By Scilla Alecci

Steven Sande at TUAW reports [en] on the reasons that induced the Japan Sumo Association to distribute iPads to the “big-fingered sumo-wrestlers”. He says the aim is to make the internal communication process smoother after the scandals that hit the association [en] recently.

By Scilla Alecci

By Flickr id xioubin low. CC license.

But this announcement hasn't surprised many Japanese people who had been expecting it to happen sooner or later.
The buzz that media created about Japan being beaten by its Asian neighbor has made many bloggers raise their eyebrows and say: so what?

Ampontan, for instance, warns that China becoming the second largest economy in the world is nothing but a bubble that will eventually burst.

Yesterday, the English-language print media was filled with stories declaring that China’s economy had at last grown to become the second-largest in the world, surpassing that of Japan. One newspaper said it had “seized” second place (as if economies can seize anything), while another reported that it had captured the “second-place crown”.
Perhaps they should be forgiven, for it’s obvious they know not what they do. Many people, more often on the left than not, view the dynamics of national economies as a zero-sum contest–as if they were spectators at a baseball, football, or hockey game. The economists remind us that the potential for win-win is always there, but few people listen.[…]
As Gordon Chang points out in Forbes [en], the Chinese property market has become the 500-lb bubble in the middle of the room. When it pops–and you know it will–investors will take a bath so large the media will be inundated with water sports stories 24/7.

Japan emerged as economic superpower in 1968, when it became the second largest economy in the world, surpassing West Germany.
The “economic miracle” as defined by some scholars [en] was caused by multiple factors including postwar reforms and a high level of industrialization fostered by ‘keiretsu’ [en], a partnership of Government and private industry.
Nowadays Japan, with a population which is only one tenth of greater China's population, has a public debt to GDP ratio of about 200% and a mere 0.1% economic growth rate.

Takaojisan thinks it’s natural that the Chinese GDP passes Japan's as the population is bigger. But he also shares with Ampontan the opinion that the story that China is going to be the largest economy in the near future may go up in smoke.

単純に考え、日本の１０倍の人口がいるから日本の１０倍の購買力があるなどはあり得ず、結局は一部の富裕層が買いあさっているに過ぎない。中国のGDPは、個人消費ではなく、行き場のない金が向かっている投資によるところが大きい。そして、その投資がはじければ、中国の巨大な経済は一夜にして水泡に帰するのだ。なにしろ、経済の実体となりうる個人消費がきわめて限られ、インフラが整備されず、国民生活を支える有形無形の社会サービスがまったく形成されていないからだ。
つまり中国の投資バブルがはじけた場合の崩壊はすさまじいと言える。まさに、実体のない経済が雲散霧消するのだ。[…]　
　しかし、いずれ日本を経済規模で抜いたとしても、べつにそれがどうと言うことではないのだ。

In addition to the figures that prove China’s economy being greater than the Japanese, experts forecast [en] that this growing power will eventually pass also the US by 2030, becoming then the largest economy in the whole world.

Blogger aen_ukon99 wonders what are the factors considered by the experts when examining a country's economic performance.

それに中国に生産拠点を移した多くの外国企業の生産はカウントされていないのかな？
そして安い労働力の供給元だった中国がこの頃自殺者やストなどで目覚め始めて多くの企業はインドやアフリカに移りつつあるって中国にとっては結構痛い話じゃ無いのかな。

More positive thinkers, like Bos, have taken the news as a reason to look ahead and help their country to utilize those values and strengths that made of it a world power in just a few decades.

まあ、いつか来る順位変動なので仕方がない。
これ以上落ちないように努力と行動と思考と知能を生かしていきたいものだ・・・・・。

By Portnoy Zheng

Famous comic blogger and Japanese culture observer JaeJae teaches us how to tell the difference[zht] between Yukata and Kimono, the two similar Japanese traditional garments.

By Andy Yee

Thomas Crampton puts together an infographic to explain some of China’s Social Media equivalents.

By Lee Yoo Eun

Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter left North Korea with a detained U.S. citizen AIjalon Mahli Gomes today South Korea's Joongang reported, quoting North Korea's state media KCNA (Korean Central News Agency).

By Mong Palatino

Singaporean food blogger, Brad Lau (Iron Lady Chef), was accused by a restaurant of bad behavior when he and his friends initially refused to pay for the food they ordered. The incident sparked a heated online debate about the ethics of food blogging.

This is Brad’s version of the whole episode:

Story: The articles seemed to suggest that I paid the restaurant a visit on my own accord, that I walked into the restaurant and announced myself as a food blogger.
Fact: This is not true. I was invited to a food tasting session by Melanie, PR Manager for the Restaurant.

Story: It was reported that the restaurant had decided to “waive the fee” for me and my dining partner out of goodwill
Fact: This was an invitation to a food-tasting session…Having attended previous food tastings before, I assumed that the meal would be, at the very least, on the house for myself and one dining partner. I was not expected to be billed for and then “waived” off from what was disguised as a “food tasting session”. When questioned, Melanie then cited this to be in-line with ‘industry standards’ of food tasting sessions: that the restaurant would only pay for my +1. “

Story: It was reported that I had said: “I always get free food wherever I go“.
Fact: This was never said. Nevertheless, I must admit the hostility while paying (I had tossed my credit card on the table) was uncalled for and I sincerely apologise.

The restaurant management issued this statement:

We want to take this opportunity to suggest a possible formation of a governing body or an association/society, which cultivates and promotes the appropriate manner of belonging and blogger's etiquette. There should be some guidelines and policies implemented to avoid any similar incidents from occurring again.

xiaxue criticized the restaurant for insulting the invited food blogger

You don't like a blogger? FINE. Don't invite him ever again. You can even spit in his food the next time he comes if you want.

But to give other bloggers + newspapers petty details such as him arriving late or overstaying your stipulated buffet period? LOW, SO LOW.

MY FOOD SIREN II dislikes the idea of bloggers attending food tasting events without being invited

I’m fine with restaurants inviting bloggers for tasting events but definitely not the other way round. Integrity is the word, people. If you really truly blog for the passion of food, this issue is a moot point.

Daniel Food Diary has a reminder for those who are interested to become food bloggers

Some of my friends thought that being a food blogger was wonderful with privileges such as free meals, endorsements, and advertisements. But many food bloggers I know had none of these – only a small handful made it to the pedestal. I know that I do not earn a single cent out of this. Zero.

