End Of The (Blogger) Line

And so ends my time using Blogger. I've switched to WordPress, which gives me a bit more control over everything. As it's all on my server, I'm not dependent on any third-party company (Google) and I like that.

1. If you're viewing this because you've subscribed to my RSS feed (Bloglines, Mozilla Live Bookmarks, etc.) please go to my site (www.thehumanaught.com/blog) and click on the "Subscribe" button in the sidebar to update to the proper feed.

2. If you've found this site through my Blogger profile, please come check out my site for the latest updates. It's worth the click, I swear! ;-)

3. And anyone else... I just dunno. The idea of this post is just to tie up some loose ends on changing everything over to my new system.

C'mon over and let me know what you think of the new design.

Chairman Mee-ow!

I guess a bunch of Chinese foreign students are upset over the parody their New Zealand uni newpaper did on Chairman Mao (cover left) and communist China.

As such, there've been numerous protests from the Chinese students exclaiming they've been insulted to their core by such blatant defialment of their once great leader. In near tears (crying, not laughing like the rest of us), they exclaimed that it was on par with someone making a funny cartoon of...

Jesus


George Washington


President Bush


Comparing Mao to George Bush and George Washington is fair (all being despots), but Jesus, really? I mean I'm no Christian, but in many circles he's touted as "The Son of God!" And that's a hell of a title; kick's the ass off "Great Helmsman" no matter how you say it. The students also, through their tears of the travesty, said it's an insult on par with the Muslim cartoon thing that was a hot topic a couple months back.

It's part of Islam to not make cartoons of the prophet or Allah, as they could be misconstrude as false idols - best I can figure Maoism is NOT a religion and Mao is NOT a God - despite his devotees possibly believing otherwise. Besides, that 'cartoons of the prophet' thing was a farce. A well ochestrated one, but farce none the less. Just a great way to stir up some hate and up the reasons why the Islamic world should hate the West.

This cover issue though, is just stupid. I mean, we wouldn't criticize anyone for making funny pictures of Hitler (and he killed less people). The REAL kicker is the paper's issue was taking the piss out of China not having freedom of speech nor freedom to protest - two things this whole fiasco draws attention to. The students are protesting an insult to the leader of a party that doesn't allow you to protest. Like time travel, this does my head in.

Besides Mao's looking sexier than ever, don't ya think? He didn't look half as good in that wax rendering of him I saw in Tiananmen.

Shifting Commitments

It seems no matter how hard I try, I can't stay on task with any one thing for long. It's troubling, and completely the product of these wonderful things:

1. No Attention Span
2. Too many hobbies
3. Horrible procrastination

I'll get deeply into something for a few days (or weeks) and then it shifts to a new interest. Photography/digital photo editing, film editing/making vblogs, Web design, studying Chinese, reading about history/politics, reading fiction, reading blogs, making my computer look cool, learning some new songs on guitar, writing songs, writing... it's endless really - but the idea has been illustrated.

ANYWAY, with that in mind, after four or five days break from Web design I'm back on it today, as I've completed my third video blog (vBlog.03: Field Trip!). I know these things are becoming few and far between, and longer and longer (vblog.01 - 10min, vblog.02 - 13min, vblog.03 - 15min) but well... perhaps a little longer, but less frequent is the better way to go - meh, maybe not, I still like vBlog.01 the best. This last one is quite cute though as it gives a glimpse of my students (all 500 of them) as we all went out on a field trip to Labor Park.

If you watch it, leave some comments on the vBlog page.

Us Against Them

This is certainly not a new topic for China bloggers, but I just finished reading an article on ESWN entitled "How I Was A Chinese Traitor" and it brought back memories of my own similar experience in Beijing.

For those in too much of a hurry to click and check out the article - essentially it's a translation of a blog entry of a Beijing journalist who helped out a German friend that got swindled by a quite popular tea scam. The Chinese journalist then got called a traitor by the swindlers.

When I went to Beijing last year with Martin we got taken in by the same scam but at about half the cost - we were lucky, though it didn't feel like it at the time. Yay for looking poor I guess.

