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Tan Sri Lin See-Yan takes a nostalgic trip to his hometown Ipoh with his whole family in tow.
I SPENT the year-end holidays with my entire family, plus two new grandkids in tow on a nostalgic “balik kampong” trip to Ipoh.
Our target was The Banjaran, a new resort and spa perched at the foot of limestone hills and caves in Tambun (world famous for its pomelos) outside Ipoh. It's a world class hot-springs retreat with only 25 villas (each with its own hot-spring jacuzzi and swimming pool). It's an eco-friendly resort with lots of green (even a spice garden) and picture perfect surroundings. It comes with a fantastic wine-cellar set inside natural high ceiling limestone caves, complete with Malaysian style Bali-Thai type spa that provides complete relaxation. It also has a pool of garra rufa fishes that love to chew-up dead and excess hard cells your feet may spare.
This venture is the brainchild of Tan Sri Jeffrey Cheah who must be congratulated for creating a visionary retreat, using to the maximum all that nature has endowed around the scenic caves. It's a treat.
Ipoh
Ipoh was built on the riches of tin-mining. With tin now a distant memory, Ipoh is at the heart of a thriving industry of small businesses besides nearby oil palm plantations, thriving E&E foundries and chip makers, and small farms growing groundnuts (world famous Menglembu), pomelos, star fruits and seedless guava. Ipoh has always been famous for its food especially hawker food, offering the best there is in Asia from fresh large-headed Tualang udang gala (prawns) to its thick and juicy bean sprouts, from delicious baby-bottom-soft sa-hor-fun to its amazing chicken-feet preparations; from the smoothest ice-kacang there is to its best spread of traditional hawker food imaginable. It is not uncommon to eat five times a day here (we did six!).
What impressed me is the vibrant spirit of private enterprise that Ipoh has come to be now famous innovation in biscuit making, coffee and charcoal toast, ornamental fish, delicate tow-fu-fa, unusually large tropical fruits, and ready-to-serve food, including exotic sea-food. For me, a must is dry curry-mee and sui-kau for breakfast and sa-hor-fun soup plus beef tendon balls for lunch, dunked down with lots of Ipoh coffee.
The last time I was here, most shops were small, dirty and crowded (but with long queues). At my favourite place in old town, the owner has since embraced technology new and bigger premises, now clean and spacious, computerised ordering from a long wish list, and spread-sheet billing and accounting.
Business is thriving. There is also Ipoh's famous biscuits, like the delicious curry-puff shaped pastry with steamed coconut-egg jam filling sells like hot cakes: most buying 5-10 boxes of 10 each; only Singaporeans buy them by the 100s. No doubt, private entrepreneurship is thriving no government assistance (want government to remain hands-off and just improve service delivery). It's not just local business they export and attract tourists. Unfortunately, the town remains rundown with little renewal. What a pity. But its new suburbs are modern.
Looking forward to 2011, they are an optimistic bunch. It's this optimism about what they do in Ipoh that impresses me. They are transforming. Better government facilitation in terms of ready availability of finance, quick access to land for expansion, and improved infrastructure and logistics are what is needed to solidify this transformation. In Ipoh, the beginning of transformation is on the move. This is as it should be throughout Malaysia. There is hope yet.
Shift in optimism
Hope and change overused words since the great recession. For the past 400 years, the West monopolised optimism. Their intellectual discourse on enlightenment eventually led to harnessing of technology and modern management to impose their will on the world. US founders offered not just life and liberty but also the pursuit of happiness. Optimism is now shifting you want to prosper, go east; that's where the action is. Growing pessimism in the United States is overwhelming politics as shown in the mid-terms.
Winning Republicans are hardly optimistic reflecting I think rather more anger and resentment. Europe is no better, with mass demonstrations from Athens to Dublin, London to Paris, Rome to Madrid. I sense there is pessimism even at the euro-zone core. The best seller in Germany is T. Sarrazin's Germany Does Away with Itself. The French have J-P Chevenement's Is France Finished, and French Melancholy by E. Zemmour.
In contrast, modern art in China is colourful and bright, portraying rising materialism, growing prosperity and open lifestyle. Painting is aggressive and innovative; always ready to experiment. The contrasting attitudes have become more marked since the recession which shook the very foundations of the system the West built, and have now lost confidence in.
The growing growth gap is stark. China and India will each grow by close to 10% in 2011 (like in the previous two years). With recovery, the United States will grow 3% and euro-zone, 2%.
Unemployment is worse: near 10% in US where more than 1 million may have given up looking for work. Europe is even worse unemployment is very high among youth in Germany; 41% of Spanish youth is unemployed. The malaise goes deeper. Growing numbers of American parents worry their children's living standards may be worse than theirs. After all, medium workers' real income has remained more or less the same since mid-70s. They worry that failing schools and lack of suitable jobs will handicap them in pursuit of the American dream. European dreams are different they remain cosy in their EU-cocoon with generous welfare security. But high debt and rising social discontent in the context of an aging population are not making it easy to continue carrying the burden of unaffordable entitlements.
Emerging Asia is in constant motion building infrastructure and logistic hubs, and institutes of higher learning. China's university population has quadrupled in past 20 years. Unesco estimates 38% of world scientific researchers is based in emerging nations in 2007 (30% in 2002). Chinese and Indian world class enterprises now compete aggressively with their western counterparts. In technology, these firms are redefining the boundaries of the possible.
Harvard's Prof D. Jongenson sees Asian emerging markets as the “most dynamic eclipsing others such as Brazil and Russia the size of the Chinese economy (will be) on par with the United States by early 2020.” This may be difficult for many Americans to swallow. He warns the US should brace for social unrest amid blame over who lost US global economic primacy.
US growth prospects
The US “new normal” remains: sluggish growth, stubbornly high unemployment and weak inflation same like last year. The growth forecasts have since shifted higher for '11 to 3-3%. This is driven by extraordinary policy measures, including QE2 (a second quantitative easing by the Fed pumping US$600 into the economy by buying government bonds) and the 2nd stimulus package (US$800b through extension of the Bush-era tax cuts and a temporary reduction in payroll tax).
However, Harvard's Prof. M. Feldstein believes the outlook is less sanguine. The impact of fiscal expansion will be modest at best. The dire situation of state and local governments is likely to be a drag on growth. Indeed, growth was boosted in '10 by a fall in household savings. But households now worry about uncertain future, return to paring back debt and stocking more away - purely precautionary saving. Prof. S. Johnson of MIT puts it more bluntly: damage from the crisis and its aftermath have dealt US prominence a permanent blow - “The age of American predominance is over.” I believe the new normal will stay for some time mainly because US and European governments are unwilling to grasp the nettle on exit strategies.
The policy dilemmas before the major governments are clear: (i) in US, there is no political will to restructure - I see continuing resistance to the new reality of sluggish growth; (ii) in Europe, governments were forced to intervene with their balance sheets which implications are now being played out; and (iii) in China, management of continuing rapid growth has to deal now with rising pressures on inflation and the yuan. This has led Mr M. El-Erian of Pimco (the largest global bond investor) to conclude: “you see the muddling through approach continuing. Everybody might now want to kick the can down the road. The problem is that the longer you muddle through, the more you create problems. I see the new normal as being stable for a while yet.”
Impact of rising debt
More serious is contagion of the European debt crisis which started with bailout of Greece and then Ireland. Will this reach Portugal and Spain? The problem is likely to widen: (i) how far reaching will this impact other parts of Europe; and (ii) it's just a matter of time before this concern assumes
macro-proportions covering the entire national debt, including private sector. Soon, the worry will shift to banks and companies as they will now find it harder to borrow. The risk is if Spain is not protected, bigger nations will be next in line. Unlike Japan and Italy (where private sectors are net savers), Spain remains vulnerable even though its government debt is relatively lower, but it carries enormous company and household debt. Debt to GNP ratio of government and banks combined in the US, UK, core euro-zone and peripheral Europe are all at 150-200%. That's higher than at any time in the past century. How big is this problem?
Harvard's Prof Rogoff and Reinhart's research suggests a country's growth potential slows significantly once debt/GDP ratio exceeds 90% a level the US is at today. I agree with Rogoff at this time the crisis will not affect US and the majors they still have cards to play. Psychology, too, plays a big part since US is grounded more in growth than inflation and Europe being dead set against inflation will trade-off growth. Between the US and Europe, my bet is on Europe to be the first to raise interest rates. So, more pain for Europe.
Looking forward, some nations are unlikely to handle their debt overhang without restructuring, a la Argentina 2002. This is a messy process, with other high-debt nations swept in the contagion. In a globalised world, how big the problem becomes depends on confidence. So we do have a fragile situation not only in Europe but US as well. This situation is serious: in the event creditors and debtors worldwide erupt into a full-scale war, debt-financed growth will become history. Creditors do get tired of kicking the can down the road and debtors can get adjustment/austerity fatigue. Such an impasse can only be resolved in the long run through a transfer of wealth from creditors to debtors. I think the fear of default will eventually get creditors to blink first.
