|
SubscriptionsSites I Read
|
|
|
|
| I got my grades back today. It was pretty disappointing. I called home partially to whine, partially to update the parents on the status of their investment. I talked to Mom for a couple of minutes and then I hung up. A couple of minutes later, Dad call med back. What followed was the most bizarre conversation that I've had with him. All my life, he's always been the one who told me to work hard and be a go-getter. All my life, I've always felt like everything that I do isn't nearly good enough for him. Not that I don't appreciate his goading and his good intentions, but the pressure was tangible and sometimes stifling. Today, he went through a complete role-reversal. He told me that it is good to strive but it is also good to know what my limits are and that I shouldn't feel too bad as long as I tried my best. That...felt really strange, but thanks Dad, I appreciate it. Knowing that they are so supportive actually really helped to take some sting off of this bad day.
| | |
| A somewhat more level-headed analysis of the Tibet situation...http://www.nytimes.com/2008/05/18/opinion/18kristof.html?ref=opinion
| | |
| What the...I am done with the first year. I am glad for it and am happy to be done, but for some reason, I feel somewhat discombobulated.
| | |
| Free Tibet“When we were poor, you thought we were dogs./ When we loan you cash, you blame us for your debts./ When we build our industries, you called us polluters./ When we sell you goods, you blame us for global warming.”
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/29/education/29student.html?pagewanted=1&ei=5087&em&en=c70b587b17baf321&ex=1209614400#
Even as NYT was giving the Chinese students a chance to air their grievances, they nevertheless go on to paint the students' perspective as being somehow illegitimate and disingenuine(by pointing out how the state monitors their listserv or how these students really are not representative of the Chinese people at large). Sure, some of the tactics these students used should be rejected and renounced but the core concern, I think, is there, that China has been unfairly portrayed/treated. As a more or less American Chinese, this doesn't bother me any less. Those who said our identity doesn't matter should be mindful of how the American community treated the Japanese citizens during WWII. Now, I am not saying that we haven't make progress since then or given another war, people will still make the same choices. All I am saying is that we should be on guard against the potential backlash of deep-seated animosities that are fed partly by truth and partly by prejudices and demogoguery.
I think it is fair to criticize China for the lead paint and the child sweatshops. I think it is fair to pressure China to increase freedom of expression and to remove their controls of internal channels of communication. I don't think it's fair, as some have been apt to do, to blame China for our national debt. I think it is debatable whether or not China's pegging of their currency hurts or harms the U.S., but besides that point, I think people often ignore the fundamental role that their consumption habits play in trade deficits and chose to just point their fingers one way or another. While I think it is fair to criticize the Chinese regime's repression, I do think that the West has an imbalanced love affair with Tibet. Let's face it; it is always more popular to side with the smaller guy. Keep in mind the caste system(akin to slavery-like conditions) that existed in Tibet during the rule of the Lamas, however, I think it is disingenuine to say that Chinese government have not confer some benefits on Tibet. Moreover, the call for freeing Tibet is now complicated by vast infusion of Han Chinese into Tibet, engineered by the Chinese government. The legitimacy of that action can be debated but the current reality should not be ignored. Additionally, I think we should acknowledge that the violence of the recent oppression is manifested by both sides(If running into a mountain was a bad idea in 1989, what's changed now after the person who authorized the repression then is now the CCP general secretary?). Let's face it; the CCP regime is oppressive and there is a lot of work to be done, but the only way that is going to happen is through dialogue and engagement instead of supporting high-publicity low-productivity events like violent protests and boycotting the Olympics. | | |
| Trivia time...Did you know that while "persons of African descent were made eligible for citizenship in 1870, but persons of Asian origin remained ineligible to become citizens until 1952'? I was really surprised by this when I came across it, studying for the finals. | | |
|