The article is really interesting because it shows what is a common China occurance, and anyone with a Chinese girlfriend, boyfriend, wife or husband would likely agree. Everytime I go to the markets with Maggie the Chinese people - expectedly - rip me off, out right lie to me, and try to cheat me in anyway they can. They do it poorly, and it brings shame to them as it really illustrates their ignorance. I mean, not to sound judgemental here (ha!) but what foreigner is stupid enough to pay 500 RMB (about $75 CND) for a pair of obviously counterfeit Nike sneakers or Converse hoodie?

Maggie then scolds them for being blind idiots that didn't see that she is Chinese (and therefore SHE would know a fair price - because not in my entire life in the West did I ever need to know the price of products, or even see a shop for that matter, what with being the decadant and agoraphobic person that I am). She then proceeds to barter with them and gets the price down to somewhere between what the Chinese people would usually pay and what the foreigners usually pay (like 30-90 RMB if the original asking price is 500 RMB).

The shopkeepers then, perhaps (but inconsequently) wrongly assuming that Maggie is my tour guide, berate her for stopping them from ripping me off. Much like the author of the ESWN article above, they essentially call her a traitor to her country.

Now, keep in mind I have two very strong principles when I go shopping. A) I understand that these people are poor and as such if they try to charge me a little more than a Chinese person, I'm not offended, as long as that price is not them blatently banking on the fact that I'm an idiot and they can lie to and steal from me. This to me is simply immoral and unethical. B) Should they act this way, I just move on. I don't bargin, I don't do any business with them at all.

I like bargaining, when done, as the guidebooks would have you believe, all in 'good fun'. If the 'fair price' for something is say 50 RMB, and the shopkeeper might be willing to go as low as 40 RMB to stop you from buying it at another shop (taking a cut in their margin just to keep the business), I might be willing to go as high as 60-65 RMB just to be done with the transaction. Somewhere in there is the settled price, and that's fine. But if I walk up and ask how much a pair of sunglasses are and the shopkeeper says "220 RMB" because they are a "good brand" - I walk. No little shop servicing the common people of Dalian is going to sell sunglasses that are either real or expensive. In Canada I'd pay $10-15 for a pair of sunglasses - MADE IN CHINA! Why would I EVER pay more for something IN China than I'd pay in Canada? Despite me explaining this to a countless number of shopowners... the effects have been minimal. They need a newsletter, or Web forum or something... someone should spread the word to them on what common prices are in Western countries.

Anyway, that's my rant on why I take no shame in shopping at Walmart (fixed prices) for near everything I can. Bargaining may be "fun" for the first little while, but when your white skin removes most of the decency from a person in their quest for the ultimate money grab, buying day-to-day items can become a tiring pain in the ass and after a year and a half here - my ass is sore as.

AdNon-Sense

I've been in a bit of an e-mail exchange with Google AdSense lately. They wrote to inform me that one of my pages is in violation of their policies.

I'll be the first to admit, I may have skimmed that policy/terms of agreement bit a tad quickly before clicking the little "I Agree To The Following Terms of Agreement" button when signing up, but really... violation?

I checked out the page and what they had a problem with was a bit at the bottom that was informing visitors to use the links I had added to the site to direct them to my hosting provider to get more information about a good hosting package I'm affiliated with.

Figuring the little Googlebots made a mistake thinking I was talking about Google ads (as in their policies you're not allowed to encourage visitors to use the ads), I wrote Google back and they told me I'm actually not allowed to advise visitors of MY pages to visit ANY advertising on MY site - Google or not.

Does anyone else see the problem in this? When did Google start dictating the content of our sites? I mean, I can understand that they don't want you pooching their click-thru system by telling people to click their's, but what right do they have to tell us that we can't advise people to visit affiliate programs' Web sites for more information about the program?

Here are the two e-mails... [blablabla] has replaced the violating phrases so as not to get in trouble again. Fuck, I wouldn't even care as the AdSense on here is not too important, but it's directly connected to my new site, where it is important... so if I pooch it on one, it's pooched on the other.

From: adsense-support@google.com
To: Ryan McLaughlin
CC: adsense-support@google.com
Subject: Google AdSense
Date: Tue, 16 May 2006 18:37:44 -0700

Hello,
While reviewing your account, we noticed that you are currently displaying Google ads in a manner that is not compliant with our policies. For instance, we found violations of AdSense policies on pages such as thehumanaught.com/blog/2006/03/lil-somethin-for-everyone.html

Publishers are not permitted to encourage users to [blablabla] Google ads or bring excessive attention to ad units. For example, your site cannot contain phrases such as "[blablabla]," "[blablabla]," "[blablabla]," or other similar language that could apply to the Google ads on your site. Publishers may not use arrows or other symbols to direct attention to the ads on their sites, and publishers may not label the Google ads with text other than "sponsored links" or "advertisements."

