Beijing, whether
you like it or not, will burn down the house, and all progress from the 4th will backfire. It is important to keep in
mind that, in politics, one must be able to weigh-in principles that are core, versus principles that are expendable.
Third, despite the editor's belief that many are likely to take the streets Sunday, one must put in mind that 80%
come with universal suffrage and the Fifth Report as part of their grievances. In fact, I would say with
confidence that 97% will come because they support universal suffrage, while not necessarily rejecting the Fifth
Report outright. This will reveal two issues: of whether the debate of universal suffrage and the Fifth Report
ought to be packaged under the same umbrella of protest; secondly, the need to define the reasons for the grievances
amongst the middle class, which will compose the majority of protesters.
Now that Beijing is potentially a game-player, we are to expect compromises on the timetable/roadmap issue, if not
immediately, certainly in the next 2 years. The hidden dagger is, however, that there will be provisions to retain
central control. After all, the dealer writes the rules, and the addition of a dozen provisions will only make the
poker game that much more tricky. Direct elections can be set up in many ways. The American electoral system is one way;
controlling the choice of contestants is another; the functional constituency is yet another. Even if Beijing suddenly
turned into a Miss Barbie-Doll, the big merchants of Hong Kong will certainly seize the chance to limit the powers of the
democrats. There are many toll booths ahead, as the game has just begun. The game players must know when and what cards
to sacrifice in order to win the game.
More importantly, therefore, is to ensure the longevity and augmentation of the freedoms as previously mentioned, that
is, the rule of law, the freedom of speech, and the fight against corruption. This will ensure that everyone negotiates
under known rules and prevent things to get out of hand. That said, Beijing would inevitably become a rational player,
if she hasn't already. By that time, the democrats will realize that the have already gotten their hands dirty-- also
inevitable. To quote common American rhetoric: Freedom isn't Free. After Sunday, we will also realize that we have
long lost our innocence.
Today is the 90th anniversary of the birth of late Chinese leader Hu Yaobang. For those who are unfamiliar with the history of China, Hu was known as a ?clean? politician who pushed for political reforms in the People?s Republic. Later to be disposed by larger forces within the party. His death in April 1989 sparked, in the beginning, mass mourning, which developed into protests, a prelude to the crackdown in June.
Thus, the late Hu has historically been a taboo subject within Chinese society, in fear that it would once again spark fire from top to bottom. Interestingly, the top crop of the People?s Republic is once again celebrating his anniversary. Albeit, in a very low-key, closed-door ceremony.
Previously, we talked about the problems of economic development in China. Today, we will turn the spotlight to Hong Kong.
The Fifth Report of the Constitutional Development Task Force (the Fifth Report) has been of wide debate in the past month. Basically a document outlying political reforms within the Special Administrative Region, it serves as a hint and outline for steps to lead to the eventual universal suffrage in Hong Kong. The main debate so far has been whether the report has adequately served for the benefit of the Hong Kong people.
Article 45 of the Basic Law, Hong Kong?s de facto constitution, says:
The method for selecting the Chief Executive shall be specified in the light of the actual situation in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region and in accordance with the principle of gradual and orderly progress. The ultimate aim is the selection of the Chief Executive by universal suffrage upon nomination by a broadly representative nominating committee in accordance with democratic procedures.
For anyone familiar with legal documents of sort, the definition of ?gradual and orderly progress? is elusive to a point it is almost trivial. The problem belies on the fact that it may be used as evidence to indefinitely postpone universal suffrage in the SAR. Incidentally, the suggestions of doubling the electorate of the Chief Executive, if again doubled every election year, will not lead to universal suffrage until after 2046. Certainly we didn?t think that ?Unchanged for Fifty Years? was so literal!
The aim, of course, is not to initiate universal suffrage as an end. However, it is a matter of principle that one uphold this aim. Firstly, such has proven to be the most stable and efficiently self-checking system that man has ever come upon. Again, it makes much sense in the view of the Social Contract: that the government is accountable to its citizens, which elect it to represent them. This is a two way balancing act that ultimately cancels off all extreme outcomes, thus, theoretically, will lead to the least political sway or upheaval.
The second matter of principle, which stems from the first, is to better the check of government to uphold the benefits of the majority. The problem of the current system is basically a form of taxation without representation, which leads to an eventual glass-ceiling for economic development. The middle class, well-educated and the core of the economy and social vibrancy of Hong Kong, is being taxed with little lobby representation in the government. Instead, the majority of benefits either go to the poor?who are easily identifiable and the most potential initiators of social unrest, or the ultra-rich?owners of companies, conglomerates, a majority of which also are double-benefitting through the lobbying across the PRC.
As a result, the middle class is being squeezed and deoxygenated even further. The weakening of the middle class will eventually jeopardize the economy of Hong Kong: no middle class, no more unwilling payers of expensive and tiny apartments, no more consumer base for the products of the conglomerates that were borne from the system.
Therefore, it is a matter of principle that voices of this be heard, and one must strive to petition for a better resolution for our political system. A resolution that is more sustainable and representative of our economic development and educational maturity. It is a gasp to control our own destiny.
Nonetheless, it is even more important that we defend our freedoms in the midst of petitioning for democracy. One must not waver from the freedom of expression and the freedom of press. Therefore, the petitions must be simple (i.e., the petition for a constitutional timetable) and reasonable (i.e. To petition to ask when and how reforms are to take place, and representation within this process). At the same time, the pro-democracy camp must try harder to convince the larger powers that democratic reforms, such as universal suffrage, will only being a greater prosperity and peace to the country. It must be reiterated that no democratic government, of the level of freedom and economic maturity as Hong Kong?s, has ever witnessed a meltdown of its social and political system. In addition, one must stress that Hong Kong is the most mature testing ground to exhibit the potential of the future of China. The SAR has, unlike its brothers in the north, already undergone mature economic, educational, civic, and social advancement. Democratic reform will certainly convince the world that China is indeed a responsible player, and that it is dedicated to develop at peace. Thirdly, it must be stressed that a severance of state has never crossed the mind of any Hong Konger: Hong Kong needs the rest of the country as much as rest of the country needs her. Forth, the pro-democracy camp, for the benefit of its own survival, must refocus to convince the middle class that their hardships are results of social and political disproportion.
The protests in coming December, I believe, are the only organized method to petition. Odds are that the Fifth Report will actually not be passed, as the sentiment from legislators has increasingly become lukewarm. While it is childish to think that universal suffrage be possible in 2007, it is reasonable that checkpoints be set, and timetables be scheduled, of what exactly constitutes a ?gradual and orderly process?.
As Beijing attempts to realign its stance on Hu, a subtle smile must be appearing on the faces of our dove-loving friends.
The history of China, according to my EALC 199 East Asian Civilizations class, has been a history defined by the recurring notion of ?China?. What is China? What defines China?
Therefore it is interesting in the situation when China was at one of its weakest hours, the Song Dynasty. In the past the conqueror who ruled that land south of the Great Wall was the legal ruler of ?China?. But then in the 11th century when Kublai Kahn successfully advanced through the great wall, forcing the collapse of the Northern Song, which fled south to establish the Southern Song, based in modern day Hangzhou. This, startling many scholars, began the need to define ?China?: were they the rightful rulers of the great empire? Or have they already ceded to their Mongul neighbors?
Ironically, this began one of the most culturally rich stretches of Chinese civilization. At a time when Hangzhou was at its pinnacle of trade, and China began it unconscious experiment upon global trade and mass production.
For one, China is now not the picturesque, scholarship-based country anymore. Sadly many of its virtues have been lost, in its stead given to brute selfishness and shortsightedness. ?To get rich is a glorious thing?, indeed, but has it misled many into thinking that getting rich is the only glorious thing? It is evident that the sharp declination of natural resources within the country has already had repercussions upon our natural environment, and one day the economy will be at mercy: when resources run out, and the country will need to scour for more to run its machine.
One can argue that the development of nations have generally taken two tracks: one where a country invades, occupies, or colonizes in order to gain resources, another where a country simply advances deeper into its territory to supply its needs.
The latter, to my best knowledge, has only occurred once in history, and that is the development of the United States. Actually, ?Go West? was not such na?e westward advancement into ones own territory. Quite to contrary, the development of the country was done on the expense of the Native Americans. The United States Government, in its history, had repeatedly broken treaties in order to bring about economic development, the Trail of Tears, and the Removal Act to name a few.