Fault lines haven't gone away
While it is clear the world economy has now recovered, it is also clear the crisis is far from over. This is because the deep fault lines uncovered during the crisis are still within the Western economies and global economic structure. According to Chicago's Prof Raghuram, they present two risks: (i) structural export dependency particularly in Japan, Germany and China; and (ii) unresolved clash of financial systems making it difficult to forge integration.
They will threaten global stability in two ways: (a) pre-mature tightening of monetary and fiscal policies poses the danger of tipping the world back to recession; and (b) failure to secure a medium-term structural shift to fiscal austerity, so vital for sustainable global recovery. So, the world remains a dangerous place; but nothing moves in straight lines.
One thing is certain: the West is not the power it used to be; their consumers cannot be relied upon as they used to be; and their financial standing are not as good as it used to be. Structural reform is needed to avoid another global crisis ahead. At the heart of it all is the US it may have missed the chance to rein in its largest financial institutions, many of which remain too big to fail and are getting bigger. In the long run, US must face reality inevitably it will be over taken by China as the world's largest economy; and the centre of economic power will gravitate to Asia. But America as the biggest mover will be in place for a long time.
As 2010 ends, Asia moves on aggressively. Manufacturing in Korea and Taiwan accelerated in December even as expansion in China and India slowed, with US and Europe supporting the region's exports. Overall, the world had a good 4Q10 as the US economy also continued to grow although the underlying fundamentals remain weak. But the world wakens to new challenges. The Internet now provides ready access to information for all, which previously was reserved for just a few. Medical advances are making strides in overcoming diseases and extending lifespan for the benefit of all. History reminds us that for so long only the privileged few can look forward to a better life. Today the masses in Asia can. Prudent growth and benevolent management will make this possible. Surely, that's good enough reason to be optimistic.
Former banker, Dr Lin is a Harvard educated economist and a British Chartered Scientist who now spends time writing, teaching & promoting the public interest.
Saturday, January 15, 2011
Facebook comes of age
WHY NOT? By WONG SAI WAN
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FB is now more than just a social media for the young. It is also a meeting ground for all – fathers, mothers, actresses, superstars and, especially, crooks.
A NEW survey found that 12% of parents punish their kids by banning social networking sites. The other 88% punish their kids by joining social networking sites themselves.
This was what a colleague put on his Facebook status recently. He probably put it up in jest, but for me it was so poignant because like him, we are probably as active, if not more active, than our teenage children on the popular social network.
Although most of us replied in equal jest on his Facebook page, I could not help a quick stocktaking of the truth of the status comment.
When Times’ Man of the Year Mark Zuckerberg put together Facebook for the clever students at Harvard, he did it for the young crowd. And when he started taking it to cybersphere, he also wanted to attract teenagers.
There are now 550 million users on Facebook, which Zuckerberg supposedly founded eight years ago when he was just a 19-year-old sophomore at Harvard.
Time magazine, in its report on Zukerberg being chosen as its man of the year, noted that “one out of every dozen people on the planet has a Facebook account.
“They speak 75 languages and collectively lavish more than 700 billion minutes on FB, as its users affectionately call it, every month. Its membership is currently growing at a rate of about 700,000 people a day”.
These statistics are astounding, especially when you consider that 70% of FB users are from outside the United States. We in Malaysia are among the major users – records show that more than 9.5 million Malaysians now hold a Facebook account of whom 45% are male and 51% female. The rest did not state their gender.
The growth rate for FB in Malaysia has really been tremendous. In 2009, we recorded a growth rate of over 300% from just over 450,000 users a year before to 3.9 million. By last December, this figure exploded to 9.5 million. And yet we are only number four in Asia.
“Today, there are over 32 million Indonesians using Facebook. The Philippines is behind Indonesia, with over 18 million, followed by India (16.9 million), Malaysia (9.5 million) and Taiwan (8.7 million),” reports GreyReview which studies tech and social media trends.
This got me thinking about why I got into Facebook. I can’t even remember exactly when I signed up for a FB account, but it was in 2008. It was for a very good reason – my son and daughter (aged 15 and nine then) were thinking of signing up. I just wanted to know why they were doing it.
After all, we have read horror stories of fiends and monsters lurking in Cyberspace to prey on the young ones. I just wanted to be there in case these beasts hang around Facebook.
At first, I approached it like a cautious father, checking out every possibility of how corrupting FB could be. Then I realised the joy of connecting with colleagues and how it allowed me to carry out some “innocent fun” – posting naughty messages on people’s walls.
I started collecting friends and it became a race with my colleagues to see who could get more. At present, I have 1,173 friends, but like most Malaysians I doubt I know 70% of them personally.
Instead of the kids being lured into the deep by the “evils of Facebook”, it was I who became addicted. I found it such a stress reliever, although quite time-consuming and quite distracting from the real world.
I now understand why many companies ban their staff from getting on to their FB accounts in the office, but as a user I dare say that it has become an important networking and communication tool.
Banning FB in the office is another act of denial because with 550 million people into it, businesses would do better to get on board to see what the fuss is all about. It is estimated that FB and Zuckerberg raked in some US$2bil (RM6.1bil) last year.
Anyway, my policing of the kids’ cyber use, especially on FB, has come to naught. Rather, the three of us are “friends” in each other’s FB pages and we use our accounts to pass each other messages, especially those we don’t want their mother to read.
I would say FB has enabled the three of us to share a bond, especially since I spend more than 15 hours a day away from the house.
As a journalist, I have had many reliable tip-offs for stories via Facebook, especially from new found friends and as well as from old ones re-established via this network.
I have also made great friends through Facebook. A bunch of us who are all golfers have become close pals, poking fun at each other or springing some pranks at the slightest opportunity.
Yes, there are also some nasty people on FB. A friend of mine who had just moved back to his hometown of Kuching, had his account hijacked by an evil person located in Thailand.
This dastardly person tried to trick me into sending him some money using my friend’s FB identity. Luckily, my friend alerted me in time.
This taught me a lesson and I now change my FB password every three weeks or so.
Then a few days ago, I had a strange request from someone wanting to be added as a friend. This person claimed to be former Thai PM Thaksin Shinawatra. This person even tried to chat online with me, saying he was indeed Thaksin and was now in Moscow.
When I put his claim as a link, he immediately “unfriended” me and blocked me from his Facebook page. I have either thwarted a crook or missed the opportunity of a lifetime to interview this elusive politician.
Whatever it is, Facebook is a modern trend that will probably be replaced by something else in the next few months but till then it has shrunk the world tremendously and our distances just got a lot smaller.
> The Star Executive Editor Wong Sai Wan’s favourite Facebook application used to be the Word Twist game, but now likes uploading pictures straight from his Blackberry.
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FB is now more than just a social media for the young. It is also a meeting ground for all – fathers, mothers, actresses, superstars and, especially, crooks.
A NEW survey found that 12% of parents punish their kids by banning social networking sites. The other 88% punish their kids by joining social networking sites themselves.
This was what a colleague put on his Facebook status recently. He probably put it up in jest, but for me it was so poignant because like him, we are probably as active, if not more active, than our teenage children on the popular social network.
Although most of us replied in equal jest on his Facebook page, I could not help a quick stocktaking of the truth of the status comment.
When Times’ Man of the Year Mark Zuckerberg put together Facebook for the clever students at Harvard, he did it for the young crowd. And when he started taking it to cybersphere, he also wanted to attract teenagers.
There are now 550 million users on Facebook, which Zuckerberg supposedly founded eight years ago when he was just a 19-year-old sophomore at Harvard.
Time magazine, in its report on Zukerberg being chosen as its man of the year, noted that “one out of every dozen people on the planet has a Facebook account.
“They speak 75 languages and collectively lavish more than 700 billion minutes on FB, as its users affectionately call it, every month. Its membership is currently growing at a rate of about 700,000 people a day”.
These statistics are astounding, especially when you consider that 70% of FB users are from outside the United States. We in Malaysia are among the major users – records show that more than 9.5 million Malaysians now hold a Facebook account of whom 45% are male and 51% female. The rest did not state their gender.
The growth rate for FB in Malaysia has really been tremendous. In 2009, we recorded a growth rate of over 300% from just over 450,000 users a year before to 3.9 million. By last December, this figure exploded to 9.5 million. And yet we are only number four in Asia.
“Today, there are over 32 million Indonesians using Facebook. The Philippines is behind Indonesia, with over 18 million, followed by India (16.9 million), Malaysia (9.5 million) and Taiwan (8.7 million),” reports GreyReview which studies tech and social media trends.
