Today is the start of the year of the water dragon (23 January 2012 – 9 February 2013). Happy Year of the Dragon!
2 days ago
Showing posts with label China. Show all posts
Showing posts with label China. Show all posts
Monday, January 23, 2012
US Mission China: Gong He Fat Choi! Happy Year of the Dragon!
Monday, December 5, 2011
US Embassy Beijing Air Monitoring, Pollution Hype? Oh Yeah, the Smog Fogs the Brain, and Closes Beijing's Airport ...
Last month, environmental authorities in Beijing have accused the US embassy of "hype" after its widely-publicized measurements of air quality in the Chinese capital sparked concern.
"I'm not clear about their way and methods of monitoring or how they ensure the accuracy," said Du Shaozhong, spokesman for the Beijing Municipal Environmental Protection Bureau, according to the Beijing Times.The last 48 hours, the air quality in Beijing according to the US Embassy's reading has see-sawed between Very Unhealthy to Hazardous, with one Crazy Bad (Beyond Index) reading on Sunday. See http://twitter.com/#!/BeijingAir.
"But I feel their way of releasing (the data) is more like hype, and not a very serious attitude toward research."
Melissa Chan of Al Jazeera illustrated the current air quality in Beijing and Vermont with a photographic comparison on Twitter last month.
Greenpeace East Asia has put together real-time apps, Twitter tracking air quality levels in different Chinese cities to "help you closely monitor the skies (and know to stay indoors on those 'crazy bad' days)." Check them out here.
Today, we saw the amateur video of what Beijing’s streets looked like yesterday morning, December 4 via WSJ's China Real Time Report:
WSJ China Real Time Report notes that authorities in Beijing and most other Chinese cities measure air pollution by counting only particles between 2.5 and 10 micrometers in diameter. The US embassy counts particles smaller than 2.5 micrometers (PM2.5), which experts say make up the most of the city’s air pollution and cause more damage to the lungs.
Continue reading, Victory for U.S. Embassy as Beijing Chokes on 'Heavy Fog'
A few hours ago, BBC reports that Beijing airport has cancelled hundreds of flights after a dense smog reduced visibility in the Chinese capital.
Also this piece from PRNewswire touting that the global residential air treatment systems market as highly dynamic and expected to show steady growth should be helpful:
Verify Markets estimates the global residential air treatment systems market to be over $2 billion in revenues in 2010. China was the largest market, followed by Japan and the United States. The key drivers in most countries globally are poor indoor quality and rising awareness about poor air quality. In China, purchasing power, steady increase in income levels and poor indoor quality are major market drivers.The smog fogs the brain, that is all. Don't believe what you see or hear or breath ... it's all a hype, of course. But just in case, get ready with your 3M masks!
Tuesday, October 18, 2011
U.S. Mission China Adjudicated More Than 1 Million Visas, Visitors Add More Than $5 Billion to US Economy
Ambassador Gary Locke announced that the U.S. Mission to China adjudicated more than one million U.S. visas for Chinese applicants during fiscal year 2011. The U.S. Embassy in Beijing and Consulates in Shanghai, Guangzhou, Shenyang and Chengdu all contributed to this accomplishment, which represents a 34 percent increase over last year.
Ambassador Locke stressed the significance of this achievement, “The U.S.-China relationship is profoundly important, and welcoming Chinese visitors to the United States strengthens our cultural and commercial ties. I am very pleased at the success we have had in significantly reducing wait times for visa appointments this year.”
According to the Department of Commerce, more than 801,000 Chinese visited the United States in 2010. These visitors added more than $5 billion to the U.S. economy.
The U.S. Mission to China will continue to invite Chinese tourists, students, and businesspeople to visit the United States, a premier destination for travelers from around the world. The Mission will continue to reduce visa interview wait times to the greatest extent possible by adding staff and eliminating inefficiencies wherever possible.
I have a feeling that this is going to be the start of the "counting beans" era at our overseas posts. Consular posts overseas already are under pressure to keep the visa interview wait time, not that it makes a difference to Havana which now has 999 days wait time for visa interviews. Posts may now be asked to calculate (or obtain the numbers elsewhere) on how much their visa applicants contribute to the U.S. economy.