A note to all who wants to be a food blogger, you really have to love both food and writing. I can give my word that it is never about free meals. Spending 2-3 hours of writing, editing, and photo-shopping on one entry for a free meal (if you do get it) is never worth it! Credibility and objectivity can never be bought anyway. It has to be established, slowly and definitely.

This matter has been blown out of proportion and the truth is, I do wish to read ladyironchef’s entries again (whether he did or did not demand for that free meal). Let us just go back to the fundamentals of food blogging – to share about the joy of food. At least that’s how I see it.

Both the restaurant management and the food blogger had shortcomings, according Melbourne blogger - Melbourne Social Scene.

I don’t really understand this PR-invited food tasting culture in Singapore personally. As I said above, I believe that in order to properly review an experience at a restaurant it’s important to be incognito, much as one of the general public would be, so as not to receive special service and special perks. In my opinion, that leads to a “you scratch my back, I scratch yours” arrangement that destroys the objectivity of food blogging and reviewing. But whatevs. In any case, I think it was somewhat presumptuous of him to assume he could just bring along as many people as he wanted. Moreover, it was something of a professionalism fail by the PR company to not even dignify him with a response

Ed Unloaded suggests a few tips for food bloggers

Maybe Bloggers should just label their posts more deliberately, especially when it is a paid Advertorial.

Bloggers should have a certain level of integrity. I seriously don’t want to recommend to my friends a really lousy dieting product and find out that they suffer from liver failure in the near future

By Oiwan Lam

ESWN translated an online forum post on a typology of Hong Kong Internet Commentators regarding Aug 23 Manila hostage incident.

By Oiwan Lam

Angry Chinese Blogger explains the recent controversy regarding an exhibition in the Taipei's National Palace Museum on “Tibet: Treasures From the Roof of the World”. The exhibition was hailed as a sign of improving Sino-Taiwanese ties with the accusations that the photos were being used to promote a sanitized version of Sino-Tibetan history

By Lee Yoo Eun

South Korea's Oh Eun-Sun is believed to be the first woman to have successfully climbed the world's 14 highest mountain peaks, though one of her climbs (her claims to have scaled the Kanchenjunga) was disputed around last week of April. Now the dispute has reignited after one of largest TV networks in the country, SBS,  broadcast an hour-long investigative report on Oh’s climbing record.

As public opinion veers towards the argument that perhaps she had indeed failed to scale the aforementioned Himalayan peak, bloggers delved deeper into the story looking at causal factors that underlie the current controversy.

In the annals of mountaineering,  8,000 meters (26,247 ft) height above sea level, is often referred to as God’s realm - the sacred area that mortals do not dare to touch. At that height, with extreme cold and thin air, you can take only two to three steps before being forced to stop and pant for the next 5 minutes due to the extremely low level of oxygen in the air.  People have been known to frequently doze off or see hallucinations as the brain struggles with the low levels of oxygen and extreme conditions.  nevertheless, several women have challenged the harshness of Nature and some have returned with stunning achievements. Oh Eun-Sun was one of them, or rather the one who stood first among them by creating a world record of scaling all 14 eight-thousanders on April 27, 2010.

An image of Mt. Kangchenjunga from Wikipedia.

The record got blemished pretty soon. Earlier, Oh's scaling of Kanchenjunga in 2009 had been questioned by several Western media including a BBC report. The controversy stemmed from this photo reportedly taken by Oh at the summit of the Kanchenjunga. Though too blurry to confirm the exact location of where she stood but it was the only evidence that could prove her ascent. One of the Sherpas who accompanied Oh supported her claim while another disputed it. Ferran Latorre, a Spanish climber, said that the green rope affixed to the mountain by Oh's team stopped 200 meters short of the summit. Also, Oh’s unexpectedly short span of time taken to descend the mountain was one of major controversial points.

But the suspicions later cooled down after she appeared in a talk show, tearfully explaining her stance.

The recent SBS report however, has bolstered several points skeptics raised against Oh and the local media is buzzing with new reports on the controversy.  People are questioning as to how it is possible that the photo is the only evidence. Oh hadn’t planted her flag on the peak and she claimed that she had lost the flag but later her flag was found several hundred meters below the summit and other photos of Oh show that the flags were kept safely inside her jacket.

This is just one example. The evidence against her is mounting but the evidence supporting her is non-existing. Many are concluding that she was somehow mistaken (whether subconsciously or had been mislead by the guide or Sherpas) into believing that she had reached the summit. And since it is such a big deal to be recorded in history and she is endorsed by the Black Yak Company, Oh, who had so much to lose, has let an honest mistake mutate into a gigantic, ugly lie. Blogger Danbis commented as follows

개인적으로 등산에 관심이 많고, 관련 책이나 다큐도 몇번 보았지만, 정말 고산지대에서 벌어지는 일들은 인간의 상상을 초월하고 죽어가는 사람들 보고도 그냥 지나친다고 하는데, 죽기보다 힘든 상황에서 유혹에 빠졌을 수도 있지 않을까 싶다. 더욱이 다른 사람들과 경쟁하고 있는 상황에서 뒤쳐지고 있을 때라면 더욱 그런 유혹에 빠지기 쉽지 않을까 싶다. 문제는 거짓말이 거짓말을 낳고, 더욱 의혹만 증폭이 되어가는 것이 아닐까 싶은 생각이 들고…

Many Korean mountaineers have been blamed for obsessively climbing mountains on tight schedules under the guidance of a strict leader of the team, taking zero consideration into the situation of others. One Korean Climbers’ Association even admitted to this rude practice and held a conference on the climbing ethics in November. This tendency towards over-achievement has become intensified with corporate sponsorship.

The woman climber is a fascinating subject of advertisement. It is extremely rare to see women climbers climbing Himalayan Mountains. It is somehow a win-win for both, as the climbers need large sponsors and financial support which is indispensable in climbing high mountains. It takes around 160 thousand dollars to climb a Himalayan mountain that is an 8-thousander.  Oh Eun-Sun was endorsed by the Black Yak and her rival Go Mi-Young was sponsored by the Kolon, another outdoor clothing and equipment company. The competition between two was pretty intense before it ended abruptly last year with Go’s death. Go lost her footing during her descend from another Himalayan summit. To win the competition, Oh kept up her brutal climbing schedule. It sometime took only two to three months, and in some cases only several weeks, before she scaled a peak and went climbing up another 8,000 meter high summit.