Indeed, it is of utmost political correctness as much as morality that one urges the peaceful development of China. But to do so must require strict law, discipline, and principle, all of which does not exist within the country, at least not on the minds day-to-day workers, local, and provincial officials. Indeed, it is sad that the head cannot control the movements of his limbs.
The main culprits, interestingly, are the very issues that China is criticized most about. The first is corruption. This greatly undermines the power of the central government. Along of which is the need of a just, widely-upheld judicial system, which as an organ regulates the running of the country. Thirdly is an efficient manner for information distribution, to allow a system that self-polices in compliment to the armed forces. To us mere-mortals we have not perfected upon a single system, however it is best described to be a free and respected media, a broad level of freedom of speech.
Therefore, the development of China shall not be an argument of whether it is to build a Great Motherland of the Chinese People. It is rather more essential that the nation strive to become a more responsible player of this resource-scare planet, that we construct sustainability of its whole from its roots. A rethinking of Chinese society will most certainly perpetuate the notion of the Chinese Nation. Sustainability in the minds of people leads to sustainability of the people themselves.
Today we will discuss the position of Hong Kong in our flagship China series.
First, it must be understood that Hong Kong was put on the map from its beginnings because of cultural and geopolitical clashes. In the beginning it was a lot more simplistic: the British and Chinese had a trade dispute, got into war, that resulted in the ceding of the island of Hong Kong to the British ("in perpetuity").
Things have changed since then and have gotten a lot more complicated: first was the Chinese Civil War, then came the Cold War, especially the clashes that occurred in Korea and Vietnam, both of which Hong Kong had profited from handsomely.
So it was for purely political reasons that Hong Kong hot it name on the map, plus, of course, some entrepreneurial refugees, a ruthless but well-managed government (basically, a "benevolent dictatorship"), and a hard-working population.
The debate that we face today in Hong Kong is a typical culture-clashing situation. The fact of the matter is, there are significant cultural differences between Hong Kong and the Mainland. Another is that Hong Kong is subordinate to the PRC. Both aren?t inherently problems themselves, per se, as Hong Kong had prospered amidst (or even because) of it. The problem arises when a person that does not get the big picture leads the city. Hong Kong?s success is based upon three pillars: the rule of law, a culture that promotes a corruption-free society, and the freedom of speech.
Therefore, it ought not to seem surprising when these basic issues are threatened, taxpayers will begin to wonder where their money is going to (Disneyland?), and whether those that have spent the money have fully represented us ("taxation without representation", under a different circumstance, but rhetorically valid).
These are really basic concepts in political thinking. Alas, it seems that many are still doubtful of democracy, a system that has worked generally well under our contemporary society, worldwide.
Geographically, Hong Kong enjoys an excellent harbor. A fine natural harbor facilitates trade (thus a low cost in developing its port infrastructure); trade leads to the need for bodies to act as intermediaries in the transaction of money versus product. Supported by a sound economic policy, the need/excess of money leads to a sizable establishment that maintains its wealth (banks), which leads to a sizable financial sector. Therefore, it is rather unintelligent to say that Guangzhou or Shenzhen would take over Hong Kong as a financial center by simply building a business district and pumping in taxpayers? money to fire skilled analysts. It is a little too na?e for modern politicians to think that way.
Shanghai, in fact the entire YRD on the other hand, stands as an imminent threat to the economy of Hong Kong. Ironically, it has nothing to do with population or cost (as most Chinese or even Western economists may argue). The carrot is really the fact that it lies at the estuary of the Mighty Yangtze River. With inexpensive access from the interiors of China (with help of the new dam and canal lock system), an agriculturally fertile hinterland, it is obvious that this would lead to an outcome similar to Chicago and the LaSalle Canal, plus, again, the Mighty Mississippi.
Another issue is its location, strategically placed, close to Japan, Korea, Taiwan, and facing (albeit very far) America, allowing it to serve as a logical logistics node. Traditionally its hinterland has been the most fertile and prosperous of all of China (until recently, with Guangdong surpassing it. Yet again, the YRD is catching up fast). In the Northern Song, as-a-matter-of-fact for pretty much the entire history of China, it was the center of trade and one of the greatest regions of the world.
It is easy, therefore, to brush aside over everything else and be worried for Hong Kong. But why is Hong Kong geographically undesirable anyways? Mainly because economies lying in the West of China are currently less profitable than those East and across the pond.
Thus, the emergence of Western China, India, and Vietnam are very important to our survival and importance. It is also necessary that we defend the three social pillars of ours rigorously, as it will most certainly be for our benefit when the inevitable change of tide occurs in the Middle Kingdom. Second, we must work very hard to combat sexual and racial discrimination, in other words, the need to promote a more open-minded, tolerant society. Third, is to orderly reform our education and strategize and train our professionals for pedagogy for the sake of our youngsters. Specifically, there lies the need to encourage debate, reasoning, and discipline--even if it is at a purely cream-of-crop level in society. For the record, the ball is always on the student, to (somehow miraculously) "get-it" by their quarter-life crisis. Last, but not least, we must learn to trust the Central Government and, vice versa, the Central Government must learn to trust us likewise. This is the only way in which we can truly bring about a more democratic citizenship. Democracy is not necessarily the only way, but in Churchill?s words: "Indeed, it has been said that democracy is the worst form of Government-- except all those others that have been tried from time to time". Of course, this is the matter of another debate.
In many ways, Hong Kong already carries many of the traits of being "Asia's World City", and stands proudly along side New York, London, and Tokyo alike, as one of the greatest cities of our time. It is increasingly multi-cultured, tolerant, liberal. It is necessary that those who can make a difference to stay focused on the infrastructural qualities that have contributed to the cities success, and to stay informed in order to foresee global trends.
Today is september 12, the opening day of the world's 5th disneyland themepark,
asia's 2nd, and china's first. us here in hk have heard a lot in the press about the
various glitches that have happened with the park, but i think the coming weeks would
be a crucial test to all of us: the public opening of the park, means that it would
be open to the 30% hongkongers, 30% mainland chinese, and 30% southeast asians.
it's already interesting ever since our brothers and sisters in china have been
allowed to travel freely in hong kong, but it'll be interesting to see all of us
squeezed closer together in the world's smallest disney theme park.
the main issue is cultural difference. this is really difficult for people not familiar
with china, or heck, even mainland chinese to understand. it is true that the two populations
have been separated for over a century, thus concepts, from the sophistication of law and order,
down to queuing in line, to the concept of productivity, to the inappropriate use of the car horn
(i just heared a truck squabbling along with its horn) are really differently understood. for hong
kongers, at least, it is a public nuisance.
the last time i came back to hong kong, december 2004,
i was walking in our downtown, in the standard chartered bank building.
when i was walking down the stairs leading to queen's road, i saw a young girl, about 6 years old.
she was crouching.
so i kept on walking, she stood up, pulled up her panties, and left a puddle.
Her mom then held her hand and left, as if nothing happened. To make matters worse,
the puddle was right in the center of the stairwell. I was shocked, and my brother
looked at me with with a mixed sense of shock and awe.
How can someone do such a thing at the most prestigious area of someone else's home?
What really was surprising to me was that both the girl and her mother were dressed well,
and they didn't have any notable trace of being of any lower class. At that point I was
pretty outraged. for once, I decided that I could justify my own suspicion toward the mainlanders.
The fact is, an act of public urination would never cross the mind of any person in hong kong,
just like it is common sense for hong kongers to leave the left lane of any escalator for
people who walk, even when it is rush hour traffic. The fact is, there is a public washroom
across the street, right next to the steps leading to battery path.
So I will be observing hong kong disneyland through our LCD TV, for now.
At least I want to reserve the right to laugh at such stories.
Well, haven't worked on the China Series for quite some time so I've decided to just babble a little over
my lunch break on anything that comes into my mind. It's that time of the year again when we all go back to school again (
and for our friends from Britain, a month?s countdown). Too bad I'm not in college anymore cause I really miss quad day and the first day of school.
I can't say that it's been uneventful or anything, but definitely it hasn't been very amusing the past while over here at work in
Shenzhen. The hospital project I'm working on has been quite an ass and it's only going to become increasingly irritating
until our deadline on our 2nd of September deadline. The main problem, I think, is the fact that the functions in a hospital are
extremely tedious and organization-intensive. Hopefully our functions fit the requirements of the hospital so we can move on.
Did have a chance this week to try out a one-day commute to Shenzhen for work. Since I had to go
back to HK Monday night I just did a day trip to Shenzhen for work... it was great as al
ways to be in hk for an extra night, but I have to say that waking up at 5:45 for work is not fun... well, I guess you can't have everything!
