Money, Money Everywhere (Beijing alone can buy a year of USA GDP)

It looks like China is full of money. Hard to imagine how a communist’s country like China can easily outperform a capitalist’s country like USA. Money, money everywhere is a norm especially if you own a piece of land in a city in China, not USA.

Chinese Economic Weekly (N0.1 /12) reported the land value of Beijing can easily buy over a year of GDP of USA. And the combined land value of Beijing and Shanghai is more than the combined GDP of the 5 top of economies in the world in a year.

It seems history repeat itself. When Marco Polo visited China in the 13th century, he reported to Europeans that there were full of gold in China. His feedback and observation was Chinese were so rich then and Europeans were far behind in wealth.

If we look back in the history of China, being the land-based country, people there love to own land. Owning a piece of land is a status symbol. To many poor people, it is dream comes true if they finally own a piece of land or a house. In the Zhou dynasty, in order to make the dynasty last forever, they implemented a system of divide and rule. The heavenly King of Zhou gave lands to his relatives (brothers, sons etc) and contributors to the nation (generals, etc). This made only a selected group of elite could own land in Zhou dynasty. A person importance was also reflected in the amount of land that he owned. Other people, including businessmen and farmers, were not allowed to own land.

However, the system was abolished after Zhou dynasty. Since then, private were allowed to own land and acquire land, hence, businessmen, temple and religion leaders, farmers were able to own land. Some big framers and businessmen were so rich that their land owning can match the wealth of the country. It was not uncommon that these farmers and businessmen used dirty tricks to exploit land from poor people.

Now back to the land and money story in China. Before we begin, let understand some basic numerical figures in Chinese. The single digit from 1 to a thousand is about the same calculation as the British or Americans. From ten thousand onwards, you need to pay attention:
Qian 千: 1,000
Wan 万: 10,000
100 Wan万: 1 million
1 Qian Wan千万: 10 million
1 Yi 亿: 100 million
10 Yi: 1 billion

This will help you in understanding the following statistics.

In 2010, Beijing received an income of 1641 yi yuan from land sales. On average, it is about 8,000 yuan per square metre. The city has 16410.54 square kilometres, converting it to 164.1 yi square metres. If you multiply land cost and land area, it will give Beijing city the land value of 130 wan yi yuan if all lands are sold.
In 2010, the US GDP is estimated to be US$ 14.5 wan yi, converting it into yuan, it will be about 95 wan yi. So, simply Beijing alone can have more than enough land money to buy over 1 year of USA GDP.

By the same calculation, Shanghai, with a smaller land area, is still managed to generate 68 wan yi yuan of land value. In 2009, the top 5 economies besides China were USA (US$ 14.26 wan yi), Japan (US$ 4.844 wan yi), Germany (US$ 3.818 wan yi), France (US$ 2.978 wan yi), and UK (US$ 2.787 wan yi). The total GDP of the 5 countries was US$ 28.7 wan yi in 2009. It was about 189 wan yi yuan comparing to 199 wan yi yuan of Beijing and Shanghai. Hence, two cities (Beijing and Shanghai) will have enough land money to buy over the combined GDP of the top 5 economies in the world.

Is this story untrue? As far as you believe in figures and statistics, it is presenting the truth and facts. If you consider the appreciating land value and the Chinese currency, yuan, the income gap between China and the top world economies will be widening. No matter, economists are predicting very soon China GDP will be the number one in the world.

When China becomes richer, its rich-poor gap is also becoming bigger and bigger. A report from Guangzhou Daily reported that rich villages in Zhejiang province are allowed to build their own (by their own money) walls to prevent thefts and crimes. You even need to use the digital security cards to pass through the gates of the wall. What a big difference inside and outside the wall. If the Great Wall of China cannot prevent China from attacks by foreign forces, is this so-called 7 metre height and 500 metres long wall in Zhejiang province can be an effective tool to prevent poor Chinese from entering the wall?

Hidden Agenda of a Musical Piece

During a state dinner held at White House in honour of President Hu Jin-tao’s visit to USA, a dissident of China claimed that there is a hidden agenda behind a piece of music played by a famous Chinese pianist.

