Reflections on China
A group of us had a dinner of Beijing (Peking) duck in a Hutong last night. Hutongs are the traditional Chinese neighborhoods that have managed to survive, so far, in ultra-modern Beijing and other cities. Strolling the narrow streets of the Hutong after, only a few minutes earlier, walking the wide boulevards of Beijing, paints the contrasts and contradictions that are China today.
China is not communist. Let's just get that out of the way. The only resemblance to communism that this country bears is that it is a one-party state. The "Communist" party still rules, but they are in on the economic boom that is making millionaires and industrial workers out of farmers. In a country where saving face is paramount, form over substance dictates that the leaders use the title "communist" to describe their party, although Mao ZeDong would roll in his grave (actually in his glass case in Tienanmen Square) if he saw how China is leading the capitalist world (the Chinese economy grows appx 3x faster than the American economy).
I can't imagine what it must be like to have lived through the Cultural Revolution and to see what's going on now. What a mind fuck. Only 30 years earlier, the rich were paraded down streets for public hecklings, their books were burned, peasants were given priority in top positions and the government despised everything foreign. In the last 5-10 years, the government has transformed the landscape of major cities to make them look like London, Paris and New York. You can't spit (and all the Chinese spit) without hitting a Coca-Cola sign and the Taiwanese are some of the richest businessmen, dumping endless amounts of capital into Shanghai, the commercial center of China.
During Communist times, the peasants were not permitted to leave their farms. Now, it is estimated that between 90 million and 300 million farmers have left the countryside to find opportunity in the cities (even on the low end, that is the size of the American workforce) and there are millions more on the way. Next time you see a tag that says "Made In China", you know who made the product. Entire villages have changed from farming to specialty products. Some are known for making buttons, zippers, belts, etc.
Exhausted farmers making everything conceivable results in the "almost" factor, which is hard to miss here in China. Everything is almost, but not quite. Buy a Chinese product and it will work, but not perfectly. The clothes will have a wily thread and the hotel, although appearing immaculate, will have a loose tile. The funniest example of the "almost" factor was the negative review of a movie that someone most certainly cut and paste from the internet onto the case of the DVD for that movie with no idea what it said. It's funny, but very scary when you realize that the Chinese are now making parts that Boeing incorporates into its airplanes. Saving face requires saying that something works even if it doesn't so as not to bring shame to yourself or your superiors. Remember the next time you step into Satan's Temple, i.e. Wal-Mart, that you get what you pay for. The conflict between being a consumer and being a shareholder will soon bite all of us in the ass.
The 2008 Olympics is only accelerating the pace of China's modernization and, undoubtedly, this place will not be or look the same in another 5-10 years.
10 Comments:
hey dinah
fascinating to hear about your new tour group and hope you enjoy the travels and esp. the food.
Gem
as for those parts that go into "Boing!'s" airplane parts. Motorola actually came up with the quality managment process known as six sigma a few years back when they were having a hard time getting the Chinese workers to make consistently reliable batteries for cell phones that had to meet fairly tight specifications. Six Sigma was basically Motorola's way of developing a system that brought honor to those who found fault with processes that had been accepted for years. Six sigma was so powerful in improving quality in Chinese manufacturing that we have are incorporating it into several large businesses here in the states as well.
Hello there,
Great Blog! I really enjoyed my visit, although I was searching for info on golf tip and we dont exactly match it was worth the time spent.
