Chinese Face Mask Changing - "bian lian" a dying art?

The "change face mask artist" is actually a magician who flips up different masks from his hat, costume, belt or shoe, with a blink, a nod or a handshake.  

This form of opera is only known to only a handful of practising masters in Sichuan province today.  

I managed to take a few photographs from among the 20 or more different masks by a performer specially invited for the occasion. From the side profile, I saw one of the "slower" transitions but not enough to find out the tricks employed. Surely, he would need a lot of practice before he's able to put up such an impressive show. 

The following video probably gives a better idea of the speed of change from a famous artiste.

变脸, 變臉, Biàn Liǎn more commonly known as face changing is a 300 year old tradition  ... 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KwfGdJIzYZs

US China expert Kenneth Lieberthal criticises Japan

Kenneth Lieberthal is talking in riddles. Some say he is quoted out of context by the Chinese media. Others thought that he was speaking with a conscience. Or was this a Freudian slip? 

China's economic and military leverage has certainly strengthened in recent years. 

Unlike most who sided with Japan recently, Lieberthal ought to know the history well. Japan's acquisition of the islands was a gift on the silver platter from American troops at a time when China was weak and rebuilding the country, unable to resist losing its territories to aggressors. 

Japan and its supporters cannot change the facts that the islands were under Chinese jurisdiction during the Ming dynasty with documented evidence and the recognition accorded by the Cairo Declaration and the Potsdam Declaration.   

If Japan indeed believes that it has a strong case, it would not need to posture, nationalise or buy up the Diaoyutai islands. Whether by historical or territorial boundaries, Japan lacks ammunition to stake claims, except with its loud complaining voice and encouragement of its military ally. It is orchestrated with the Philippines and Vietnam to exert pressure on China when it's vulnerable during leadership change.

Japan broke consensus with China on Diaoyu Islands

Updated: 2012-09-21  

WASHINGTON - The Japanese government's bid to "nationalize" the Diaoyu Islands hadbroken its consensus with China to shelve the territorial dispute, a US expert said Thursday. 

"First of all, I think that Japan's actions have been key in explaining what China has done," saidKenneth Lieberthal, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution who had been the seniordirector for Asia at the National Security Council in the Clinton administration.

Speaking at a symposium at the Washington-based think tank, he also admitted it was a "hugemistake" when US government officials made comments that suggested Washington did have aposition on the dispute. 

"I think that does us no good. And occasionally, some comments like that have come out,"Lieberthal said. "I think that they are regrettable."

http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/world/2012-09/21/content_15774792.htm

http://www.bloomberg.com/video/63260542-brookings-s-lieberthal-interview-on-china-s-diplomacy.html

Nevertheless, China should not, has not and would not throw away what its hard won respect and gains built up over the years through diplomacy.  As we write, both countries are holding consultations. Clearly escalation would neither benefit China nor Japan. 

The onus is really on Japan to resolve the crisis fairly. This is unlikely with a right-wing domination of the Japanese government bent on militarising bilateral issues at the expense of economic benefits and regional stability. However, China unlike the US does not partake in regime change around the world. 

http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/china/2012-09/25/c_131872241.htm

Where is Xi Jinping? Wild Speculations on Chinese leadership

What is the big deal when an up-and-coming leader has not been seen in public for less than two weeks. In the days when China was closed, such observations are probably more important. But should outsiders make too much of a molehill? 

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/asia/xi-jinping-the-leader-who-isnt-there-8126166.html

Just like people in the developed countries, workers and employers do need to take a break, let alone a potential leader who is having a rest before embarking on hard work. Unlike the show biz of US presidential elections where every appearance counts, the Chinese political system is more muted. The post-Mao leadership does not encourage high profile posturing, and hence succession has become more stable, contrary to what critics are saying.  

However, not everyone believes in the wild speculations from terminal illness, kidnapping to assassination attempt. Certainly, there is a lot on the mind of Xi Jinping who will likely to be tasked to shoulder many responsibilities and resolve some serious and day-to-day issues. 

Australia's former Prime Minister and ex-Foreign Minister thought that people were over-reacting. Just because a man is mingling among a billion people and not to jeopardise the elections of new leadership, do not warrant a doomsday speculation. 

http://www.businessweek.com/news/2012-09-12/australia-s-rudd-says-people-over-excited-by-xi-jinping-absence

The psychology that believing becomes the truth could be the scenario that some writers are hoping to realise.  That China is unstable, unpredictable and crumbling nation is an attractive notion. 

The ones who are really worried seem to be mainly journalists and a handful of academics. The story has not really caused much concern among the mainland Chinese who have seen more tumultuous and difficult times. 

Apparently, words are cheap these days when everyone chips in his or her two cents worth of conspiracy theories, only to be proven wrong every time, but would never give up with continuing the exciting game of fuelling wild rumours.  Boy, they will be are in for a big surprise!

