Current Events

[Randy W]

A new (western) Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles movie with Jackie Chan voicing Splinter. 

The domestic movie audiences are relishing iconic Ninja Turtle siblings, four mutant creatures who are skilled martial artists, being "raised" and "trained" by action hero Jackie Chan in their new animated offering, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem. Chan, one of the most celebrated Chinese stars in the West, lends his voice to Master Splinter, a mutant rat who becomes the adoptive father of the four anthropomorphic turtles: Leonardo, Donatello, Raphael, and Michelangelo. Splinter guides the turtles in their martial arts training, drawing inspiration from Hong Kong action films, as they watch and learn from various scenarios. Set in New York, the movie portrays the coming-of-age journey of the young turtle brothers. They develop a fondness for human customs, such as indulging in pizzas and enjoying outdoor movies. However, their peaceful lives take a drastic turn when they have to confront a group of menacing mutants led by a giant mutant fly.

from China Pictorial on Facebook
https://www.facebook.com/ChinaPic/posts/pfbid022rmuFrsGreKd5K8ocTwgNz7Tg7j1fZ3AerRB64QPBCrxt5r73Mq2UFN4JpF2PryLl

 

 

 

 

 

[Randy W]

Why China’s dominance puts Brics expansion plans and very existence in jeopardy

• The differences in fortunes between China and the other Brics members are complicating plans for expansion and challenging the US dollar
• The more dependent the group is on China, the deeper the fault lines within the bloc and the more difficult it is to coordinate policy

from the SCMP

A resident looks out towards the skyline of the central business district in Johannesburg, South Africa, on August 15. The Brics summit will take place in the city from August 22-24, with plans to expand the bloc’s membership encountering resistance over concerns about diluting influence and complicating policymaking. Photo: Bloomberg
 

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In an interview with the Financial Times earlier this week, Jim O’Neill, the former Goldman Sachs chief economist who coined the Brics acronym in 2001, said the group of five leading emerging markets had “never achieved anything” since it began holding annual summits in 2009.

 . . .

Brics has come a long way since the turn of the century. As Bank of America noted in a report published on August 11, the Brics nations’ combined gross domestic product as a share of global output surpassed that of the Group of 7 advanced economies in 2021 in purchasing power parity terms. By 2028, the Brics countries are expected to account for 33.6 per cent of global output, compared with 27 per cent for the G7.

Furthermore, the bloc is united in its resentment against US financial hegemony, a bitterness that intensified following Washington’s moves to punish Russia for its invasion of Ukraine. However, the defiant rhetoric fails to mask the absence of policy coordination to increase the group’s collective power and influence on the global stage.

Yet, not only is it hard to imagine other Brics members ceding monetary control to Beijing, China itself has shown little interest in taking on the US dollar as the global currency of choice, which would require full convertibility of the yuan and an open capital account.

Right now, China has enough problems restoring confidence in its vulnerable economy and markets without having to worry about the risks in liberalising its financial markets.

This is why the Brics club finds itself in such an awkward position. The more dependent it is on China, the deeper the fault lines within the bloc and the more difficult it is to coordinate policy. The enlargement of the group, while benefiting China, will only make things worse.

 

[Randy W]

Is there an ulterior motive behind the rumor?

 

This morning, a rumor about the Chinese Navy’s nuclear-powered submarine being in an accident near Taiwan spread on social media. Taiwan’s National Defense Ministry said no confirmed evidence supports the report. So, was it just a rumor or something really happened? But the timing of the story is noteworthy as Xi Jinping is in South Africa attending the BRICS Summit. Is it part of the anti-Xi campaign going after the CCP leader?  
0:00  The PLA nuclear Submarine accident rumor
13:40 Two other noteworthy events
27:00 Q&A

Here is the anti-Xi article in Singapore:  https://www.zaobao.com.sg/forum/views/story20230821-1425457 (Chinese language)

Zaobao said:

According to the author, the economic data for July announced by the National Bureau of Statistics of China are either weak and falling or far below expectations, showing obvious deflationary characteristics. (Bloomberg)

 

In the United States and western developed countries, the cycle of economic prosperity, recession, recovery, and prosperity has its own cycle and corresponding economic countermeasures. But in China, politics is in command, and politics overrides economics, and it is customary to only calculate political accounts, not economic accounts. The current prosperity and decline of China's economy is precisely because the CCP only carried out partial economic system reforms and did not initiate political system reforms for so long.