Been spoofin around and I've heard of news on the net that Apple is planning for three 8000-12000 s.f.
Apple Stores in Hong Kong. So far these are the only China Apple Store rumors out there, but it's pretty certain that Apple's
been looking around China for retail locations for the past year. I hope it happens since it?ll be really awesome. Another
interesting Apple rumor out there is that they might be replacing the 4GB iPod mini with flash-based RAM
(specifically the new NAND RAM from Samsung). Another interesting note is that Samsung might be selling this RAM for 40% of its cost of production.
It's been 2-1/2 months since I arrived here and so I've had
some time to go around Shenzhen. Nothing much, I find, actually I'm both surprised and
disappointed how little there is to do in this city. Even in terms of shopping, I find it lacks the variety of hong kong.
Most stuff here is cheap stuff, so if you're short in cash, you can find something a bit cheaper here. But certainly there's nothing here that you can't find in hk.
OK, this blog will be extremely geeky, but bear with me.
There is no need to explain what on earth Google is? I guess all of you know already unless you?ve been hiding in the Philippine Jungle for the past 50 years. A bit of history on Google, started by Larry Page and Sergy Brin, as part of their PhD thesis when they were studying at Stanford. The main reason for their success is an entire rethinking on the search process on the computer. First, a simple, no-frills user interface; second, it works, third, it works.
In a gist, Google compiles its database by sending an electronic ?Spider? that ?walks? around the internet and scans the pages. The more links that direct to your page, and the more people that visit your page, the higher chance your page gets hit when googled (try ?veuda?, for instance).
Get me on Google man.
Some must-trys:
1) Well, Google Search, of course. Works so well its changed the way the computer industry thinks about search. Firefox and Safari get credit for integrating it to their browsers.
2) Google images: search images from a keyword
3) Google News: Another great feature, a good way for integrating computer technology to progress the freedom of press. Basically it uses a technology called RSS (really simple syndicate) to automatically compile a webpage that contains all the major headlines with links to stories from various sources.
4) Gmail: Man, this is absolutely the best email ever? doesn?t even make me wanna use POP3 anymore.. the search is excellent, the organization method is brilliant. We still can?t figure out how on earth they can afford 2.4GB (and counting) per user.
5) Google Earth: If you have a PC, a must-download. Search and see satellite images of anywhere in the world, take a spin, look for your house. Actually it was programmed by another company and bought out by Google, nonetheless, one of the best things out of Google. Mac users, sorry, they?re still coding an OS X version?
6) Which leads to Google Maps: Pretty much the same as mapquest, but for geeks like me, many more tweaky features and listen to this, it?s ALL done on Javascript. Find directions from anywhere to anywhere (in the US and Canada).
7) Blogger: hmm? wait, does google own Blogger??? Well, it?s a great site anyways, although I don?t use it
8) Google-in-a-box: Ok, corporate users, you?ve got a kazillion webpages and the total lack of organization turns down your most avid users? what do you do?? Well, go buy a Google-in-a-box. Basically a yellow 1U rackmount server, plug it into your network, and the Box will automatically Spider around your site and reorganize it. That?s why you see all those ?Powered by Google? labels on the Internet.
9) Google Labs: This ain?t a feature per se, but a pat in the back for Google to go around US colleges and pulling up full page ads of IQ and math questions, and offering those who can solve all of them a job a Google. Another point for their binder dividers that remind us on how to maintain our ?High-Performance Brain?.
This isn't a regular column, but I just figured I would make a comment or two once in a while.
For those of you who have been hiding in a cave for the past few years, the music industry has been undergoing under a total revolution not seen for at least a decade. Most of this development have been undoubtedly attributed to Apple Computer's iPod mp3 music player. Ever since its introduction in 2001, users have been able to literally hold their entire lifetime music collection in their pocket.
I remember my first iPod, the original 5GB firewire mechanical scroll wheel, only for Macs. It was quite a marvel.
Based on the technology of the iPod, Apple Computer has amazingly rolled out a series of associated services and products. One of these is the iTunes Music Store, which has basically allowed a legal way to download music into your computer, transferred to you iPod, and listened on the road. In other words, Apple has been able to totally reinvented the way we buy, store, and listen to music under a simple process and tools.
Another interesting emergence is the Podcast. This was actually developed by consumers in the past year or so. Basically it is the 21st century radio, by allowing the users to download radio clips from the internet, transferred to their iPod, and listened on the road or at work. This is interesting that it has developed a plausible channel for information distribution on a wide level. www.scmp.com.
Design does intrigue me greatly. But convectional explanations to this phenomenon lack an edge to the blade.
Sometimes I feel that it is required for one to be modestly intelligent, slightly naive, and very stubborn
in order to fully dissect the situation. After all, success is not an entitlement, it needs to be earned.
For my college/university application, I explained how inspired I was, as a child, growing up in Hong Kong,
how great skyscrapers were to me, how I would be an asset to such and such a school, given my background and
origins were however rich and unique, how I learned sketching, Chinese painting, and Chinese calligraphy when I was young.
After five years of traveling, studying, working in America, Europe, and now Asia, I've slowly realized that
the issue doesn't lie as to who I am. After all, I think, therefore I am, that's all that we need to
prove of ourselves--Identity is an elusive matter, identity is trivial, seductive, distractive, even superstitious.
After identities have been verified, and abilities been rectified, one begs to ask for more.
The study of architecture, therefore, is not to search for a language. I have slowly realized that language is too,
trivial, for that good literature is not always within the English, Chinese, French, or Hindi.
Instead, it is, Thought.
It is a search for reason "why", amidst the evidence "existence".
Ricardo Daza has summarized my mission concisely. Looking for Mies.
Thought is very powerful, because it directs the mind; the mind directs the brain,
the brain directs the body, the body produces contribution. An accumulation of contribution leads
to a formation of identity.
Therefore, that, which nourishes thought, leads to inevitable contribution.
Contribution to the collective human basket.
I went out for dinner with George a couple days ago,
we went to a Korean restaurant, and I told him that it was a delicate balance between getting comfortable with
China, and at the same time keeping my distance.
It is true, that, in my search for an identity, I consciously realize that this isn't a personal ideal, but in fact it is done on behalf of hong kong, as a place.
Having lived in so many places for quite a while, I've experienced many personal ups and downs. There was a period while I was studying in the US when, due to circumstances, I consciously
decided that I wanted to initiate an identity change. It was really simply done, by totally immersing myself, as a Chicagoan, Illinoisan, American, and distancing myself from what people would normally
attribute to one's "roots". I distanced myself from the hong kongers, the chinese, all my high school friends. in fact the only people i kept in touch with were my parents and family. So for a period of about a year
i completely vanished from my old cliques and circles.
I took this path out of psychological desperation, in order to retire myself from another matter that was bothering me. But when I look back at the move, I find it to be rather interesting, and, actually useful.
Identity is really quite a vague term. To me identity is quite an elusive matter, and, because of that, can really only be attributed under the unit of one person. A group of people can't really have one identity --the can have
acquaintances, attributions, and associations, but collective identity is quite an impossibility. This is because we all have a past, history, and conscious that is unique to humanity. Therefore, actions and consquences of a person
cannot be understood and
fully rexperienced without having the exact historical context applied to another person.
So this is really the psyche of hong kong, if it were a single person. I think our social discussions of city issues are healthy, but as I mentioned before on adolescent /hk., the hong kong identity can't be represented
by the traditional chinese motif (as seen in the hong kong "heritage" museum), neither can it be done so by the classical western approach (as in the hong kong central library). Ask the average hongkonger, they probably associate
more freely with other things... old disintegrating buildings in mong kok, shopping mall culture, crowds, loud people, hustle and bustle. Heck, I don't think many people would have visited Chungking Mansions, but the feeling of it,
from the outside and from within, is really quite hong kong. On the other end of the band, the escalator is also really hong kong. it really represents it in scale, ingenuity, and the approximity in relation between government intervention and
citizen response.
So when we talk about the future of hong kong, some say that we ought to further integrate with china. but to make this discussion more worthwhile for the title "china, three", i must say that the best way for hong kong to serve the country, and
in fact, itself, is to be more assertive of its own identity. hong kong certainly has, and probably will, be what new york is to the united states. We think of new york as the stereotypical of what we think of the US, whether it is its policemen, citizens, cityscape, lifestyle, thought,
etiquitte, etc... but in fact, and I say this with 100% assertiveness, that New York is not the US. In fact it is one of the few places in the US that carry a sort of self-sub-culture that is quite different from the rest of the country.