Betrayers unite for personal profit - China's mining investment losses in Australia - switch to food

Nationalistic Australian citizens have voiced concern and opposition to selling more national assets to the Chinese despite the tremendous gains and spinoffs from foreign capital inflow. Aussies are not anti-foreigners as long as foreign ownership is exceeded by US (or a western nation) to offset undesirable influences from another state. 

In reality, Chinese state companies have been reformed since the 1980s and behave like private enterprises though the level of accountability is not well established ... not that all non-Chinese corporations are free from rigidity and unethical conduct. 

http://www.kpmg.com/CN/en/IssuesAndInsights/ArticlesPublications/Documents/demystifying-chinese-investment-O-201207.pdf

In most transactions, the buyer and seller stand to gain or else there is no deal. Cash loaded and enthusiastic, China state owned enterprises have been lured and wooed by the opportunistic firms who are keen to sell.  

http://www.theaustralian.com.au/national-affairs/china-investment-elephant-is-well-and-truly-in-the-room/story-fn59niix-1226452825060

http://www.theage.com.au/opinion/political-news/chinese-investment-no-threat-20120422-1xf64.html

http://www.terradaily.com/reports/Chinese_bids_welcomed_in_42_bn_Australian_asset_sale_999.html


Despite investment restrictions, the Chinese have quite successfully bought up many mine shares to feed its mills back home. From hindsight, this is a blotched plan rather than an achievement. It would not be an overstating Chinese losses in the millions if not billions for purchasing overrated companies, changing market conditions, poor performance and unforeseen results. The true picture is probably less rosy than that painted by the buyers and sellers or what is reported in the media. There are good reasons why officials and business managers want to portray it negatively to cover their folly or mistakes. 

Inevitably, the topic of corruption cannot be evaded. Mistakes cannot be attributed mainly to innocent miscalculation, lack of due diligence and market changes as a result of falling production. Surely the Chinese investors are smarter and the Australian sellers would play harder to get. We may never know how much kickbacks were involved. 

Credit must be given to the Chinese for quick thinking and adjustments. Now, Chinese investors have decided that the mining sector is jinx. It is high time that the government directs investors to diversify into other sectors rather than placing all the bets in fading minerals sector. 


http://www.couriermail.com.au/business/chinese-investors-look-to-diversify-beyond-resources-sector/story-fnbdkrr9-1226443327176

Attention is now turned to the next most important resource - food - to feed its billions of people. More Chinese are investing in Australian farms recently. 

KPMG Australia’s China Practice, said that Chinese companies are showing an increasing appetite for investing in Australia’s food sector “from gate to plate” as they seek to meet rising food demand at home and capture more expertise from Australia’s companies and farmers.  

Banks, both domestic and Chinese, are also increasingly interested in financing the sector at a time when many miners and energy producers are struggling to secure financing for new projects in the face of falling commodity prices and concerns of a falloff in demand ...

http://blogs.wsj.com/dealjournalaustralia/2012/08/22/kpmg-sees-more-chinese-investors-buying-aussie-farms/?mod=google_news_blog

Another indication of change is China investing in mines (and others) elsewhere where the government and people may be less hostile to Chinese money.  

http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/374441/20120816/china-gold-rush-africa-supply-barrick.htm

Nevertheless, merely containing the damage will not solve the fundamental problems that has wasted Chinese funds which could be better spent helping its poor and boosting domestic development and consumption. 

Attempts to monitor and penalise corrupt officials venturing overseas have been put in place but with limited success. Reports of arrests have been random and rare, for most have used their positions to amass personal wealth and enrich their cronies at the expense of the nation's benefit with little reprisals. 

http://www.globaltimes.cn/content/728010.shtml

Gu Kailai trial - delicate balance of politics, justice and the world stage

Just as closure of the case seemed definite, the file has been reopened on the back of international pressure and leadership succession.  Had it not been for the fall of Gu's husband Bo Xilai, the case may not have been prioritised and managed with great caution. From the little details that have leaked through (deliberately or inadvertently) the apparently tightly controlled court proceedings and media, readers can draw the conclusion that Neil Heywood murdered by poisoning, was not innocent victim but one who is savvy and manipulative. 

While some speculate that Gu is made the scapegoat to take Bo's fall, a number of China watchers (not experts) contradict themselves by saying that Bo was doomed. Why not use this as a convenient excuse to get rid of the clan and their underlings?  Yet, there are others who believe that Bo could make a comeback. This is unlikely unless he has superhuman power and connections in the next leadership. The high level of publicity may end with an anti-climax whimper with all the protagonists receding to the background, as with many before who had been disciplined, purged or punished for various degrees and types of offences against the party or the people. 

China is keen to project a positive image to ensure that the its domestic population and the world perceive that justice prevails in this emerging great power. After all, a judiciary was already well-established in ancient times as far back as the 10th Century, notwithstanding political upheavals and machinations in a huge country. The judges must demonstrate sensitivity, independence and pragmatism in this high profile and divisive case of a generation. 

