The Chat Show Format

During the Xmas and Western New Year, most bloggers and commenters turn their attention to serious gluttony, old friends, new digital toys and the nagging thought that they should makeover their blog to shore up flagging readership stats.

As nothing extraordinary has taken placed other than multiple bombing atrocities by Islamo-fascists in Nigeria, I’m adopting a lightweight chat show format, touching on everything possible minus all depth and detail. You may therefore reasonably conclude that KT is no Thought Leader, with the notable exception of my cinematic and musical judgements.

Serious reportage over this period was monopolised by Al Jazeera and their coverage was realised by a small army of excellent reporters, including a number of women from various Middle Eastern countries. The latter is a tremendous development, when combined with female activism in the Islamic world. CNN and similar garbage media organisations must be feeling accounting pressures as an increasing number of national media outlets sign up for Al Jazeera news feeds.

I have a particular loathing of CNN after being restricted to its offerings when in Korea in 2000 during another one of those Lebanon crises.

Strangle Anderson Cooper and free the world.

My favourite Al Jazeera Xmas piece was on Libya’s tourist potential, friendly people and its abundance of Roman ruins. The standup report was done in front of a souk with a background ambience of pulsating reggae. Aside from their cultural attachment to celebratory gunfire, the choice of tourist friendly reggae riddims has to be applauded. My kind of Uprising.

The Department of Guidance.

Undoubtedly, the best development in a generally same old, same old Sino-blog world has been Adam Cathcart’s decision to open a new site dealing exclusively with the Sino-DPROK relationship HERE. This addresses the schizophrenic qualities evident on his older site HERE.. SINO-NK is being staffed as I write, and has got off to tremendous start assisted by Adam’s furious tweeting campaign. Check it out.

Writing of Twitter, I recently signed up to follow five heavy-hitters. However, after spruiking Victor Shih for years, I am totally disappointed by his serial contributions on this social media platform. I suspect his wife bought him a Iphone recently, and he is still dazzled by its instant out-there qualities.
Must admit that my Twitter campaign to amass followers has been a complete failure. To date, one sign up and it was a common garden variety pervert.

The best end-of-2011 post has to be Sinostands China on the brink? – An infographic HERE. Excellent writing, but with few comments since I suspect most commenters are plumb tuckered out after a hard year acquiring keyboard RSI.

The next logical progression is to reduce the Nine Brink Points to one or two probabilities.

I’m getting rid of Brink Point No. 3 dealing with Excess Bachelors/70% of single Chinese women say home ownership is a prerequisite for marriage. Think about the fact that around 5% of China’s total GDP derives from its massive sex industry. A dysfunctional solution to be sure, but it nicely intersects with traditional Sino-customs and practices.

The Department of Plagiarisation

The Wall Street Journal today posted a light piece on the standup comedian Cui Baoyin titled Chinese corruption gets comedian’s kick HERE.

“But Cui saves some of his sharpest wit for the private sector. In one bit, he tells of a Chinese container-ship captain captured by Somali pirates who inform him that he and his vessel will be ransomed for $3 million.

“I can get you the $3 million,” the Chinese captain says, “but I will need you to give me a receipt for $7 million.”

God, this is fucking lame. I posted a far wittier version of this Somali joke on China-Divide a few years ago. Impossible to substantiate my claim as CD now only exists in a truncated state of limbo HERE. Chinadivide has to have been the best site of its kind to grace the virtual world, and it is sorely missed for its broad church and very muscular commenting policy. No precious stay- on-topic moderation policy and Kai Pan is similarly missed.

KTs Military Affairs Desk.

The Desk ran a piece titled Why the Pacific will turn Red!!!! in June on my old site HERE, built around an article by David Axe. When I reposted the piece on ChinaGeeks a few months ago, it led to a shit storm of commentary and, incidentally provided this site with it all-time three numeral click record (but no comments).

Today, Wired HERE publishes (maybe republished) another piece by Axe in the same vein: China’s Noisy Subs Get Busier — And Easier to Track.

It’s definitely worth a read, especially it you have concerns about the PLA-N encroaching on your backyard swimming pool.

Survive the New Year. Stick to ginger beer and don’t make any outrageous resolutions, okay.