I would say that the stereotypical united states exists in movies like American Beauty -- the suburb, suburban life, cars. New York is a culture shocker to Americans,
for its liberalness, its majority of first-generation immigrants, expats alike, its expensiveness, its richness as an urban enclave.
So really, when you talk about an international city, it is a great city because it is international. It is culturally liberal as it accepts anything foriegn -- foriegn culture, peoples, religions, languages.
Actually, hong kong, like new york, is quite attuned to taking their roles for their respective cities... It's large immigrant base, it's economical prowness, and to a relative degree, liberty in thought. Hong Kong has a slight advantage, since
it is in the process of soul-searching, having taken one identity before 1997, and one after. But really, that itself is an identity.
The city isn't one thing or another: because if it is, that means it's actually both.
So the best way to perpetuate and grow hong kong, for the sake of china, for the sake of this city, and for the sake of its people, is to be different, and stay different. Sure, we should learn mandarin, and we should improve our english skills, but
this isn't about sacrificing one thing for another, this is about being more competitive. We should be fluent in three languages, we should be open to all cultures, chinese, indian, british, japanese, phillipino, french, german, korean, american etc.... We should
do the best to attract the best people to come here, and encourage them to make their mark in hong kong.
And for those who are still worrying that our tight grasp on Cantonese is still a problem, let me tell you this: Cantonese carries much of the real traditional Chinese pronounciations and tones, therefore the reading of Chinese poetry, for instance,
sounds better in Cantonese. Fact two: standard Cantonese doesn't exist in Canton/Guangzhou anymore. Because of cultural white-washing, the standard lies in Hong Kong. Fact three: if you travel to the Chinatowns that carpet the US and Canada (actually, even london and paris), you'll find that
Cantonese is the major, if not the only language spoken. This is because southern China is a traditionally merchant and trading-oriented region of China, and that region, in the 19th century, was centered in Guangzhou/Canton. Because of that,
the region "exported" large amounts of labor to north america during the late 19th, early 20th century. The Chinese you see in Chinatown may be decendants of these "coolies" (basically, chinese slaves), sent
to North America to build the railways, and who later settled in North America. With no particular skills, they opened laundry shops and restaurants, and up until the mid 20th century, along with other minorities, were treated as second-class citizens.
As a result, I was really surprised when everyone in Boston Chinatown spoke Cantonese.
For the first time in my life did I truly feel that Cantonese was a useful language.
For the first time, I understood what it meant to feel like "home".
I can't claim that I know everything, but sometimes I feel that people are easily mislead by others into believing something that is totally untrue, usually for the motive of what can be classified as "right-wing extremetism" or "conservatism". To be fair, this phenomenon, whether political or social misinformation, exists all over the world.
Regardless, ultra-conservatism serves no benefit for a country and its peoples.
The Master once said :"" [people] are the same in nature, it is just the way we do things that make us different
The world is really too small for us to fight. Let's all live in Peace.
I got really lazy this week, so i'm just gonna roll this photoessay out. while the captions aren't finished yet, enjoy. (1 Aug 2005: photos have now all been captioned)
3) Central: going in the banks: Bank of China, HSBC, Standard Chartered
4) Central: the escalator and SOHO
5) 24 hours in TST: stay overnight on the streets of Tsim Sha Tsui. Get a beer and sit at the harbour front as the skyscrapers switch off their lights after midnight. experience Nathan Road completely empty at 4 in the morning. Sit at a 24-hour McDonalds. End you night at a Karaoke Bar.
6) Breather on the Outlying Islands: Cheung Chau, Lamma Island. Experience nature close to the city.
7) Taking on a Typhoon: If you're lucky, you get to experience the pounding winds at this major Chinese metropolis. At the worst typhoons, you'll feel your 40-storey apartment sway.... don't worry, all buildings are designed for Typhoon-grade winds.
8) A bus ride on Island South/en route to Stanley: South of the island, it's 30 minutes from downtown. experience fantastic Mediterranean-like vistas, nice beaches, and of course, Stanley Market. Off the beaten path... take a walk to Stanley Cemetary, a nice place to take some lone time, or with a special friend.
9) A walk on the Hong Kong Trail: Many go to the Peak, they take a photo, go to the mall, then head back down... instead you should take the Hong Kong trail, which is a 2-mile circuit beginning and ending at the Peak Tram station. Also known as Lugard path, named after a former Colonial Governor. Expereience fantastic views of the city, the Kowloon, the container terminal, Lantau Link, and Disneyland. weave in an out of mother nature.
10) Mong Kok & Causeway Bay: The coolest places to be in hong kong. they are the places to be. Both are shopping districts of mid to mid-low pricetags. lots of people, great on street shopping, great street culture. if things get too hot, stop by at the malls (for Mongkok, Langham Place, and for Causeway Bay, Times Square). Mongkok is in Kowloon, 3 stations north of TST; Causeway bay is on the Island, 3 stations East of Central.
Today
is the first of July, 2005. To many Canadians, it is Canada Day, to Americans, it's the beginning of a long weekend that leads to
Independence Day, to the Taste of Chicago, fireworks, sun tanning in Miami. To Hong Kongers, it's the 8th Handover Anniversary.
Today was a work day. Most people over this side of the border don't know of the Handover festivities in Hong Kong, or maybe, they just don't care.
So I am living in Shenzhen, China right now. It's a city born in the 1980s, and now home to some 4 million residents, and another 6 million
migrant workers from all over China, and the world. It's been quite an adventure coming here, and I have to say, I've been truly
culture-shaken through and through, ironically, in a place just a stone's throw away from the city of my childhood.
It's really interesting from an urbanization standpoint, Shenzhen that is, in fact, the whole of the Pearl River Delta. It has been the
result of not historical hierarchy, culture, but contemporary politics and economic theory. Shenzhen though, is a really boring place. In fact
I constantly hunger to run to the border and get back to hong kong. it's weird though, that if you take a section through hongkong-shenzhen, it'll be like this:
Central (Hong Kong downtown) -> Tunnel under victoria harbour -> tsim sha tsui shopping district -> kowloon (urban)
-> lion rock tunnel (tunnel running under a mountain) -> Shatin suburb -> Tolo Harbour/Chinese university -> Taipo suburb -> fanling
suburb -> small villages -> sheungshui suburb -> small industries -> farmland -> preserve areas/restricted area -> Downtown Shenzhen
After working here for 2 weeks, i can't help but feeling shenzhen as a sort of, empty shell... it's prosperous all right, it's the
great economy that so many people talk about when they talk about china, but it seems like there lacks a culture, there lacks substance beyond
the commerical activity, factories, work, money. It seems like, that if money was taken away, people would be wandering around
not knowing what to do.
I think it's really an issue of society, that very very few are curious beyond what they do, yes yes, maybe they're curious about the outside
world, but it seems that its more about material wealth than culture and thought. few seem to question about existence, few seek reason, and over time,
it becomes quite an inhibitation into architectural design, to say the least.
It's a void
then i realize, that architecture is really a smoke screen. I think my interest in architecture lies upon a curiousity of life, humanity, existence.
I obviously down know the answer yet. In fact, I don't even know the question, other than the fact that it begins with: "Why?".
architecture is really a smoke screen. some people use literature, some use poetry, paintings, photography, speech, or the like.
to define what i'm doing
it's really, in a gist, "Looking for Mies"
"Looking for Mies" would be my objective in life. Not really the person per se, but I think it is the spirit. Because, why do we
go all the way to do difficult things? maybe it would have been easier to look for a job in hong kong, or the US, but then,
I wouldn't have been able to do the things i like to do with my life, and with my intellect.
So it is really a blessing, to do what you do, because you like it.
the four years past
are remembered to be a great four years of transformation, where i have reaped great strides in understanding.
At this point I consider myself entitled to talk about my thoughts on the United States.
the US, by far, is one of the greatest countries that I know of. I don't know how to describe it, France is the
place that epitomizes european civilization, but the US is charming to a point that it is unparalled. I think
one of the greatest things I have seen in the country is its unfathomable capacity of diversity. Of course the
country has undergone countless debate of its own tolerence/intolerence, especially in the light of september 11th, but i have to say
as an understatement, that I've never imagined a country where such racial and cultural diversity plausible, until i arrived at
the US. I suppose the college atmosphere has helped it, nonetheless, diversity here is a largely successful work-in-progress (except things like affirmative action sometimes boggle my mind, and make me wonder whether people have outbalanced diversity over equality). But overallm american multiculturalism is something that
maybe myself, as chinese, as a hong konger, should learn.
freshman architecture student
the morning of september 11th, 2001, a tuesday, I had just come out of my 8 am math class,
my instructor was late that morning, which everyone in class didn't take to much notice.. I remember getting out of altgeld hall and
bumping into my roommate, Dennis
"did you hear what happened?"