Please make any necessary changes to your web pages in the next 72 hours. We also suggest that you take the time to review our program policies (https://www.google.com/adsense/policies) to ensure that all of your other pages are in compliance.

Once you update your site, we will automatically detect the changes and ad serving will not be affected. If you choose not to make the changes to your account within the next three days, your account will remain active but you will no longer be able to display ads on the site. Please note, however, that we may disable your account if further violations are found in the future.
Thank you for your cooperation.
Sincerely,
The Google AdSense Team

---

From: "Ryan McLaughlin"
Subject: RE: Google AdSense
Date: Tue, 16 May 2006 23:55:12 -0400

Hi GoogleAdsense, while reviewing my account, I noticed that I am currently displaying Google ads in a manner that is completely compliant with your policies. For instance, I found no violations of AdSense policies on pages such as thehumanaught.com/blog/2006/03/lil-somethin-for-everyone.html. It does (rather, did) contain phrases such as "[blablabla]," but it was NOT referring to any Google AdSense advertising. The entry, as this is a blog, was outlining details about an affiliate program I am connected with for my site hosting. It is very clear in the text what I am referring to, and there could be no mistake on the part of my viewers in thinking I meant for them to [blablabla] on my Google ads.

I understand Google's need to use bots to monitor the millions of sites that use these ads, but I think if a violation is found, perhaps a human being is best to check out if it's a valid violation or not. I thank you for your warning, and please let me know if you find any other non-violations to your policies.

With regards,
Ryan McLaughlin

---

And they said...
Thanks for following up with us. Please be aware that our program policies state that web pages may not include incentives of any kind for users to [blablabla] ads [[[it should be stated that the only incentive I stated was "to get more information"]]], including encouraging users to [blablabla] any ad, regardless of content. This policy is not specifically restricted to ads being served through Google AdSense.

Sigh. Anyway, here's an interesting statistic, to show how useless they really are: I consume two things most mornings for "breakfast" - the contents of these two things are 75% the same. Three out of the four things included in each are identical. One is oatmeal, the other is coffee. Weird eh?

Windows Dead Mail

That's it, I give up. I've stuck with Hotmail since like '97 or something...
tao_monkey
acidhartha
thehumanaught...

Me and Hotmail, we've had some good times, we have. But I'm tired of having to battle with the commies to access my e-mail. I mean, I'm not exactly a political dissident, an active activist, or anything...

Besides, I have my site(s), I can just create any number of cool e-mails... like "ryan" or "me" or "itsmeryan" @ thehumanaught.com...

And as it was written, thus it shall be. Hotmail, like some 16-year-old pregnant daughter in 1950s Dublin ... you're dead to me. And the CCP boys that think it's cute that they have the power to block possibly the world's largest e-mail provider... go fuc... have a nice day. (I don't want to lose my Internet access completely).

This Day In History: The Cultural Revolution Begins

Right, so it was forty years ago today that Mao launched the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution.

The gist: Mao Ze Dong, feeling the power he had gained over the first two decades of CCP control in China beginning to slip into the hands of others, began a purge of "bourgeois" from government and the rest of the country.

Despite having made a rather large flub a few years earlier (aka The Great Leap Forward), this is where Mao's infamy lies. Even though it had a catchy title, the GLF just didn't have the rabid fanaticism the the Cultural Revolution did. Mao (with the help of the Gang of Four - one of which being Mao's wife) managed to mobilize the nation's students into a crazy and often lethal group called The Red Guard. These guys ousted, criticized, and often tortured whomever they felt were standing in the way of the revolution. Labelled "bourgeois", this is when the middle-class, limping for years, died.

The Cultural Revolution also, puntastically, removed most of China's culture from the country - and indeed from the planet. Literature, temples, art, and basically anything else that might give China some sense of identity now, was considered "rightest" and unneeded under the new regime.