Blogger Semison08 expressed that it was sad to watch the pure spirit and love to the mountains evaporate, to be replaced by capitalism.

지난해 히말라야 낭가파르밧 정상에서 하산을 하다가 실족을 당한 故 고미영 씨는 당시 누가봐도 무리한 등정을 하고 있었다. 그 해에만 8000M급 산을 무려 4봉이나 올랐고, 여유 없이 빠르게 정상을 밟아 나가고 있었던 것이다. 故 고미영 씨가 그렇게 까지 무리하게 등정을 했던 이유는 아무래도 전세계여성 산악인들 사이에 있던 ‘여성 최초 14좌 완등' 타이틀 경쟁 때문이었을 것이다. 누가 최초로 히말라야 14좌를 완등하느냐…산악인 누구나 맨 처음 산을 오르는 이유는 그저 산이 좋아서 였을 것이다. 산을 오르면서 자연을 음미하고, 온전히 산에 자신을 맡기면서 산과 하나가되는 그러한 느낌에 등반을 시작했을 것이다. 그러나 언제부턴가 산을 정복의 대상으로 여기고 스포츠처럼 경쟁적으로 산을 오르다 보니 이런 안타까운 일들이 발생했던 것이다. 이번 오은선 씨의 의혹 또한 이러한 경쟁적 등반 의식의 산물이라고 해도 과언이 아니다. 오은선 씨에게도 또한 故 고미영 씨처럼 빨리 14좌를 완등 해야한다는 시간적 압박감이 있었을 것이다. 그러한 압박감이 혹시라도 오은선씨에게 잘못된 선택을 하게 한 것은 아닐지 안타까운 마음이 든다.

8000M급의 고봉을 등반하기 위해서는 산악인 자신의 체력적 문제뿐만 아니라 비용의 문제 또한 고려해야 한다. 해외 등반을 위해서는 등반을 위한 산에 대한 정보를 수집해야 하고, 루트 선정, 그에 따른 대원들의 선정도 함께 해야 한다. 또한 산의 고도나 지명도에 따라 일부 국가에 상당한 액수의 입산료를 징수해야만 하고 그 외에 항공료나, 교통비, 숙식비 등을 따지면 한번 등반에 대략 2억원 가량의 비용이 든다. 그저 산이 좋다는 이유 하나만으로 등반을 하기에는 부담스러운 비용이다. 히말라야 원정이 별로 없었던 초창기에는 8000M 이상의 고봉에 오른다는 사실만으로도 놀라웠기 때문에 스폰을 해주는 기업체가 많았다. 사실 당시 스폰을 해주는 기업도 ‘최초' 라는 타이틀을 가지고 충분히 광고를 할 수 있었기 때문에 크게 손해가 나는 장사는 아니었던 것이다. 그러나 지금처럼 히말라야 원정이 크게 대수롭지 않게 된 지금에서는 시시한 등반이나 이름 없는 산악인을 흔쾌히 스폰 해주기는 어렵다. 그래서 ‘최고 높이' 라든가 ‘최초 등반' 같은 수식이 붙은 산이 아니면 그들에게도 더이상 의미가 없다는 말이다. 오은선 씨 또한 ‘여성 최초' 라는 타이틀을 목표로 등정하고 있었기 때문에 후원사의 도움을 받을 수 있었던 것이다. 후원사와 오은선 씨 사이에는 빨리 등정을 해야만 하는 충분한 이유가 있었고, 그러한 이유들이 지금 같은 의혹을 만들어 낸 것은 아닐까.

The competition for the first women to climb 14 eight-thousanders is not limited to the national level. Mountain climbers from German and Spanish teams were also chasing the same title. In April, Oh's main rival, Edurne Pasaban from Spain, was also aiming to become first woman to climb all fourteen eight-thousanders. After Pasaban spoke with Elizabeth Hawley who plays the role of the ultimate arbitrator when disputes are raised among climbers, Hawley agreed to mark Oh's summit of Kanchenjunga as “disputed”. Pasaban also reportedly had slipped Oh’s controversial points to some journalist which eventually led to the BBC news report on the dispute. Oh’s side has been condemning Pasaban’s move as a low blow and some conspiracy theories have broken out regarding that. A blogger Ttodasi urged that even though there is high possibility that Oh did not scale the summit, the timing of the dispute and the person who suggested it to the mainstream media should be reviewed.

Many bloggers have lamented the loss of pure mountaineering spirit and the single-minded concentration on competition. A blogger Smoker3 commented that there was nothing sacred and sincere in the current mountain climbing. Making a short comparison between the alpine style and the current’s expedition style (or siege style), the blogger commented that the blind-eyed competition of the climbing is the true reflection of our society where only the outcome matters.

(세르파) 3000이상 고산에 사는 티베트계 네팔인들의 총칭, 이들은 히말라야를 등반하는 이들과 함께 등반하면서 유명해졌는데 등반가들의 짐꾼과 가이드 역할은 이들 셰르파가 맡는다…전세계에서 가장 산을 잘 타는 이들로 알려져 있다. 만약 네팔인에게 돈이 많았다면 전세계 등반가의 등반 기록의 순위는 모두 장난이 되는 것이다. 심지어 이들은 매해 등반철이 되면 먼저 올라가면서 루트를 개척해 놓는다고 한다. 히말라야를 등반한다는 것은 산의 밑에서부터 올라가는 것이 아니고 헬기로 소위 공격지점이라는 산 중턱까지 이동하게 된다. 전통적인 등반을 중시하는 이들은 이 방법이 치트라며 좋아하진 않는다고 한다… 현재는 이미 과학의 발전으로 대부분의 산은 다 정복되었다.이제는 등반하는 것이 문제가 아니고 등반하는 방식이 더 중요한 시점이 되었다. 특히 하인 홀트 메스너 (Reinhold Messner) 가 존경받는 이유는 알파인 스타일을 추구하고 그것으로 히말라야를 올랐기 대문이다. 그는 누구의 도움도 받지 않고 혼자 새로운 루트를 개척하며 산을 오른다. 물론 자신의 짐은 모두 자기가 들고 간다. 거기가 더해서 고정 로프를 사용하지 않고, 고지대에서는 포터를 이용하지 않고, 산소 호흡기의 도움도 받지 않는다. 그야말로 자연의 거대한 산을 온몸으로 받아들이는 것이 알파인 스타일이다… 이번 오은선의 히말라야 14좌 여성 최초 완증 파문을 보면서 그냥 씁씁함만이 느껴 졌다. 과정은 필요없고 단순히 결과만을 중시하는 사회 분위기의 절정판 이라고나 할까? 플랙야크, 코오롱, 오은선, 고 고미영씨는 무엇 때문에 히말라야 14좌를 올랐나? 위대한 자연에 대한 도전이었는가? 아니면 ‘여성 세계 최초 히말라야 8000m 14좌 완등'이라는 타이틀의 결과물이 필요했던 것인가? 등반가인가? 등반 선수인가?

