Tommy's Comments

Brief Chat with Andrew

Logic,

You said: If first development then democratie, why does China government block Hong Kong from having a full democratie?

Hong Kong did not have democracy under British rule till 1997. Why should they change all of a sudden just because it's given back to China? Were Hong Kong people happy then without democracy before 97? I think so.

You wrote: Developement and human right improvement can be done at the same time, it is not one after another.

I believe it's possible, depending on what kind of human right improvement you are talking about. In the case of China. The most important thing for China is to get all Chinese people a much better living standard. Stability of the country is then vital in order to achieve that.

Posted by Tommy at 2008-04-21 03:07:59. More

Wangjianshuo's Blog on BBC, Again

To Shanghai-ren (wannabe),

You wrote: ... the majority of Chinese youth, with high education, low education or no education lacks independent thinking and civilized mindset.

My answer: Wow, how smart of you to jump into a conclusion that covers majority of Chinese youth. When does boycotting becomes uncivilized? Is it when it's used in a non-western country?

You ask: Has Chinese learned to be grateful to a 40-year friend?
My answer: Only if this 40-year friend behaves as a friend as not as an enemy.

Has the French learned to be grateful to a 40-year friend?

Posted by Tommy at 2008-04-21 00:58:02. More

Wangjianshuo's Blog on BBC, Again

To Jakke,

You wrote: The Chinese want the foreign guests and media to see what they want them to see, foreign students would be more open to the press and talk about what really goes on when the eyes of the world are not on them.
They can hardly put them in jail like they have done with so many journalists.

OK. As if the Chines egovernment will expect those foreign students will just shut their mouth in their own country after being kicked out from China.

Give me a break!

Please, again, use your brain, if you actually have one with an accpetable size. (If you can have an attitude, I can have one too.)

Posted by Tommy at 2008-04-21 00:48:03. More

Brief Chat with Andrew

To JS:

You wrote: Tibet improved so much, but the problem is, whether it is what the Tibetan want? Do they value economic freedom as you do? Do they want to change the way you want them to change? This rule applies to China and to America.
To help is good but to force others to accept the help is often written in the history book as invasion.

I completely disagree.

Do you suggest that if Tibetan people do not value economic freedom and development introduced by the Chinese government, we can just conclude China 'has invaded' Tibet???

America's 'helps' to Iraq is totally different from Chinese governemnt's 'help' to Tibet. First is from country to country. The other one is from central government to one province within one country. You can describe the first one as an invasion with no doubt. But you can not in the second case. The same as you can't say Shanghai is 'invaded' if Shanghaiese people does not want their city to become a financial center even if the central government want them to.

By the way, who gets to conclude that Tibetans does not want economic freedom and development? I am sure there are different opinions among Tibetan people. What shall be the criteria to make such conclusion?

I believe in one thing though: The majority of Tibetan people don't want to go back to slavery under Dalao Lama, if they really understand the consequence of being 'free' from China.

Posted by Tommy at 2008-04-21 00:39:49. More

"Love China" Blooms on MSN Messenger

To Andrew and Stun Edge,

I couldn't have agreed more. I live in Northern-Europe and don't blindly believe everything from the Chinese media. I believe in freedom of speech. People in the West definitely have the right to protest.

What really piss me off this time is how the majority of Western 'free' media covered the Tibet riot and torch. That's just so totally wrong and incredibly unfair. I don't blame some extreme Western people's reaction. If I only watched and listened to the Western coverage, I would probably have jumped to the wrong conclusion.

Another thing, Chinese people see Olympic games as a celebration of the nation and its people, not the government. No matter Chinese people are angry. If someone try to ruin your home party, you would be mad too.

Western people have their way of expressing themselves, so do Chinese people.

After some thoughts, I am now for boycotting imported French goods, specailly travels to France.

The voice of Chinese people needs to bee heard!

Posted by Tommy at 2008-04-17 17:12:55. More

Real Pictures of China with My Experience

shanghai-ren (you are so not),

To be fair, she so deserves this.

After watching how the Western free media reporting news, I just don't believe what's written in the article you linked to. I really don't.

'..routine procedure for Chinese government to "settle accounts after autumn"'??? This shows how naiv and brain-washed people can be. Please remember, Culture revolution ended in 1976.

Please, only involved yourself and have an opinion on things that you really know and are capable of understanding.

Obviously, Tibet/China matter is not one of them.

Posted by Tommy at 2008-04-17 02:12:45. More

"Love China" Blooms on MSN Messenger

To nobody,

Did you see how the Western free media covered the Tibet riot and torch in the past few weeks? Trust me, if you had lived in the West and saw that shit everyday, you would be at least as angry as I am.

I agree that everyone should have the freedom to express themselves. But that doesn't mean they can just lie lie lie.

Being objective is something the West should really learn this time, seriously.

I wasn't so sure whether it's agood idea to boycott the French. But now, I totally support it!

Chinese need to be heard too.