This continued until Mao's death in 1976. A few years later Deng Xiao Ping returned from in-country exile, impossed on him during the CRL, took the reigns and began reforming China - it is largely due to him that China is where it is today. Good or bad, I think the world can agree that he was a shade better than his megalomaniacal predecessor.

Four decades on, the scars are still deep, and the middle-class has yet to fully recover. Though growing, well-educated free thinkers are still the exception, not the rule in most places throughout China.

And so yeah, that's my brief "This Day In History" moment.

This post officially marks my breaking of 200 posts. 200 posts in a little over a year, not too shabby. If you've been along for the whole ride, thanks for reading... and if you've just got here... I swear, sometimes I'm entertaining.

I get a day off tomorrow (actually still have to work 2 hours tomorrow night, but) after working a week straight teaching each day... I'm tired as all hell, but somehow have been conned into heading downtown to meet Maggie and all the girls from her work for a night out at Noah's (a nice bar in town). Though perhaps most people would jump at the opportunity to spend time with their beautiful girlfriend and her cute friends... I am very much not. I'm tired, they don't speak English, the last time I went out with them was a clusterfeck of confusion that despite being sold to me as fun and dancing didn't touch on either.

We'll see if tonight fares better.

Da Hei Shan 大黑山

Last week, as I've mentioned, was May Holiday. This is a very popular time for people in China to travel - as many have a week long vacation. The "many" however did not include Maggie. As I didn't really feel like trekkin' around China on my own, and am still slaving over this new Web site (I swear, I'll tell you all about it soon), I opted to stay in town for the week.

Most of my week was spent staring at the business end of an LCD screen, but come Sunday Maggie and I decided we needed to get our lazy asses up and out for some fresh air. Enter, Da Hei Shan 大黑山 (or Big Black Mountain).

For some of you this name will seem familiar, as I've ranted about it a few times. Da Hei Shan is a mountain that sits between Jinzhou and Kaifaqu, about 30 minutes north of Dalian. When I lived in Jinzhou for my first eight months in China I stared out the window at this big rock every day, but as per my manager's instructions, never visited it.

You see, three groups of people dig this place. Daytrippers looking to get some fresh air and exercise, monks who live at the rather touristy temples scattered both on and around the mountain, and the PLA or People's Liberation Army. I'm not entirely sure why the PLA decided to build a training base at the top of the mountain and I don't care to know - a fact I was planning to plead had I been captured, tortured, and had my organs sold to rich Brits due to my presence on the mountain. Likely I would have just been fined 3,000 RMB and let on my way - how much does a spleen go for on the black market anyway?

It was this fear (of the fine, as at the time the whole Sujiatun Death Camp thing was sorta unknown) that kept me from climbing the mountain until a year after my initial plans to do so. It was worth the wait though - in part because I still have all my organs.

Let's get a few things straight. This isn't The Rockies. The 'mountains' around Dalian have about as much right to the name as any big hill might. Fortunately for naming sake, the word for mountain and hill in Chinese is the same. So there ya go.

That said, it's not a simple jaunt, and it will get your heart going. Like most Chinese mountain climbs, it's mostly all stairs. I'm not sure who it was that cooked this idea up, and though it does cut down on the "authenticity" of 'mountain climbing'... it does make the hike a bit simpler.

To get to Da Hei Shan from Dalian, it's easiest to just take any number of busses to Jinzhou, and then either take the rather infrequent bus (only runs in the morning) or take a taxi. As we missed the bus (I needed sunglasses damnit), we opted to take a cab, which dropped us off on a nice little path that led up to a ticket house. Admittance is 10 RMB, which is fair enough as the park seemed reasonably well maintained, and the fee included entrance to the Buddhist temple at the top.

Immediately upon arrival at Da Hei Shan's base you notice a difference in the air quality, and deep breathes don't bring with them a slight panic due to the amount of dirt you're inhaling (as is the case in the city). There's also the presence of the long-forgotten tweets and caws of birds. All-in-all, the place closely resembles nature. I was surprised.

The hike starts out gradual, slowly becoming steeper as you ascend. At one point there is an incline of about 70-degrees, which was a bit more like climbing a ladder than a stairway.

It amazed me throughout the climb how limber(ly?) and quickly the elderly (wow that was a lot of -ly's) climbed. Not only did they keep pace with us youngin's, but often they zoomed by with a wisened/self-righteous smirk.