A blogger Socuteno1 reflected a perspective shared by most of the bloggers as well as ordinary people who are not much interested in mountain climbing. The blogger said that whether Oh had reached the summit was not a huge issue to them, but public wanted to see the pure mountain lover, their once respected hero ‘Chief Oh’ restoring her status by truthfully admitting the mistake. Many bloggers along with Socuteno 1, said that Oh will still be loved for her stunning feat of climbing 13 eight thousanders and the strong inspiration she gave to Korean public.

사실 전 그가 완좌를 했건 아니건 관심없어요…그가 등반에 실패했다 의혹을 제기하는 측은 구체적인 증거가 있고 정복했다 말하는 그는 구체적인 증거가 없습니다. 정말 산 만이 아는거겠지요. 만약 정복을 했다면 이와 같이 억울한 일은 없을거예요…다만 이제는 14좌를 완등한 최초의 여성 산악인이라는 타이틀 보다는 산을 사랑하고 산 앞에 한치의 부끄러움도 없는 정직한 산을 좋아하는 사람의 모습을 보여주어야 할거 같아요. 그를 몰아세우는 언론도 걱정이네요 . 목숨을 걸고 산에 오르는 산악인에게 벼랑끝으로 몰아세워 다시 칸켄중가를 등반하게 했다가 사고라도 나면 .. 그때는 어떤 기사가 나올까요? …오은선 대장님. 국민은 당신이 최초 히말라야 14좌 등반 여성 산악인이기를 원하는것이 아닙니다. 뒤늦게라도 사실을 정정하고 다시 초심의 마음으로 산을 오를수 있는 용기와 산을 사랑하는 마음을 바라는 겁니다. 이제라도 진실이 무엇인지 확실히 밝히신다면 당신에게 손가락질 할 국민보다 용기의 박수를 보낼 국민이 많다는 걸 아셨으면 좋겠습니다.

By Sara Moreira

In response to recent statements by a Timorese deputy, who reportedly implied that the statues of naked women at the Timor Leste Pavillion in Shanghai World Expo 2010 are not appropriate, João Paulo Esperança critically wonders [pt] if East Timorese women would be considered deprived of dignity in the past, when they used their bare breasts.

By David Reid

Lawyer and environmentalist Robin Winkler discusses how Taiwan’s government is gradually eroding  the separation of powers and the rule of law. He calls on those in the legal profession to speak out against this.

By Gabriel Nada

While online media pages, online TV platforms, commercials, advertisements and virtually every aspect of contemporary Chinese life constantly increases the presence and amount of sexualized female imagery (for example, the highly sexualized image below is captured from QQ's woman news section), recently a crackdown on prostitution and pornography has gone into affect across many of China's major cities.

During the recent 2010 World Cup in South Africa, every day there were new pictures posted on all of the major media pages of sexualized, scantily clad women in suggestive poses with descriptions such as “fragrant meat” (香肉） and “sexy soccer babies” (性感足球宝贝) depicting women as sources of sexual arousal.

Real Human Sexuality

Certainly, the female body, female sexuality, and human sexuality in general, are hopefully not perceived as negatives. The depiction of eroticism or sexuality is a part of human nature as old as recorded history, and China is certainly not the first country or society to deal with the question of sexuality (nor is this the first time in China's long history that the issue has been addressed).

Europe, America, in fact every society that has ever existed, has inevitably needed to deal with the nature of sexuality within culture, society and between individuals. The questions, especially in light of the contemporary phenomenon of hyper-mass media, simply deal with old subjects in a new way.

The Oldest Profession

Prostitution is termed “The Oldest Profession”, yet outside of a few countries or jurisdictions remains one of the most taboo and denigrated forms of earning a livelihood.

While debate on the morality of prostitution is endless and ultimately personal and subjective, the demand for prostitutes is constant and never-ceasing. Women (and to a lesser degree men) have, are, and always will be in demand as sources of sexual gratification and arousal- objects for fulfillment of fantasy and desire.

This is where some of the most pressing questions regarding sexuality, identity, ownership, culture and society come into play.

Sex, Sexuality, Economics and Ownership

Who owns a woman's sexuality and body? Ideally it could be said no one, however in concrete material reality the answer becomes: whoever claims its ownership with the most power to defend that claim- often at the expense and denial of the woman herself.

Whether it is a family, a boyfriend, a husband, a modeling/ad agency, the music/film industry, a religion, a pimp, or a government itself, someone or something is almost always claiming ownership and/or control over a woman, her body, her sexuality, reproduction, mind, relationships, and choices- and it is almost always someone or something with more power than her individually.

Economically, the female body and female sexuality are valuable commodities. Regardless of whether or not one likes the reduction of female existence down to an economic commodification, this process is real and constant in every society across the planet whether it be camels, cows, sheep or horses in some regions, societies and cultures, or contracts for dollars, euros, yen or yuan in others.

Female beauty and sexuality is used to sell absolutely anything and everything from dish-washing soap to cars, deodorant, beer, as well as family life itself. Women with appropriate forms of beauty and sexuality are sought out for different manners of using and exploiting the different products sold by and through their images.

A different form of sexual appeal and imagery will be used for cars and beer and sports than for household products, but it all encompasses a use of physical appeal and sexuality on one level or another. Women themselves are encouraged to self-sexualize and obsess over appearance and form and are sold, almost cannibalistically, the means to transform themselves into more sexualized, physically appealing forms for the consumption of other people, corporations, and industries.