So far, no one has posted readily available information on how much the U.S. Treasury is earning from visas and consular services collected at our posts overseas. I was told once that State's Consular Bureau does not like advertising that. Note that state.gov already post statistics of visa issuance but not visa applications. In 2010, our consular posts worldwide issued 6,422,751 nonimmigrant visas. Even at a regular tourist visa fee of $140, that's $899.2 million in US dollars. Some type of visas like the petition based categories and investors/intracompany transferee visas cost more. And since a lot more applicants are refused, that $899.2 million is probably only about a third of a whole bucket.
For some, even the money generated by the visa application fees would not be enough. There have been calls on and off about reforming the visa system to make it more "traveler-friendly." Expect to hear more about the visa system and how it could generate more American jobs. As two Seattle-based CEOs put it, "winning back our share of the global long-haul travel market to 2000-2001 levels would create 1.3 million new American jobs by 2020 and add $859 billion in economic output."
In the meantime, we'll be in the lookout for bean-counter pressers from our posts overseas. Too early to tell if this is a trend.
Wednesday, July 27, 2011
Locke confirmed to be Ambassador to China by unanimous consent
The US Senate @ 10:43 AM
By unanimous consent, the Senate confirmed Gary Locke, of Washington, to be Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the United States of America to the People’s Republic of China.
Monday, June 6, 2011
If you're in Shanghai, by all means go visit the Embassy of Scotch Whisky Culture
JOHNNIE WALKER®, the world’s best-selling brand of Scotch whisky, opened The JOHNNIE WALKER HOUSE™ in Shanghai’s Sinan Mansions on May 19, 2011. The JOHNNIE WALKER HOUSE™ is the first of its kind outside of Scotland and marks a new chapter for whisky culture in China. Interactive sensory journeys, inspirational forums and luxury dinners make this house a unique experience for every guest.
“When we talk to people about blending, we don’t lecture or talk at them. We like people to gather round and have what we call a whisky conversation,” says the JOHNNIE WALKER® Master Blender, Dr Jim Beveridge. “The House is inspired by the ‘Whisky Conversation’, and is the first whisky embassy in China creating a new milestone for whisky culture and marking a new chapter in the epic JOHNNIE WALKER® story.”
Read in full here.
Coming up next -- the Scotch Whisky Ambassador? Hurry, the line starts over there ....
Wednesday, March 9, 2011
Officially In: Gary Locke - from Commerce Dept to US Embassy Beijing
It's not often that you have the POTUS actually out in the Diplomatic Reception Room to announce an ambassadorial appointment. He did it when he announced his nomination for the outgoing ambassador to China, Jon Huntsman in May 2009. And he did it again today to announce Gary Locke as Ambassador Huntsman's successor at the US Embassy in Beijing:
THE PRESIDENT: Good morning, everybody. As many people know, our current Ambassador to China, Jon Huntsman, has decided to step down from his current job. During his tenure, Jon has been an outstanding advocate for this administration and for this country. He made a real sacrifice in moving his family out of the state that they loved and has helped to strengthen our critical relationship with the Chinese government and the Chinese people. And so I am very grateful for his service.
In replacing Ambassador Huntsman, I can think of nobody who is more qualified than Gary Locke. More than 100 years ago, Gary’s grandfather left China on a steamship bound for America, where he worked as a domestic servant in Washington State. A century later, his grandson will return to China as America’s top diplomat.
In the years between these milestones, Gary has distinguished himself as one of our nation’s most respected and admired public servants. As our country’s first Chinese-American governor, he worked tirelessly to attract jobs and businesses to Washington State, and he doubled exports to China.
Two years ago, I asked Gary to continue this work as Commerce Secretary. I wanted him to advocate for America’s businesses and American exports all around the world, make progress on our relationship with China, and use the management skills he developed as governor to reform a complex and sprawling agency.
He has done all that and more. He’s been a point person for my National Export Initiative, and last year, Gary’s department led an historic number of trade missions that helped promote American businesses and support American jobs. He’s overseen an increase in American exports, and particularly exports to China, a country we recently signed trade deals with that will support 235,000 American jobs.
As Commerce Secretary, Gary oversaw a Census process that ended on time and under budget, returning $2 billion to American taxpayers. He’s earned the trust of business leaders across America by listening to their concerns, making it easier for them to export their goods abroad, and dramatically reducing the time it takes to get a patent. When he’s in Beijing, I know that American companies will be able to count on him to represent their interests in front of China’s top leaders.
As one of the world’s fastest-growing economies, our relationship with China is one of the most critical of the 21st century. Over the last two years we worked hard to build a relationship that serves our national interest -– addressing global security issues and expanding opportunities for American companies and American workers. Continued cooperation between our countries will be good for America, it will be good for China, and it will be good for the world.