 

At present, China's economy is facing a wave of private enterprise closures, a wave of foreign companies evacuating, a wave of sharply shrinking investment, a wave of declining imports and exports, a wave of serious shortage of consumption, a wave of serial debt explosions, a wave of large-scale unemployment of employees, and a wave of government financial and tax blood loss... Investment, export, and consumption are three All the big economic engines are underpowered or even stalled. The July economic data released by the National Bureau of Statistics of China are either weak or falling far short of expectations, showing obvious deflationary characteristics. In the second quarter, the amount of foreign investment was only US$4.9 billion, a year-on-year decrease of 87%! China Evergrande and Country Garden's two real estate giants are "debts that can rival the country", which symbolizes the collapse of the entire industry and the crisis of related industries... so that US President Biden exclaimed that China's economic downturn is like a "time bomb" to the world.

There are jokes circulating in China: "The three new engines of the economy are the National Bureau of Statistics, the Central Propaganda Department, and Xinhua News Agency" and "the only toolbox to save the economy is the trumpet (meaning 'by blowing')". As the world's second largest economy, China has been making great progress since the reform and opening up. Why did the situation change suddenly and decline sharply in the past few years? In a word: The problem lies in the economy, but the root cause lies in politics.

China is the most powerful country in the world whose economy is tied up by politics, not one of them! During the Cultural Revolution from 1966 to 1976, the national economy was on the verge of collapse. In May 1978, Hu Yaobang promoted the ideological emancipation movement that "practice is the only criterion for testing truth", vigorously rehabilitated unjust, false and wrong cases, and liberated a large number of veteran cadres; Restoration of civil rights; on this basis, at the end of 1978, under the promotion of leaders of the older generation Deng Xiaoping, the Third Plenary Session of the Eleventh Central Committee of the Communist Party of China resolutely suspended "class struggle as the keynote" and shifted the focus of work to "economic construction as the center". Opened a new era of reform and opening up. After that, rural reforms abolished the people’s commune system and contracted production to households; opened up coastal cities; allowed private enterprises to enter the market and absorb a large number of labor forces; overseas investment, Hong Kong, Macao, Taiwan, the United States, Europe and Japan enterprises not only brought in capital, advanced science and technology, Complete sets of equipment, and the introduction of concepts such as market economy, rule of law, intellectual property rights, and modern enterprise management systems; with China's accession to the World Trade Organization (WTO) in 2001, it has become a world factory in the international division of labor, accumulating It has the world's most abundant foreign exchange reserves and has become the world's second largest economy.

Edited August 23, 2023 by Randy W (see edit history)

[Randy W]

In China, AI Clones Are Putting Human Livestreamers Out of Work

from the Sixth Tone

https://video1.sixthtone.com/video/5/1/176.mp4

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Live commerce — or livestream e-commerce — is extremely popular in China. The shows usually involve an enthusiastic host presenting a series of products to their followers, who can then buy them via an integrated purchase button. It sounds cheesy, but the shows attract huge audiences: More than 1 trillion yuan ($140 billion) of goods were sold via live commerce last year, and well over 1 million people now work as livestream hosts in China.

But AI now threatens to put many of those hosts out of a job. Chinese tech giant Tencent has launched a platform to create AI avatars that can present livestream shows, and many other smaller companies are offering a similar service.

The AI avatars, the companies claim, are an upgrade on human livestreamers. They can look exactly how the client wants, they can host shows 24 hours a day, and they’re far cheaper to hire.

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Randy W]

US-Sino tensions help spawn China card game craze

from Reuters

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China's bankers and business executives have become increasingly reliant on domestic capital in recent years as foreign funding has dried up, but a popular way to unlock that cash may very well involve "throwing eggs".