An enormous amount of profit is made off of and out of women, their bodies, their images, and their sexuality, and this is where the first issues regarding the criminalization of prostitution arise: if it is acceptable for business and industry (and through tax structure eventually government as well) to exploit, use and profit from female sexuality…why is it criminal for the woman individually to do the same? If it is criminal for a woman to make profit by exploiting and using her own body, why isn't it criminal for corporations to make vast sums of money directly and indirectly exploiting female sexuality, including even the use of young girls through non-explicit yet sexually provocative or suggestive means?

Repression, Criminalization, and Control

Societies are inherently organizations based around applied control over individuals for collective gain. It is essentially impossible for individuals to have absolute individual personal freedom within a society or to have a society made up of individuals with absolute personal freedom and no central control. What societies struggle to do therefore, is to regulate the degree to which there is a floating balance point between liberty and obligation- too much obligation and the individual will feel trapped and oppressed, to much liberty and the society cannot function cohesively to maintain its needed functions.

With sex and sexuality the issue is the same- too much sexual liberty and disease is spread and pregnancy is begun by those unready or unwilling to carry it through and be parents. The opposite however, over-bearing sexual repression (especially at a culturally-wide level) causes psychological and emotional damage which can lead to physical, relational, and self-abuse and the inability to participate in or enjoy normal, natural human relations and sexuality even within socially approved relational norms.

As such, it is this pincer-like pressure of the artificial stimulation of sexualization, arousal and desire for the self-serving purpose of economic profit on the one hand and the social repression of human sexual behavior on the other (often encouraged or even administered by religious and/or governmental agencies) that compresses the humanity of the individual members of society in this no-win vice of incompatible extremes resulting in psychological and emotional trauma which often vents itself in the physical material world within the relationships people have between themselves and each other.

我首先认为应当尊重性工作者，她们用青春换取金钱，用辛苦的劳动换取报酬，这是无可厚非的，她们比她们的顾客，要高尚得多，即使大家都是不合法的。无疑，嫖客比女性性工作者多，并且大多是拿着不合法的钱来消费的，这个不合法跟她们的不合法不同，他们所做的，或许在整个世界范围内都是不合法的，而她们的行为和收入则不是。

“Unequaled on Earth” (不可一世)Regarding the crackdown on pornography as well as others (关于扫黄以及其他…)

While it is not actually the purpose of this post to condone (or condemn) professional sex work, the point of this blogger is appropriate for discussion because although the demand for sex workers creates their occupation (which often they are also forced into being a part of - many if not most sex workers are not wholly voluntarily employed as such), it is usually the women who do the work and not the clients who demand their services who receive the largest amount of scrutiny and shame from the legal and social standpoint.

酒后驾车、公共场所撒野、吸毒、乱伦、嫖娼等种种恶习，在娱乐圈不少的明星眼中似乎都算不上什么大事。所谓饱暖思淫欲，不差钱的明星们，既有嫖的本钱，更有嫖的闲心。

007 26 City sweep of porn reads like an inventory of entertainment circles, recruitment of prostitutes by male stars (26市集体扫黄 盘点娱乐圈＂招妓嫖娼＂的男星)

“扫黄”整体还远未进入“深入区”。为什么？因为查黄却不涉黑、涉腐(而这是绝不可能的，因为黄不可能没黑保护和参与，而对黑来讲，警方若说不知道那是渎职，警方知道了没办，那是庇护。所以怎么看，都说明很大的问题)。从目前披露的“扫黄”成绩看，类似北京整顿高级夜总会“天上人间”、重庆突查“希尔顿酒店”仍是个别例子。

185519734 Regarding the latest porn sweep(关于最近的扫黄)

The Viscous Circle

And so we see the illustration of the cycle of demand for women as sexual objects both from private clients searching for fulfillment of personal desire as well as from private industry using the sexualization of women to attract interest and sell their products, the involvement of criminal gangs in the recruitment and coercion of women and girls into the ranks of sex workers, the profits raised and realized from these endeavors both legal and illegal- yet who bears the blame in the eyes of society and the law?

China is undergoing a hyper-modernization of it's culture and society and a large influx of imagery and ideas from outside its traditional cultural norms on sex. Japanese and Korean, as well as American porn circulates across the web. Following in the footsteps of European, American and South American media, the Chinese media continue to increase saturation of sexualized female forms in connection with every imaginable circumstance. The idea of Chinese women needing to “catch up” sexually both in terms of activity and physical proportions and an insecurity in Chinese women due to this idea slowly seeps into more and more minds.

Hypocrisy in blaming Victims

While prostitution is probably not an ideal form of employment, so long as the demand for sex workers is generated by rich clientele, fed obliquely by the media's super-saturation of sexualized imagery, protected by organized crime and the failings of law enforcement and the government, and so long as all of these institutions profit off of the women and girls who actually do the work, it seems very unfair and even hypocritical to lay the blame and direct the brunt of the enforcement towards the people who have the least to do with the larger issues.

Sex and desire are a part of reality. Attempting to control and suppress people's ability to express and experience their own natural feelings on the one hand while artificially hyper-stimulating and glamorizing conspicuous consumption of sexuality on the other leads to incompatible contradictions in the members of society and the people caught in the middle of the large forces at work shouldn't be the ones left with the blame and the pain.