As the grandson of a Chinese immigrant who went on to live the American Dream, Gary is the right person to continue this cooperation. I know he will bring the same skills and experience that he brought to Commerce Secretary to this new position that he’s about to embark on.
I want to thank him and I also want to thank his gorgeous and extraordinary family, who’s standing here -- Mona, Emily, Dylan, and Maddy. It’s always tough to move families. Maddy just turned 14 today, so I was commiserating --
SECRETARY LOCKE: Emily.
THE PRESIDENT: Emily just turned 14 today, so I was commiserating with her as somebody who moved around a lot when I was a kid as well. I assured her it would be great 10 years from now. (Laughter.) Right now it’s probably a drag. But I'm absolutely confident that this is -- we could not have better representative of the United States of America in this critical relationship than we're going to get from the Locke family.
And, Gary, I wish you all the best of luck in Beijing. Thank you so much.
SECRETARY LOCKE: Thank you, Mr. President. Well, thank you very much, Mr. President. And I'm deeply humbled and honored to be chosen as your next ambassador to China.
It was a little over a century ago that my grandfather first came to America to work as a houseboy for a family in the state of Washington in exchange for English lessons. And he went back to China, had a family, and so my father was also born in China, and came over as a teenager a few years later. He then enlisted in the United States Army just before the outbreak of World War II, became part of that “greatest generation,” and saw action on the beaches of Normandy and on the march to Berlin, and then came back to Seattle to raise a family and start a small business.
My father never imagined that one of his children could ever serve as the Secretary of Commerce in the United States of America. And he was beaming with pride, Mr. President, the day you presided over my swearing-in ceremony. Sadly, Dad passed away this past January. But I know that if he were still alive, it would be one of his proudest moments to see his son named as the United States ambassador to his ancestral homeland.
I'm going back to the birthplace of my grandfather, my father, my mom and her side of the family, and I'll be doing so as a devoted and passionate advocate for America, the country where I was born and raised.
As Commerce Secretary, I’ve helped open up foreign markets for American businesses so they can create more jobs right here in America. And I’m eager to continue that work in China and to help you, Mr. President, manage one of America’s most critical and complex diplomatic, economic, and strategic relationships.
I’m excited to take on this new challenge, as is my wife and our children -- to varying degrees among the kids. (Laughter.) And we’ll be leaving Washington, D.C., with great memories and many new friends.
Being Commerce Secretary has been one of the best jobs I’ve ever had, thanks to the immensely talented and dedicated men and women within the Department of Commerce, in the White House, and within the Cabinet. And I’m proud of the work that we’ve done at the Commerce Department, delivering services faster, serving the needs of U.S. businesses and workers, saving taxpayers billions of dollars by being more efficient in everything that we do. And I’m confident that these accomplishments will stand the test of time.
Mr. President, I’m eager to assume this new position. And it’s a privilege and a solemn responsibility to serve you and the American people as the next United States ambassador to China. Thank you for the confidence and the trust that you’ve placed in me. Thank you.
THE PRESIDENT: Thank you. Thank you so much.
It'll be interesting to watch US Mission China for the next couple of years. Josh Chin in this WSJ piece points out that President Obama is "trading in a white former governor who speaks Mandarin for a Chinese-American former governor who doesn’t." The piece also talks about perceptions and whether Mr. Locke’s ethnic background will be an advantage or a hindrance in his new job as the first Chinese-American chief of mission in Beijing. Inevitably, Mr. Locke's story will be one more example of America as a place where anything is possible.
On a related note, the WH has released a collection of soundbites praising the President's selection of Mr. Locke as the next US ambasssador to China. Looks like a who's who in American business. Jim Rogers, CEO of Duke Energy calls the selection, "an inspired choice." John Frisbie, President of US-China Business Council (USCBC) calls it, "a great choice." Robert Holleyman, President and CEO of Business Software Alliance (BSA) says, “Secretary Locke is an exceptionally well-qualified and respected choice to be US Ambassador to China."
Related items:
WSJ: A Locke for China Ambassador? Evaluating Obama’s Expected Choice
Praise for President Obama’s Choice to Nominate Gary Locke to be Ambassador to China
DOC: Gary Locke's Official Biography
Saturday, February 26, 2011
Ambassador Hunstman stumbles into Beijing's "Jasmine Revolution" ... web police springs to action....