This got me thinking about why I got into Facebook. I can’t even remember exactly when I signed up for a FB account, but it was in 2008. It was for a very good reason – my son and daughter (aged 15 and nine then) were thinking of signing up. I just wanted to know why they were doing it.
After all, we have read horror stories of fiends and monsters lurking in Cyberspace to prey on the young ones. I just wanted to be there in case these beasts hang around Facebook.
At first, I approached it like a cautious father, checking out every possibility of how corrupting FB could be. Then I realised the joy of connecting with colleagues and how it allowed me to carry out some “innocent fun” – posting naughty messages on people’s walls.
I started collecting friends and it became a race with my colleagues to see who could get more. At present, I have 1,173 friends, but like most Malaysians I doubt I know 70% of them personally.
Instead of the kids being lured into the deep by the “evils of Facebook”, it was I who became addicted. I found it such a stress reliever, although quite time-consuming and quite distracting from the real world.
I now understand why many companies ban their staff from getting on to their FB accounts in the office, but as a user I dare say that it has become an important networking and communication tool.
Banning FB in the office is another act of denial because with 550 million people into it, businesses would do better to get on board to see what the fuss is all about. It is estimated that FB and Zuckerberg raked in some US$2bil (RM6.1bil) last year.
Anyway, my policing of the kids’ cyber use, especially on FB, has come to naught. Rather, the three of us are “friends” in each other’s FB pages and we use our accounts to pass each other messages, especially those we don’t want their mother to read.
I would say FB has enabled the three of us to share a bond, especially since I spend more than 15 hours a day away from the house.
As a journalist, I have had many reliable tip-offs for stories via Facebook, especially from new found friends and as well as from old ones re-established via this network.
I have also made great friends through Facebook. A bunch of us who are all golfers have become close pals, poking fun at each other or springing some pranks at the slightest opportunity.
Yes, there are also some nasty people on FB. A friend of mine who had just moved back to his hometown of Kuching, had his account hijacked by an evil person located in Thailand.
This dastardly person tried to trick me into sending him some money using my friend’s FB identity. Luckily, my friend alerted me in time.
This taught me a lesson and I now change my FB password every three weeks or so.
Then a few days ago, I had a strange request from someone wanting to be added as a friend. This person claimed to be former Thai PM Thaksin Shinawatra. This person even tried to chat online with me, saying he was indeed Thaksin and was now in Moscow.
When I put his claim as a link, he immediately “unfriended” me and blocked me from his Facebook page. I have either thwarted a crook or missed the opportunity of a lifetime to interview this elusive politician.
Whatever it is, Facebook is a modern trend that will probably be replaced by something else in the next few months but till then it has shrunk the world tremendously and our distances just got a lot smaller.
> The Star Executive Editor Wong Sai Wan’s favourite Facebook application used to be the Word Twist game, but now likes uploading pictures straight from his Blackberry.
Thursday, January 13, 2011
Chinese yuan among world's safest currencies: expert
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The Chinese yuan is "one of the safest currencies in the world," global investment expert Jim Rogers said here Wednesday.
Speaking on an occasion at the well-known Union League Club of Chicago, the chairman of Rogers Holdings recommended that global investors hold the Chinese yuan, or renminbi.
Citing China's extraordinary economic growth in the past 30 years, he said that China is "changing the world already" and "will continue to change the world."
Turning to the U.S. dollar, he said that the American currency has now been reduced to "a terribly flawed alternative," with the United States being "the largest debt nation in history."
The legendary investor also lashed out at the United States' second round of quantitative easing, saying that it was "totally wrong" for the Federal Reserve to print a large amount of money.
Source:Xinhua
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The Chinese yuan is "one of the safest currencies in the world," global investment expert Jim Rogers said here Wednesday.
Speaking on an occasion at the well-known Union League Club of Chicago, the chairman of Rogers Holdings recommended that global investors hold the Chinese yuan, or renminbi.
Citing China's extraordinary economic growth in the past 30 years, he said that China is "changing the world already" and "will continue to change the world."
Turning to the U.S. dollar, he said that the American currency has now been reduced to "a terribly flawed alternative," with the United States being "the largest debt nation in history."
The legendary investor also lashed out at the United States' second round of quantitative easing, saying that it was "totally wrong" for the Federal Reserve to print a large amount of money.
Source:Xinhua
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Confucius in Tiananmen
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Confucius shows up on Tiananmen Square
Confucius comeback continues with Tiananmen statue
BEIJING (AFP) – China has unveiled a statue of Confucius on Tiananmen Square -- the latest sign of the ancient philosopher's comeback after decades in which his teachings were suppressed by Mao Zedong.
The 7.9-metre (26-feet) tall statue stands at an entrance to China's National Museum, which fronts Tiananmen Square and its communist monuments such as late revolutionary leader Mao's tomb in the heart of the capital.
The teachings of China's most famous philosopher, who was born in 551 BC, centred on peace, harmony and each citizen's duty to respect their superiors.
They became a virtual state religion but were denounced as feudal and banned under Mao's communist regime, particularly during the icon-smashing years of the radical Cultural Revolution.
The 1966-76 mass political movement against "old" ways and thinking was originally launched by Mao in a bid to neutralise potential political rivals.
ButConfucius ' teachings have enjoyed an officially-sanctioned rehabilitation under the current Communist Party leadership amid the wholesale abandonment of Maoist thought.
The new statue faces across Beijing's main thoroughfare toward the Forbidden City, the former Chinese imperial home, where a huge portrait of Mao hangs over the complex's entrance.
The National Museum, which is on the east side of the square, has been closed for more than three years for a major renovation. Media reports said it could reopen this year.
The Beijing Daily newspaper quoted an unnamed official as saying the statue was erected this week to recogniseConfucius ' status as a "symbol of traditional Chinese culture and a calling card of Chinese culture".
With government support,Confucius institutes have been established around the world with the aim of promoting the Chinese language and culture.
In 2009, aConfucius biopic backed by the government was released to coincide with National Day on October 1, which that year marked the 60th anniversary of Mao's 1949 declaration of the People's Republic of China.
Last September, Chinese officials in Beijing marked the philosopher's birthday at a ceremony in a Confucian temple, the first time it was celebrated in the capital since at least 1949.
Related article:
Confucius shows up on Tiananmen Square
In this Wednesday photo, Chinese paramilitary policemen stands guard in front of a sculpture of the ancient philosopher Confucius on displayed in near the Tiananmen Square in Beijing, China's capital. Photo: AP.
There’s a new face keeping Chairman Mao company on Tiananmen Square.
A mammoth sculpture of the ancient philosopher Confucius was unveiled this week off one side of the vast plaza. It’s a juxtaposition for a square the ruling Communist Party treats as politically hallowed ground- a mausoleum holding revolutionary leader Mao Zedong’s body sits in the middle and his giant portrait hangs at one end.
Placing the statue at China’s political heart is the government’s most visible endorsement yet of the 2,500-year-old sage and, selectively, his teachings.
Confucius is enjoying a revival, in books and films, on TV and in classrooms. His message of harmonious social order and deference to authority is unthreatening to the party, while his emphasis on ethics resonates among Chinese coping with fast-paced social change on the back of torrid economic growth.
The government is increasingly marshalling his popularity to bolster national identity. “The rise of a big country requires a cultural foundation, and Chinese culture upholds the spirit of harmony,” said Wu Weishan, the sculptor, who has made more than 200 statues of the philosopher. “The essential thoughts of Confucius are love, kindness, wisdom and generosity. And peace and prosperity are what the people are striving for.”
The 31-foot (9.5-meter) bronze sculpture depicts a robed Confucius with a serious expression and sits on the east side of the square, facing in the direction of Mao’s portrait and amid the bustle of Beijing. Chinese tourists busily snapped photos and agreed that Confucius’ teachings bear a message for modern China. “Confucianism has been governing the lives and ethics of Chinese for thousands of years,” said 25-year-old engineer Cui Xiaozhan, on a business trip from the eastern city of Qingdao. “We should study it. But everyone is too busy and tired.”
Confucius laid down a code of ethics that was adopted as a quasi-religious national philosophy of governance and personal behaviour. His teachings emphasized duty to family, respect for learning, virtuous behaviour and obedience of individuals to the state.
AFP – People walk pass a bronze 7.9-metre-tall Confucius statue in front of the renovated National Museum of …
The 7.9-metre (26-feet) tall statue stands at an entrance to China's National Museum, which fronts Tiananmen Square and its communist monuments such as late revolutionary leader Mao's tomb in the heart of the capital.
The teachings of China's most famous philosopher, who was born in 551 BC, centred on peace, harmony and each citizen's duty to respect their superiors.
