Jeikun

Do you find foot binding attractive? It was the ultimate standard of beauty for upper class chinese women a century ago. How about the comtemporory affinity for pasty skin tone which most westerners found unattractive? I thought there are some universal traits of beauty like fertility, health and symmetry of body. But I don't really understand how the concept can be skewed into foot binding and elongated necks like some documentary I saw. All I can say is good for chinese women thanks to "average" looking westerners who are oblivious of the universal beauty standard and concentrate on their perceived traditional value! As a counter point. How often did you see fugly old dudes with attractive young asian arm candies draping over them like bad suit? Assuming it is not some monetary transactions? Many older cultures have extreme "beauty" practices that in the modern world seem brutal. Foot binding, corseting, neck rings, etc... some of it is patriarchal control, some of it might have been just from not having anything better to do Can't say I find anything attractive about crippling someone. "pasty skin tone" though is just fine being as how I am translucent myself. I've never been caught up in the whole light-dark tan-pale thing. It doesn't appeal or detract. Not sure how these apply to the subject at hand, though? There are universal beauty standards, and you have them right. Symmetry - especially facial, Appearance of health/fertility, and unblemished skin are pretty much used by all cultures past and present as standards. But the finer details one culture develops a taste for can vary just like taste in food. Same as one individuals tastes differ from another, yet people of geographical/cultural/racial closeness tend to have shared standards. Someone who appears "exotic" to your typical experience often gets "bonus points" for lack of a better expression. As for the "fugly old dudes" with arm candy, there are a few possibilities. Financial security/perceived life stability is a big one. There's also the "daddy complex" which happens in the west too. And then there's some cases where love is simply blind, despite how you or I may cynically view it (though it's much rarer than people would like to believe ). The same cultural appearance variances can make it more palatable as well... (They feel less compromise in hanging off a ugly old white guys arm than a ugly old asian guy's - and that they are less likely to be cast aside later). While I would like to say "It's because western men simply see inner beauty", like the article seems to want to - that is a broad sweeping generalization that we do not deserve. Nor do Chinese men deserve the broad sweeping generalization that they do not see inner beauty. There are millions and millions of shallow, petty western guys who give not 2 shits about what a woman is like on the inside. There are also millions of kind, sensitive Chinese guys who love their wife/partner for who they are, not what their face looks like. Whether one trait is stereotypically culturally the norm or not. I'm just saying the stereotype can be flipped on it's head when looking form the other side of things - and often the stereotype of the "ugly (my race) with the average/attractive (other race)" is born from racism - not admiration. I used to hear it in the south too "Why do only ugly or fat white girls date black guys?" was on the lips of many a racist douchebag where I grew up.

Part of it is also the blurring of ideas of "attractiveness" when you cross race. The author of the article may think there are "Average-looking" westerners marrying "ugly" Chinese, but to a westerner's eye that "Average looking" westerner may be ugly, and that "ugly" Chinese may be average-looking - reversing the stereotype based on point of view and cultural bias. There are universal beauty standards of course, but culture/race blurs the smaller details.

I have sympathy for them also. I was fully in support of the full Dream Act. Even this "stopgap" isn't bad in and of itself, except that it avoids actually solving anything long-term. What I take exception with is that the USCIS seems to be under immense political pressure to expidite these at the expense of accuracy, and of other people including US citizens who were in the pipeline for previously established services and going about it legally. The CSC alone processed something to the tune of 14,000 of these in November alone, and only approved about 900 fiancee visas which were filed MONTHS before these DACA applications. Something stinks.

Just as a note, I didn't post this here as a means to start a political debate. I certainly have an opinion on the issue, but the main point here is that for those people just beginning this process... don't expect a 5 month NOA-2 from CSC or a 7 month one from VSC like has been the expectation recently. Expect 10 months, maybe a year. Prepare yourself.

"Deferred Action For Childhood Arrivals" aka "Dream Act Lite By Executive Order"

Get ready. Since DACA went into effect, it went from "we won't process these petitions until fees collected allow hiring of additional resources" and "These petitions will take 3-6 months to process" to nearly IMMEDIATE approvals (over 100,000 so far), nearly 500,000 applications received, and as many as 600,000 still expected. CSC is practically at a standstill and slowing. Couple that with potential for more chaos from any comprehensive package passing this year and some people are going to be in for a loooooong wait. It is nice to know that these are being prioritized over petitions filed by american CITIZENS, and accellerated beyond capacity of the USCIS to use due dilligance, while we are scrutinized under a microscope and made to wait. These folks are already here and have been here for years. God forbid they had to wait another 6 months for a work permit. I'm so pissed right now. If you check the USCIS website for case status, it now says they won't even have new cases online for 30-45 days after receiving them. Just a month ago it was pretty much the same day. They are being overwhelmed. Political pressure has dictated what is to be priority, and it's not us. Good luck to everyone waiting.