我叫露露，今年20岁，说我有职业，确实没有一个正当职业，是失业大军中的一员，说我没职业，也还有事可做的，每天常去夜总会、洗浴中心、星级宾馆那些地方。一听你就会明白，这种职业是很难听的，就是做**，香港叫“鸡”，咱们这则尊称我为“小姐”。­

不埋怨爸妈，这是我自己的选择­

我长的挺漂亮的，虽然比不上影星模特，但走在大街上，男人们都会不由自主地看我几眼。你们看见我，也许会爱上我的，但你肯定不会娶我，因为我没工作，家庭又是个特困户，妈妈有病，爸爸下岗，靠零工养活全家。即使这样，我也非常感谢爸爸妈妈，是他们给了我一张漂亮脸蛋和一副好身材。如果我是个丑女，恐怕现在连饭都吃不上。真的，我从不埋怨爸妈，是我自己选择了这条路。­

前年我高中毕业，和同学们一样也复习，也报考，还真的考上了，虽说是二表的一般学校，但毕竟是大本。但一看通知书就傻眼了，学费加上其他各种费用一共一万多元，就是把爸妈的骨头砸碎卖了，也凑不够这笔钱。我痛哭了一场，偷偷地把录取通知书撕掉了。我对爸妈就说没考上，并问爸爸，能不能想法给我找个工作。爸爸说，我自己都下岗了，上哪给你找工作去？自己想办法谋生吧。

My name's Lulu, I'm 20 this year, to say I have a profession, I really don't have an official profession, I'm part of the great army of unemployed, to say I'm unemployed, I still have something I can do, every day I go to the nightclubs, bath houses, high class celebrity guest houses, those sorts of places. Once you hear you know what I mean, this kind of profession is really shameful, being a **, in Hong Kong they call it being a “chick”, here we call it “little sister”.

I don't complain about my parents, this is my choice.

I'm really pretty, maybe not like a movie star or model, but when I walk down the street, all the men can't help looking at me. If you see me maybe you could fall in love with me, but not marry me, because I don't have a job and my family doesn't have good circumstances, my mom's sick and my dad's laid off, he just depends on part-time work to support the family. Still, I'm really thankful to my parents because they gave me a pretty face and a really nice body. If I was ugly I'd be terrified to think of how I'd never be able to eat. Really I don't ever blame my parents, its my own choice.

The year before last I graduated high school, I studied with my classmates and took the college exams and I passed even though I went to a second class normal school, but after all it was still a solid base. But when I saw the acceptance letter I was stunned. The entrance fees added to the other fees were more than 10,000, if I sold my mom and dad's powdered bones I still wouldn't have enough. I really cried, I secretly took the admission's notice and tore it up, I told mom and dad I didn't pass, I even asked dad if he could help me find work. He said, ‘I'm laid off, how can I help get you work?'. So I thought of my own way to get work.

Mr. Right A “little sister” after the porn sweep (“小姐”进了扫黄局后 )

Individual Lives, Individual Reasons

Each one has her own reason, those that actually were able to make the choice (since many are forced not just through circumstance but by actual violence and threats), but the results are the same. Cracking down on the women while leaving the gangs, corporate industries, celebrities and rich businessmen untouched and unaccountable is a backwards and useless means of attempting to deal with the problem.

Punishing the providers while leaving the users and pushers is like trying to stop water rushing downstream while leaving it flowing upstream. All you can do is scoop up a little while not actually dealing with the source.

In an ideal world no one would need or be forced to sell their body and sexuality to survive, but so long as we live in reality and so long as reality demands bodies and sex, punishing the people who are used to satisfy those demands while leaving those who create and use the bodies of others for their own satisfaction and profit is never going to help anything.

By Rezwan

Chip Huyen, a Vietnamese geek, blogger and a traveler is in Mumbai as a part of her travel around the world program. She explains why Mumbai is the place to be among other Indian cities.

By Lee Yoo Eun

South Korea's figure skating queen and the gold medalist Kim Yuna split from her longtime coach. However, it seems like not a clean breakup. Suspicions are intensified as Yuna twitted “Would you please stop to tell a lie B? I know exactly what’s going on now and this is what I’ve decided.” The initial B appeared to be referring her former coach Brian Orser. More on Korea Herald report.

By John Kennedy

Fan Yanqiong, the last of the Fujian 3 netizens still in prison, was quietly released Wednesday morning and allowed to rejoin her family.

This comes just days after filmmaker He Yang released his hour-long documentary, Herzog Days, which revolves around Fujian netizen You Jingyou; it tracks events during the trials and following the release of You and fellow netizen Wu Huaying earlier this summer.

Now with English subtitles, Herzog Days can be viewed below.

By tan

Myanmar has announced today that elections will be held on November 7, 2010, which will become the first election to be held after 1990. Political parties were urged to submit their candidate list between August 16 and August 30, 2010.

By Scilla Alecci

Lying lazily in the shadow of an umbrella on a beach, being a tourist and wandering around the streets of an unknown city with a guide book in your hands, or just relaxing at home enjoying free time. Common ways of spending a holiday perhaps, however, many Japanese forego these every year in order to miss as few days of work as possible.

According to a survey by Expedia Japan that examines the ‘Vacation Deprivation’ situation [ja] in 11 developed countries, Japanese workers take on average only 7.9 days off a year. Japan, with an average allowance of 15 paid days off a year is the country with the smallest number of paid days off after the U.S. It is, however, number one for untaken vacation time.

Among the causes are said to be pressure and anxiety due to the economic crisis and a working environment where few people dare to be absent from work so as to avoid “causing trouble to their colleagues” by increasing their workload.

A proposal to replace the old-fashioned OUT OF OFFICE message. by Luis Gosalbez. CC License

An anonymous business man at Hatenalabo shares his experience [ja] as a superior with the authority to allow vacation time to his younger colleagues. From executives down to the heads of smaller divisions, nobody wants to take the responsibility to say “yes” to a colleague who wants to use the days off that are due to him in his contract. The older colleagues don't take vacations and so the newer ones won’t either. That's the praxis!

入社して半年ばかりたった男の子が、「来月友達と旅行行くんで１週間休んでもいいですか？」とかいってきた。
急にそんなこと言い出したから「ちょっと、さすがに一週間は無理でしょ」って注意したら、酷く怯えたような、物悲しいような恐ろしい顔で私のこと見てたけど、今考えるもっととソフトな言い方すればよかった。
とくに立て込んだ予定も入ってなかったから休ませてあげたい気持ちもないことはなかったけど、そんな習慣はなく、そもそもだれも有給休暇を消費しない社内環境で、上司や他の同僚が聞き耳立ててる状況ではやっぱり無理だよ。そんな恐い顔しないでよ。
あっても使えなくてさらにへんな罪悪感を植えつけるような制度なら最初から無くなって欲しいよ。

Another recent survey on foregone leave by Ipsos and Reuters of 24 countries around the world revealed that only 33% of Japanese workers choose to use up their entitlements. France was first with 89%.