Will there be a difference in the selection of the music if the Washington has a better understanding of Chinese cultures. As claimed by the dissident Wei Jingsheng 魏京生, this was a clever arrangement by the Chinese and he described the incidence - playing the controversy piece of music, is like “an innocent (US) President facing a smart dictator (Chinese President) and furthermore he (Obama) even praised the pianist.”

It is hard to tell whether it is a co-incidence or a planned agenda at such an occasion. A state dinner is an important function and both sides should avoid creating controversy over dinner. We will never know the real reason and true picture. However, for Chinese social functions, like dinners, meetings, gatherings or other encounters, it is very common to have hidden agenda with multiple meanings. Poems, songs, history event or other examples are quoted or brought out to highlight the positions of the hosts or guests. Any misjudgement will cause the participants dearly.

Being a Chinese, especially being a Chinese dissident, Wei jinsheng of course, has his doubt and perhaps, can read the mind of Chinese authority. Hidden agenda has double or even multiple meanings are very common for Chinese negotiations. But why at this moment, when both China and USA want to improve their relationship.

However, the effects and reactions in China and USA are totally different.

For Chinese in mainland, it really can score points for Hu Jin-tao. See how our leader humiliated the Americans at White House, the heart of political centre of most powerful country in the world. Worst till, the Americans not even realised it. But for most Americans, they will not bother about it. This perhaps is the win-win situation for ignorance of each other cultures. You score your point and I don’t mind as far as China can help to create job for American as promised by President Hu.

Below is a report from Xinhua, which of course did not mention the name of the dissident who pinpointed the controversial musical piece.

Pianist Lang Lang's U.S. trip hits sour note
2011-01-26
By Fu Wen and Huang Jingjing
BEIJING, Jan. 26 (Xinhuanet) -- Chinese pianist Lang Lang's trip to the US appears to have struck a bad chord, as critics are slamming his performance at a White House state dinner as being offensive to the host.
Lang played a Chinese household song called "My Motherland" at the function to welcome President Hu Jintao. It was the theme music of a 1956 movie named Shangganling Battle, which depicted the fighting of Chinese troops against US troops during the Korean War (1950-53).
A lyric in the song goes, "If the jackals come, we will greet them with guns."
Lang denied any hidden intentions behind the choice, saying on his Facebook account Tuesday that "it has been a favorite of mine since I was a child. It was selected for no other reason but for the beauty of its melody. I am, first and foremost, an artist. As such, I play music to bring people together."
"America and China are my two homes. … I couldn't be who I am today without those two countries," he added. "My mission is to bridge cultures through the beauty and inspiration of music."
Lang, born in China in 1982, went to the US to study at the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia. He has also gained prestige and honors around the world. This was the fifth time Lang was invited to perform at the White House since 2005.
In an interview Tuesday with National Public Radio, Lang said he felt "sad" and "disappointed" that the song was described as "anti-US," saying, "The last thing I want to do" is drop a note of nationalism.
Many Chinese Web users had various interpretations of the performance.
The Hong Kong-based Wen Wei Po newspaper quoted a mainland Internet user as writing, "Lang Lang speaks our hearts. That is, we are not afraid of any war or hegemony; we never mean to engage in any warfare."
One of those who felt it was an inappropriate song for a state visit was Gu Su, a philosophy professor at Nanjing University.
"What if a similar scenario were to take place here, with the Americans playing anti-Chinese music in a similar occasion?" Gu wrote on his blog at tianya.cn, a popular portal.
However, Zhan Jiang, a professor specializing in communication studies at the Beijing Foreign Studies University, told the Global Times Tuesday that "Some Chinese Internet users overreacted by focusing only on the song's anti-US meaning."
The host should also be responsible if it is an unwise choice of a playlist, Zhan said, since details of the dinner arrangement are reviewed beforehand by the host.
The Wall Street Journal quoted Yu Jianhong, director of the Movie Management Department of the Beijing Film Academy, as saying that the song's main theme is not about fighting imperialism, but rather, "about the love of the motherland and the longing for peace and happiness."
According to an online poll by news portal ifeng.com, about 85 percent of nearly 10,000 respondents agreed that the performance was displaying Chinese art and should not be overly interpreted.
A total of 12 percent deemed it an accident and that said it mirrored Lang's inexperience diplomatically. Over 45 percent of participants believed that the performance would cause no diplomatic misunderstandings.
Lang's agent, Li Ning, told the Hubei-based Changjiang Daily on Monday that the pianist said he "hopes Internet users do not politicize his artistic choice."
"In Lang Lang's opinion, the song mainly reflects Chinese people's love for their motherland, although the song has a special background when it came into being," Li said.
According to the Los Angeles Times, Tommy Vietor, a White House spokesperson, also responded by saying, "Lang Lang played the song without lyrics or reference to any political theme. ... Any suggestion that this was an insult to the US is just flat wrong."
Song Shengxia contributed to this story
(Source: Global Times)