They became a virtual state religion but were denounced as feudal and banned under Mao's communist regime, particularly during the icon-smashing years of the radical Cultural Revolution.
The 1966-76 mass political movement against "old" ways and thinking was originally launched by Mao in a bid to neutralise potential political rivals.
But
The new statue faces across Beijing's main thoroughfare toward the Forbidden City, the former Chinese imperial home, where a huge portrait of Mao hangs over the complex's entrance.
The National Museum, which is on the east side of the square, has been closed for more than three years for a major renovation. Media reports said it could reopen this year.
The Beijing Daily newspaper quoted an unnamed official as saying the statue was erected this week to recognise
With government support,
In 2009, a
Last September, Chinese officials in Beijing marked the philosopher's birthday at a ceremony in a Confucian temple, the first time it was celebrated in the capital since at least 1949.
Related article:
Confucius Institutes - 5th Conference opens in Beijing
Wednesday, January 12, 2011
China set to be No. 1 in 2018 by PPP rank: PwC
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China will overtake the United States as the largest economy as early as 2018 on purchasing power parity as the financial crisis accelerates the shift in economic power to emerging economies, a PricewaterhouseCoopers report said yesterday.
Measuring gross domestic product at PPP, which factors price differences of the same goods across countries, the report disclosed the combined GDP of the seven biggest developing economies will exceed that of the Group of 7, making up the world's largest industrialized economies, before 2020.
China and India will lead the growth of the "Emerging Seven."
The accountancy firm also counts Brazil, Russia, Mexico, Indonesia and Turkey as the other members of the E7. These emerging economies have been leading the world out of the global slump caused by the financial crisis in developed nations, with China replacing Japan as the second-largest economy last year.
If based on GDP at market exchange rates, the shift in the economic world order is slower, but still inevitable, with the E7 slated to overtake the G7 around 2032. China would also overtake the US that year to become the biggest economy in the world based on MER, PwC said. Using MER does not correct for price differences.
China's economy is, however, expected to slow progressively after 2020 due to its significantly lower labor force growth because of its one child policy.
Despite this, China will remain an export powerhouse, with exporters moving steadily up the value chain to compete increasingly on quality rather than price.
Source: Shanghai Daily
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China will overtake the United States as the largest economy as early as 2018 on purchasing power parity as the financial crisis accelerates the shift in economic power to emerging economies, a PricewaterhouseCoopers report said yesterday.
Measuring gross domestic product at PPP, which factors price differences of the same goods across countries, the report disclosed the combined GDP of the seven biggest developing economies will exceed that of the Group of 7, making up the world's largest industrialized economies, before 2020.
China and India will lead the growth of the "Emerging Seven."
The accountancy firm also counts Brazil, Russia, Mexico, Indonesia and Turkey as the other members of the E7. These emerging economies have been leading the world out of the global slump caused by the financial crisis in developed nations, with China replacing Japan as the second-largest economy last year.
If based on GDP at market exchange rates, the shift in the economic world order is slower, but still inevitable, with the E7 slated to overtake the G7 around 2032. China would also overtake the US that year to become the biggest economy in the world based on MER, PwC said. Using MER does not correct for price differences.
China's economy is, however, expected to slow progressively after 2020 due to its significantly lower labor force growth because of its one child policy.
Despite this, China will remain an export powerhouse, with exporters moving steadily up the value chain to compete increasingly on quality rather than price.
Source: Shanghai Daily
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China's J-20 Stealth fighter maiden flight, Signal to Gates
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China’s first stealth fighter J-20, has reportedly made its first test flight, according to Chinese Reports. It was reported that China’s Stealth Fighter, J-20 made a 15-minute flight from 12:50 to 13:05 hrs in southwest China’s Chengdu city.
China has carried out the test flight of its advanced laser-evading stealth fighter J-20, according to media reports, perfectly timing the event to coincide with the visit of U.S Defense Secretary Robert Gates to the country.
Aviation buffs are buzzing over blurry photographs that have been surfacing on Chinese military websites showing Beijing’s first stealth fighter jet, the Chengdu J-20 fighter. Chinese aviation fans say they have been snapping pics of the jet during recent taxi tests, with a first flight likely still weeks away.We have also managed to get the first video of this stealthy aircraft the ‘J-20′.
China recently showed the world its latest fighter aircraft in a typical Chinese way with the Govt media denying it but allowing Chinese hobbyist to upload images of the aircraft on the internet. According to latest reports the aircraft is carrying high speed taxi run and is expected to take to the skies anytime. A Chinese stealth aircraft will definitely change the balance in the region in favor to an extent in favor of China. Before we can analyze the implications we first need to analyze the aircraft.
We have witnessed a lot about the Chinese Stealth fighter J-20, being developed by the Chinese Aircraft manufacturer Chengdu. The J-20 is a Fifth generation aircraft with stealth capabilities. Only time will tell if the J-20 will match the current stealth aircrafts or will be superior than them. The F-22 Raptor has proven technology and hence it has been speculated that most of the 5th generation aircrafts today are similar to the Raptor.
The latest buzz on Internet is that the China’s Chengdu Aircraft Industry Group is preparing to test its first stealth aircraft known to world as the J-XX and now official J-20.
According to enthusiasts living nearby, the aircraft has already done taxi run and top level officials are coming to the facility to witness the first flight. This comes as a surprise as both American and Russian think tanks had written off China. J-XX is Chinese competitor in the Fifth Generation race.
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Stealthy signal to Gates
Made In China by CHOW HOW BAN
It may or may not have been orchestrated but the fact was that news leaks of a Chinese-developed stealth fighter jets appeared just days before the Asian giant and the United States were to patch up a military spat.
CHINA’S stealth fighter jet stuns the world! So yells a newspaper seller to commuters on board a subway train in Beijing. Several men nearby snapped up the last few papers from the vendor and read the news with great interest.
China has many young and middle-aged military fanatics like these commuters, who can’t resist reading about their very own state-of-the-art jet.
The J-20 stealth jet, a fourth-generation fighter aircraft built by the Chengdu Aircraft Design Institute, underwent ground tests at the institute’s airfield on Jan 5.
A Chinese military fan leaked images and a video, which he captured of the test run, on the Internet. The video also showed him and his friends celebrating the historic moment.
The images and video created a buzz in Chinese cyberspace and media, with the entire nation brimming with pride.
The foreign press especially, those from the United States, were alarmed that they might have underestimated Chinese military might and advancement in warfare technologies.
Coincidentally, the photos and videos of the J-20 jet surfaced four days before US Secretary of Defence Robert Gates arrived in Beijing for an official visit to patch up strained military ties between the United States and China.
Before leaving for China, Gates told reporters that some of China’s advances could eventually undermine traditional US military capabilities in the Pacific region.
“They clearly have the potential to put some of our capabilities at risk and we have to pay attention to them. We have to respond appropriately with our own programmes,” wire services quoted him as saying.
Former US Air Force Lt Gen Thomas Mclnerney commented on Foxnews.com that the Chinese had deliberately and very cleverly leaked their stealth fighter in time for Gates’ visit.
“This is another move by the Chinese to subtly send the current American administration as well as its Asian allies a signal that it is investing heavily in military capabilities that will dominate Asia in future,” he said.
Mclnerney said that discussions between the United States and China during Gates’ visit and that of Chinese President Hu Jintao to Washington from Jan 18 to Jan 21, would reveal that China’s vision of its future position in Asia was different from what the United States and its allies imagined.
Gates, who concluded his China trip on Wednesday, was told by his Chinese counterparts that China was indeed testing its stealth jet, but still lagged far behind the world’s most advanced armed forces in military technology.
A week after the news leaks, Chinese Defence Ministry Foreign Affairs Office deputy director Guan Youfei confirmed the test flight of the J-20 fighter jet, believed to be capable of matching the United States’ F-22 jet.
“The development of China’s military hardware is not aimed at any country or any specific target, and the timing for the test flight was a matter of routine working arrangements,” he told Xinhua agency.
He denied that the test flight was deliberately carried out to coincide with Gates’ visit.
After the talks, both the United States and China agreed to reduce any miscommunication and misunderstanding and to rebuild their relationship in the spirit of respect, mutual trust, equality and reciprocity. However, this is easier said than done in view of the complicated Sino-US relations.
China suspended ties with the US military last year and turned down an earlier visit by Gates last summer following US President Barack Obama administration’s decision in 2009 to sell US$6.4bil (RM19.53bil) worth arms to Taiwan, which is viewed by China as a renegade province.
China has also denounced US pressure on South-East Asian countries to solve territorial disputes in the South China Sea. It fears China’s anti-ship ballistic missiles could challenge its fleets.