The term refers to Guandan, a poker-like card game that has been around for decades, but has gained fresh life among venture capitalists a few years ago as they awoke to its popularity among wealthy local government officials in eastern regions.

"Officials like this game, so we play along," said Yang Yiming, an investment banker whose job involves canvassing government funding for projects linked to semiconductors and defence.

The growing interest in business circles has spawned a craze for the game nationwide, driven partly by financial constraints stemming from souring ties with China's biggest trade partner, the United States.

 

 

 

[Randy W]

Not the best time to open a Sushi restaurant in China 🍣. Sushiro imports some of its fish from Japan, such as tuna, salmon, and yellowtail. However, due to China’s ban on seafood from Japan in response to the Fukushima nuclear wastewater issue, Sushiro has to stop its imports from Japan and start sourcing more from local suppliers in China or other countries.

from the Sixth Tone on Facebook 
https://www.facebook.com/shenzhenpages/posts/pfbid04dfBizbr5kQ9NpQjkzB3PMaUaHEDP2AZbtHHDm8DwGh9ymTMVzqMQqXAy1tT126Xl

 

 

 

[Randy W]

The dorm rooms where I taught (Yulin Normal University) were MUCH more stark - twelve to a room, each roommate had only a bed, upper or lower bunk, with only ONE desk to the room.

Instead of randomly pairing roommates, which students refer to as “opening a blind box,” many universities have announced this year that first-year students will be allowed to choose their roommates and dormitories.

from the Sixth Tone on Facebook
https://www.facebook.com/sixthtone/posts/pfbid028S3R1pCUk4Z7yWCBf2QBUDAwDBXmK7nXrNNDivpbQWVqMeLdhH8BLH9tvqJ6ei5bl

 

Out of the Blind Box: Chinese Students Can Now Choose Own Roommates
Some universities have introduced surveys to assess student preferences and needs, allowing potential roommates to review each other’s details, such as their sleep patterns and habits.

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Since 2001, China has established a dormitory standard: rooms for undergraduates, postgraduates, and doctoral students accommodate four people, two people, and one person, respectively. Initially, universities assign rooms, and students can only change if they give valid reasons that are approved by school officials.

 

 

Edited September 15, 2023 by Randy W (see edit history)

[Randy W]

As of June 2023, there were 79,324 Japanese restaurants in the Chinese mainland, surpassing Japan itself and making China the country with the largest number of Japanese restaurants in the world. Japanese cuisine was the number one “exotic cuisine” in China with 791 chains, even surpassing local cuisines such as Cantonese (706 chains) and Sichuan (618 chains).
Check out more Daily Tones: https://ow.ly/qMeH50PGcKP

from the Sixth Tone on Facebook
https://www.facebook.com/sixthtone/posts/pfbid0m4ctB9YqiXKM3kg4AgH18zBJm2ZXzP5Tj2pMuqyKCKe5rmBEqRNotfvvcqqPAMQUl

 

 

 

 

Edited September 15, 2023 by Randy W (see edit history)

[Randy W]

As China braces for Super Typhoon Saola, Guangdong party boss calls for ‘near-war state’ to combat storm

• Provincial Communist Party chief Huang Kunming urges officials to ‘ensure that no family or individual is left behind’ and protect lives and property
• Tropical cyclone is expected to make landfall along the province’s southern coast between Friday night and Saturday morning, bringing heavy rain

from the SCMP

Fishing boats take shelter from approaching Super Typhoon Saola at a port in Shanwei, Guangdong province on Friday. Photo: Xinhua

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China’s National Meteorological Centre (NMC) maintained its highest red alert for the typhoon on Friday morning and forecast that Saola would make landfall along the southern coast of Guangdong between Friday night and Saturday morning.

The NMC added that heavy rain would fall in eastern and southern Guangdong and the southeastern part of neighbouring Fujian province between Friday morning and Saturday morning.