Hard Truth or Half Truth Image of China

In accompanying the visit of the President of China, Hu Jintao to USA, China state agency engaged an ad agency to put out a video commercial to promote the image of China. It is broadcasted in New York’s Times square and even over CNN.

Interviews conducted in the street of New York gave a positive reply. As the onlookers and CNN viewers watch the 60 seconds commercial, do they really know the real image of China? From the 1-minute video, besides beautiful and energetic Chinese representatives, do viewers really understand the characteristics of Chinese people? It is a wonder to put a 5,000 years history in just 1 minute!

Nevertheless, it shows the possibility of Chinese people and China as a whole. They can be as successful as developed westerners in dressing, in confidence and in attitude. Not to forget the success sits on the Chinese wisdom, culture and value. Many Chinese are working very hard so that these representatives in the video can be presented in the international stage. Every successful Chinese individual is supported by numerous Chinese in the mainland.

The video, in a way, is a reflection of what westerners presume the Chinese to be. This is a hard truth. It projects a modern look of China or perhaps, for the pleasure and expectance of westerners and Americans. Westerners are happy to see the modern Chinese and feel comfortable to co-exist with the People’s Republic. This is also the result of 30 years of success after the 1979 opening up of China. What a remarkable achievement in such short time!

However, the half truth is these representatives and individuals in the video are minority in China. Majority of Chinese still stay in rural China - seeking jobs in the city, losing land to urban development and adjusting life to cope with the economic progress. China can only be a great country if she can overcome the rich-poor division, unequal rural-urban development. As they always stress Chinese problem has to be solved by Chinese. So, China advancement can only be solved by Chinese themselves with their past wisdom and value as basic support.

While, in the meantime, as one of the giant engine for growth, the world will continue to look at China for opportunities, so do seeing more and more Chinese faces in commercials and internet. Just like what LV is doing. (See below a report by Jason Chow from WSJ on 19 Jan 2011).


At LV, This Year's Man is Chinese
Louis Vuitton finally has given a nod to its most important demographic in Asia: Chinese men.

Last week, the French luxury brand unveiled a new advertising campaign featuring Godfrey Gao, a Taiwanese-Canadian actor and model — the first time the company has used an Asian man to showcase its products.

Mr. Gao, a Vancouver native, has appeared in a number of Taiwanese television dramas, including 'Volleyball Lover' and 'I Want to Become a Hard Persimmon.' His celebrity is prominent enough in Asia to attract Hong Kong paparazzi — in December they caught him canoodling with a local starlet, though one could argue it was because of the starlet that he got snapped.

Tabloid gossip aside, the move by the French brand can be interpreted as an acknowledgment that this key demographic has been behind the company's extraordinary growth this year. Parent company LVMH — which also owns brands like Sephora makeup, Hennessy cognac and Moët & Chandon champagne posted a 26% jump in sales over the first nine months of 2010 compared with the same period the year before. And analysts say its flagship Louis Vuitton brand was responsible for the bulk of that growth.

The company doesn't break down its sales by gender, but according to other reports, men spent more than women on luxury goods in China last year. Indeed, a walk through any major Chinese city's business district shows that the Louis Vuitton brand is popular: As Mr. Gao appears in the brand's advertisement, the LV man bag — worn across the body, of course — is a standard status symbol among men, especially middle-age ones.