The latest addition of the J-20 stealth jet had Chinese military fans excited. More fans went down to the southwest city of Chengdu to catch the jet’s maiden test flight on Tuesday.
“11.1.11 is a historic day and I will remember today!” a netizen said on a military fan forum. Another fan said that he could not help but watch the video of the maiden flight over and over again.
Another fan, Gao Long, said: “I cried after watching a documentary on China’s air force development. We have come a long way from the day we bought the MiG-15 jet. We have developed our fourth generation jet.”
Many fans said China was not hoping to go to war but would not be afraid to fight one if it came.
In an editorial, Global Times said although it might take a few more years for the prototype stealth aircraft to be ready for deployment, the invention would be a positive step in propelling China into the club of stealth jet owning nations.
“The development of the stealth jet may have surpassed the expectations of many but this will not be the biggest surprise in China’s pursuit to narrow the gap with Western powers. We hope there will be more surprises to come,” it said.
The newspaper said the United States should not panic nor consider China as a threat as a couple of weapons would not change the world.
“China has no intention to vie for hegemony. What China needs is more job opportunities and cheaper housing. The J-20 is just to create a secure environment for China so it can devote its wisdom and energy to solving domestic problems,” it added.
“The Chinese also need to keep a level head as a single fighter jet cannot protect their security interests. China should learn to win its neighbours’ hearts and make friends with all nations.”
CHINA’S stealth fighter jet stuns the world! So yells a newspaper seller to commuters on board a subway train in Beijing. Several men nearby snapped up the last few papers from the vendor and read the news with great interest.
China has many young and middle-aged military fanatics like these commuters, who can’t resist reading about their very own state-of-the-art jet.
The J-20 stealth jet, a fourth-generation fighter aircraft built by the Chengdu Aircraft Design Institute, underwent ground tests at the institute’s airfield on Jan 5.
A Chinese military fan leaked images and a video, which he captured of the test run, on the Internet. The video also showed him and his friends celebrating the historic moment.
The images and video created a buzz in Chinese cyberspace and media, with the entire nation brimming with pride.
The foreign press especially, those from the United States, were alarmed that they might have underestimated Chinese military might and advancement in warfare technologies.
Coincidentally, the photos and videos of the J-20 jet surfaced four days before US Secretary of Defence Robert Gates arrived in Beijing for an official visit to patch up strained military ties between the United States and China.
Before leaving for China, Gates told reporters that some of China’s advances could eventually undermine traditional US military capabilities in the Pacific region.
“They clearly have the potential to put some of our capabilities at risk and we have to pay attention to them. We have to respond appropriately with our own programmes,” wire services quoted him as saying.
Former US Air Force Lt Gen Thomas Mclnerney commented on Foxnews.com that the Chinese had deliberately and very cleverly leaked their stealth fighter in time for Gates’ visit.
“This is another move by the Chinese to subtly send the current American administration as well as its Asian allies a signal that it is investing heavily in military capabilities that will dominate Asia in future,” he said.
Mclnerney said that discussions between the United States and China during Gates’ visit and that of Chinese President Hu Jintao to Washington from Jan 18 to Jan 21, would reveal that China’s vision of its future position in Asia was different from what the United States and its allies imagined.
Gates, who concluded his China trip on Wednesday, was told by his Chinese counterparts that China was indeed testing its stealth jet, but still lagged far behind the world’s most advanced armed forces in military technology.
A week after the news leaks, Chinese Defence Ministry Foreign Affairs Office deputy director Guan Youfei confirmed the test flight of the J-20 fighter jet, believed to be capable of matching the United States’ F-22 jet.
“The development of China’s military hardware is not aimed at any country or any specific target, and the timing for the test flight was a matter of routine working arrangements,” he told Xinhua agency.
He denied that the test flight was deliberately carried out to coincide with Gates’ visit.
After the talks, both the United States and China agreed to reduce any miscommunication and misunderstanding and to rebuild their relationship in the spirit of respect, mutual trust, equality and reciprocity. However, this is easier said than done in view of the complicated Sino-US relations.
China suspended ties with the US military last year and turned down an earlier visit by Gates last summer following US President Barack Obama administration’s decision in 2009 to sell US$6.4bil (RM19.53bil) worth arms to Taiwan, which is viewed by China as a renegade province.
China has also denounced US pressure on South-East Asian countries to solve territorial disputes in the South China Sea. It fears China’s anti-ship ballistic missiles could challenge its fleets.
The latest addition of the J-20 stealth jet had Chinese military fans excited. More fans went down to the southwest city of Chengdu to catch the jet’s maiden test flight on Tuesday.
“11.1.11 is a historic day and I will remember today!” a netizen said on a military fan forum. Another fan said that he could not help but watch the video of the maiden flight over and over again.
Another fan, Gao Long, said: “I cried after watching a documentary on China’s air force development. We have come a long way from the day we bought the MiG-15 jet. We have developed our fourth generation jet.”
Many fans said China was not hoping to go to war but would not be afraid to fight one if it came.
In an editorial, Global Times said although it might take a few more years for the prototype stealth aircraft to be ready for deployment, the invention would be a positive step in propelling China into the club of stealth jet owning nations.
“The development of the stealth jet may have surpassed the expectations of many but this will not be the biggest surprise in China’s pursuit to narrow the gap with Western powers. We hope there will be more surprises to come,” it said.
The newspaper said the United States should not panic nor consider China as a threat as a couple of weapons would not change the world.
“China has no intention to vie for hegemony. What China needs is more job opportunities and cheaper housing. The J-20 is just to create a secure environment for China so it can devote its wisdom and energy to solving domestic problems,” it added.
“The Chinese also need to keep a level head as a single fighter jet cannot protect their security interests. China should learn to win its neighbours’ hearts and make friends with all nations.”
Chengdu J-20 Chinese Stealth fighter maiden flight [Video and Pictures]
by Cavin Dsouza on January 12th, 2011
China’s first stealth fighter J-20, has reportedly made its first test flight, according to Chinese Reports. It was reported that China’s Stealth Fighter, J-20 made a 15-minute flight from 12:50 to 13:05 hrs in southwest China’s Chengdu city.China has carried out the test flight of its advanced laser-evading stealth fighter J-20, according to media reports, perfectly timing the event to coincide with the visit of U.S Defense Secretary Robert Gates to the country.
New Photos and Video of Chengdu J-20 The Chinese Stealth Fighter Released
by Larkins Dsouza on January 9th, 2011
Aviation buffs are buzzing over blurry photographs that have been surfacing on Chinese military websites showing Beijing’s first stealth fighter jet, the Chengdu J-20 fighter. Chinese aviation fans say they have been snapping pics of the jet during recent taxi tests, with a first flight likely still weeks away.We have also managed to get the first video of this stealthy aircraft the ‘J-20′.Threat analysis of Chengdu J-20 the chinese stealth fighter
by Pratik Sawerdekar on January 6th, 2011
China recently showed the world its latest fighter aircraft in a typical Chinese way with the Govt media denying it but allowing Chinese hobbyist to upload images of the aircraft on the internet. According to latest reports the aircraft is carrying high speed taxi run and is expected to take to the skies anytime. A Chinese stealth aircraft will definitely change the balance in the region in favor to an extent in favor of China. Before we can analyze the implications we first need to analyze the aircraft.Comparing Chengdu J-20 with F-22, F-35 and Su-PAK FA or T-50
by Cavin Dsouza on January 4th, 2011
We have witnessed a lot about the Chinese Stealth fighter J-20, being developed by the Chinese Aircraft manufacturer Chengdu. The J-20 is a Fifth generation aircraft with stealth capabilities. Only time will tell if the J-20 will match the current stealth aircrafts or will be superior than them. The F-22 Raptor has proven technology and hence it has been speculated that most of the 5th generation aircrafts today are similar to the Raptor.Chengdu J-20 China’s first stealth fighter takes to the skies
by Pratik Sawerdekar on December 30th, 2010
The latest buzz on Internet is that the China’s Chengdu Aircraft Industry Group is preparing to test its first stealth aircraft known to world as the J-XX and now official J-20.According to enthusiasts living nearby, the aircraft has already done taxi run and top level officials are coming to the facility to witness the first flight. This comes as a surprise as both American and Russian think tanks had written off China. J-XX is Chinese competitor in the Fifth Generation race.
READ MORE..
Malaysian student is tops again in Singapore
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By SHARIN SHAIK newsdesk@thestar.com.my
PETALING JAYA: For the third year in a row, a Malaysian has become a top scorer in the island republic, with Chia Pei Yun scoring 10 A1s in Singapore’s GCE O-level exams.
The 16-year-old student of the St Nicholas Girls’ School (SNGS) loves to read, practise handicraft and play the piano.