"no, what do ya mean?"
"didn't you hear? a plane just crashed into the world trade center?"
"you kiddin me"
"no, the towers have fallen down, another one's gone into the pentagon too..."
I had been in the US for less than a month, I had even toured Chicago for the first time with my friend, Jack, just several days earlier.
I can only say that, I had just witnessed a pivot point in the history of the nation.
is one of the first things that I noticed. interestingly, I think its one of the last things that comes
to the mind of an average american. the perception i get of ye citizens is the dangers of the city, and the
comfort and safety of the suburbs. suburbanization is really an american issue that has completely changed american culture.
the large, rather inefficient system of interstates, commuting, personal space, SUVs, american dream... suburbanization is, i think, a dilemma
of a quest for material realization of the american "dream". The problem is, while everyone is in pursuit, there is a decreasing
number of people who really grasp what they are pursuing. Sadly, we are all pursuing a status, that can hitherto only be satisfied by
posession, and when we do, we are all lost.
another thing with suburbanization, that is a well known issue but ignored, is the false perception of safety, esepcially the supposed
safety for kids in suburban life. Supposedly, the burbs have provided a transcending zone between the dangers of humans and the safety
of country lifestyle, a delicate balance with the driving economies of the US, and its own agricultural backwaters. Supposedly, guns and
drugs are a big problem in cities, while non existent in the burbs. the truth is, while kids are locked in their protective suburban homes,
and parents cannot afford the time with them, the kids become curious of the outside world. They have spare change, they have the TV to
tell them what is cool to do, and before you know it, you have gun and drug problems in your own backyard.
Perhaps we haven't really decided whether we prefer Jefferson over Adams, or vice versa, at least not yet.
democracy
we tend to forget that democracy, at least as a form of government that the United States has so greatly adopted and spread, has been a
229-year-and-ongoing experiment. it is a great notion though, and as winston churchill once said "democracy is the worst form of government-- except for the
others". it's true. democracy is really a conscious form of government, one which we always must remind ourselves that we are in, to spare
us from insanity, and maintain ourselves civilized.
i think the most interesting feats of democracy that i've seen in my time here in the US, occured in the years of enlightenment. specifically, to
represent democratic form of government, choice, the architects of the past devised the gridded street system for our cities-- philly, then new york, chicago, and
then other cities throughout north america. it was really the greatest physical departure from the absolute. begone were the roads that pointed to edifices of religious or
political significance (except for, of course, l'enfant's plan for Washington, D.C.). in plan, it was impossible to devide hierarchy, therefore,
parcels were all equal and open to those who were able to afford it. interestingly, in the face of regularity there sprang up two forms of chaos: one was the notion of the
park, and the other, the notion of the third dimension to the city: height.
When we talk about the park, it is really an issue of scrapping a couple of blocks on the grid and give way to greenery. of course it had to be placed somewhere.. so in
new york it was placed in the center of the gridwork (ie "central" park), and in chicago it was place on a city dump ("grant" park). here, it revealed great contrasts between the
two cities... the more laissez-faire, chaotic new york (despite the park being a planned park, the architects adopted a more english subliminal sytle that mimiced the natural); the more overtly
planned and directed grant park of chicago (in a french beaux-arts style, opened during the famous columbian exposition of 1891).
height
the skyscraper was a great american invention, partly because it allowed heirarchy within a supposedly utilitarian framework. it is truly magnificant, and represents the ingenuity of developers, architects,
entrepreneuers, and engineers alike. really we have been accustomed by these people to look at the city from afar, the "skyline" that seems to contain a hidden language of logic that underlies its undulations,
that somehow two summits are linked, always, by a valley of shorter buildings, creating an interesting rhythm of form.
Boy, are architects geniouses
The second is that because we're so accustomed to see buildings from a distance, due to their sheer size,
one must view the city in full through a car, windshield or side window. That's what I90/94, or the Eisenhower were
designed for, as vistas, gateways to the city. The American is inseparable to the car.
Because everything is so big, the only inhibition to our physique has been our size, as humans. Cars have provided the
necessary boost in sheer volume of the human, not to mention its speed.
retro
I hope my observations have been at least somewhat insightful/amusing, to both foriegners and Americans alike; I really like the US, it's really a very great country.
While its politics, foriegn policy and
image have taken a rather disappointing turn over the past few years, there are many things within the United States that many other countries should learn, and, to the same degree, many should avoid. I think we
should all make a effort to understand each other. sometimes it's as simple as mere respect, sometimes its integration, sometimes it's adoption, and sometimes it's tranformation.
and so, I arrived in the US, four years ago as a Hong Konger; today, i return to Hong Kong as a Chinese-Hong-Konger-Canadian-American who lived in France for a year.
adolescent/hk.
began as an investigatative study on the culture of hong kong and its relation
to spatial manifestation of the city.
In effect, there was an attempt to bridge
the gap between the extreme physical manifestation of its architecture, explain it, and
document it through a historiographical and architecturally theoretical perspective.
This article was finally realized as a history project for my
Twentieth Century Architecture class, which I studied under my history professor and friend, Mr Anthony Scibilia while studying
at the Versailles Study Abroad Program of the University of Illinois, around March 2004.
In it's completion, it was compiled with a set of other articles and interesting perks/advertisements
that realized a fully-fledged propaganda machine for ve., my corporation/firm/philosophy/way of life.
I hope that you find the articles interesting, as I found it enjoyable to write and produce.
copyright (c) 2004-2005 by ve.
By downloading, you agree that Vincent C H Leung retains full rights to all articles and images in the
file, with exception to images drawn from external sources, which are owned by their respective
producers.
The following excerpt may contain obscene language, user discretion is advised The excerpt is quoted from the original script, by the authors Matt Damon and Ben Affleck and all relevant parties.
CHUCKIE
Look, you're my best friend, so don't take this the wrong way, but in 20
years, if you're livin' next door to me, comin' over watchin' the fuckin'
Patriots' games and still workin' construction, I'll fuckin' kill you.
And that's not a threat, that's a fact. I'll fuckin' kill you.
WILL
Chuckie, what are you talkin'...
CHUCKIE
Listen, you got somethin' that none of us have.
WILL
Why is it always this? I owe it to myself? What if I don't want to?
CHUCKIE
Fuck you. You owe it to me. Tomorrow I'm gonna wake up and I'll be fifty
and I'll still be doin' this. And that's all right 'cause I'm gonna make
a run at it.
But you, you're sittin' on a winning lottery ticket and you're too much of
a pussy to cash it in. And that's bullshit 'cause I'd do anything to
have what you got! And so would any of these guys. It'd be a fuckin' insult
to us if you're still here in twenty years.
WILL
You don't know that.
CHUCKIE
Let me tell you what I do know. Every day I come by to pick you up, and we
go out drinkin' or whatever and we have a few laughs. But you know what
the best part of my day is? The ten seconds before I knock on the door
'cause I let myself think I might get there, and you'd be gone. I'd knock
on the door and you wouldn't be there. You just left.
It was quite
worrysome to see this monstrosity being built when I was studying in a school just across the rail tracks from it. At first I didn't know what it was,
until I was curious enough to go to the other side of the tracks to find out, this place called "Festival Walk", a upscale shopping center developed by Swire
Properties, best known for its Pacific Place shopping mall in downtown Hong Kong, as well as Cathay Pacific, Hong Kong's flagship airline.
It didn't take long for Festival Walk to be known within the school as "that giant thing" or "the largest shopping mall in the world" etc. I was obviously curious
as to what it would look like, since it couldn't have been built on a more difficult site. Built along a cliff, which was excavated and the building fit snuggedly
on it, creating a building that acts as, in a very Hong Kong was, a geological feature. This mammothness was expressed with its own dismonumentalization through
clever and careful stratification of the east facade, which was originally the cliff wall. Yet again, this reinforced the idea of the synthetic, while maintaing
its naturalistic roots.
At that time the airport had still now been moved yet, therefore airplanes were constantly whizzing over it during construction. The mall however, managed to
open around the time when the airport was moved.
On the Beaten Path
My first visit to the mall.... wow I remember it clearly. It was an ordinary school day and I decided to pay a visit to the newly-opened mall.