Posted by Tommy at 2008-04-17 01:52:45. More

Friends Started to Boycott French Products

今天挪威晚邮报一篇分析文章讲述历年抵制奥运事件的后果，结论: 运动员是最大受害者。而对被抵制的东道主国家来说，抵制的效果统统微乎其微。

最近看到国内有网友发起抵制法国商品和法国游的运动。反映当然是有赞同的也有怀疑的。

俺个人暂不确定抵制法国商品和法国游是对还是错。不过俺相信，大批普通中国民众长期抵制法国商品和法国游于法国的后果，比对被抵制奥运或奥运开幕式的中国(如果发生的话)的后果, 要严重的多。

给你个发生在丹麦的例子，丹麦报纸《于尔兰邮报》2005年底刊登了一系列讽刺穆斯林先知穆罕默德的漫画，全世界穆斯林普通民众激烈抗议，同仇敌忾，长期抵制丹麦的奶类和肉类产品，乐高玩具等丹麦产品也在伊斯兰国家遭抵制，这使得丹麦的出口受到了严重的打击。

丹麦官方统计数字表明，在今年2月到6月间，丹麦出口下降了15.5%，而对中东地区的贸易额就下跌了一半。

丹麦国家统计局的有关数字指出，穆斯林主要市场沙特阿拉伯的出口下降了40%，利比亚、叙利亚和也门的出口也显著下跌。

丹麦官员指出，丹麦的商业损失了1.34亿欧元（1.7亿美元），当中奶类产品受到最严重的打击。

后来，报社主编通过该报网站发表公开信，就刊登亵渎伊斯兰教漫画一事作出道歉。他在信中承认，这些漫画的发表无可争辩地伤害了众多穆斯林。他为此深感抱歉。丹麦首相也准备派代表团去中东国家做出解释。

活该！

穆斯林抵制丹麦产品这件事与中国网友发起抵制法国商品和法国游的原因其实是一样的，都是普通群众的感情被严重伤害。

如果要抵制达到效果，这个抵制必须是来自大量普通民众的和长期的。

这篇文章，值得一读丹麦漫画事件与�文明冲突论 http://www.globalview.cn/ReadNews.asp?NewsID=6912

其他相关文章 Danish Newspaper Apologizes, Receives Bomb Threat http://www.arabnews.com/?page=1§ion=0&article=77170&d=1&m=2&y=2006

Posted by Tommy at 2008-04-13 19:28:37. More

What the Term China, or France Means?

mac:

There is no doubt that China is far from perfect and many Chinese people dislike the cencorship of the government. But that doesn't mean they are doing everything wrong. and that doesn't mean that Jianshuo and other Chinese people must hate their government because of that. The fact is that the Chinese government has done many things right in the past 20 years and I am quite certain they will be even better in the years to come.

See, there are actually people out there who are able to analyze and draw their own conclusions based overall pictures.

There is a media cencorship in China, but look at how Western 'free' media covering Tibet-issue these past weeks, if this a 'free' media is able to do, I don't see it any better than the cencored Chinese media?

I used to think like you do. But now I wonder who really is being brain-washed.

Posted by Tommy at 2008-04-13 00:46:54. More

Friends Started to Boycott French Products

To Henri, Louis XIV or whoever you are:

Trust me, most Chinese people can live without baguette, croissants, Vuiton bags and L'Or�al.

Nobody has tried to take away your right to protest on the street in your country. You can protest whatever you want. And of course, Chinese people can choose to purchase or not purchase whatever they want. That's just the way it is.

See, 'proud', there is your problem. You are just so proud of staying at the side of the 'good ones', knowing the absolute 'truth' with, of course, your 'freedom of speech' and 'human rights' in your hands.

I am quite sure the 'proud' you mentioned here make you think you are more superior than the Chinese.

I am sorry, maybe your brain is too small to see it, you are nothing but a narrow-minded frenchman who has a 'black-white' view of the world.

Posted by Tommy at 2008-04-13 00:24:10. More

Friends Started to Boycott French Products

Stephen, you wrote: Don't forget France deployed over 3000 police to protect the torch relay in Paris, without the police present, the torch already ended up at the bottom of the river Seine.

Knowing that there will be many pro-tibet protestors and the situation could get worse than London, Paris city hall still hang out a flag saying 'Paris support human rights all over the world' on the day of olympic torch day.

I see this as the Paris goverment encouraging people to protesting Olympic torch. With that attitude in mind, I wonder whether those 3000 police would have done their best during the torch.

The French government has chosen their side.

Now we show them ours.

Posted by Tommy at 2008-04-13 00:05:49. More

My Site is Almost Legal in China

I know MSN Spaces has complied with the government's mandate that words like "freedom" and "democracy" be stricken from blogs...I wonder if there will be similar mandates for self-registered blogs such as your own.

I also wonder if the "Voldemort" effect has taken over there. In Harry Potter, no one can say the word "Voldemort" because he is just too evil to even mention by name. Instead they call him by "he who must not be named," but everyone knows who they are talking about. I wonder if the Chinese have developed such a system for the word "freedom" and other banned words. Like a code system...how about we call freedom "flying chicken" or "fei ji"?

Posted by Tommy at 2005-06-21 03:32:46. More

Shanghai's Growth is Slowing Down

The basic 'hardware' infratructure in Shanghai, at least in downtown area, is more or less in place. That's why it seems the development is slowing down. However, the 'software' (service, people's manner and so) development will be ongoing, hopefully, fo a long long time.

To reply R.S., Shaghai does have its own culture which is a unique mixture of East and West culture.

I think Shanghai people are prowd of their city and who they are. Why shoudln't they? There is nothing wrong with that.

Posted by Tommy at 2004-09-10 20:04:02. More

Starbucks in a Day - Beijing Version

Hello Jianshuo,

If you want to see people in everyday life and want to act like a traveller rather than a turist, you should probably avoid Starbucks. As you said, there are mostly just white colors and turists there. Haven't you seen them enough in Shanghai and other major cities? ;-) Areas around Starbucks are most likely full of main-stream turists.

Starbucks is just a coffee-shop-version of McDonald's. It's a fastfood-like coffee shop chain for pretentious people.

Maybe you should visit all the Mcdonald's in Beijing, you will have better chance to meet real people there. he he...

If you really want to be cool, don't go to Starbucks. Try the local tea house instead. ;-)

Posted by tommy at 2004-08-06 16:42:30. More