Chia, from Damansara Utama here, said she was a down-to-earth person and a “normal teenager” who was often on Facebook in her free time
.
All smiles: Pei Yun celebrating as she is recognised for being the top O-level student in Singapore.
The Asean scholar managed to score As in Mathematics, English, English Literature, Biology, Physics, Chemistry, Geology, Huma-nities, Malay and Chinese.
According to Chia, she managed to achieve her excellent results through perseverance in revising throughout the year.
“This helped me relax when the exams approached,” she said in a telephone interview.
Chia said she was focused and determined in her journey towards achieving the position of top scorer in the GCE O-level exams.
“When I am away from home, I miss my family a lot but I do not let my feelings get in the way of my studies,” she added.
According to SNGS principal Chan Wan Siang, Chia was a hardworking girl who was always positive and willing to learn.
“Pei Yun loves music and was a level coordinator in the school choir,” she said.
Chan is proud at the school’s achievement in having top O-level scorers for three years in a row.
By SHARIN SHAIK newsdesk@thestar.com.my
PETALING JAYA: For the third year in a row, a Malaysian has become a top scorer in the island republic, with Chia Pei Yun scoring 10 A1s in Singapore’s GCE O-level exams.
The 16-year-old student of the St Nicholas Girls’ School (SNGS) loves to read, practise handicraft and play the piano.
Chia, from Damansara Utama here, said she was a down-to-earth person and a “normal teenager” who was often on Facebook in her free time
.
All smiles: Pei Yun celebrating as she is recognised for being the top O-level student in Singapore.According to Chia, she managed to achieve her excellent results through perseverance in revising throughout the year.
“This helped me relax when the exams approached,” she said in a telephone interview.
Chia said she was focused and determined in her journey towards achieving the position of top scorer in the GCE O-level exams.
“When I am away from home, I miss my family a lot but I do not let my feelings get in the way of my studies,” she added.
According to SNGS principal Chan Wan Siang, Chia was a hardworking girl who was always positive and willing to learn.
“Pei Yun loves music and was a level coordinator in the school choir,” she said.
Chan is proud at the school’s achievement in having top O-level scorers for three years in a row.
Tuesday, January 11, 2011
Teenagers elope and come home pregnant
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Several parents of the pregnant underage girls are then demanding unreasonable compensation of up to tens of thousands of ringgit from the families of the boyfriends.
“In 2010, 16 cases of girls running away with their boyfriends were reported to the department,” said MCA Public Services and Complaints Department head Datuk Michael Chong
“All these girls were aged between 14 and 19. In three of these cases, the girls came home pregnant.
“In some cases, distraught parents would blackmail the boyfriend’s family to avoid them being reported to the police.”
He said that in one case, the family of a pregnant 14-year-old girl demanded RM15,000 from the parents of her 17-year-old boyfriend.
Chong said that in such cases, both parties are responsible and parents should not have allowed their children to get into such situations in the first place.
Ooi Bee Poh, 48, who was at the press conference yesterday is another parent who is looking for her missing daughter.
Her youngest daughter Wong Choi Ting, 17, went missing after a visit from her boyfriend from Johor.
“She was supposed to send her boyfriend to the bus station after his two-day visit to our home,” said a distraught Ooi.
However, she was told by her second daughter that Choi Ting had packed her clothes and said she was leaving.
Ooi has not been able to contact her daughter since Dec 30 as her handphone has been switched off.
According to Chong, Choi Ting is just one of three cases reported in the past 10 days.
Parents of pregnant girls resort to blackmail - Some parents demand money from boyfriends' families
By SHARIN SHAIK newsdesk@thestar.com.my
KUALA LUMPUR: Girls as young as 14 are eloping with their boyfriends, some of them returning home pregnant.Several parents of the pregnant underage girls are then demanding unreasonable compensation of up to tens of thousands of ringgit from the families of the boyfriends.
“In 2010, 16 cases of girls running away with their boyfriends were reported to the department,” said MCA Public Services and Complaints Department head Datuk Michael Chong
“All these girls were aged between 14 and 19. In three of these cases, the girls came home pregnant.
“In some cases, distraught parents would blackmail the boyfriend’s family to avoid them being reported to the police.”
He said that in one case, the family of a pregnant 14-year-old girl demanded RM15,000 from the parents of her 17-year-old boyfriend.
Chong said that in such cases, both parties are responsible and parents should not have allowed their children to get into such situations in the first place.
Ooi Bee Poh, 48, who was at the press conference yesterday is another parent who is looking for her missing daughter.
Her youngest daughter Wong Choi Ting, 17, went missing after a visit from her boyfriend from Johor.
“She was supposed to send her boyfriend to the bus station after his two-day visit to our home,” said a distraught Ooi.
However, she was told by her second daughter that Choi Ting had packed her clothes and said she was leaving.
Ooi has not been able to contact her daughter since Dec 30 as her handphone has been switched off.
According to Chong, Choi Ting is just one of three cases reported in the past 10 days.
WikiLeaks and the Internet's Long War
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Some historians like to talk about the "Long War" of the 20th century, a conflict spanning both world wars and the wars in Korea and Vietnam. They stress that this Long War was a single struggle over what kind of political system would rule the world - democracy, communism or fascism - and that what a war is fought over is often more important than the specifics of individual armies and nations.
The Internet, too, is embroiled in a Long War. The latest fighters on one side are Julian Assange, founder of WikiLeaks, and the media-dubbed "hacker army" that has risen in his defense in the past week, staging coordinated attacks on government and corporate institutions that have stood in his way.
They come from a long tradition of Internet expansionists, who hold that the Web should remake the rest of the world in its own image. They believe that decentralized, transparent and radically open networks should be the organizing principle for all things in society, big and small.
In this current conflict, the loose confederation of "hacktivists" who rallied in support of Assange in what they called Operation Payback, targeted MasterCard, PayPal, Visa and other companies with a denial-of-service attack, effectively preventing Web sites from operating. It's a global effort of often surprising scope; Dutch police said they arrested a 16-year-old last week suspected to be involved.
Their cause, from which Assange has publicly distanced himself, follows the simple logic of independence. One self-declared spokesperson for the "Anonymous" group doing battle for WikiLeaks explained its philosophy to the Guardian newspaper. "We're against corporations and government interfering on the Internet," said the 22-year-old, identified only as Coldblood. "We believe it should be open and free for everyone."
The battle between "Anonymous" and the establishment isn't the first in the Long War between media-dubbed "hackers" and institutions, and considering the conflict's progression is key to understanding where it will lead.
In the early 1980s, Richard Stallman, then an employee at MIT's artificial-intelligence lab, was denied permission to access and edit computer code for the lab's laser printer. Frustrated, he kicked off what he calls GNU, a massively collaborative project to create a free and sharable operating system. His efforts sparked a widespread movement challenging the restriction of access to software through patents. Supporters asserted that they had a right to control the code in their own computers.
The battle reached far beyond Stallman, eventually pitting corporations and patent-holders against this early generation of free-software advocates. The bulk of most software is still private, though open-source projects have gained popularity and even dominance in some arenas. Stallman continues to advocate for free software.
Another major milestone in the conflict arose in 1999, when Shawn Fanning launched Napster, allowing for seamless peer-to-peer sharing of content. The service ballooned, claiming more than 25 million users at its peak and resulting in mountains of copyrighted content flowing freely across the Web. The site was sued and shut down in 2001. However, the ensuing battle over copyright law drew a line between industry representatives, such as the Recording Industry Association of America, and the "hacker" advocates for the free flow of content.
Though Napster was forced to stop operating as a free service, the culture and innovation that it launched continued to grow. This led to the creation in 2001 of BitTorrent, a distributed and difficult-to-track peer-to-peer method of transferring large files.
Large-scale use of this technology emerged in 2003 in the form of the Pirate Bay, which indexes BitTorrent files en masse. The site's founders and operators, Gottfrid Svartholm Warg, Carl Lundstrom, Fredrik Neij and Peter Sunde, would emerge as the Assanges of this battle, permitting a massive and continuous leak of copyrighted content in the face of waves of police raids and lawsuits - persisting even beyond their eventual conviction on infringement charges in 2009.
The WikiLeaks fight is in the tradition of these conflicts, just on a much vaster scale. As the Internet has become an integral part of our everyday lives, narrow and technical questions about who gets to run and edit computer code have morphed first into battles over copyrighted content, and now into fights at the highest levels of government secrecy and corporate power. Assange's efforts to undermine the secrecy and control of established institutions - and the attacks his defenders have launched against MasterCard, a Swedish prosecutor and possibly Sarah Palin's political action committee - are the latest and highest form of a war that has been waged for decades.
So what is the future of this Long War?
