I went with my friend Sean to the Core Pacific City the other day. If you have ever played Sim City, it's one of the landmarks you can build. In the game it's known by it's more common name, "The Living Mall". The building itself is amazing. Inside and out it is totally something to see. As malls go, however, it's pretty weak. It has nothing on the Mall of America. In fact, I would rather go to Southdale. As Asian malls go though, it was pretty cool. They actually had Lacoste shoes in size 12. Finding shoes in Asia is a chore on the best days, impossible on most. For someone with a size 13 foot, usually I have to have my mom buy a pair for me, and then ship them over here. Lame.
The coolest thing about the day wasn't the mall though. It was the ride there. Taxis in Taiwan, and Korea for that matter, are amazingly cheap. About a $10-$1 compared to US taxis. A 7 mile ride will cost around $3-$4. But the taxis are usually old beaters. Sometimes the guy will have a brand new car, but on the whole, they suck. The taxi we got, however, was an immaculate Buick Regal. Unlike Korea, you see lot's of American cars here. Usually they're Fords, but Buicks and Chryslers are popular also. It is a refreshing break from the boring cars in Seoul.
Riding in this Buick really made me think of home. My dad has the same car, and after I graduated and was staying at home for a few months, that was the car I drove everywhere. Cruising the gravvies with my friends, heading to the mall, wherever. It got me thinking about home and old friends. Living so far from The US has advantages, but sometimes you really get homesick.
Monday, September 29, 2008
Saturday, September 27, 2008
pleaseantly surprising
I took the MySpace Presidential quiz a few minutes ago. I was expecting the usual type of "what politician do you most agree with" kind of quiz. You know the ones that with different categories of issues.
Under Abortion they give you two options. Option 1 is something along the lines of "Do you want to take away the fundamental right of a woman to have control over her own body". Option 2 than usually says "Do think that a fascist government that controls every person's own decisions about their own body is a good thing".
For the economy it's "Do you want to help working people to have a better life" and "Do you want to give rich people lots of money". If you've never taken one of these quizzes, the point is that they are usually quite biased.
So back to the Myspace quiz. It was actually very fair. I mean, obviously I know you I'm voting for, but if I was undecided and had opinions on some issues, it would have given me an idea. If you are undecided you should check it. out. Don't let it decide for you, but check it out. www.myspace.com.debates
Under Abortion they give you two options. Option 1 is something along the lines of "Do you want to take away the fundamental right of a woman to have control over her own body". Option 2 than usually says "Do think that a fascist government that controls every person's own decisions about their own body is a good thing".
For the economy it's "Do you want to help working people to have a better life" and "Do you want to give rich people lots of money". If you've never taken one of these quizzes, the point is that they are usually quite biased.
So back to the Myspace quiz. It was actually very fair. I mean, obviously I know you I'm voting for, but if I was undecided and had opinions on some issues, it would have given me an idea. If you are undecided you should check it. out. Don't let it decide for you, but check it out. www.myspace.com.debates
Thursday, September 25, 2008
Gettin our debate on...or off
I've been reading alot about John McCain asking to postpone the debates for a few days. Who would have thought that the left would turn this into another chance to attack McCain, not on his credentials or his record, but on stupid sound bites that they can twist to make him look bad. Openthread refers to it as cutting and running. Christine Pelosi says he's "avoiding our questions", and John Stoltz somehow compares this to our troops getting a breather from duty. And of course that intellectual heavyweight David Letterman added his two cents to this worthwhile debate, although, to be fair, Letterman did get on his knees for McCain, before he laced into s running mate.
Ah guys, last time I checked, John McCain and Barack Obama are both sitting US Senators, and both are leaders in the Senate as well. We are supposedly in the throes of the worst economic situation since the Great Depression, and apparently it's unreasonable for two of the most influential men in the US Senate to take a break from running for President and help come up with a plan. Will they be cutting and running if they come back to Washington just to vote on the bill?!?!
Now, I'm up in the air on whether or not the campaigns need to be suspended. But just go to Townhall and The Huff Post and see what the writers have to say about the candidates. All you will see is hate and vitriol from the left, and cautious skepticism on the right. Better yet, read the comments on any story, about this topic or any other, on either site. As usual, the comments betray the hate that comes from the left. It's simply amazing. Why does it have to be such a big deal?