Mr. Gao may be part of a greater trend of Asian models on the rise. Luxury labels now feature more Asian faces in their ad campaigns and on the runway. Chinese model Liu Wen signed a contract in November to be the new 'face' of beauty company Estée Lauder. (A cosmetics contract is considered by some to be the 'Holy Grail' of modeling.)

But back to Louis Vuitton and its newest ad: Will Asian men embrace the brand even more now that it has an Asian male face?

Chris Kyme, founder of Kymechow, a creative ad agency in Hong Kong, doesn't think so. The new ad misses the mark, he says, adding that he thinks the brand's ads that feature celebrities such as Keith Richards, Bono and Mikhail Gorbachev are better suited to the brand and its demographic.

'If your target audience in Louis Vuitton is for Chinese guys, I'm not sure this would appeal to men,' says Mr. Kyne. 'It seems like it would appeal more to women. Chinese guys want to feel reassured and congratulated on their success rather than be shown a pretty model with their product.'

Confucius under the Five Red Stars

2011 is a meaningful year for China as both sides of the Taiwan Strait is celebrating the overthrown of the last dynasty, Qing. Since then, China has become a republic, first the Republic of China and later in 1949, People’s Republic of China.

Confucius as the representative of traditional Chinese culture and values had been blamed for the weakness and incapability of Chinese people. However, when Chinese are gaining confident, especially with the economic progress, they make u-turn and begin to appreciate their own cultures and traditions.

12 January 2011 marked a re-emergence of Confucius and significantly, the great philosopher’s statue is established at Tian’anmen square, in front of the China National Museum. It is interesting to note that a giant photo of Mao Zedong is looking, across the Chang’an Street, at the statue of Confucius. Mao denounced Confucius during Cultural Revolution. However, now the new focus is on Confucius and traditional cultures.

Every morning, when the anthem of the People’s Republic is broadcasted and the flag of Five Red Stars is raised, both Confucius and Mao Zedong are witnessing the happenings. History some times is quite funny and creates possibility out of impossibility. Who can imagine such incidence will take place in the heart of China’s political centre?

Coincidently, Taiwan’s Ma also spoke on Chinese heritage and cultures in his 2011 New Year message. And Taiwan, too also wants to promote Chinese values to the world. Two parts of Ma message are reproduced here for a better understanding of Taiwan’s position in the spread of traditional Chinese culture and values. In Pledges from a Century Ago, one will understand the past history of 100 years. And in Visions for the Future, it shows the action plan of Taiwan.

Pledges from a Century Ago. 　 A century ago, as China was besieged by foreign powers and on the verge of collapse, Dr. Sun Yat-sen overthrew the Qing court and founded the Republic of China—the first republic in all of Asia. He made a pledge to the people to build a strong and prosperous nation.

A century ago, Chinese history consisted only of the succession of dynasties, and the people had no say in the matter. The establishment of the Republic of China was a pledge to the people to bring about a democratic way of life.　A century ago, Chinese society was plagued by a severe wealth gap and widespread illiteracy. The establishment of the Republic of China was a pledge to the people to bring about equitable distribution of wealth and education for everyone.　These pledges embody the ideals of the Three Principles of the People.

Passed down through generations, they have been enshrined in our Constitution and indelibly etched into our lives.　Today, with gratitude in our hearts, we pay our utmost respect to the martyrs and heroes of the Republic. Were it not for people like Lin Jue-min, who left his beloved wife for the cause, or Qiu Jin, who was martyred for her revolutionary ideals, or the countless other heroes and heroines who laid down their lives, the ROC would not be here today.

Visions for the Future 　 My fellow citizens, as the Republic of China begins its second century we should set our sights on the future and make four lofty resolutions: 　 In the next century, the ROC will be the standard-bearer at the leading edge of Chinese culture. Taiwan has never experienced anything like mainland China’s Cultural Revolution. Having preserved the rich roots of Chinese culture intact over the past six decades or so, Taiwan now dazzles the world with an aesthetic sense and artistic verve that are firmly grounded in a deep vein of traditional culture.