In his recent book "The Master Switch," Columbia law professor Tim Wu makes the case that the Internet, on its most basic level, is just like any other communications medium. As such, we shouldn't be surprised to see consolidation and government control over the Web. It's true that most other media - movies, radio and television - have gone through phases of wild growth and experimentation, eventually settling into a pattern of consolidation and control.
Why should we expect any different of the Web? Is the arc of the Internet's Long War predetermined?
One key factor is embedded in the history of the Web and the many iterations of the Long War itself: The Internet has cultivated a public vested in its freedom. Each round of conflict draws in additional supporters, from hackers to the growing numbers of open-government activists and everyday users who believe, more and more, that the radical openness of the Web should set the pattern for everything.
As the battlefield has become more vast - from laser printer code to transparency in global diplomacy - the Internet's standing army continues to grow, and is spoiling for a fight.
Newscribe : get free news in real time
The Internet, too, is embroiled in a Long War. The latest fighters on one side are Julian Assange, founder of WikiLeaks, and the media-dubbed "hacker army" that has risen in his defense in the past week, staging coordinated attacks on government and corporate institutions that have stood in his way.
They come from a long tradition of Internet expansionists, who hold that the Web should remake the rest of the world in its own image. They believe that decentralized, transparent and radically open networks should be the organizing principle for all things in society, big and small.
On the other side are those who believe fundamentally that the world should remake the Web in its own image. This side believes that the Internet at its heart is simply a tool, something that should be shaped to serve the demands of existing institutions. Each side seeks to mold the technology and standards of the Web to suit its particular vision.
Their cause, from which Assange has publicly distanced himself, follows the simple logic of independence. One self-declared spokesperson for the "Anonymous" group doing battle for WikiLeaks explained its philosophy to the Guardian newspaper. "We're against corporations and government interfering on the Internet," said the 22-year-old, identified only as Coldblood. "We believe it should be open and free for everyone."
The battle between "Anonymous" and the establishment isn't the first in the Long War between media-dubbed "hackers" and institutions, and considering the conflict's progression is key to understanding where it will lead.
In the early 1980s, Richard Stallman, then an employee at MIT's artificial-intelligence lab, was denied permission to access and edit computer code for the lab's laser printer. Frustrated, he kicked off what he calls GNU, a massively collaborative project to create a free and sharable operating system. His efforts sparked a widespread movement challenging the restriction of access to software through patents. Supporters asserted that they had a right to control the code in their own computers.
The battle reached far beyond Stallman, eventually pitting corporations and patent-holders against this early generation of free-software advocates. The bulk of most software is still private, though open-source projects have gained popularity and even dominance in some arenas. Stallman continues to advocate for free software.
Another major milestone in the conflict arose in 1999, when Shawn Fanning launched Napster, allowing for seamless peer-to-peer sharing of content. The service ballooned, claiming more than 25 million users at its peak and resulting in mountains of copyrighted content flowing freely across the Web. The site was sued and shut down in 2001. However, the ensuing battle over copyright law drew a line between industry representatives, such as the Recording Industry Association of America, and the "hacker" advocates for the free flow of content.
Though Napster was forced to stop operating as a free service, the culture and innovation that it launched continued to grow. This led to the creation in 2001 of BitTorrent, a distributed and difficult-to-track peer-to-peer method of transferring large files.
Large-scale use of this technology emerged in 2003 in the form of the Pirate Bay, which indexes BitTorrent files en masse. The site's founders and operators, Gottfrid Svartholm Warg, Carl Lundstrom, Fredrik Neij and Peter Sunde, would emerge as the Assanges of this battle, permitting a massive and continuous leak of copyrighted content in the face of waves of police raids and lawsuits - persisting even beyond their eventual conviction on infringement charges in 2009.
The WikiLeaks fight is in the tradition of these conflicts, just on a much vaster scale. As the Internet has become an integral part of our everyday lives, narrow and technical questions about who gets to run and edit computer code have morphed first into battles over copyrighted content, and now into fights at the highest levels of government secrecy and corporate power. Assange's efforts to undermine the secrecy and control of established institutions - and the attacks his defenders have launched against MasterCard, a Swedish prosecutor and possibly Sarah Palin's political action committee - are the latest and highest form of a war that has been waged for decades.
So what is the future of this Long War?
In his recent book "The Master Switch," Columbia law professor Tim Wu makes the case that the Internet, on its most basic level, is just like any other communications medium. As such, we shouldn't be surprised to see consolidation and government control over the Web. It's true that most other media - movies, radio and television - have gone through phases of wild growth and experimentation, eventually settling into a pattern of consolidation and control.
Why should we expect any different of the Web? Is the arc of the Internet's Long War predetermined?
One key factor is embedded in the history of the Web and the many iterations of the Long War itself: The Internet has cultivated a public vested in its freedom. Each round of conflict draws in additional supporters, from hackers to the growing numbers of open-government activists and everyday users who believe, more and more, that the radical openness of the Web should set the pattern for everything.
As the battlefield has become more vast - from laser printer code to transparency in global diplomacy - the Internet's standing army continues to grow, and is spoiling for a fight.
By Tim Hwang
Tim Hwang is the founder of ROFLCon, a conference about Web culture and Internet celebrity, and a formerresearcher at Harvard's Berkman Center for Internet and Society.Newscribe : get free news in real time
Monday, January 10, 2011
China -US seek to 'reduce misculation'
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China reiterates opposition to US arms sales to island
Defense Minister Liang Guanglie, however, reiterated China's opposition to US arms sales to Taiwan, an issue which visiting US Defense Secretary Robert Gates sidestepped.
Liang admitted China had made progress in building its military might and had developed weapons to meet its sovereignty and security requirements.
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China told the US its military growth was consistent with its increasing global roletechnology .
Mr Gates is on a four-day trip to China to cool tensions before President Hu Jintao visits the US next week.
Military ties between the two countries were briefly suspended early last year over a US sale of arms to Taiwan.
Mr Liang and Mr Gates both told journalists after their meeting that they agreed strong military co-operation should continue and should not be affected by politics.
Mr Liang said Beijing remained concerned about US dealings in Taiwan, before seeking to reassure the US about China's military ambitions.
"The efforts that we place on the research and development of weapons systems are by no means targeted at any third country," he said.
He said China's military development was "entirely appropriate and consistent with China's rise as an economic and political power".
Mr Gates said both US PresidentBarack Obama and Chinese President Hu Jintao "clearly believe that a more robust military-to-military relationship is important".
He said he was convinced that the Chinese military leaders were "as committed to fulfilling the mandate of our two presidents" as he was.
Mr Gates will travel to South Korea and Japan later in the week, with the issue of North Korea high on the agenda.
Watching closely
Days before Mr Gates landed in Beijing, websites published pictures apparently showing a working prototype of a Chinese stealth aircraft, invisible to radar.
China has not officially commented on the photos, but they have once again put the spotlight on China's military modernisation.
Photos of a possible working prototype of a Chinese-made stealth aircraft were recently leaked
The US has the world's only operational stealth fighter, the Lockheed Martin F-22 Raptor.
In the run-up to the talks, Mr Gates said that the Chinese "clearly have potential to put some of our capabilities at risk".
"We have to pay attention to them, we have to respond appropriately with our own programmes."
The US has been watching closely as China increases its military capacity - in particular, its development of a so-called "carrier killer" missile, a land-based system which could sink an aircraft carrier from up to 1,800 miles (2,900km) away.
US battle groups - including aircraft carriers - are stationed in the South China Sea.
The US defence budget is still the biggest in the world at around $700bn, but China's is the second largest and the rate of increase may well go up this year.
China's official military budget quadrupled between 1999 and 2009 as the country's economy grew.
Last year, China announced a smaller-than-usual 7.5% increase to $76.3bn.
The BBC's Martin Patience in Beijing says there is concern in China that the US is trying to encircle it by strengthening its military alliances around the region.
In February last year, Beijing cut military ties with the US, after Washington sold $6.4bn (£4.1bn) of arms to Taiwan.
The Beijing considers the self-governed island a breakaway province - it has hundreds of missiles pointed at Taiwan and has threatened to use force to bring it under its control if it moved towards declaring formal independence.
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Sino-US militaries seek to 'reduce miscalculation'
By Li Xiaokun and Cheng Guangjin (China Daily) Updated: 2011-01-11 07:28
 Defense Minister Liang Guanglie and US Secretary of Defense |
BEIJING - China and the United States on Monday agreed to jointly reduce the risk of "miscalculation" between the two powerful armed forces, as they restore military ties frayed by a massive US arms deal to Taiwan a year ago.
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Liang and Gates, after a morning of talks, announced during a joint news conference at the headquarters of China's Central Military Commission that they agreed to explore ways to reduce "misunderstanding" and "miscalculation".