 

 

Edited September 1, 2023 by Randy W (see edit history)

[Randy W]

A new baijiu-flavored latte from Kweichou Moutai and Luckin Coffee is making waves on Chinese social media. Response to the drink, which debuted Monday and costs $5.20, has been sharply divided, with some saying it makes them want to vomit. After a few drinkers questioned whether the product might lead to an uptick in drunken driving, Luckin released a statement claiming it contains just 0.5% alcohol by volume.

from the Sixth Tone on Facebook 
https://www.facebook.com/sixthtone/posts/pfbid02MhYosxUBb3UGyS1jcFTkTUAFZu9yMchPDTtwPP6ka79G2QrPCxfLQgHzkWkitiwYl

 

 

Edited September 17, 2023 by Randy W (see edit history)

[Randy W]

 

IN A MINUTE: Typhoon Haikui scores a direct hit on Taiwan #shorts

 

 

 

[Randy W]

Chinese offshore turbine sets record for electricity generated in 1 day, aided by Typhoon Haikui’s strong winds

• Turbine built by the Three Gorges Corporation produced 384.1 megawatt hours, or enough to power nearly 170,000 homes, on Friday
• Innovative design allows intelligent unit to adjust blades in real time, continuing to generate electricity, even in wind speeds greater than 25 metres per second

from the SCMP

China added 11,098 wind turbines last year, with a total capacity of 49.83 million kW. Some 10 per cent of those were offshore. Photo: Chinatopix via AP
 

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A Chinese offshore wind turbine built by the Three Gorges Corporation broke the world record for single-day electricity generation on Friday when it produced 384.1 megawatt hours – enough to power nearly 170,000 homes – in the wake of Typhoon Haikui.

It surpassed the previous record set in August by Danish company Vestas with its prototype offshore wind turbine V236 at the Osterild national test centre for large wind turbines in northern Denmark.

The Danish prototype had a 15MW capacity and reached an output of 363 megawatt hours (MWh) over 24 hours, a record it held for just two weeks.

The latest record-breaking offshore turbine was built by China’s Three Gorges Corporation (CTG) and installed off the coast of Pingtan, Fujian province, in late June. The unit began supplying electricity to the grid on July 19, according to an official report by CTG on September 2.

 

 

[Randy W]

In most of Beijing’s shopping malls, food and drinks account for more than 50% of the stores, with some even exceeding 70%. Among them, tea drinks and fast food are the most common.

Check out more Daily Tones: https://ow.ly/9Sh750PI934

from the Sixth Tone on Facebook 
https://www.facebook.com/sixthtone/posts/pfbid0kNenz65EVGPb3nDWrAgyKLNet81rxRXwA5iXxmXxsd4ruabStBxxyoc1HdbRaEdEl

 

 

 

 

[Randy W]

Radiation exposure??

Is Northern China suffering from an allergy or radiation sickness?

Beijing recently stirred up a national publicity campaign against Japan over the release of treated Fukushima nuclear plant water. However, the Chinese are concerned with the risk of being exposed to radiation from the inland. An unexplained sudden increase in asthma has taken northern China by storm. Beijing called it “thunderstorm asthma.”  Some sources say it’s a radiation sickness caused by radioactive materials released from a coal mine in Inner Mongolia. The Chinese military is said to have been deployed. The worst nightmare is the radioactive dust has already spread to a good part of China.

 

[Randy W]

At China’s ‘Hogwarts,’ Traditional Taoism Trumps Magic
Amid a social media surge, a Taoism college is drawing record applications this year. But getting in and sticking it out requires more than just passion.
As a full-time undergraduate institution, it is one of the most renowned Taoist academies in China. Graduates don’t just walk away with a degree; they take up traditional occupations, joining Taoist temples and committing themselves to a spiritual path.
Read more: https://ow.ly/4FKQ50PIhbk

from the Sixth Tone on Facebook

https://www.facebook.com/sixthtone/posts/pfbid0U1WWCssTE8qE8XsnvhXu38Qy431XPRjeCtiGK5oRvKwm32syk5pGxViRdpzannEol