Taiwan also possesses the openness and innovation of a maritime culture. Traditional Chinese culture on this island early on absorbed the essence of Western contemporary civilization, which is manifested in its innovative art. Our dance, music, drama, visual arts, motion pictures, and television programming command high international acclaim and are reflective of a Chinese culture with Taiwan characteristics.　Among all the ethnically Chinese societies of the world, Confucian values are practiced more widely and more seriously in Taiwan than anywhere else. The virtues espoused by Confucianism -- benevolence, righteousness, filial devotion, respect for teachers, diligence, kindness, and simplicity -- have long been deeply ingrained in the fabric of our lives. Taiwan is also home to a strong civil society, a diversity of religious groups and other organizations, a free press, and an active volunteer force. We need only display our cultural creativity to the world to attract the world to us. Taiwan is poised to be the standard-bearer at the leading edge of Chinese culture.　 In the next century, the ROC will serve as a paragon of democracy for the Chinese-speaking world.

President Hu did not mention about Chinese culture and values in his 2011 New Year message. However, the following report from Xinhua news on the Confucius statue makes a step forward for the Chinese cultures and traditions.

Confucius erected near Tian'anmen Square

BEIJING, Jan. 12 (Xinhua) -- A bronze statue of Confucius has been unveiled near the Tian'anmen Square in central Beijing.
The statue, at the north gate of the China National Museum, which overlooks the Chang' an Avenue, is 9.5 meters tall, including the stone base. The statue shows the scholar, born more than 2,500 years ago, putting his palms together in front of his chest and looking into the distance.

"Confucius was seen as a saint by many dynasties in Chinese history," said Lu Zhangshen, curator of the museum, at a ceremony to unveil the statue on Tuesday.
"He is the symbol of traditional Chinese culture, with a far-reaching impact across the globe," he said.

The statue was built by Wu Weishan, 48, president of the Sculpture Institute of the Chinese Academy of Arts, and a member of Royal British Society of Sculptors. It took him about a year to finish the statue.

Wu has been making statues of famous historical persons since 1990. He started making statues of Confucius in 1994.
"In our social transformation period, we needed a cultural monument to pass down our traditional culture, which was represented by Confucius," said the long-haired artist.
Confucius, of the Spring and Autumn Period (770 BC to 476 BC), guided people for thousands of years in many aspects of Chinese life, from raising children to ruling empires.
However, the reputation of the ancient scholar dropped sharply after Confucianism began to be seen as a symbol of outdated and backward feudal culture. Temples dedicated to the philosopher were torn down, and tombs of his descendants were destroyed.

Fifty-eight-year-old Kong Lingshao, a 76th-generation descendant of Confucius, had just finished primary school when the Cultural Revolution (1966-1976) started. He remembered how the Red Guards pulled down statues of Confucius from the temples and dragged them through the streets, and criticized the philosopher at public meetings.
"As a descendant, I don't have words to express the humiliation I felt," Kong Lingshao said.
However, he noted that, after several years, the Chinese nation had finally begun to reflect on how to treat its traditional culture.

"In Confucianism, there were flaws, but who is flawless?" Kong asked, adding that tolerance and seeking harmony without uniformity were important beliefs under Confucianism.
Confucius has been regaining popularity in recent years. In 2007, a female lecturer attracted nationwide attention with her televised lecture series about the Analects of Confucius.
Then, last September, the Nishan Forum on World Civilization was held in Qufu, where domestic and overseas scholars drew upon the wisdom of the ancient sages, Confucius and Jesus.

By the end of 2010, China had set up more than 320 Confucius Institutes in 96 countries around the globe.

Wednesday was sunny in Beijing, and good for sightseeing. Several passers-by stopped to take photos of the statue.

Among them was 60-year-old Sun Qiqing, a retired official from the cultural bureau of Wuqi in northwest China’s Shaanxi Province, a small city where the Long March ends. Sun’s hometown was Tai' an in Shandong, about 80 kilometers away from Qufu, the hometown of Confucius.