Jeremiah Jenne is a PhD candidate in Chinese history, living and working in Beijing. He is the author of the blog Jottings from the Granite Studio. Below is an excerpt from the guest post he did for The Atlantic's James Fallows: Ambassadors Caught on Tape, China Edition:
While there weren't all that many actual protesters at last Sunday's "Jasmine Revolution" in Beijing, one attendee who did not escape the notice of sharp-eyed Chinese netizens was US Ambassador to China Jon Huntsman.
The website M4 (四明网) posted footage of the ambassador being harangued by bystanders.
This is how the writer describes the group: "They represent a kind of lunatic fringe. And by "lunatic," I mean seriously...take a look at the site. These guys make Glenn Beck sound like the very model of reason and moderation."
Then asks the really important question: "Just what the hell was the ambassador doing standing in front of that particular McDonald's on that particular afternoon?"
Apparently, the US Embassy spokesperson told AFP it was "purely coincidental." Mr. Jenne surmised that "Having the ambassador and his family blithely wandering through the area unawares would at the very least seem like bad staff work."
Also this:
"Now as most know, Ambassador Huntsman last month made official what had been the third worst kept secret in Beijing (behind Hu Jintao's hair regimen and the fact the government routinely replaces Mao's body in the mausoleum with a wax "stunt Mao"), tendering his resignation in preparation for a possible White House bid in 2012."
You have to go here to read his pitch for a 30-second ad spot. And yes, we note that Ambassador Hunstman is wearing a black leather jacket with the American flag emblazoned on the sleeve in the video. It's not like he's trying to blend in with that.
Remember that sensible advice you often hear when you're overseas? Do not call attention to yourself by your demeanor or attire; and stay away from demonstrations as even peaceful ones can easily turn ugly? What happened to the checklist?
You can view the video here via The Shanghaiist, which also reported that the Ambassador's Chinese name has now been filtered in China. "Searching for "洪博培" on Sina Weibo, China's largest microblog portal, now yields the error message, "According to relevant laws and regulations, the search results may not be shown." Curiously, search results for "Jon Huntsman" in English appears to remain unfiltered. Similar behaviour on QQ Weibo has been observed by Shanghaiist."
Monday, January 31, 2011
US Ambassador to China, Jon Huntsman Jr. to end assignment on April 30
The United States ambassador to China, Jon M. Huntsman Jr., delivered a letter of resignation on Monday to President Obama and intends to leave his position on April 30, a White House official said, clearing the way for him to explore a potential 2012 Republican presidential bid.
Mr. Huntsman, a former Republican governor of Utah, was nominated nearly two years ago by President Obama to serve as the top American envoy to China. He has not decided whether to move forward with a candidacy, associates said, but he has had several conversations with a circle of political advisers who are waiting in the wings if he decides to run.
While Mr. Huntsman has declined to discuss his political ambitions, particularly those that could include challenging the president for whom he has served, a trail of evidence has been building that signals his interest in a White House bid. He has also been spending less time in Beijing and more time in Washington, where he bought a $3.6 million home last summer.
Continue reading: Huntsman Clears Way for a 2010 Bid
Friday, November 19, 2010
US Embassy Beijing: Air quality goes 'crazy bad'
We have written previously about the US Embassy Beijing's air monitor in China's capital city (see U.S Embassy Beijing’s Air Monitor Tracks the Particulates in Your Lungs | March 22, 2010). The embassy does emphasized that "This monitor is a resource for the health of the Mission community. Citywide analysis cannot be done, however, on data from a lone machine."
Now, Beijing's bad air is in the news again. When it went off the charts yesterday, the US Embassy folks ran out of "conventional adjectives" and went for "crazy bad" -- later deleted, of course, and replaced with the more sober and boring term "beyond index:"
More below via Jonathan Watts of guardian.co.uk:
Since the US embassy in Beijing began tweeting hourly pollution reports last year, I – along with many other smog watchers – have been horrified at the frequency of "bad" and "hazardous" readings.
But this week, the depth and murkiness of the haze was so appalling that the automated system briefly entered the realm of black comedy with a "crazy bad" analysis of our air.
The outlandish description appeared on the @beijingair Twitter account late yesterday when levels of PM2.5 tiny particulate matter surged past 500, about 20 times higher than the guideline issued by the World Health Organisation.
The "crazy bad" terminology – which was at odds with the normally sober and scientific language of the Twitter account – appeared to have been a joke embedded in the embassy's monitoring program and triggered by a reading that was off the normal scale.