Why can't it just be that McCain wants to take time to help craft a bill, and Obama thinks it's more important to continue making their respective cases to the American People? Oh wait, that is how the right sees it...It's only the hate filled left that excoriates McCain for wanting to take a reasonable break from the campaign to actually do some work for the good of the country.
Ah guys, last time I checked, John McCain and Barack Obama are both sitting US Senators, and both are leaders in the Senate as well. We are supposedly in the throes of the worst economic situation since the Great Depression, and apparently it's unreasonable for two of the most influential men in the US Senate to take a break from running for President and help come up with a plan. Will they be cutting and running if they come back to Washington just to vote on the bill?!?!
Now, I'm up in the air on whether or not the campaigns need to be suspended. But just go to Townhall and The Huff Post and see what the writers have to say about the candidates. All you will see is hate and vitriol from the left, and cautious skepticism on the right. Better yet, read the comments on any story, about this topic or any other, on either site. As usual, the comments betray the hate that comes from the left. It's simply amazing. Why does it have to be such a big deal?
Why can't it just be that McCain wants to take time to help craft a bill, and Obama thinks it's more important to continue making their respective cases to the American People? Oh wait, that is how the right sees it...It's only the hate filled left that excoriates McCain for wanting to take a reasonable break from the campaign to actually do some work for the good of the country.
Tuesday, September 23, 2008
Back in black
Well friends, it's been too long. I've been busy at work, but I finally have internet access at my apartment, so it's time to start bothering you with my endless rantings. However, I've decided to change the focus of my blog. Since most of my readers are in the US, I'm not going to focus on US politics and culture. While I will talk about my homeland, I'm going to write mostly about Taiwan and Asia. That's where I live and I think most of you don't hear much about Asia. So, I'll be giving you the lowdown.
Well, let's get started. It's possible that in between the Presidential sound bites and the fear mongering over the economy, you may have heard about the tainted milk products coming from China. The long and short of it is that a Chinese/New Zealand company that makes milk powder products in China was putting a chemical called melamine into its products. You may remember this as THE SAME chemical that was found in the deadly pet food that was imported from China. Melamine is added because simple tests identify it as protein. It takes more intensive tests to determine that it's actually a deadly chemical that causes bladder and kidney stones, and even cancer.
The New Zealand owners begged the Chinese government and company to order a recall, but guess what, the Olympics were going on at the time and we couldn't let anybody know what's really happening in China now could we.
Now, I am all about free trade, but I have just two things to say. One, you cannot trust Chinese companies. Therefore if you have the knowledge, do not buy a product made in China. Whether it's the paint on toys, food for our pets, or now infant formula, they have proven time and time again that they will do anything to squeeze a few more dollars out of a product, whatever the long term consequences. Don't buy Chinese! Second, The US government ought to take a more proactive role in this. Too often only a few ingredients in a finished product come from China. That's the case with this milk powder. Milk powder is used in everything from infant formula, to coffee drinks, to doughnuts and potato chips. Since we as consumers have no option here, I think the Federal government ought to require a small warning label on any product that contains any Chinese made products.
Anyway, be careful.
Well, let's get started. It's possible that in between the Presidential sound bites and the fear mongering over the economy, you may have heard about the tainted milk products coming from China. The long and short of it is that a Chinese/New Zealand company that makes milk powder products in China was putting a chemical called melamine into its products. You may remember this as THE SAME chemical that was found in the deadly pet food that was imported from China. Melamine is added because simple tests identify it as protein. It takes more intensive tests to determine that it's actually a deadly chemical that causes bladder and kidney stones, and even cancer.
The New Zealand owners begged the Chinese government and company to order a recall, but guess what, the Olympics were going on at the time and we couldn't let anybody know what's really happening in China now could we.
Now, I am all about free trade, but I have just two things to say. One, you cannot trust Chinese companies. Therefore if you have the knowledge, do not buy a product made in China. Whether it's the paint on toys, food for our pets, or now infant formula, they have proven time and time again that they will do anything to squeeze a few more dollars out of a product, whatever the long term consequences. Don't buy Chinese! Second, The US government ought to take a more proactive role in this. Too often only a few ingredients in a finished product come from China. That's the case with this milk powder. Milk powder is used in everything from infant formula, to coffee drinks, to doughnuts and potato chips. Since we as consumers have no option here, I think the Federal government ought to require a small warning label on any product that contains any Chinese made products.
Anyway, be careful.
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)