After about an hour or so of climbing, you reach the first "top", which is where the temple is located. You're rewarded with some nice views of the valley you've just hiked through, and on a clear day might be able to see the sea. We couldn't as it was hazy.

The temple is sort of lackluster as it is more an opportunity for the monks to sell you their "blessed" wares. Anyone who's been in China more than a couple days has likely seen carbon copies of the same temple. There are however some nice marble statues of Buddha looking his serene self.



From here you can go back down the way you came, or continue up a little further, passed the army base (something I did quickly, not completely escaping the gaze of some plain clothes military guys), and up to a parking lot. Yup. Top of the mountain parking lot. Apparently for those that want the view, but not the exercise.

A little ways away from the parking lot, down a Temple of Heaven-like marble path, is a Keep-type structure, which while we were there had been rented out for an Amway rally - you heard right. We elbowed passed the rah-rah brainwashing to riches, and got a spectacular view of Jinzhou on the left and Kaifaqu on the right. Had the weather been clearer, we could easily have seen Dalian in the distance.

After taking in the view we had a tough decision to make... continue climbing to the real 'top' where I think there is an even better view, and a TV tower, or start our descent. The several hundred stairs assembled in a near verticle fashion between us and the top made the decision none-too-hard to make and we started down.

The road down, is literally that, a road. Though well-paved, it's steep and features repeating jackknife turns - tough on the toes and calf muscles after a while. It was a bit surreal on the way down as we randomly bumped into Doris, a friend of ours from the Jinzhou Future School days. I had considered calling her and inviting her along for the hike - funny how things work out. We stopped and chatted for a bit, made vague dinner plans (as you do) and continued on our way.

At the base, the road opens up and winds passed farmer's fields until it reaches an intersection where there are a load of old women selling produce in baskets, as well as a bus stop and taxis waiting to take you back to the city.

Upon discovering we had also missed the bus home, we hopped in a mini-van back to Jinzhou and returned to Dalian, via a shared taxi, for some well earned lunch and relaxation.



And so there it is - my trip to the big black mountain, Da Hei Shan. It should be noted that I have heard of foreigners getting hassled by the army, and I think it's still officially off-limits. However, I haven't heard any firsthand accounts of trouble; quite the opposite actually, as most foreigners I've met here have been. Now I know why. It's a nice way to get away from the honking bustle of the city for an afternoon.

Expenses summary (per person):
Bus to Jinzhou: 4 RMB
Taxi to Da Hei Shan: 12.5 RMB (25 RMB/2)
Da Hei Shan Entrance Fee: 10 RMB
Mini-van Back to Jinzhou: 10 RMB (20 RMB/2)
Shared Taxi back to Dalian: 16 RMB

---

Total: 52.5 RMB (or about $7.50 CAN)

Notes:
Shared Taxis
This is a reasonably convenient way to get between Jinzhou and Dalian. Essentially it's a regular taxi shared between a group of strangers that ferries you between the two cities for a set price. Dalian->Jinzhou should be 11 RMB, and Jinzhou->Dalian 16 RMB. There is a 1 RMB discount if the taxi doesn't take the ShenDa Highway. The easiest place to catch a shared taxi in Jinzhou is by Jinzuo Market, just north of the #1 Bus Terminal, and east of what I think is called Shengli Square. You'll see a long clusterpuck of taxis waiting curbside for people looking to go to Dalian. Try to find a car with some people waiting in it already. People in the backseat are preferred, as often a driver will stick his buddy in the front passenger seat to make it look like he's got people waiting to go. Failure to adhere to this might see you waiting an obscenely long time.

Da Hei Shan Entrance
You can tackle Da Hei Shan two different ways. We took the path up and the road down, but it is equally possible to take the road up and the path down. Both have their benefits. My friend Doris explained that they were taking the road up because it's easier to climb the road and descend the stairs than the other way around. I can't say which is easier. Just make sure you explain to the driver which entrance you'd like to go to. Assuming you come directly from the city, the path entrance will be reached first, and on your right.

War On Fat: Part III - Good Habits

So, about a week after going to war... how are things?

Well... I nixed jogging. At least in the everyday way. With some advice from friends who seem to have an uncanny amount of knowledge about this stuff, I've decided to take things a bit slower than I initially intended.