US officials quickly deleted "crazy bad" and replaced it with the term "beyond index", but not before the original message was widely retweeted by shocked Beijingers.
[...]
One of my colleagues has taken to wearing a facemask on his commute through the streets. The Guardian's research assistant, Cui Zheng, prefers not to think about the air we all have to breathe. "I had to stop following the @Beijingair tweets. They were too depressing," she explained.
[...]As I write, the air quality reading has improved to a mere "hazardous" but with the world outside grey and the lungs aching inside, "crazy bad" still feels entirely appropriate.
Read the whole thing here.
On a side note, Beijing became a 15% hardship differential post for the State Department in January this year. An allowance -- "established for any place when, and only when, the place involves extraordinarily difficult living conditions, excessive physical hardship, or notably unhealthful conditions affecting the majority of employees officially stationed or detailed at that place."
At 15%, Beijing and Shanghai have the lowest post differential among the US posts in China. The highest is 30% for Nanjing, Shenyang, Wuhan and Others, then 25% for Guangzhou and 20% for Chengdu. Makes one wonder what is worse than the crazy bad particulates in your lungs.
Friday, October 22, 2010
$70K for "friendship, $40K for applying to the CIA, how much was he paid for applying to the US Foreign Service?
Apparently some $70K.
Applying to the CIA? $40K.
The statement from the DOJ did not indicate how many times this bozo attempted to join the US Foreign Service between 2005-2010. Well, entry is a long drawn out process, probably hard to collect from the spy handlers when he had to pass a written exam, pass an oral exam, pass the medical exam, the security process, then wait on the register before landing a spot in A100. And then training, short or long, depends. Spy handlers would have been bored out of their wits listening to his grammar drills. Oh wait, he already had Mandarin ....
Thank goodness he did not get through the door, but if he were able to penetrate the hiring shield of the US Foreign Service, his handlers would have gotten bored listening to his 2-4 year escapades in consular sections talking to visa applicants, or destitute Americans overseas.
Of course, we all remember that the Russkies waited more than that in No Way Out, yeah?
Via USDOJ's press release on October 22, Michigan Man Pleads Guilty to Attempting to Spy for the People’s Republic of China
WASHINGTON—Glenn Duffie Shriver, 28, of Detroit, Mich., pleaded guilty today before U.S. District Court Judge Liam O’Grady to conspiring to provide national defense information to intelligence officers of the People’s Republic of China (PRC).
[...]
Shriver pleaded guilty to a one-count criminal information charging him with conspiracy to communicate national defense information to a person not entitled to receive it. In a plea agreement, the defense and government jointly recommended a prison sentence of 48 months. Sentencing is scheduled for Jan. 21, 2011.
[...]
According to a statement of facts filed with his plea agreement, Shriver is proficient in Mandarin Chinese and lived in the PRC both as an undergraduate student and after graduation. While living in Shanghai in October 2004, Shriver developed a relationship with three individuals whom he came to learn were PRC intelligence officers. At the request of these foreign agents, Shriver agreed to return to the United States and apply for positions in U.S. intelligence agencies or law enforcement organizations.
Shriver admitted in court that he knew that his ultimate objective was to obtain a position with a federal department or agency that would afford him access to classified national defense information, which he would then transmit to the PRC officers in return for cash payments.
From 2005 to 2010, Shriver attempted to gain employment as a U.S. Foreign Service Officer with the Department of State and as a clandestine service officer with the Central Intelligence Agency. Shriver admitted that, during this time, he maintained frequent contact with the PRC intelligence officers and received more than $70,000 in three separate cash payments for what the officers called his “friendship.”
In December 2009, Shriver received notice that he was to report to Washington, D.C., in May 2010 for final employment processing activities with the CIA. Shriver admitted that he communicated with a PRC intelligence officer that he was “making some progress” in obtaining a position with the CIA and that he would not be free to travel to PRC for another meeting because it could raise suspicion with federal agents conducting his background investigation.
Shriver admitted that he made false statements on the CIA questionnaire required for employment stating that he had not had any contact with a foreign government or its representative during the last seven years, when in fact he had met in person with one or more of the officers approximately 20 times since 2004. He also deliberately omitted his travel to PRC in 2007 when he received a $40,000 cash payment from the PRC for applying to the CIA. In addition, Shriver made false statements during a series of final screening interviews at the CIA, and he admitted he made each of the false statements to conceal his illicit relationship with the PRC intelligence officers.