Keep it up
Regards
golf tip
polo ralph lauren, prada outlet, oakley vault, christian louboutin shoes, cheap oakley sunglasses, tory burch outlet online, true religion, michael kors outlet, coach outlet, prada handbags, michael kors outlet online, chanel handbags, louis vuitton outlet, tiffany jewelry, gucci handbags, burberry outlet online, kate spade outlet, michael kors outlet online, coach outlet store online, michael kors handbags, oakley sunglasses, louis vuitton outlet online, tiffany and co jewelry, longchamp outlet online, ray ban sunglasses, michael kors outlet store, louis vuitton, nike air max, longchamp outlet, red bottom shoes, true religion outlet, polo ralph lauren outlet, jordan shoes, michael kors outlet online, nike outlet, ray ban outlet, christian louboutin, nike free, nike air max, burberry outlet online, kate spade outlet online, louis vuitton outlet, coach outlet, longchamp handbags, louis vuitton handbags, coach purses, christian louboutin outlet
babyliss, new balance outlet, replica watches, vans outlet, mcm handbags, celine handbags, beats headphones, nike trainers, nfl jerseys, giuseppe zanotti, jimmy choo shoes, ugg boots, birkin bag, asics shoes, canada goose outlet, ferragamo shoes, insanity workout, nike huarache, chi flat iron, hollister, abercrombie and fitch, uggs outlet, north face jackets, north face jackets, mac cosmetics, soccer jerseys, canada goose outlet, uggs outlet, uggs on sale, bottega veneta, instyler ionic styler, ugg boots clearance, nike roshe, valentino shoes, lululemon outlet, ugg, marc jacobs outlet, ugg outlet, longchamp, ghd, reebok shoes, ugg soldes, p90x workout, soccer shoes, wedding dresses, mont blanc pens, herve leger, canada goose outlet, canada goose
ugg, gucci, canada goose, iphone 6 case, hollister canada, vans, canada goose, swarovski uk, pandora jewelry, air max, ray ban, pandora charms, moncler, timberland shoes, moncler outlet, moncler, canada goose, replica watches, louis vuitton canada, uggs canada, coach outlet, juicy couture outlet, converse shoes, thomas sabo uk, nike air max, juicy couture outlet, ralph lauren, hollister clothing, moncler, hollister, supra shoes, louboutin, toms outlet, oakley, canada goose pas cher, parajumpers outlet, moncler, wedding dress, baseball bats, converse, swarovski jewelry, links of london uk, lancel, moncler outlet, pandora uk, karen millen, moncler, montre femme
uggs outlet
ugg boots
chanel handbags outlet
uggs outlet
fitflops outlet sale
north face outlet
nike free 5
mac cosmetics
hollister canada
wedding dresses uk
north face jackets
ferragamo outlet
christian louboutin shoes
coach outlet
wellensteyn outlet
tods outlet
nike air huarache
swarovski outlet
true religion jeans
ray-ban sunglasses
1207minko
louis vuitton, oakley sunglasses wholesale, longchamp outlet, chanel handbags, replica watches, oakley sunglasses, christian louboutin shoes, ray ban sunglasses, longchamp outlet, louis vuitton outlet, prada outlet, louis vuitton outlet, christian louboutin, nike roshe, sac longchamp pas cher, louis vuitton, jordan pas cher, tiffany and co, christian louboutin outlet, ray ban sunglasses, kate spade outlet, longchamp outlet, uggs on sale, gucci handbags, oakley sunglasses, ugg boots, nike outlet, nike air max, polo outlet, nike free run, louboutin pas cher, tory burch outlet, jordan shoes, air max, michael kors pas cher, tiffany jewelry, louis vuitton outlet, nike free, replica watches, ray ban sunglasses, burberry pas cher, cheap oakley sunglasses, longchamp pas cher, ugg boots, nike air max, polo ralph lauren, polo ralph lauren outlet online, oakley sunglasses
uggs outlet, vans pas cher, michael kors outlet online, coach purses, nike tn, abercrombie and fitch uk, burberry handbags, michael kors outlet, coach outlet store online, true religion outlet, uggs outlet, ray ban pas cher, hogan outlet, oakley pas cher, north face, michael kors, burberry outlet, michael kors, hollister uk, michael kors outlet online, true religion jeans, polo lacoste, ralph lauren uk, nike air force, michael kors outlet, michael kors outlet, sac hermes, michael kors outlet online, nike roshe run uk, converse pas cher, nike free uk, sac vanessa bruno, nike air max uk, michael kors outlet online, lululemon canada, kate spade, guess pas cher, mulberry uk, coach outlet, replica handbags, nike blazer pas cher, true religion outlet, timberland pas cher, nike air max, true religion outlet, hollister pas cher, ray ban uk, north face uk
louis vuitton, vans, wedding dresses, pandora jewelry, louis vuitton, ugg uk, louis vuitton, moncler, karen millen uk, canada goose outlet, hollister, gucci, moncler, supra shoes, nike air max, moncler, toms shoes, lancel, ugg, marc jacobs, thomas sabo, barbour, ugg,uggs,uggs canada, louis vuitton, links of london, ugg,ugg australia,ugg italia, barbour uk, pandora uk, pandora jewelry, montre pas cher, coach outlet, moncler outlet, canada goose outlet, ray ban, louis vuitton, moncler, doudoune moncler, canada goose, swarovski crystal, juicy couture outlet, converse outlet, replica watches, swarovski, moncler uk, ugg pas cher, hollister, canada goose jackets, canada goose uk, canada goose outlet, moncler outlet, canada goose, canada goose
Post a Comment
Subscribe to Post Comments [Atom]
<< Home