I was all gungho about the war going in, but realized that if my body didn't understand what was going on, I'd have mass anti-war protests, led mainly by the H. S. Thompson in me. So, what I've been doing with the war effort is developing good habits, or at least better habits. I figure if I can maintain good habits for a month or so, these habits will become just part of my routine.

The habits include: drinking more water (check, now drink about my required amount in water and/or green tea a day), eating healthy (check, no more fried foods,and a lot more vegetables, seafood and chicken), moderate exercise (check, check out my soon-to-be posted review of Da Hei Shan), and no more beer (check...). That last one has been a challenge, as I didn't realize how intigrated drinking beer was in my life. I go out for drinks, I have a beer with dinner (most men do here), I come home and have a beer on a Saturday afternoon... but it all adds up... a lot.

The other habit that actually started a while back, is that I get up early. This one has helped a lot in peripheral ways. It gives me more daylight and starts my day off -ummm- earlier. And well that might sound stupid, I just tend to be a lot more motivated to do things, and do the right things, when I haven't slept until 9 or 10. So, 6:30 a.m., every day. I find that by the end of the day I am much more tired, but it's a good tired and in turn a good sleep.

May 9rd, 2006: 107 kg
but it has fluxuated between about 106 and 108... so... until things really start moving and the new habits are really changed, I doubt this number will matter much.

The Mac Daddy

I know, I know... two posts in one day - inside of a couple hours even. But since I left here last I stumbled upon something and wanted to share it. I've effectively turned the look of my computer into that of Mac OSX.

For those, like me, whom years ago swore off Mac and all its "I'm faster, better and slicker looking" boastfulness, but now feel a little like maybe they were wrong... just a little, can get the 'slicker looking' bit on their PCs.

Through a few simple addon programs you'll have those Apple pundits believing you're one of them (at least at first glance). For detailed instructions, visit this guide.

What I particularly like about it is the OSX (Mac's Windows XP) toolbar at the bottom - it's just damn cool. Just to be clear, the programs don't actually change the function of Windows in any way. It's still an XP system, all your files are the same, etc. It just looks... well... nifty.

Here's a screen shot. As per usual, click it for the bigger version.

China Doesn't Like Hot Males

Haha... of all the sleazy titles to drive traffic to your site...

But yeah, so this last week I've been on holiday. It's the Labour Holiday in China, and as such the people who do the least labour (the rich) get a truckload of time off, while the people who do the most (the poor - and Maggie) get none off. Ah, the logic of this 'People's Republic'.

Anyway, I've had the whole week off and pretty much have done nadda with it. I've gone out a handful of times, but while many people went travelling, I sat in front of my computer working on my new Web site (details soon, I promise).

Something I've noticed from these days getting a monitortan, is the lack of use of Hotmail. Thankfully I could access it this morning, but for the rest of the week it's been completely unavailable to me without the use of Great Firewall of China breaker Tor. I can't figure it out, the blockage was sporatic. Not everyone in China couldn't access it, just a select group. Even here in Dalian there were those that could and those that couldn't.

Essentially Tor redirects the packets of information you send and receive from web sites through various other servers around the world, so that way neither the site you are visiting nor your ISP (aka. gatekeeper of your connection) know who you are. It's completely anonymous. This is extremely useful, not as one might assume, so that I can visit the site of groups that the government here deems unfit for my eyes (any ╒a└uиgΘиg sites, the 'president' of Taiwan's homepage, and of course any Chinese-print newspapers not written in Mainland China) but simply so I can visit wikipedia and most recently so I could check my e-mail.

Perhaps it's just a coincidence, but I've also noticed that not all my e-mails are coming through. I always get e-mail updates if someone replies to a post on this site, however only about 50% of the notification have reached me. The others have, well, slipped through the holes in the Net.

After reading up on it a little (and I do mean a little, so pardon errors in thought here), but I'm really considering changing e-mail hosts. The more I read the more I realize how the three big Web-based mail companies (MSN's Hotmail, YahooMail, and Google's Gmail) are in bed with people who don't share my interests, but have a share of interest in my information (and yours for that matter). Maybe it's because I've been watching Manufacturing Consent, but I get a little ansy knowing how easy it is for them to filter, view, or even just stop what I feel is my right to communication with the outside world.