Active links added above. Read the whole thing here.
Wednesday, September 15, 2010
Diplomacy and great knockabout entertainment
We have written previously about the dangerous mix of drinks and microphones, especially for diplomats. Tim Collard, a retired British diplomat who spent most of his career in China and Germany heard about the rant that ricochet around the world from China's John Bolton and recalled from memory a prior diplomatic encounter with the drink/microphone mix up, then blogged about it in the Telegraph. Excerpt below:
When I worked in Beijing in the late 1990s Mr Sha was head of the Arms Control department of the Foreign Ministry, and an entertainingly robust opponent. The best performance I ever witnessed was in 1998, when he was guest of honour at a lunch given by Commonwealth diplomats.
Rather naughtily, we seated him directly opposite the Indian Ambassador, this being directly after India had declared itself a nuclear weapon state, to China’s fury. As expected, China’s fury erupted across the table in an impassioned rant, which the urbane Indian envoy took on the chin, responding with a few rapier thrusts of his own. It was great knockabout entertainment.
[...]
The spokesman who was wheeled out afterwards to give the official smoothing-over statement even went so far as to suggest Sha may have had a few drinks. Surely not, among senior diplomats on a “retreat”?
Actually, I’m not sure. The great thing about Sha Zukang, for those of us used to hearing Chinese officials droning predictably on, with all the real content having to be dug out with spades from between the lines, was that he was always capable of this kind of performance stone cold sober.
A more total refutation of the stereotype of Oriental inscrutability is hard to imagine. And far from being superannuated, he is only 62. Even Ban Ki-moon will surely come to appreciate a genuine original. Long may he continue to rage against the dying of the light. And the Americans – they can take it.
Stone cold sober, huh? Diplomacy is 95% theatrical aplomb, too? Perhaps we should think twice about that dangerous mix ....
Read the whole thing here.
Thursday, September 9, 2010
If you give a diplomat a few drinks, do not/not give him a microphone ...
Of course, if you are the host, you should never serve both either, unless you want sparks fly as live entertainment. Colum Lynch in Foreign Policy wrote about China's John Bolton, who forgot the danger in the mix and had both. Excerpt:
Sha Zukang, the U.N. undersecretary general for Economic and Social Affairs and the organization's most senior Chinese official, offered U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon a toast last week at a retreat in the Alpine resort town Alpbach that degenerated into an intoxicated rant against the United Nations, the United States, and his boss, Turtle Bay has learned.Active links added above. Read the whole thing here.
"I know you never liked me Mr. Secretary-General -- well, I never liked you, either," Sha told Ban at a dinner attended by the U.N.'s top brass, according to a senior U.N. official who attended the event. "I didn't want to come to New York. It was the last thing I wanted to do. But I've come to love the U.N. and I'm coming to admire some things about you."
The blunt dinner remarks -- which came after Sha had a few drinks -- prompted U.N. officials to approach Sha and try to coax him into putting down the microphone, according to a U.N. spokesman and several U.N. sources who were there. It didn't work. Sha continued a lengthy speech, in which he also expressed his antipathy toward the United States.
[...]
Sha's colleagues, including Catherine Bragg, a humanitarian relief official, tried to approach Sha to persuade him to calm down. But Shaw continued. At one stage, Sha singled out a senior U.N. official, Bob Orr of the United States, and said "I really don't like him: he's an American and I really don't like Americans," according to the senior official.
[...]
Sha has long had a reputation as a pugnacious diplomat, a Chinese nationalist with a high-pitched voice and a short temper. A diplomatic colleague, Wang Guangya, China's former U.N. ambassador, described Sha to me as the "John Bolton of the Chinese foreign ministry." In a 2006 interview with the BBC, Sha told the United States to "shut up" about China's military buildup.
Friday, May 21, 2010
Arizona's Senators demand apology; Paramount Leader ROTFL
Image via WikipediaQUESTION: Did the recently passed Arizona immigration law come up? And, if so, did they bring it up or did you bring it up?
ASSISTANT SECRETARY POSNER: "We brought it up early and often. It was mentioned in the first session, and as a troubling trend in our society and an indication that we have to deal with issues of discrimination or potential discrimination, and that these are issues very much being debated in our own society."
