[clay dube]

another try with a pdf version of sally's presentation
edited by Clay Dube on 10/7/2012

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[clay dube]

Last month, a NY Times article argued: "Romance in China is often sacrificed to practicality; dating has largely become a commercial transaction." (emphasis added) The problem with the article is the assumption that this wasn't always the case.
http://latitude.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/08/21/romance-with-chinese-characteristics/

In fact, many relationships do grow out of shared interests and common concerns beyond having sufficient material wealth. But there's little question that economic expectations are vital for many. Some scholars attribute the rise in Chinese housing prices to mother-in-law/bride demands that the groom own or have the prospect of owning an apartment.
Xiaobo Zhang: Bride Prices and House Prices (video: http://china.usc.edu/ShowArticle.aspx?articleID=2397 or at YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NCLl7zdYoCY&lr=1&feature=mhum)

[clay dube]

Hi Sally,
I'm glad you've already been soliciting responses to your lesson plan. Hopefully you'll get some that will be useful as you come up with the final version you'll turn in and then present at the follow-up weekend in October.

[clay dube]

Harue,
I love the idea of forging links between classes and students. I don't have James's email address handy, but will check. I think the contacts in Chongqing are promising as well.

BTW - I just learned recently that David Jones, one of the teachers who spoke at our orientation, went on a trip to Japan this summer. Harue was one of the teachers who participated in his orientation! My, it turns out to be a small world.

[clay dube]

Peter Navarro has written two books arguing that the biggest US problem is Chinese governmental policies and practices. His first was The Coming China Wars (2007) and last year he published Death by China with Greg Autry, a UCI grad student. Navarro turned Death into a documentary film that he's started screening in California, New York, and, later, in Ohio. Check out the film's website for the trailer to get a sense of the over the top language and animation. Navarro works hard to push every aversion button (food safety, lost jobs, suspicion of a communist government) and does highlight real problems in the US-China trade relationship. But - he's sloppy with the argument, making mistakes, grossly simplifying the US-China economic relationship, and assuming that manufacturing has been the biggest force producing the economic downturn and that all manufacturing job losses have been to China. We meet several unemployed workers but have no sense of what skills they possess, what work they might take (would the university grad or the person with the advanced degree want an iPhone assembly job). Navarro argues that manufacturers are not drawn to China for low wages. But in fact, they have been --- which is why low end, low skilled jobs are now migrating from Southern China to SE Asia and Bangladesh. Wages in China have been rising. See this April New York Times article: http://www.nytimes.com/2012/04/24/business/global/in-bangladesh-strong-promise-of-economic-growth.html?pagewanted=all .

Some manufacturing jobs may come back to the US (as wages rise elsewhere and transportation costs rise everywhere). That's happened for some who produce fast fashion: http://www.scpr.org/news/2012/09/03/34127/apparel-makers-bring-production-back-los-ang/

Most of the jobs that have left, however, will not be coming back. US workers must compete on skills (you must be able to add a great deal of value, or be in a field where time to market is critical) and local need (you can't outsource the auto maintenance, gardening, painting, and many other jobs). This is a more complicated discussion than offered in Death or by many politicians. I hope that all forum members will be on the look-out for political ads that bring up China and will share them in the forum or by sending links or scans to me directly at [email protected].

[clay dube]

Peter Navarro has written two books arguing that the biggest US problem is Chinese governmental policies and practices. His first was The Coming China Wars (2007) and last year he published Death by China with Greg Autry, a UCI grad student. Navarro turned Death into a documentary film that he's started screening in California, New York, and, later, in Ohio. Check out the film's website for the trailer to get a sense of the over the top language and animation. Navarro works hard to push every aversion button (food safety, lost jobs, suspicion of a communist government) and does highlight real problems in the US-China trade relationship. But - he's sloppy with the argument, making mistakes, grossly simplifying the US-China economic relationship, and assuming that manufacturing has been the biggest force producing the economic downturn and that all manufacturing job losses have been to China. We meet several unemployed workers but have no sense of what skills they possess, what work they might take (would the university grad or the person with the advanced degree want an iPhone assembly job). Navarro argues that manufacturers are not drawn to China for low wages. But in fact, they have been --- which is why low end, low skilled jobs are now migrating from Southern China to SE Asia and Bangladesh. Wages in China have been rising. See this April New York Times article: http://www.nytimes.com/2012/04/24/business/global/in-bangladesh-strong-promise-of-economic-growth.html?pagewanted=all .

Some manufacturing jobs may come back to the US (as wages rise elsewhere and transportation costs rise everywhere). That's happened for some who produce fast fashion: http://www.scpr.org/news/2012/09/03/34127/apparel-makers-bring-production-back-los-ang/

Most of the jobs that have left, however, will not be coming back. US workers must compete on skills (you must be able to add a great deal of value, or be in a field where time to market is critical) and local need (you can't outsource the auto maintenance, gardening, painting, and many other jobs). This is a more complicated discussion than offered in Death or by many politicians. I hope that all forum members will be on the look-out for political ads that bring up China and will share them in the forum or by sending links or scans to me directly at [email protected].

[clay dube]

Hi Folks, It may be too late for some, but please put website reviews in the main Web Resources forum:

http://uschinaforum.usc.edu/forum66-web-resources.aspx

Film reviews should be placed in the Film Festival section:

http://uschinaforum.usc.edu/forum68-film-festival.aspx

[clay dube]

Hi Kim, It's in the thread on geography and philosophy:
http://uschinaforum.usc.edu/topic18768-east-asia-geographydemography-and-chinese-philosophy.aspx#post21970

[clay dube]

Hi Kim, It's in the thread on geography and philosophy:
http://uschinaforum.usc.edu/topic18768-east-asia-geographydemography-and-chinese-philosophy.aspx#post21970

[clay dube]

Here's a link to the lesson plan Virginia mentioned: http://uschinaforum.usc.edu/topic18870-lesson-plan-create-a-class-haiku-booklet-keepsake.aspx#post22961

[clay dube]

I think Tiffany's got a great idea about the candy, though for many this is inconvenient and for all a bit costly. But it is a gesture that will be long remembered and will certainly spark useful discussions.

Perhaps students could carry out research to find the most popular treats for various festivals and to see what brands are the biggest sellers in various countries.

[clay dube]

I think Tiffany's got a great idea about the candy, though for many this is inconvenient and for all a bit costly. But it is a gesture that will be long remembered and will certainly spark useful discussions.

Perhaps students could carry out research to find the most popular treats for various festivals and to see what brands are the biggest sellers in various countries.

[clay dube]

The dragons in the nice cross walks are a relatively recent addition to Chinatown. The original Chinatown, by the way, was located where the train station (Union Station) is today. There are some great books about Chinatowns across the US.

In Japan and Taiwan, especially, manhole covers are incredibly interesting. This website has several:
http://www.flickriver.com/groups/1139924@N21/pool/interesting/

Why do you suppose these are so distinctive?

[clay dube]

The dragons in the nice cross walks are a relatively recent addition to Chinatown. The original Chinatown, by the way, was located where the train station (Union Station) is today. There are some great books about Chinatowns across the US.

In Japan and Taiwan, especially, manhole covers are incredibly interesting. This website has several:
http://www.flickriver.com/groups/1139924@N21/pool/interesting/

Why do you suppose these are so distinctive?

[clay dube]

Dylis might be the pandatic in the group, but Catherine's pictures suggest that more than a few of you folks were happy to meet the furry ones. I wonder who might have the most interesting use of pandas as a marketing tool or as a symbol of China.....

Have you all seen the SD Zoo panda cam shots of the newest California panda?

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