From Google filtering search results in China, to Yahoo outright helping the PRC arrest dissidents, it all just makes me wonder if we are sitting a little too comfortable thinking that these companies (who have $$ and power as their goals, not public trust or solid ethics) have our interests at heart. We just trust that there's not some tech. at Microsoft reading our e-mails. Or that they don't have filtering software in place to search for keywords that them, or someone their in partnership with, deems flaggable.

There are alternatives, Web-based e-mail like Hushmail offers a encrypted e-mail service. But again, it still puts all the trust in a company, that though now small, if one day makes it big, might also play the slight of hand trick with a similar 'Don't Be Evil' corporate motto.

I guess what it boils down to is this - Bill, er. Mr. Gates: if I promise to only write nice letters and stuff to my mom, touting the amazing beauty and unending kindness of China and Chinese culture, can I have access to my e-mail? Please?

What these companies need to ask themselves is what phrase is more appealing:
"Hu Will Love You" or
"Who Will Love You?"

History is the judge, but a Benz is a Benz.

Gasp! Fake News ... in China!!!

There's a new post over at ESWN talking about the Beijing Legal Times. Apparently Chinese counterfeiters have now decided to make a newspaper that's contents are completely false. This will leave many Chinese aghast at how low these people will go. In other surprise news, Chinese people still believe State-run news agency XinhuaNet is telling them the truth.

Thanks go to ESWN for the translation of the Ming Pao article that tells the story of 'fake' news in China.

(Ming Pao) May 3, 2006

[in translation]

The May 1st golden week was an opportunity for scam artists in mainland China to make money. In Wangjingfu street in Beijing, there are usually a large number of tourists. In recent days, the place is covered with "fake newspaper gang" members who publicly declared that "Faye Wong is dead by suicide" and "Li Ahpeng is arrested" and sold copies of the newspaper Legal Times to tourists. The amusing thing is that the "fake newspaper gang" has large numbers of customers.

Yesterday, the reporter was at the Wangjingfu subway entrance and was shocked to hear someone announced the news that "Faye Wong is dead." The story was that Hong Kong singer Faye Wong was despondent after splitting up with Nicholas Tse and therefore committed suicide at her home. The news report also falsely reported that Nicholas Tse was so upset that he shaved off the hair on one half of his head. Also the newspaper reported that famous Chinese television program host Zhao Zhongchang was suspected of rape, that female singer Mao Ahmin has returned to the business, and other 'news stories.'

None of the reports contained dates or the names of reporters and editors. Even funnier was that this Legal Times contained some contents from the supplementary section of the Legal Evening News (=Mirror) that was published legally on April 4th in Beijing. Yesterday, the reporter was observing at the scene and noted that more than one hundred people bought the newspaper in less than 30 minutes. Some tourists thought this news was true and they started reading immedaitely. Some other people said: "I knew that this was false, but I was just curious."

The "fake newspaper gang" seemed to be well-organized. The reporter saw two vendors selling Legal Times at the two Wangfujing subway exits, with two other people acting as lookouts. When the reporter took photographs, one of the man came up to stop him and also attempted to take away the camera. The police and security people on the street did not seem to mind these people.

Honestly, if you're going to make a newspaper that isn't sponsored by the government, perhaps you might want to consider using it to do some real journalism. Of course then the police wouldn't turn a blind eye.

The War On Fat: Part II

I don't intend for my updates to be quite so regular as every day - I mean, it's a long process and rather boring I think... but just wanted to comment on my first day.

Day One:
Got up at 6:30 a.m. - this has become a strong habit, and with few exceptions is something I now do everyday - yeah!

Went for a jog - actually about 30% jog and 70% walking. Basically I'd run, tire, and start walking. After catching my breath I'd look around and notice all the early-morning Dalianers staring at the fat laowai breathing rather heavily... and I'd find my motivation to run again. NOTE: I discovered a park that I had been to while living at my previous apartment - it's now much closer to my home and will be part of my daily exercise routine. It's quite busy in the mornings, but meh. The highlight was seeing a middle-aged woman wearing a pink sweatshirt with a big rhinestone pot leaf on the back. Too funny.

Got home and did some crunches, or whatever they're called. At first it was a little bit of a challenge, but once I figured out the breathing and stuff... I could really start to feel it working away at my abs. I read somewhere that large stomachs are mostly because the ab muscles have become weak and stretched... so... fat burning, good eating and ab building are my goals. Hope Maggie doesn't mind me using the yoga mat I bought her for her birthday.

