Giant Robot Store and GR2 News
What started off nice with Gary Locke getting his own coffee and wearing a backpack becoming a media darling, and then Joe Biden visiting for more goodwill, leave it to basketball to keep things gangster. It looks like a busted play, Georgetown player gets the ball, China swarms on defense, then something happens and violence. There’s even chair throwing, it’s a full bench clearing brawl that looks like a riot. Just a few years ago, I don’t think basket brawls were happening in China, but they are now. I recall Yaoming telling the media in America that in China it’s not ok to dunk on people, but I’m sure it is now. This brawl will be hot on the news. [youtube]n5LTx_9GibA[/youtube]
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Did you know that the honey you might be eating isn’t as clean as you’d think? Yes, honey is clear and pretty, almost like an amber color at times, and that means it’s made by bees. But did you know that the US can make 48% of the honey we consume and the rest has to come from other places? The honey you eat might not be safe. Some of it is from Asia, and it’s labelled and deemed unsafe. It’s not ok to import it to some countries, but it could be in your US sold bottle. There’s no definitive word as to who has what, but it’s here. The 52% that isn’t being produced in the US, might be from China and might have lead in it. (Food Safety News – Honey Laundering)
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On July 20th, we reported the story of a foreign blogger in China who discovered a fake Apple store in Kunming, China. A week later, we brought you the breaking story that there were, in fact, five fake Apple retail spaces in Kunming. Now, several weeks later, it turns out that there were not five Apple stores in Kunming, but twenty-seven. Yes, a two followed by a seven. Okay, we know Apple makes great technology and its portable consumer products, like the iPad2, are really hot right now. But this is quite literally ridiculous. For one thing, it shows a serious lack of originality, which has actually never been much of a concern in China’s shanzhai (fake goods) trade. China’s Administration for Industry and Commerce (AIC) has, of course, ordered all the stores to stop using Apple’s logo and its variants. This was after Apple China complained to the government yesterday, August 11th, about copyright and trademark infringement. Unfortunately, news reports cannot say at this time whether the fake Apple stores have been selling counterfeit Apple products, or legitimate products which have been smuggled into the country. The AIC has guaranteed that it will increase its vigilance in monitoring illegal Apple stores, and set up a complaint hotline to address the problem. In the meantime, still no word on whether Steve Jobs is putting on his angry face and hopping a plane to China. (Reuters – 27 Fake Apples in Kunming)
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The Chinese term “Shanzhai” literally means “mountain village” or “mountain stronghold”. But in modern Chinese, usage of the term is derived from a way in Cantonese slang to describe products of inferior quality or, more commonly, products which are imitation or fake. Now, it is well-known that China has unfortunately been a major global source of intellectual property rights violations for decades. In recent weeks, for example, we have reported the stories of the fake Apple and Ikea stores in Kunming in China’s southern Yunnan Province. And these are great examples of how imitation products and retail fakery in China have entered a new dimension of pervasiveness and boldness. At the link, you’ll read an analysis by a Chinese blogger who intends to conduct a research project on the Shanzhai phenomenon in China. After reading the text and looking at the accompanying images, you’ll be struck by, or reminded of, how much fakery occurs in China, and how some of the most famous brands and icons have been tweaked. Another aspect of the Shanzhai phenomenon touched upon in this blogger’s post is the concern and interest China’s fake product and design activity is causing within the global advertising, design and art communities. And frankly, we don’t blame them for being worried. (The Creators Project – Shanzhai Fakery in China)
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Shi Daoxin is not your average Chinese Buddhist monk, and we’re not just talking about the hipster glasses. He uses an iPhone, takes copious pictures of himself, has a blog and a music career, and is very popular with the ladies. And he may be the new face of Chinese Buddhism. And, oh yeah, everything he does pretty much flies in the face of the traditional, almost clichéd, image of the Buddhist monk as a quiet, thoughtful, humble man of piety, poverty and peace. And as you might expect, Shi has created some controversy within China over his very public, almost flamboyant, approach to being a monk. Shi is 29 and has been a Buddhist monk since he was 17. His position is that as the world grows more modern and technological, so must Buddhism embrace technology and modernity. Who knows? Perhaps the man is right. Or perhaps this is another example of personality-cult building, a craving for celebrity from an unlikely source. It is pleasing to note that Shi donates all the proceeds from the sales of his music to charity. But as for what this unusual monk truly represents, go to the link, have a look around, and judge for yourself. (21CB – Modern Hipster Buddhist Monk)
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