the blog of the guy who wrote

that book about china

Poorly Made in China continues to do well. For those interested, a quick roundup of good news from around the world:

1. Bangkok Post. In a recent editorial, the Thai newspaper said that the book is “strongly recommended,” especially for those who want to study Chinese business practices.

2. Financial Times. A brief review was printed along with mentions of two others, noting that there has been a shift from quantity to quality in books on China. An unusual side note: Poorly Made in China was a nominee for the Financial Times and Goldman Sachs business book of 2009. It was exciting there for a while. In the end, just glad to see that we at least made their paper, and pleased that the book was (appropriately) mentioned in the travel section!

3. Germany Chamber of Commerce. In the group’s October-November 2009 publication, the Shanghai-based club had some nice things to say about the book (“strong meat with a sweet note”).

4. Globe and Mail. The Canadian paper wrote about how China has a long way to go in the area of quality control. One of the points from the article: Chinese workers cannot often afford the products that they manufacture. I made a point of it in the book, that this is a contributing factory to quality failures.

5. Business Times (Singapore). “Chronicling The China Rip-Off” was the title of this book review by Victor Fic. He praised the book as a meaningful warning and asked: “Is China listening?” Unfortunately, the article is locked behind a firewall.

6. Audible. Poorly Made in China has been picked up by Audible, the audio company now owned by Amazon.com. It may take a while to produce, but this is good news for those who prefer the sound of a book to the look of it.

You might notice that all of the publications mentioned above are foreign. Not a single American publication. I don’t know why U.S. media has not been on top of this title, but they might have been more aggressive on the reporting– especially given how much is at stake for consumers in America.

admin China

When it comes to discussing sensitive subjects, folks in China are characteristically illusive polite. Interestingly enough, they can also come across as uniquely forthright.

On the subject of death, Mainland Chinese can be frank to the extreme. It’s fascinating, especially when you consider that this cultural trait was more than likely reinforced by the Cultural Revolution, a dark period of 20th century history during which tens of millions quite literally starved and the threat of death was everywhere.

The sign here is from a boulevard located in South China, and even those who don’t read Chinese can gather its meaning.

admin China

Looks like a White House visit with the Dalai Lama has been cancelled. From this morning’s Washington Post:

“In an attempt to gain favor with China, the United States pressured Tibetan representatives to postpone a meeting between the Dalai Lama and President Obama until after Obama’s summit with his Chinese counterpart, Hu Jintao, scheduled for next month, according to diplomats, government officials and other sources familiar with the talks. For the first time since 1991, the Tibetan spiritual leader will visit Washington this week and not meet with the president. Since 1991, he has been here 10 times.”

According to some, the sudden change is about economics.

“Samdhong Rinpoche, the Tibetan prime minister-in-exile, has accused the United States and other Western nations of ‘appeasement’ toward China as its economic weight grows. ”Today, economic interests are much greater than other interests,” he said.

On the one hand, it is disturbing to see the White House may be bowing to political pressure. On the other, far too much importance has been placed on this religious leader. The Dalai Lama of course means a lot to Tibetans, but he has become a silly symbol for Americans, the point having once been suggested by Bill Murray.

admin China