"We are in strong agreement that in order to reduce the chances of miscommunication, misunderstanding or miscalculation, it is important that our military-to-military ties are solid, consistent and not subject to shifting political winds," Gates told reporters.
Gates also invited the chief of the People's Liberation Army's (PLA) general staff to visit Washington in the first half of this year.
Liang said they had "agreed that sustained and reliable military-to-military contacts will help reduce misunderstanding and miscalculation".
Both sides should join hands in the spirit of "respect, mutual trust, equality and reciprocity" to ensure the healthy and steady development of the relationship, he added.
Liang said that Chief of General Staff of the PLA Chen Bingde will visit the US in the first half of 2011, adding that exchanges of high-level officials and between educational institutions will continue.
On US arms sales to Taiwan, Liang said they "severely damage China's core interests".
"China's position has been clear and consistent. We are against it," he told reporters.
"We do not want to see such things happen again. We do not want US weapon sales to Taiwan to further damage the relationship between China and the United States and the two nations' armed forces," Liang added.
Asked about reports that Taiwan is buying MGM140 ATACMS (Army Tactical Missile Systems) surface-to-surface missiles from the US, Gates said the missiles are just for defense use, and were approved in 2008 by the Bush administration.
Yet he admitted US arms deals to Taiwan had hurt relations.
The two defense chiefs also denied their governments are entering an arms race.
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But he said China's military technology lags far behind the world's most advanced armed forces and does not threaten any country.
China is still years behind US capabilities in radar-evading aircraft, and even by 2025 the US would still have far more of these aircraft than any other nation in the world, Gates said before arriving in Beijing.
He also explained that Washington's repeated joint exercises with Seoul in seas not far from China in 2010 and the current presence of three US aircraft carriers in that region is by no means targeted at Beijing but Pyongyang.
Major General Luo Yuan, with the PLA Academy of Military Sciences, said the MGM140 ATACMS missiles, with a maximum firing range of 300 km, are able to reach Chinese mainland coastal targets across the 170 km-wide Taiwan Straits.
"They are obviously offensive weapons in terms of their capability," said Luo.
He also said US arms sales to Taiwan violated its own promises to China.
The US pledged in a joint communiqu signed in 1982 that it will not pursue a long-term policy of arms sales to Taiwan, the scale of arms sales would not surpass the scale at the time when the two nations established formal diplomatic ties, and arms sales would be gradually decreased till the problem is finally solved.
"It has been 28 years since the communiqu was signed, but the US has yet to fulfil its commitments," said Luo.
Gates arrived in Beijing on Sunday evening. He also met Vice-Chairman of the Central Military Commission and Vice-President, Xi Jinping, on Monday.
Xi expressed the hope that military-to-military relations could move forward in a healthy and stable manner.
On Tuesday Gates will meet President Hu Jintao, who is scheduled to visit Washington later this month.
Tang Yingzi, Wang Chenyan, Xinhua and Reuters contributed to this story.
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Robert Gates in China: Beijing seeks to ease US fears
China told the US its military growth was consistent with its increasing global role
China's defence minister has sought to play down the country's military build-up, after talks with US counterpart Robert Gates in Beijing.
Liang Guanglie insisted China posed no threat and was decades behind nations with more advanced Mr Gates is on a four-day trip to China to cool tensions before President Hu Jintao visits the US next week.
Military ties between the two countries were briefly suspended early last year over a US sale of arms to Taiwan.
Mr Liang and Mr Gates both told journalists after their meeting that they agreed strong military co-operation should continue and should not be affected by politics.
Mr Liang said Beijing remained concerned about US dealings in Taiwan, before seeking to reassure the US about China's military ambitions.
"The efforts that we place on the research and development of weapons systems are by no means targeted at any third country," he said.
He said China's military development was "entirely appropriate and consistent with China's rise as an economic and political power".
Mr Gates said both US President
He said he was convinced that the Chinese military leaders were "as committed to fulfilling the mandate of our two presidents" as he was.
Mr Gates will travel to South Korea and Japan later in the week, with the issue of North Korea high on the agenda.
Watching closely
Days before Mr Gates landed in Beijing, websites published pictures apparently showing a working prototype of a Chinese stealth aircraft, invisible to radar.
China has not officially commented on the photos, but they have once again put the spotlight on China's military modernisation.
Photos of a possible working prototype of a Chinese-made stealth aircraft were recently leaked
In the run-up to the talks, Mr Gates said that the Chinese "clearly have potential to put some of our capabilities at risk".
"We have to pay attention to them, we have to respond appropriately with our own programmes."
The US has been watching closely as China increases its military capacity - in particular, its development of a so-called "carrier killer" missile, a land-based system which could sink an aircraft carrier from up to 1,800 miles (2,900km) away.
US battle groups - including aircraft carriers - are stationed in the South China Sea.
The US defence budget is still the biggest in the world at around $700bn, but China's is the second largest and the rate of increase may well go up this year.
China's official military budget quadrupled between 1999 and 2009 as the country's economy grew.
Last year, China announced a smaller-than-usual 7.5% increase to $76.3bn.
The BBC's Martin Patience in Beijing says there is concern in China that the US is trying to encircle it by strengthening its military alliances around the region.
In February last year, Beijing cut military ties with the US, after Washington sold $6.4bn (£4.1bn) of arms to Taiwan.
The Beijing considers the self-governed island a breakaway province - it has hundreds of missiles pointed at Taiwan and has threatened to use force to bring it under its control if it moved towards declaring formal independence.
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From other news sites
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Reuters UK U.S., China say deeper military ties needed to avoid missteps 32 mins ago
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Melbourne Age China seeks to ease US arms fears 1 hr ago
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Yahoo ! UK and Ireland US, China play down military rivalry 2 hrs ago -
San Jose Mercury News* US, China defense chiefs mend frayed military ties 4 hrs ago
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SINA US defense chief in Beijing to bolster military ties 8 hrs ago
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Stronger demand expected to boost wealth-management business
By DALJIT DHESI daljit@thestar.com.my
TweetPETALING JAYA: Despite the forecast for a moderation in economic growth, the wealth-management business is poised for better times in line with stronger demand from customers to grow and preserve their wealth.
The rise of the mass-affluent segment is also seen as a catalyst in boosting the revenue of banks offering such services.
The local wealth-management industry is slated to grow at 12% to 14% in terms of revenue this year, driven among others by the mass-affluent segment, according to Citibank Bhd head of wealth management (products and Citigold segment marketing) Ronnie Lim.
Ong Shi Jie says there are many catalysts to propel the industry forwardLim said the second wave of quantitative easing (QE2) by the US Federal Reserve would spark further demand for treasury products in the emerging market.
Treasury products like high-yielding retail bonds, derivative products with equity and foreign exchange as the underlying assets were likely to experience good demand, he noted.
QE refers to the Federal Reserve's efforts to jump-start the economy and stave off deflation by buying back US$600bil in Treasury bonds, hence putting more money into the system.
OCBC Bank (M) Bhd head of wealth management Ong Shi Jie, without specifying the numbers, said the bank expected percentage growth in the “high teens” for its fee income-related wealth-management products like unit trusts, structured investments and insurance.
“There are indeed many catalysts to propel the wealth-management industry forward. For example, the insurance product penetration in Malaysia is still low compared with our neighbours. Our capital markets are liberalising and becoming increasingly plugged into the global landscape.
“Furthermore, Islamic financial planning is still at its infancy stage and, hence, there is a lot of room for growth. This augurs well for the wealth-management business,” she added.
United Overseas Bank (M) Bhd (UOB) head of wealth management (investment, personal financial services division) Samantha Lim expects the bank's wealth-management business to pick up this year as more sidelined investors return to make use of the opportunities and ride on the momentum of global activities.
She said the bank's wealth-management business was currently growing at about 30%, especially the investment business.
“Liquidity is ample, investors are looking for yield pick-up over deposit returns,” she said.
Moving forward, the investment opportunity in emerging markets, the US and in sectors such as commodities would provide room for the business.
Alliance Bank Malaysia Bhd head of integrated wealth management Marc-Olivier Francq expects overall retail wealth-management business to improve across various products such as investments, insurance, takaful and stock broking due to various macroeconomic factors.
On the challenges facing the business, Citibank's Lim said it was two-fold talent and the ability to roll out new products that could cater to the needs of the mass affluent.
“In the wealth-management space, talents such as treasury specialists, relationship managers, investment consultants, product managers and wealth practitioners are very much needed in Malaysia. Key to a sustainable growth is the ability to hire and retain talents,” he noted.
UOB's Lim said one of the immediate challenges in wealth management was the ability to effectively balance the risk of interest rate hikes while continuing to ride on the wave of liquidity as sudden interest rate hikes might adversely impact certain investments.
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