I accessed through what is now (and really what has ever been) the major passage, through the MTR subway tunnel. Boy, was it an amazement to come up from the
underground into a 3 story atrium.... you see back in those days Hong Kong mall design was pretty much limited to the ultra pragmatic box-approach, maybe one
atrium, but definately the shops were prime and the environment taking a back seat.
Chemistry
I think that the chemistry that made the entry so seductive was a sort of known prequel, that by seeing this rather small, atrificially-lighted atrium I sensed
the coming of more atria to come. Another issue of this approach is the unexpected distortion of the space, it wasn't necessarily a frontal experience, therefore
one was not inclined to simply walk straight into the atria void, but instead weave along its S-shaped plan, and, with the diagonal placement of the escalators,
change your trajectory acute to the direction of the storyline.
Storyline
In retrospect, it was indeed a storyline. The mall was one of those great breakthroughs in Hong Kong that interpretated the shopping experience in a
much revolutionary way that augmented it. Of course all modes of approach were tolerated, but it must have been very clear in the early stages of
development that there was a primary mode of path for a majority of the visitors. Therefore, the small atrium led to a compressed one-story space,
which led to the main atrium, a 7 story, 50-60 meter wide puncture of steel and glass perpendicular to the main flow, S-curvature of the shopping mall.
This was an explosive space, and, of course, the center of all events to the mall. To further materialize this explosiveness chaos, the escalators were deliberately
stacked in an ABA rhythm. As opposed to the traditional approach to have a 7-story tall elevator zone neatly packed on one side of the structure, therefore,
the escalators were objects in themselves, actually, the centerpiece of the atrium.
Festival Walk, then, celebrated the movement that generated the mall; not the object that generated the movement.
Canyon
Because of this ingenious think-outside-the-box yesnonsence approach of the S-Shaped plan, with the help of the escalators, the architects were able to
channel movement in its most inefficient way: it was not possible to go from one story to another without passing some shops. The architects did, however,
optimize this delicate balance between channeling users to shops en-route to other places, and making the act so inefficient that it annoyed users. It was just fine.
The fact that the passage was in such an S-shape also reinforced the impression of the synthesized nature: a canyon within the stratification. In effect it was a natural
phenomenon turned inside out and back in again. The theme simple made the space successful and enjoyable.
Climax/Anti-Climax
Interestingly, there wasn't really any climax to the building. This possibly made the experience that much better, since the climatic undulations were,
in effect, spread across the entire complex, at different points of the narrative. In another sense there is a sublimity present that is pretty much like
the English garden, say, Stourhead, where throughout the passage one experiences "drops" of delight, but not necessarily an overwhelming existence of something in
particular. Likewise, the detailing of the building also reveals a sort of a man-made chaos of the English garden, an engineered perspective of nature: if the
place were to, as a whole, mimic to look like a natural scene, it was only to the careful eye that one realizes that there is indeed rhythmatic proportion
and placement to this chaos, and indeed it was well laid out.
The Ice skating rink, which is just next to the cinema multiplex are such things. These were placed at, if approaching from subway, the other side of the site.
It may seem rather random of a combination, and, being set right under the
office tower, weird. But in terms of architectural proportion this act totally made spatial logic: that it was the antithesis of the entry. The one end emphasized the
reality extreme, and through the passage of purification, one arrives at the ultimate of Hong Kong shopping culture: the ultra-active indoor sport of ice skating, and
the ultra passive sport of movie-watching. In the pure business sense, as it is already obvious, anything in between will benefit from this cross traffic.
Final Take
I can say with great certainty that Festival Walk was the first work in my career that led me to seriously consider the implications of Hong Kong culture
in relation to architecture, especially in a more retrospective sense of combining aesthetics, taste, business, and pragmatism as the main proponents of
Hong Kong architecture. Although it was done by a group of Miami-based archtects, nonetheless it could have only been justifiable in Hong Kong, where the
geographical and political, and demographic conditions could only have made it possible.
I believe that Swire Properties, a great patron to good architecture, and its manifestation the Festival Walk, opened up a new page for design in the city,
also opening the enlightenment to others to encourage inverventions toward a better city.
I just wanted to
thank everyone for a really great birthday that I've had, especially
yoojung, ki, johnson, tze ming, arthur, matt, anthony, irene, laurie,
chris, jessica, and tiffany, and of course my mom+dad, and my brother daniel...
and all the friends that i may or may not have seen yesterday... i just wanted
to thank all of you who gave me such a blast of a time, one that i don't think i've
ever had in my life, and a birthday that makes me want to stay in champaign for the rest of it...
and all the surprises, arthur making a special appearance, an iPod mini,
an El Croquis book on Rem Koolhaas, a box of Guylian chocolates, and, of course,
the conversations we've had that I cherish most... ; )
thanks irene for your cartoon that reaffirms that I am indeed, the the mac guy! : )
thanks everybody, God Bless!
ve.
a card from yoojung + ki + johnson!!!!!
iPod MINI WOWOW!!!!!!!!~! thanks yoojung ki johnson tzeming and arthur!
iPod Family
WOW A GIANT BOOK ON KOOLHAAS!!!! Thanks guys!!!!!!! (Matt laurie irene anthony chris jess tiffany!)
irene and anthony make me wanna go back to belgium!
To celebrate the month of march and arrival of spring break, I've decided that for the next
couple of entries I will focus on reviews on skyscrapers (well... maybe, we'll see)
First Take
It'll be good
to begin this series it one of the most dominant new buildings in the Hong Kong skyline: IFC 2. A massive office/retail project, it was built
above Hong Kong Station, which was one of the core elements of the Airport Express of the Airport Core Project in Hong Kong, which ran thru until 1998.
Planning actually began with suggestions of 3 towers, not one, but eventually it was decided to be a single, 88-story 420 meter building. Along with the
Union Square 7 project in West Kowloon, the two towers will literally mark the gateway into Hong Kong's Victoria Harbour.
Designed by Cesar Pelli and Rocco Yim, the orginal renderings seemed to call for a similarly boxy, but taller incarnation of Rocco Yim's IFC 1. I think that the
genious of Pelli's alterations for the new building were, however much you can say that he copied from Yim, that Pelli was able to show unmatchable eyes for fine
proportions. Indescribable the magic as it is, the proportions of the window mullions, leading to main verticle members along the facade, to the setbacks, the
size of the crown, and the overall height fit perfectly with each other, as if it was always supposed to be so (isn't that the tell tale sign of great design??!).
Therefore, it is quite amazing that I began as a skeptic of the building (When Pelli came over to the U of I in 2003, I went did actually question him about the massiveness
of the building, worrying that it would over dominate the skyline, and, admitting as a Pei fan, overshadow the Bank of China-- nonetheless I was realy thrilled
to get his autograph!! :D). Now, I realize that the tower has dominated the skyline, indeed, but has led to an amazing phenomenon that I have never witnessed in my life.
I think the massiveness of the building has not only been awe-drawing in the traditional view of the Hong Kong skyline from the Tsim Sha Tsui waterfront view, but
also successfully (and I mean really successfully) led photographers in capturing Hong Kong from an alternate view, from Morrison hill in North Point, or Fei Ngo Shan in
East Kowlooon, or the container terminal in Kwai Chung. These are all unconsidered vistas in the past, since they did not render a satisfactory view of the Centeral district. The IFC 2 has successfully
created this new (out)look of Hong Kong as one of the greatest cosmopolitain cities of our time.
Seduction
I was on a taxi along Jordan Road in West Kowloon when I first saw IFC 2, completed. There was nothing between us-- we bonded.
I can't describe how amazing the feeling was. I left a city for college in the US, and I came back to a megalopolis.
It didn't take me long (maybe the next day) when I went to IFC to document the building itself. The project is indeed an urban renewal project, and, excitingly urban. I remember
Pelli, in response to my question, said that his aim was to augment to social scene of the Central business district. At that time I was skeptical indeed, afterall, when we consider
the World Trade Center, Sears Tower, or even the Bank of China, they haven't been able to attract people closer to the building than their vistas, or otherwise inside the building itself.
On the Beaten Path
I was very impressed with the complex. The bridge-shopping center linking the existing IFC mall with the new wing, was well concealed as the shopping complex, with the exception
when the IFC 2 appears in the midst of the skylight glass, and sometime covered in the fog, gives a subtle feeling of the sublime.
As you enter, there is a prevalent theme of curves, basically, and its centerpiece the oval atrium. The oval atrium draws thoughts of exclusivity, the posh, extravagance, like Michelangelo's
Capidoglio.