The rest of the day kind of went down hill. I skipped drinking a lot of water - no real reason, just not a habit for me yet. I also skipped all the meals, making me quite hungry later at night when I met up with Maggie to go dancing with her and her co-workers. This ended in me A) drinking several beers and B) eating chuar (BBQ).. if that wasn't enough, I got home and ended up eating some leftover cheesecake that my friend Rick and his girlfriend brought over the day before...

So, this morning I slept in, skipped the jog and haven't consumed any water yet. Well, no one said this was going to be simple. Time to go make some green tea.

The War On Fat: Part I

Seems everyone has got their "War On" these days - and I'm a follower of the Faith of Conformity, so I'm starting my own war. Dubbed "Operation: Reclaim Waistline", my War On Fat shall combat the Axis of Evil (The Democratic People's Republic of Lethargy, The Sovereign Kingdom of Crap Food and Not Drinking Enough Water - ok, that last one didn't have the PR department that the first two had...).

I've always been overweight - at least since I was about 9 or 10 when my parents got divorced and I found solice in savoury things. As you should, I just became comfortable with my body (awkward puberty years aside), and generally haven't cared too much about it.

But now, getting older and perhaps a little more responsible, I'm starting to understand that the damage to my body of every kilo I'm overweight will be compounded by every passing year - and so, The War On Fat has been declared.

Like a Chinese farmer looking at a Western toilet, I'm a little unprepared as to how best to go about it. If there's one thing I've consistantly failed at and not learned from it's exercise routines. See, this isn't my first War of Fat; in the past I even went so far as buying one of those big exercise machines and drinking chalky tasting milkshakes.

So why is this time any different? Well, I think losing weight is a lot like quitting smoking - you have to fail a number of times before you succeed, before you REALLY want to do it. The failures are because you try knowing you "should" do it, but you don't really have the willpower to keep it going because you don't really "want" to do it. And I want to do it! Really, I do.

Optimally, I would be able to join a gym. Alas, I am unaware of any good gyms less than 40 minutes away by bus, and I think that trip would kill my motivation - so I need an inhouse solution - and I think it's the Rocky Balboa method: just run like your ass is on fire, and wave your hands in the air at the top of all staircases.

I'm going to cut out the oily, meat-stuffed Chinese food, I'm going to hydrate myself (I currently drink about one glass of water a day, the rest is either sugar-saturated iced tea or beer) and I'm going to exercise. It's that last one that worries me the most because unless I can make it a habit, it's going to fail.

Fortunately I've been reading a lot about developing habits (thanks Steve Pavlina), and I think if I can get through the first two or three weeks and definitely if I can do it reliably for a month, it will then feel uncomfortable or awkward NOT to exercise.

And just when you were thinking, "But Ryan... we should ALL pitch in for the war effort - how can I help?" - your answer has arrived. A) Check back here often, as I'll be posting my progress (in KGs), this will give me the motivation of knowing people are following along, and B) Give me suggestions. If you've ever discovered a way that worked for you in shedding a few pounds, or living more healthily, please leave a comment.

Alright, so that's it. Oh, wait. The goals. I guess you need a target right? G.W. has the oil of the middle east in his "War On Terror", Nixon had something with his "War On Drugs", and my "War On Fat" too has directives and aims. I don't really know much about losing weight, so I can't say how long - but I do know where I want to be sitting on the scale and that's in the 77-80 kg. range. I've a long way to go, as you can see below, but there are few things more important than your health... so. Yeah.

May 3rd, 2006: 108 kg

Worth A Thousand Tears

Just made my daily trip over to EastSouthWestNorth Blog and his current post features a photo journalist named Maohair (毛孩儿) from Shenyang (about 5 hours north of here, and the capital of this - 辽宁 - province.

His photography is strikingly raw. It reads more like a CSI report than a portfolio, as most his work details the China that has just run headlong into a train, car, embankment, pot of boiling oil, etc. Needless to say, some of the photos aren't for the easily disturbed.

A quick sampling (check out the original post for more):

[1] A father cries, his newly wed son and daughter-in-law were killed in a car accident. [2] The female passenger of the wrecked car checks her face before calling for help for the trapped driver.

The father of a boy just hit by a bus can do nothing but cover his face.