Sasa, a business man, confesses [ja] that in his company also, people would think twice before asking to take some days off as they would be unpopular with their colleagues.

sasaの周りでも有給なんて、あってないようなもの。取れない風潮がある。
残業しないで帰ろうとすると、えっ？まさか帰るわけじゃないよね？という雰囲気で言葉をかけられる。

The lack of a regulation on sick leave in Japan forces many workers to use their paid vacation entitlements if they are ill. This is also one of the reasons why many people prefer not to use all the days off they have accumulated fearing they may have none left in case they can’t work due to health problems.

H.N., a Japanese expat who has a blog explicitly called kusoshigoto “crappy work”, has no mercy for the Japanese labor system and criticizes it [ja]both for the lack of Government regulation and the instilling of sense of guilt and social pressures.

正直、sick leave（病欠給）がない国ってのは聞いた事がない。特に日本は先進国、経済大国wとか言っておきながらsick leave（病欠給）すら定められてなくて、病気で休んだら有給が削られるなんてエグ過ぎるだろ？　これはクソ会社の問題って言うより傲慢な国の問題かもな。仕事絡みのストレスでウツ病なったり、過労死や過労自殺など世界でも類を見ないような社会問題が頻発してるのに見ないふり、聞こえないふりか？　連日終電ギリギリまで働かせておいて「体調管理も仕事のうちw」って言ってるのと同じレベルでクソだな。

H.N. then continues with his polemic and questions [ja] the Japanese work ethic.

本来、仕事は生活するための手段に過ぎないのに、日本ではいつの間にか仕事自体が目的になってしまっているんだよな。諸外国では当たり前のwork to live（生きるために働く）の価値観が、live to work（働くために生きる）にすり替わってるんだから。

By Gabriel Nada

The Chinese Propaganda Department has issued notice to mainstream and online media outlets regarding the recent disaster in Zhouqu. For the Chinese government, it is a time to mourn rather than digging up the man-made mistakes. Reporters, hence, have been asked to leave the landslide area. However, if we don't admit the man-made mistakes, how can we prevent future ones?

最大的天灾就是从来不承认有人祸

The above quote is one of the hottest QQ micro-blogpost by Lian Yue (连岳). So long as culpability for the human role in ‘natural disasters’ is ignored and denied we will continue to see occurrences of human suffering and loss around the world. Staying within the scope of this post  to deal with the world inside China, we can look back over the last 8 months of 2010 and see an enormous amount of wasted potential, energies and lives through ‘natural disasters' in which either human hands played a role in bringing these events about in the first place, or better human planning, foresight, and recognition of the conditions could have prevented such serious consequences.

Indeed, on SOSO's blog search for ‘natural disaster' (天灾), the first result returned is a blog entitled Natural Disaster together with Man-made Disaster (天灾与人祸) by blogger ‘Small Qiao Running Water Family’ (小桥流水人家). Just three results down is the title Regarding Natural Disasters, Can We Only “Blame Nature” and not “Fault People”? (面对天灾，我们能只“怨天”不“尤人”吗？) posted by ‘Good Morning!’ （早安） Directly following this post is Southern Region's Water Crisis- Natural Disaster or Man-made Disaster? (南方水灾天灾还是人祸？) by ‘Sacred Land Mother Earth” (神州大地).

What is the human role behind the toll of natural disaster?

As of this posting, of the first 10 results on SOSO, 5 of the titles specifically question whether these ‘natural disasters' should really be considered natural disasters. 8 of the 10 deal with precisely this subject of when does the real responsibility for the grave human and economic consequences of ‘natural disaster' truly lie with humanity and not nature?

Writing on July 20th 2010, QQ user, Struggle (奋斗) says,

地震没多久，又来大水了，每天都在宣传，史上最猛的洪水，超过九八年的。

九江又决堤了，也超过九八年的。年年拨款，年年筑堤，年年防汛，年年抗洪，结果咧，该淹没的还是没了，不该决堤的也决了。九八年的时候出现了个工程，学名叫做豆腐渣。从地震和大水来看，这个工程在中国遍布神州啊，估计大禹要是活着也拿这水没招。

每次出现这些天灾，政府都是快速反应，全民捐款，然后来，当天灾再次来临，AGAIN。只能说，政府这事后诸葛亮当得还是比较称职的，那平日的那些关系民生国计的工程起什么作用呢？地震的时候学校医院倒了，大水的时候堤坝垮了，来战争的时候部队散了，整人的时候来劲了。从没说起过追究责任，难道在天灾面前就可以忽略人为的因素，每次看见敬爱的温总理，总是在想，好人，但那是你应该的，每次看见部队在抢险，总是琢磨，感人，但那也是应该的。在这些事面前，这是政府职能，反倒是忽悠百姓捐款不靠谱，群众不能为政府的过失买单。

只提天灾，不讲人祸。

Jiujiang's dam burst again- also worse than in ‘98. Funds are allocated every year, dikes are built every year, flood control every year, fighting floods every year- the results? Children crying. Areas that are supposed to be submerged are wiped out. Where the dam shouldn't burst it bursts. In ‘98 an engineering project was put in place, scientifically known as “soy bean dregs” [term for a program hastily thrown together without substance]. Surveying the aftermath of the earthquakes and heavy rains, these projects- which are spread throughout China's sacred land- makes it seems that even if Yu the Great [mythical Chinese ruler from the 21st century B.C.E. who stopped the floods] were living, he couldn't hold back the waters.

Every time these natural disasters appear the government is quick to respond. Everyone donates. Afterward, the same disaster strikes. AGAIN! Keeping in mind that everyone is a genius in hindsight, one can only say that the government is reasonably competent in dealing with these issues- but in terms of a relationship to people's everyday lives, what use do these programs actually have? When an earthquake strikes the schools and hospitals still collapse. When heavy rains fall the dams still burst. When conflict arises the army is still scattered. During the time of causing people harm there's no problem. There's never an investigation into responsibility. Don't tell me that in the face of natural disasters we can simply neglect the role of man-made causes. Every time we see beloved President Wen we always think “he's a good man”, but that's what he should be. Every time we see the army react in an emergency we always consider it to be touching- but that's what they should do. When facing these issues, that is the government's role- not tricking the average people into donating funds. The people shouldn't be paying on behalf of the government's bill.

Only natural disaster is mentioned, not the man-made causes.