The main walkway is well organized, although when compared to Langham Place in Mongkok (which I hope to comment on later),
there is slightly less intrigue. Still it is probably on par with veterans of great shopping experience such as Festival Walk.
On great thing about IFC 2 though, are its treats. Palace IFC is a particularly exciting part of this medley. Although it
was not designed by Rocco or Pelli, this work by James Law Cybertecture is a good organization of a collection of functions
within a very limited amount of space. Certainly there is the investigation of media and presence, and it's relation
as a billboard to people walking on the main avenue. When one puts this into model context, as the firm had did in its
diagramatics, there is an understanding that this space is almost organized to be a form of The Sims, a sort of subtle
outrageousness and absurdity as a doll house.
Unfortunately I was not able to go inside the cinema (I heard it is a very expensive cinema), therefore I cannot comment on the
actual interiors. Hopefully I can next time.
Another great surprise was while exploring the inner depths of the Mall. Traveling down the elevators on the West end of the
Mall, one arrives at the series of elevator lobbies for underground parking. These are designed with fine taste, delicateness of
the balance of materials, and a strong sense of excitement through lighting.
Climax
Most rewarding of all, however, was a trip I made one day up the Oval Atrium. At the top, I arrived at the roof garden of the
complex, and, to my surprise, was extremely pleasant. Here Pelli and Rocco created a regular plane and inserted elements at
a very jovial expression. Sculpture was commissioned and put off-grid. Skylights in fact also are sculturalized as objects.
There are planes of grass, areas for seating, an outdoor bar, and a long water fixture extending the entire length of the roof garden,
pleasantly bringing the sound of soothing water throughout the place. Interestingly the architects created a sort of folie by
having some of the water channel to streams, and toward the harbour, falling down to the patio at the lower level, yet creating
another waterfall. This space was extremely rewarding at the end of the exploration, and it was a great place to contemplate
the skyscrapers of Central, and next to us, of course, IFC 2.
Search
I was looking for a known light fixture by James Law Cybertecture that involved tunnels lined with colors of flourescent lighting.
This was in fact the main reason I wanted to visit the IFC Mall. Unfortunately, even after tirelessly asking people for
directions, none of them knew of any tunnels in the complex. I just found out today that this was a temporary installment
by the engineer/architect/artist not long after the Mall was opened, before any shops moved in. It is a really
unfortunate thing to have found out, like how the Hong Kong Berlin Pavilion by Rocco Yim was disassembled and forever shelved.
Hopefully some day Mr Law may display this work of his once again.
Final Take
IFC was greatly rewarding, and was one of the greatest steers I have seen from my past skepticisms. The mall itself is a symbol of
CBD urban regeneration, and, most importantly, the tower signifies the renaissance of Hong Kong the greatest city of China.
Obviously,
it isn't news that Tung Chee Hua, the first chief executive of Hong Kong, has handed out his resignation. Even if I told you yesterday
it wouldn't have made a difference... rumors in the media have been flying all around the city and, through the internet, into the world.
There's one comment I saw while browsing through the BBC webpage that made a lot of sense to me. To many, this news has been quite a pleasant surprise,
that an unpopular leader has finally handed his resignation, and, to make things even more pleasant, a very well respected individual is taking over.
I'm rather surprised (or maybe i shouldn't) that the rhetoric in the western media has been rather skeptical on the issue, quoting possible worries
that this opens the door to more hands-on control from the central administration in Beijing. But in the midst all of us takling about democrary and how great it is and that we
should "spread" it, one would feel that this whole talk of democracy, the "path to democracy" is extremely trivial. After all, wasn't democracy a means
of achieving something? As the great Winston Churchill once said: "democracy is the worst form of government, except for all those others that
have been tried".
It's like saying that one studies for the sake of it, that it is important that one studies. That is a valid statement, but, one can also argue that I wtudy in order to, say,
get a good job, or, be a more knowledgable person. One can even say that, to achieve this goal, I should quit school and work, or maybe just become a monk, become
a hermit in the mountains, and contemplate life and its meanings.
Maybe we're all in pursuit of something great, but we don't quite know what it is.
or maybe one wakes up one day and achieves Enlightenment.
Anyhow, I think it is fair to saw that we are here for a better world.
There are really only two things that
provide the greatest non-living inspiration and insight of life for me,
(the living being the people you know, and love.); these would be song lyrics
and movies... I think i've learned from movies the most, really, I'm a person who
much prefers cinema that i get something from, rather than to just laugh and forget about i
it. Yi yi was one of them, lost in translation is another... I guess I've
explained the reason why lost in translation is such a terrific piece of work, so I won't
go into much about it here.
Yi yi is really the same type of movie... an underplayed, steady, crafted piece of work.
I think that the insight really relates to the way of which I think about life,.. that the future relates
to the past, that it is the result of the past. And sometimes, life is such of contradictions, that
we try to perfect, and yet, there is always that externality that puts us "off course", but in the end,
it doesn't really matter, because what we cherish, is usually what we think we should have done, or not done.
but if we were able to go back, we probably would have done the same thing; it wouldn't have made a difference.
lyrics
that are well written is something that i really admire of songwriters... of course "well written" is
a rather vague term that suits taste. but i think songs like ???????????????????????????????????????????????? and ??????????????????????????????????????????????????????????? really have a sort of mezmerization to them
precisely because they are ellusive, at least at first glance... i feel like i know the feeling of the artist,
and, that some people won't understand, the feeling of it. the smell of the sun as it sets, or of the randomness of branches,
that so confuses us, who all try to put everything in logic, and make sense of why things are the way they are.
that we put ourselves off the course, just because of care, and the feeling of importance, of trying to speak when you can't,
trying to diffuse this feeling to somebody, who doesn't understand, but you know will benefit so much from it.
That, which is so pursued
Why do we try to understand... this thing...the feeling of that,
this freedom
that is so beloved
to some,
seems indistinct vague universal equal to all
yet this big love ends up hurting the person who cares about the former
the most
lost
into this sea of leaves
as I walk the street is
actually walking back
from me
I try to solve the unsolvable yet the challenge
is so impossible so elusive trivial lost in space
that i cannot explain why a phone ring has suddenly become such sought for
I hear the silence of the night dark tranquil as I lay on my bed
and convince myself that tomorrow would be better or that yesterday
was simply a bad day.
I'm not really
in an inspirational mode at the moment, but it is true that
for the past 2 nights I've been diligently writing up code for what you see now as
the new homepage... I've finally gotten rid of the Apple templates and created something of my
own that fits better to everything else, especially the portfolio.
code
I think that this is the best code that i've written for a webpage... yeah, it obviously doesn't
compare to the work of a computer science major, and all it really is is just dhtml and some javascipt,
but i'm pretty proud of my so-far record of being able to compute solutions that have intellegent
design, yet require only html and javascipt, and not java or flash (except for the portfolio).
This sort of optimization is really the essence of web page design.
I must be
really free this week to have afforded two updates. I guess I have so much time nowadays that I
finally see the reason why people get to blog and use thefacebook all day long. I guess we're all really
fond of seeking a place where we can speak, and, pretend that someone else is listening...
or maybe someone
is!
the shuffle
I finally got an iPod shuffle this week, since I had an amazon certificate to spare, and that cut the price I had to pay
down to half! Wow, the shuffle is sooooooo great... I guess as an Apple junkie I am, and really a tech junkie to say the truth,
I shouldn't be at all surprised by its size,... sure, it's a flash drive, of course it's small, and sure, it's a flash drive,
that's why the batteries last so long, but it's really great to be freed from the weight of the big iPod, and it's great to have
the iPod play for 18 hours straight! (yes I did test the battery life...). As of all Apple products, the design is underplayed
in a really great manner. The quality is so far acceptable, knowing my high expectations from Apple stuff, but yeah, as far as
mp3 products are concerned, this is top-notch at a great price.
There is really no coincidence that I write this entry during
Valentines Day, neither is there motive.... i don't celebrate it, i'm
single, and that's the story (morning glory)
I guess being self-concious about it doesn't really do anything to
help. Anyhow, i just had a window opportunity of an hour between my
East Asian Civ class and swimming, and I figured that it'll be kinda
cool to do some long-delayed update work.... i guess in respect with my
webpage i am pretty proud of it, but that's more in terms of a
retrospective sense.. it's kind of the thing where you build it and
build it and build it, and you really like all the components but when
you look back it's like massive sprawl.... like LA really... ironically
i really hate that city... incidently i really like the movie Collateral, and for those of you who haven't seen it, you should.