Apparently, that was not a very nice response to make from the podium. According to Josh Rogin of The Cable, "Arizona Senators John McCain and Jon Kyl released a statement Tuesday calling on Posner to issue a formal apology. They called his remarks "particularly offensive" and said he "seemed to imply [the Arizona law] is morally equivalent to China's persistent pattern of abuse and repression of its people."
Josh reports in an exclusive interview with Posner that the comments "were taken out of context and the discussion of the law was meant to show the differences between how a free society handles human rights issues and the restrictive practices enforced in China," according to the DRL secretary. "The broader context in which this was raised was to discuss the political openness of this society and the value of an open debate," Posner said. "We never did get into the merits of the Arizona law. It was not in any way a comparison between that law and any specific law or practice in China."
Blake Hounshell asked in FP, "Can we have a grownup discussion about human rights?"
I don't know, can we?
What?
Oh, yes! Pleeeease -- an apology, please. For saying these are issues currently being debated across this country. Because obviously that's not true. Even I, have never heard of folks talk about such and such things, even in political rallies and such. Have you? Also an apology for saying that this is a troubling trend. Because we do not consider it a trend unless you get to a tipping point. And I get to say when is the tipping point. Right. Finally, an apology for saying that we have to deal with issues of discrimination or potential, potential discrimination. Because saying that obviously means we have some kind of discrimination here. And we know that simply is not true.
So yeah, go ahead and make that Mr. Posner apologize ... force him to apologize for saying such things. And if he doesn't apologize ... what, ten lashes? We do that here, now?
Just so you know -- I think, somewhere the Paramount Leader and Top Foreign Holder of US Treasuries at $889.0 billion is laughing his head off. Seriously. You can't see him rolling on the floor, laughing at us, dudes?
Monday, March 29, 2010
China Issues 2009 Human Rights Report of the United States
Seriously. You know this was going to happen sometimes.
The Country Reports on Human Rights Practices are submitted annually by the U.S. Department of State to the U.S. Congress in compliance with sections 116(d) and 502B(b) of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 (FAA), as amended, and section 504 of the Trade Act of 1974, as amended. On March 11, the State Department published its latest Human Rights Report.
Secretary Clinton says that “[f]or the last 34 years, the United States has produced the Country Reports on Human Rights Practices, providing the most comprehensive record available of the condition of human rights around the world."
The online documents here only dates back to 1999. Prior reports should be available from the U.S. GPO; some are available in PDF format here.
Well, at least one foreign office must have been waiting for the official US report to be released. On March 12, China's Information Office of the State Council published a report titled "The Human Rights Record of the United States in 2009." Its full text is published by english.xinhuanet.com here.
Here is part of its introduction: "As in previous years, the reports are full of accusations of the human rights situation in more than 190 countries and regions including China, but turn a blind eye to, or dodge and even cover up rampant human rights abuses on its own territory. The Human Rights Record of the United States in 2009 is prepared to help people around the world understand the real situation of human rights in the United States."
On Life, Property and Personal Security section is declares: “Widespread violent crimes in the United States posed threats to the lives, properties and personal security of its people.”
On Civil and Political Rights section it claims that “In the United States, civil and political rights of citizens are severely restricted and violated by the government.”
On Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, it claims that “Poverty, unemployment and the homeless are serious problems in the United States, where workers' economic, social and cultural rights cannot be guaranteed.”
On Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, it claims that “Poverty, unemployment and the homeless are serious problems in the United States, where workers' economic, social and cultural rights cannot be guaranteed.”
The report also states that “immigrants live in misery.”
I don't understand. Since the United States is a country of immigrants, does that mean all 305 million of us, except Native Americans -- live in misery?
Monday, March 22, 2010
U.S Embassy Beijing’s Air Monitor Tracks the Particulates in Your Lungs
Time.com has an item today on the dust storms in Beijing: “Beijing residents awakened Monday to skies the eerie yellow color of a street lamp. It was the second time in three days that the Chinese capital had been scoured by sandstorms that have hit 16 provinces across west, central and north China, affecting nearly one-fifth of the country's 1.3 billion people, according to the state-run Xinhua News Service.” (Read Beijing and the Onslaught of the “Mongolian Cyclone).
You probably know this already, but in case you don’t – the US Embassy in Beijing has an Air Quality Monitor located at the Chaoyang District in Beijing (MetOne BAM 1020 and Echotech EC9810 monitors, reporting PM2.5 and ozone readings).
According to the embassy its air quality monitors measure PM 2.5 particulates on the Embassy compound as an indication of the air quality. This monitor is a resource for the health of the Mission community. The website emphasized that “Citywide analysis cannot be done, however, on data from a lone machine.”
