Madness is a charcoal filter

William Pesek and I have something in common. We both refuse to help smoker friends buy cigarettes at the airport duty free shops. Read his interesting article about anti-smoking woes in Japan. It is quite sad to see such a sophisticated and advanced nation stuck with an archaic habit. As the article points out, for the Japanese government, it's an economic issue; health comes second.

Also check out David Sedaris' book, When you are Engulfed in Flames, where he goes to Japan (of all places) to quit smoking.

Wow Just Wow

Twins general manager Bill Smith, on Livan Hernandez, who improved to 10-6 with a 5.29 earned-run average with Saturday's victory over Texas: "I'll take the (10) wins. Who do you want, a guy who's 10-15 with a 2.80 ERA or a guy who's 16-8 with a 7.00 ERA? I'll take the 16-8."

Remind me again... are they paying this guy? Furthermore... why hasn't he been fired yet?

Again, why why why do people even LOOK at the wins column when it comes to pitchers? What is this madness? Can't Minnesota afford someone with some basic, modern baseball knowledge?

Dear Bill,
ERA = VERY IMPORTANT
Wins = NOT IMPORTANT

Well... it's not my team, so I don't give a shit. Red Sox fans should thank their lucky stars every single day that we have Theo Epstein as our GM.

Alex says: "I am Ironman"

Robert Downey Jr.? Nope. I've got a real Ironman right here! Congratulations Alex on finishing your first Ironman. I have witnessed the metamorphosis you have gone through in the last couple years: from getting healthy, to running, to biking, then to swimming, and diligently putting it together into achieving this goal which I'm sure is only a start to many more future accomplishments.

Very proud of you buddy. Let's drink together soon.

Well Deserved

Am I finally agreeing with China in something? China Vice President Xi Jinping gave a speech that was very critical towards Donald Tsang and the Hong Kong government, during his visit just this week. Hopefully, Xi had the same issues in mind as the ones I've been talking about during the past two years of Tsang's administration (the year after Tung Chee Wah, and the official year when he was "elected"/appointed).

Michael DeGolyer certainly had the same issues in mind. His opinion piece (above) lists all the issues I've talked about in this blog. DeGolyer's article really summarizes where Tsang has failed and where he should have paid attention. Most of Tsang's faults are really the result of negligence (i.e. ignoring the environment). Other faults come from what seems like a clear choice (i.e. choosing to shy away from the "assistant hiring debacle"), or poor management (i.e. typhoon aftermath in the New Territories).

Well, time for me to shut up. Just read the article.

Bravo to Xi for not allowing this trip to be just a PR pat-on-the-back for Tsang.

World's Worst Tourists

No longer are Americans the world's worst tourists. Sadly, China has taken the cake in this category. A French travel website surveyed 4000 hotel staff whom reflected that the worst tourists are those from China. India came in a distant second, and the French came in third. You can read about it here.

I guess this isn't really news. I have experienced the ignorant Chinese tourist first hand, and it is not pretty. Let's take away the spitting and squatting, since it's kind of a cultural thing. However, the lack of manners and lack of respect are actions I just don't understand. It is sad to see Chinese people (including many Hong Kong people) acting so selfish and disrespectful while in a foreign country.

Don't worry, things haven't changed completely. Americans were still voted as the loudest.

Sympathy

Last week, a kid from Beijing went to Shanghai, charged into a police station in Shanghai, and started killing police officers. The toll from his action was six dead, and four wounded. The curious thing about this incident, is that Chinese netizens are praising this kid as a hero. The story (or rumor) is that this kid was accused ot stealing a bicycle, arrested, and beaten, resulting in him having become impotent. This rampage was his revenge. Internet folk have created websites and tributes to the kid for his heroic actions.

The true horror of this story is that the rumored unjust treatment by the police, and the kid's motive for revenge are so believable. The netizens aren't gullible. They are just so accustomed to corruption and incidents of injustice that to them, the kid's accusations come as no surprise.

China's biggest enemy is still itself.

Clarity... again

Out of nowhere, the Hong Kong Government decides they want to donate HKD100 billion of public funds for the rebuilding of Sichuan. There are a few problems that have arisen from this announcement.

Fairness?
Hong Kongers living in poverty, feel that the government has shunned them. This aid was so easily and so quickly offered to Sichuan, while the impoverished have to protest and beg, only to get very little in return. Indeed many Hong Kongers are facing economic difficulties at the moment, and there have been noticeable cases where the government has ignored pleas for help. I'm sure many agree that money should be donated, but they're also asking, "what about me?".

Filtering.
Where will this money go? To Sichuan, of course! Not so fast. China is notorious for its corruption and its lack of clarity. This is afterall the blood and sweat of Hong Kong taxpayers. We want to know that the money is going to the right place and not into the pockets of corrupt officials, or corrupt contractors. This type of skepticism should be a shock to no one. There's nothing wrong with wanting to know how your money is spent. Have a plan. It is foolish to make such an announcement without a plan to reassure people their donation will be put to good use. We don't have a choice whether to give the money or not, so at least try to put our minds at ease.

Surprise!
Where is this sudden enthusiasm from the government coming from? The earthquake occurred in May. Why offer the donation now? There is speculation that Donald Tsang wants to offer this as a gift to vice president, Xi Jinping during his visit to Hong Kong. This is unlikely, but you do have to question the timing of this offering. Why make a move that might raise eyebrows? Use common sense. Try to make it our decision instead of just yours. Again, if the government proposed this donation earlier on, when people were in more of a giving mood, perhaps they wouldn't be met with such resistance.

Safety First

Here we see Chinese soldiers preparing to defeat terrorists. No joke. These are undoctored photos, and they were published in a newspaper (in the third photo, you can see signs in the background stating this is a anti-terrorist training exercise). I'm guessing this is in preparation for the Olympics. This is also the dumbest shit I've seen in a long time.


Is a caption even necessary for this photo? What the hell? Soldiers on Segways? Is this their feeble attempt at being cool? It is failing miserably. This isn't even funny. It is very sad. Please stop.


What? So they're using flame throwers against terrorists? How is this even remotely useful in an anti-terrorist situation? You'll likely be facing a large crowd which will likely consist of innocent bystanders. Oh wait, but if you accidentally charbroil 100 innocent people, you can just block the media from reporting it. One hundred suddenly turns to one, and of course they'll say that one person was the terrorist.


What do we have here? This water truck is:
A) Spraying "terrorists" to disperse them.
B) Misting people because it's too hot.
C) Helping prepare for a new Olympic event: "rain sprints".

Oh! I get it now. They're spraying this water sprinkler style in order to extinguish the flames, in case all that flame-throwing gets out of hand. What else could it be? This weak sauce stream of water can't possibly stop a terrorist.

(Morons.)

Then again, these "anti-terror" drills are probably actually "anti-protester" drills.