Collateral
The movie really is one of those finely crafted, scripted movies, and,
in this case, could not have happened anywhere else but LA. The movie
is of fragments too.. that everybody on Vincent's list were unrelated,
living their own lives, and of different states of being... the only
relation is they are foe to a common person, and, live in the same
city.... really, they could have passed by each other, or live a block
from each other without ever knowing one another... i guess this really
paints the canvas for LA.... lots of people, sprawl, lonely, isolated,
chunked, non-heirarchical.
Lost in Translation
In a sense, Lost in Translation can be seen as a sort of polar opposite to Collateral.
The movie could have happened anywhere, it could have been about a
Japanese guy in New York, or an American in France... but then it's
setting of Americans in Tokyo really pushes out the sort of familiar
unfamiliarity... one might think that the two cultures are the same,
yet, they're so different... but i think it's really much much much
less about someone being somewhere than it is trying to paint of how we
see our selves,... how we validate or try to validate our aspirations,
and of which most likely do not realize in our post-modern world, a
sort of loss in faith... but in the end we find that this faith really
does exist, in bit and pieces... pieces that you really need to hold
with delicate hands and look closely.
I think that intimacy is a major aim of investgation in this movie....
intimacy.. no let's say love, is really elusive of a matter... what is
a feeling and what is a relationship? and what is the relationship
between the feeling and the interaction that realizes this feeling?
what is conversation? is a feeling or an expression of a feeling or a
physical manifestion of it?
Tokyo
Tokyo is a really cool place... i think the reason for why it
mezmerizes me to such a degree is precisely because of its
over-synthesized state... its like a person, it wants to be self
concious and yet it's trying not to. Tokyo is really a school of
thought of how we comprehend ourselves in the Contemporary day...
urbanism,... we've built the city, we have a lot of people, they're
educated. The streets are clean, crime is low... but does that mean
that we're in Utopia? I guess the city's cleanliness, precision, it's
glory has only amplified its dispair, a sadness of truth, that I don't
know, maybe, at a scale of a person, we've all lost our innocence long
ago?
OK, I've put myself to the duty of listing my favorite things:
favorite car: um.... BMW's pretty nice, the Hyundai Elantra's pretty nice too.
favorite movies: Yiyi, Rainman, Lost in Translation, Contact, Good Will Hunting, Nixon, ???????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????...
favorite newspaper: Wall Street Journal, South China Morning Post, Mingpao
Favorite food: I eat anything edible; pizza is nice, sushi is good.
Favorite laptop that's not a mac: Hmmm... the thin Sony ones are good,
I've also seen a really thin Samsung notebook that looked pretty nice.. Thinkpad's are of course always the
Mercedes of notebooks
Favorite book: Hm.. don't read much. umm..Native Son was pretty nice.... Hundred Years of Solitude, very good...
Reading this book called "Below the line", it's OK. Uh.. I think I'll stick to newspapers.
Favorite skyscrapers:
- In general: Bank of China (Pei, Hong Kong); the Seagram Building (Mies van der Rohe, New York).
- For technicalities, engineering, and details: HSBC building (Foster, Hong Kong)
- For success in social role: John Hancock Center (SOM, Chicago)
(one of my) favorite web pages: skyscraperpage.com
Favorite color: Blue
Favorite aliases: ve.; athlonve
Favorite climate: Not hot, snow is preferable for winter
Favorite places in Chicago: North Michigan Ave, Gold Coast, John Hancock
.. in Hong Kong: home; the Harbor; Central; the Peak
.. in Paris: Place du Marche du St. Catherine, Maurais; Boulevard St. Germain-des-Pres
.. in New York: Times Square; Wall Street
.. in Tokyo: Don't know much about it
.. in Bombay: Never been there
Hobbies: riding my bike, traveling, driving, surfing the internet, talking and hanging out with friends,
making lists, drawing maps of imaginary cities, reading the Wall Street Journal, reading about history,
taking pictures... Wow, I am kind of a peculiar guy :P...
Of the several cities picked as "exceptional", several were cities which have become "favorite-favorite cities"
for living in the future. It is worthy to list these out and give a brief explanation of why.
1) Chicago: (Population: 2.886 million in city; 9.549 in metro) Chicago is a Great city. Great with a capital G. I think it is commonly my first choice
of a place to live in because it defies what most people think of an American city. It is big, yes, big,
big businesses and people serious about business, something i love. It offers the complexities, divesity, and
sophistications of a city, but, thanks to the current mayor Richard M Daley, it has transformed to a
safe, clean, beautiful city of not the 19th century Sullivans and
Le Baron Jennys, but a city of the 21st Century.
Adding to the Midwestern charm, values, and friendliness, Chicago has converted me
to call myself a Chicagoan.
1) New York: (Population: 8.085 million in city; 21.766 in metro) If anyone thinks of a city, most likely the common thought would be New York. Its
complexity and sophistication are unmatched, and, in its emergence in the 19th
and 20th centuries, it has changed the way people think about cities as a functioning organism.
The largest Downtown on the planet, its diversity, excitement, speed and coolness are of great
attraction. The people are very open to difference. They're almost accostomed to it, since most of
the city is of immigrants anyway. Sure, they didn't invent the skyscraper, nor do they have scabbles
of on-your-knees magnificant buildings, but it is the collection of it, New York as a whole,
has a lot to offer.
1) Hong Kong: (Population: 6.787 million in city)
After all, this is where I grew up. It is one of my homes, still. But
putting that aside, it is a true city that I can't find anywhere else
in Asia. Its messiness, diversity, even great extremities of opinions
are seen nowhere else in Asia. Some people don't like messiness, they
don't like un-uniformity I-don't- agree-or-care-of-what-you-think-of
attitude, but truth is, that is the reality of the world today.
complexity and contradiction are undeniable realities, and that is what
makes our world beautiful. Hong Kong is a special child, I can't deny
that. And I think that history has put it in a position that makes it
priviledged. Sure, the people aren't as open to new ideas than many
liberal North American cities, but that doesn't mean that they're not
opinionated. Its charm is its rebellness, its robutness, and the spirit
of achieving what is for your own [shelfish?] benefit, ends up being
the benefit of all.
2) Toronto: (Population: 2.481 million in city; 5.101 in metro) the last time I went to Toronto was, for the least, half a decade ago. I am, by citizenship, a
Canadian, thus I must really like to be living in Canada? Not really. I'm a city animal, and I have come to
survive best in megacities, the bigger the better. A recent visit to see a fellow Torontoan friend
reminded me of this really special city... A Canadian city that is not boring, not a suburb-painfully-average
Everville. But it doesn't end there.. I think much of this interest is driven by speculation rather than actual
knowledge, but, to my understanding, Toronto is the ultra-liberal city of North America, a city of business,
yet high living standards, robustness, and quality.
2) San Francisco: (Population: 0.751 million in city; 7.154 in metro) San Francisco is the closest thing to Hong Kong
in North America, in terms of geography and number of Chinese. Still, it offers the diversity of many American cities.
I think that it is the easy-goingness that has truly influenced me. Of this city, the landmarks don't interest me
much. But Silicon Valley, the notion of a workplace being an extension of the college campus, is intriguing and
revolutionary. It attracts me much as the way it has changed the way we work in the late 20th century, and into the future.
3) Shanghai: (Population: 9.145 million in city; 13.053 in metro) Well, I couldn't say very much of it, other than I'm curious. It was a decade since I've last been to
Shanghai (which means that I've virtually never been there). To me, Hong Kong is the New York of China; Shanghai
is the country's correspondance to Chicago.
4) Paris: (Population: 2.152 million in city; 11.174 in metro) Paris is a charming city. Although I must clarify that I'm not as fond of living there, it is still
an attractive city to visit once in a while. It's not just the Louvre, Musee d'Orsay, or a Palais de Tokyo,
but the entire city is a museum itself. Parts of it is like an old lady that undergoes cosmetic surgery every now and then.
Still, coexisting is a fully functioning modern city: with modern buildings and modern amenities.
Despite its oldness, it has been able to cope with
20th century urbanization, suburbanization, and commercialization: unlike its brothers Rome and Athens.
). However, I must say that I prefer her wardrobe of tank tops
and jeans to the yellow dress she wore during her performance of Wo Yao de Xing Fu (
).
Nonetheless, the performance was much more than expected, with exceptional interpretations of
Wo Yao de Xing Fu (
), and Silent Al These Years.
. Again, it was performed with great coolness and control.
" [people] are the same in nature, it is just the way we do things that make us different 