China says Gu Kailai didn't contest murder charge

Though Gu faces possible execution, legal experts say she is likely to be given a commuted death sentence that translates into 10 to 15 years in prison, with her concern for her son's safety providing a mitigating circumstance.

http://www.sbs.com.au/news/article/1680370/China-says-Gu-Kailai-didnt-contest-murder-charge

As a high-flying international lawyer married to one of China's most promising and charismatic politicians and with a son at Harvard, Gu Kailai appeared to have it all. Now she is on trial for murder.

http://www.sbs.com.au/news/article/1680438/Gu-Kailai-High-flying-lawyer-turned-murder-accused

America's China Choices - sharing power balance in Asia

How many Americans ponder deeper into longer term strategic questions?  


             The China choice: why America should share power by Hugh White

The Chinese will continue to avoid unnecessary friction and minimise the risk of confrontation. But they will not relinquish their country’s claim to status as a great power – even if that leads to conflict. The implications of this for America are simple and very significant. If America tries to preserve the status quo and avoid fundamental change in the relationship, it will be choosing to accept China as a strategic rival.

Essentially, America has three options. It can resist China’s challenge and try to preserve the status quo in Asia. It can step back from its dominant role in Asia, leaving China to attempt to establish hegemony. Or it can remain in Asia on a new basis, allowing China a larger role but also maintaining a strong presence of its own. Most Americans assume that the first of these options is the only choice. Only a few take the second option seriously, although that could change. Most don’t even consider the third.

The need for a decision seems to have emerged very suddenly. China’s economic growth has been obvious, but not where it has been leading. 

In truth, any attempt by either Beijing or Washington to dominate will lead to sustained and bitter strategic rivalry, imposing huge economic costs and a real risk of catastrophic war. Neither side could win, and both would stand to lose a great deal – but it could easily happen. Strategic competition quickly builds its own momentum, escalating to the point where war can seem inescapable. War between the United States and China is already a clear and significant danger, one that will grow if rivalry increases. This is the most important issue at stake in America’s China choice. Asia’s alternative futures are not American or Chinese supremacy. They are escalating rivalry, or some form of great-power accommodation that constrains that rivalry. America’s real choice is not between dominating or withdrawing from Asia: it is between taking China on as a strategic rival, or working with it as a partner.

The third option carries many obvious risks, which would quickly rule it out of contention were it not for the greater risks that flow from the alternatives. Moreover, this option can only be realised if America and China are willing to compromise with each other. Neither side will find that easy. For China it will mean abandoning hopes to lead Asia and accepting a strong US presence there indefinitely. For America it will mean accepting that its unique leadership role is no longer feasible, and learning to work with China as a partner in a way that America has never done with another country before – and certainly not with one so different from it. But this is the kind of choice America must now consider.

http://www.lowyinstitute.org/publications/extract-china-choice-why-america-should-share-power

China is a growing domestic market for local businesses and USA exporters with the right strategy and skills

US style stores in China will be a big strategic business mistake. China is not USA. It has a different historical experience and its rising middle class folks are not as wealthy, more frugal, evaluate essential and luxury expenses with a different set of criteria, and expect sellers to understand customer needs and offer good service.

As with past and future failures in transplanting wholesale western economic management, political systems, religious beliefs, culture and frameworks into totally different societies, Chinese and foreign sellers must be able to capture what Chinese consumers really need and willing to spend on. Marketing pitched at customers' priorities and preferences is the principle that works. Success comes to those who could adapt quickly with their offerings. 

Quote :

China is counting on rising domestic demand from this rapidly growing segment. So, too, are Western exporters, faced with anemic growth in Europe and North America.

But China's middle class isn't Charleston's. Western companies have misjudged Chinese shoppers' priorities and clumsily tried to export U.S.-style stores.

The potential buying power of China's middle class is vast. About 247 million Chinese, 18.2% of the population, qualify as middle class, meaning their households spend between $10 and $100 a day on average, according to Brookings Institution economist Homi Kharas.

If current patterns continue, the number will soar to 607 million by 2020, and spending by China's middle class will rival that of the U.S., after adjusting for inflation and purchasing power.

The trend has the potential to remake China. With export markets weakening in Europe and the U.S., economists say, Beijing needs to lift spending by its own middle class or risk that growth will slow sharply. Steady middle-class growth also could help China's trading partners, bolstering a market for computers, cars and trendy clothing, as well as for commodities such as copper, oil and cotton.

China already is the world's largest market for some middle-class emblems, including cars, personal computers and smartphones. And multinational companies show no signs of taking their feet off the gas.

Growing sophistication among some Chinese middle-class customers has led Five Star to upgrade in some cities. The Qingdao store has higher-priced electronics than older outlets—for example, cameras and high-definition video equipment for a first voyage overseas or a road trip across China.

With brighter lighting, additional seating and customer-assistance stations, the store in this port city of 8.4 million people also has more of the trappings of a stateside Best Buy.

Following its parent's lead, Five Star opened a small research department last year to conduct consumer surveys. When it learned that some customers considered the chain stodgy, Five Star developed a new icon: cartoon characters that appear to be drawn by Hollywood animators.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702303444204577460693377819420.html?mod=e2tw&mod%3D=e2tw