Looking through a blog search of ‘natural disaster' (天灾) on 163.com, one also finds the common thread of questioning the nature of why these disasters are so costly in terms of lives, production, economics and the future. As of this posting,  8 of the 10 titles returned for the first page of results on 163.com directly question the involvement of ‘man-made disaster’ (人祸) in the catastrophic aftermaths of these events.

163.com user ‘Safe Harbor’ (避风港) writes in The Main Culprits in Natural Disasters are We Ourselves (天灾的祸首是我们自己):

突如其来的天灾，让人们措手不及，看着惨不忍睹的一幕幕，令人心碎，让我首先想到的是大自然对人类的惩罚，曾经的参天大树，茂密的森林，伴随着油锯的轰鸣，轰然倒下，变成了人们享受的各式用品…堤坝内的清清的河水和堤坝后的柳林是我儿时的天堂，不记得何时，柳林没了，土堤坝变成了厚实的沙石坝，绵延数里，很壮观，换成了另外一道风景。可是在肆虐的洪水面前，它们却是那么的不堪一击！…肆意毁林开荒，带来的结果是植被被大肆破坏，土地不能发挥蓄水的功能…为了发展地方经济，职能部门没有计划的审批，大量的林地，变成了一片片的参园，后续监督的不力，是山坡永远的失去了森林和绿色。同样是为了发展地方经济，招商引资，无计划的建设了数家木材加工厂，连绵数十家，形成了所谓的产业园区，领导政绩抹上了浓浓的一笔，带来的后果，谁考虑了呢？当时，林业专家们难道真的不知道后果吗？合法的木材审批指标能够满足这么多业户的需求吗？…无论是谁，在经历这场天灾之后，都应该认真的想想了。

What seems to be further evidence of poor human and government policy and planning comes from ‘Very Green’ (何青青)  in a piece entitled Please Permanently Remember this Unpunished Sin—Incontrovertible Proof that Man-made Disasters exceed Natural Disasters (请苍天记住这笔孽债—人祸甚于天灾的铁证 ):

2010年7月6日新京报A26版登载了一条很不起眼但却触目惊心的消息：防洪水库内建千栋别墅！

报 道说“1958年的那场特大水灾，促成了苦池水库的建设。苦池村所在地天然地势低洼，每每发水，始建于后魏正始二年的人工渠道无法分流洪水，苦池村及周围 村庄总是被淹。1958年，政府在苦池滩修建调洪区，即现在的苦池水库。……1959年建成后，运城没再出现特大水灾。苦池村村民介绍，2006年，在干 枯多年后，库区修建了180亩的东湖，并在水库南部造假山，许多地方开始建房。2009年，这里变成了运城‘东花园’。”

据 有关资料称：水库里最大的非防汛永久性建设项目是占水库面积三分之一的“企业老板别墅区”。该别墅区的官方名称叫“关公企业之家会员俱乐部”。对于记者提 出的有无合法手续、何时售房、房价如何等疑问，一个名叫张俊的经理说：“所有手续齐全，包括土地证、房产证等预售五证全有。每平方米的价格为7000元到 15000元，每栋500万左右吧。”他说，“我们主要面对中小企业家群体，是为这个阶层服务的。”一位当地知情人对记者表示“就是为山西煤老板们建设的 煤老板别墅区。”

The report stated: “1958's great flood facilitated the building of the reservoir. The natural site of the reservoir village was in low-lying terrain. The old irrigation ditches which had been started were not enough to divert the water. The reservoir village and surrounding hamlets were constantly submerged. In 1958, the government built a flood-control basin- the existing reservoir. After its completion in 1959, Yuncheng did not receive more flooding. In 2006, the reservoir village introduced the building of 180 villas as well as a rock garden in the southern part, building in many areas. In 2009 this became Yuncheng's ‘East Garden’.”

A related piece of information says: the largest permanent structure without flood protection- covering one-third of the reservoir's surface area- was the “Company Boss's Villa District”. The official name for the villa district was “Guangong Company Family Member's Club”. As to questions raised by the reporter regarding whether or not lawful procedure was followed- when the building was constructed, what the price of the housing was, these kinds of issues- a certain Manager Jun Zhang said: “All the procedures were completed- including land deeds, property titles, all 5 of the official certificates for the advance sale of property. Each square meter was between 7000-15,000 RMB. Each structure was around 500 square meters. ” He continued,”We principally served small and medium sized business entrepreneurs- that segment of society.” An informed local source told the reporter “it was built for the Shanxi Coal bosses, a Shanxi Coal boss villa district.”

A way forward to prevent these disasters?

While it would be unfair and unrealistic to expect policy and planning to prevent all future loss of  life and property from genuine natural disaster, certainly an improvement to existing practice and policy can be asked and expected. It seems clear that in many cases individuals, corporations, and even the government itself have ignored what could be seen as fairly clear signs that certain actions were simply disasters in the making- not unavoidable natural disasters but avoidable disasters of neglect and corruption.

yoyo concludes a post entitled After the Disasters (天灾背后……) with this thought:

这些个事情在当灾难都过去了之后，总还是应该要好好地实地做做调查研究，好好地吸取各种经验教训，好好地举一反三，好好学会反思吧？而我们呢，总在被需要的时候，可以极力地督促着别人去进行反思的时候，却总是要刻意地避开自身也是需要好好地、深刻地进行反思的这个关键点！而作为个人却觉得，这些个深刻地反思，对于我们民族自身正确的前进方向、发展道路，才是更加关键的。再在做什么和人民相关的事情的时候，负点责、讲点切实可行的真材实料的工程而千万不要再搞出那些豆腐渣来的可好？因为谁也保不准在他自己的有生之年里，豆腐渣工程不被报出光来的，这是其一；其二呢，豆腐渣工程在关键的时候，赔上去的是几倍、几十倍、上百倍、甚至是更多的人民的生命和财产的安危！

By Scilla Alecci

Jamaipanese reports [en] that the US military in Japan have published the first chapter of a manga to celebrate 50 years of Japan-US alliance.
The first chapter is titled “Our Alliance – A Lasting Partnership” and can be read online (Japanese only).

By Lee Yoo Eun

South Korean President, Lee Myung-bak opened his official Twitter account (@BluehouseKorea) yesterday, South Korea’s IT online media ZDnet reported [kr].