He retired I get. But he also deleted every post he ever made, and every thread he ever started no matter how many people replied in it? Kind of a funny way to say "Goodbye and thanks for the memories" wouldn't you say? Good thing all our old timers with 10,000 ish posts can't do that, there would be no candle left.

One thing I just tried recently that is good is Shirataki Tofu Noodles. The ones I got were House brand, but there are others. They are "noodles" made from tofu and mushroom. Only 2 grams of carbs in a whole bag of them. They come bagged in a liquid, kind of like tofu does. You rinse them thoroughly, then put them in boiling water (I add some salt, soy sauce and onion powder) and boil for 3 minutes. Then drain them and let them dry. Then you use them in any recipe like normal noodles. Other than being a little more al dente then I usually go for, they seemed just like noodles to me. I can't vouch for how they would work in italian recipes, but they seem to do well in stir fries and the like.

A great artificial sweetener (for me anyway) is Splenda. It can tolerate high heat and doesn't break down like aspartame will, so you can use it in cooking, and it tastes much more "real" than saccharine.

Despite what the doctor may tell you, if you want to avoid all organ and nerve damage, and progression of the disease, your blood sugar should NEVER be over 140 if you can help it at all. That goes for anyone with type 2, or supposedly "pre-diabetic". Sam, many doctors would not call that being a "prime candidate", they would say you already have it. The real way to be sure is not an A1C test, but a glucose tolerance test. It will measure the immediate effect of sugar on your system, and how quickly (or if) your levels return to normal. But regular results of 170 in the afternoon and 200 in the morning does not seem PRE-diabetic. Neuropathy and kidney damage of some sort could already be going on. If your doctor says 150-180 is "good enough" you might consider shopping around a bit. There seems to be some tendancy in the medical community to not address diabetes until it is already advanced or causing complications. I have had it for almost 2 years now. I had lost feeling in 3 fingers, had pins and needles in my arm, vision began blurring. Blood sugar was over 550 when I first found out. I keep mine between 90 and 120 (no meds, low-carb diet only)generally now and I recovered all my vision and feeling in my hand, and I do not consider losing toes, eyesight or going on dialysis "good enough".

Yeah, I just started paying mine back. $500 a year for 15 years. I didn't wait the extra year until they made it all on the taxpayer's dime (Actually I got mine just a couple of months BEFORE they announced the first credit, but they made it retroactive to several months, so at least it didn't affect my home price)

Hey Carl, I was diagnosed with type 2 also. I am currently controlling it by eating almost no carbohydrates and making the ones I do eat come from veggies primarily. The day I first found out, my blood sugar was OVER 550. I had been crazy thirsty all day and a couple of weeks before had developed numbness in 3 fingers on my left hand. I had been lethargic for months... Just happened a friend with diabetes was visiting me and I asked if I could check myself on his meter. What a shock. Right now my sugar is between 90-120 with no meds. I was a dumbass and put some weight back on last year. Before that I was keeping it in the low 90's and when I switched doctors he didn't even know I was diabetic. I'm back on track now. You CAN manage it. Of course I know low carb is difficult for most people, and also if you do that you need to alter your dosages with your doctor's input or you risk becoming hypoglycemic. Getting your weight down (even 10 pounds can make a difference) and staying active are all good ways to stabilize your blood sugar and keep it lower. But any significant change in diet OR exercise level needs to be watched carefully in case when combined with your medicine's effects it makes you hypo... that can be really dangerous, so keep the doctor in the loop on everything. As to your initial question, you CAN keep the unhealthy carbs and sugars out of your diet and still eat lots of Chinese food. The oil and salt are only problems if you are concerned about blood pressure and calories... they have no effect on your blood sugar. What to avoid completely is added sugar. What to minimize is corn starch, flour, noodles, and rice. Since I don't take meds I avoid the flour, noodles, and rice all together and only use a very small amount of starch as a thickener on occasion. For you, I would say keep the rice and noodles to a bare minimum, prefer brown rice to white rice, wheat noodles to rice or enriched flour noodles. Avoid high-sugar fruits. They are full of nutrients, but they can cause as much of a blood sugar spike as a candy bar or cup of kool-aid. All non-starchy vegetables are fine, meat is fine, tofu is fine, oil is fine (unless you have calorie or cholesterol concerns as I mentioned).

I agree. The first thought I had when dealing with Chinese officials relating to operating permits: "Wow this is refreshing...the corrupt guys are upfront and honest about it and tell me exactly what they want without involving middle men and pretending to be honest and fair". That was my experience in the difference between the two govt. Sorry Shenzen, but the subject was people's lives and liberty being threatened, not slipping someone a $50 to get to the front of the line.

You missed a vital step in the progression, Don. It went from "what abuses in China?" to "The USA is just as bad or even worse!" to "No it's not! In the US we have ___." Same end. Opposite means. Nitpicking maybe, but I always find the devil to be in the details, yes?

There is also a difference (maybe not to the guy at the buisness end of a .38,mind you) between corrupt individuals within a system acting illegally and the system itself being designed that way with full force of law behind it.