"I saw news of the unveiling ceremony and came to take some photos," he said.
He noted that Confucius was an icon of Chinese culture. "His main thought was harmony," he said, adding that building such a statue showed China's attempt to improve social harmony in its peaceful era.

Manuel Pavon Belizon from Spain believed that Confucius was the "top representation" of Chinese culture. Having lived in China for five years, he loves Chinese culture. He found that some of Confucius' ideas, like forgiveness, were similar to some beliefs in Christianity.
He said the statue is "a combination of tradition and modernity." "Its bronze colour was like the colour of ancient cauldrons he saw in museums, he added.

(Xinhua reporters Sun Yi, Tang Shaoming contributed to the report.)

Life is unpredictable

Good thing can easily turn into bad thing! Chinese wisdom always warns Chinese to be aware of pitfalls and to be humble in life.

On New Year Day, the Air Force chief of Taiwan was organising a wedding celebration for his son. It was attended by the Defence Minister and all senior military officers. A happy and honourable day for the wedding couple in deed!

Based on tradition, Air Force personnel will assist in preparation of the wedding party. However, this routine and bad tradition turned into a political issue and caused a demotion for the Air Force chief.

If we look at if from the Yi Jing perspective, it really is not a surprise. Yi Jing is advising talented people, especially those in power, to avoid making mistakes. A high ranking officer, with the potential to take over as the next Chief of General Staff (CGS) of the Taiwan defence force, the Air Force chief should learn to be humble and to be in alert of any possible conflict of interest in the eyes of the public.

Unfortunately, not only he did not stop the bad habit, he continued to allow his subordinates to draw up the strategic plan for the wedding. He even agreed to prepare the wedding party like a war plan with standard military operations procedures. He did not prevent this bad habit but continue to let it be. By Taiwan military tradition and logic, subordinates are allowed to assist superiors in celebration preparations, further other previous officers also practiced the same, so there is no reason to stop the Air Force chief to do the same. Bad luck to him, there are several weak points that he failed observe, in particular, timing, position and situation. These factors are highly stressed by Yi Jing.

Failure to observe Timing: Very soon, there will be a replacement for the Chief of General Staff (CGS) in the Taiwan defence force. By rotation, the CGS will have to come from the air force this time. Being the chief of air force, it is highly possible he will take over the CGS if he has made no mistake. If he has turned the wedding into a low key event, or even postpone the event to a later date, he would have change his “timing” and be in a favourable position.

Failure to observe Position: He had a good position until New Year Day. Being the most senior officer in the air force, quite naturally he will take over the post of CGS. But like the commercial world, other air force commanders are also aiming for the position of CGS. Even he has showed no strong desire to be CGS, other ambitious air force commanders may see him as an obstacle and knocking down the most qualified one, they will have the chance to move up. His “position” changed after the wedding party.

Failure to observer Situation: Since Ma Ying-jeou took over as President in 2008; he wanted to present a clean government. Even the Air Force chief had done nothing wrong as the subordinates were volunteering their services and he just kept the tradition of the military. But the political impact is very different. Perhaps, Chen Shui-bian might allow such a behaviour but certainly not Ma Ying-jeou. He needs to adjust to the changed “situation”.

To be humble
Out of the 64 hexagrams in the Yi Jing, only 1 hexagram (Humble Gua) is good in every (broken and unbroken lines) prediction. Humble Gua will bring luck and benefit to the person who draws it. However, all the guidance principles and instruction for Humble Gua are to be humble. Without practising humble, luck and benefit will be gone. This shows the importance of humility. Again, he is too proud to hold a luxury wedding party.

To be careful from start to end
Laozi even goes further to explain the importance of consistence of doing thing. Besides humility, to achieve success we have to be careful in every step from the beginning until the end. This is especially true that the last few steps are as importance as the first few steps. Many people fail at the end or half way because they do not practice consistency. They have relaxed themselves or lost their concentration and believe that success is within their reach in just a few steps away. It is not easy not to hold a grand party for our loved one’s wedding party but to achieve the final success, you will need to consider the timing, position, and situation.

Life is unpredictable as what the air force chief had experienced. But the Chinese wisdom is always there to remind us and unfortunately, we keep on forgetting the reminder!