It further explains that “Particulates lest than 2.5 micrometers in diameter (PM 2.5) are referred to as “fine” particulates and are believed to pose the largest health risks. PM 2.5 is a standard recognized by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and allows us to compare against U.S. standard measures. PM 2.5 particulates are of concern since they are small enough to get into the lungs and even the blood stream. For more information, please visit the EPA site http://www.epa.gov/ttn/naaqs/pm/pm25_index.html.”
click image to enlarge
EPA has assigned a specific color to each AQI category to make it easier for people to understand quickly whether air pollution is reaching unhealthy levels in their communities. For example, the color orange means that conditions are "unhealthy for sensitive groups," while red means that conditions may be "unhealthy for everyone," and so on.
The AQI is an index for reporting daily air quality. It tells you how clean or polluted your air is, and what associated health effects might be a concern for you. The AQI focuses on health effects you may experience within a few hours or days after breathing polluted air. EPA calculates the AQI for five major air pollutants regulated by the Clean Air Act: ground-level ozone, particle pollution (also known as particulate matter), carbon monoxide, sulfur dioxide, and nitrogen dioxide.
Read more on the Air Quality Guide Index here.
Below are just the last several updates in the previous 24 hours from the monitor’s air measurements in Beijing.
BeijingAir
Format for each: pollutant type; concentration; AQI; definition.
Click Twitter / BeijingAir here to get the most current data.
#1. 03-23-2010; 01:00; PM2.5; 16.0; 52;
#2. 03-23-2010; 00:15; Past 24hr: PM2.5 avg;160.5; 211; Very Unhealthy//Ozone 8hrhigh; 38.2; 32; Good about 2 hours ago via API
#3. 03-23-2010; 00:00; PM2.5; 28.0; 82;Moderate // Ozone; 31.7; 27;
Good about 2 hours ago via API
#4. 03-22-2010; 23:00; PM2.5; no data //Ozone; 33.3; 28; Good about 3 hours ago via API
#5. 03-22-2010; 22:00; PM2.5; 18.0; 57;Moderate // Ozone; 36.5; 31;
Good about 4 hours ago via API
#6. 03-22-2010; 21:00; PM2.5; 27.0; 79;Moderate // Ozone; 36.9; 31;
Good about 5 hours ago via API
#7. 03-22-2010; 20:00; PM2.5; 25.0; 74;Moderate // Ozone; 37.9; 32;
Good about 6 hours ago via API
#8. 03-22-2010; 19:00; PM2.5; 27.0; 79;Moderate // Ozone; 38.2; 32;
Good about 7 hours ago via API
#9. 03-22-2010; 18:00; PM2.5; 47.0; 120;Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups // Ozone;37.4; 31; Good about 8 hours ago via API
#10. 03-22-2010; 17:00; PM2.5; 49.0; 123;Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups // Ozone;34.9; 30; Good about 9 hours ago via API
#11. 03-22-2010; 16:00; PM2.5; 128.0; 187;Unhealthy // Ozone; 29.8; 25;
Good about 10 hours ago via API
#12. 03-22-2010; 15:00; PM2.5; 226.0; 276;Very Unhealthy // Ozone; 25.1; 21;
Good about 11 hours ago via API
#13. 03-22-2010; 14:00; PM2.5; 158.0; 208;Very Unhealthy // Ozone; 20.6; 18; Goodabout 12 hours ago via API
#14. 03-22-2010; 13:00; PM2.5; 122.0; 184;Unhealthy // Ozone; 16.1; 14;Good about 13 hours ago via API
#15. 03-22-2010; 12:15; Past 24hr: PM2.5 avg;163.3; 214; Very Unhealthy//Ozone 8hr high;
23.9; 20; Good about 14 hours ago via API
#16. 03-22-2010; 12:00; PM2.5; 204.0; 254;Very Unhealthy // Ozone; 11.4; 9; Goodabout 14 hours ago via API
#17. 03-22-2010; 11:00; PM2.5; 761.0; 500;Hazardous // Ozone; 6.9; 6; Good about 15hours ago via API
#18. 03-22-2010; 10:00; PM2.5; 784.0; 500;Hazardous // Ozone; 3.0; 3; Good about 16hours ago via API
#19. 03-22-2010; 09:00; PM2.5; 315.0; 365;Hazardous // Ozone; 0.6; 1; Good about 17hours ago via API
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