Recent sports news from China not so “golden” September 25, 2008
Posted by jasonbarber in Uncategorized.add a comment
I have to admit that before this year I had no idea that there was a minimum age for Olympic gymnastics. I always thought that female Olympic gymnasts looked young, but I also thought that male Olympic gymnasts looked like freakishly “buff” comic book characters.
After the Olympics the news of under-age gymnasts slowly faded away, but I was surprised to hear that not only is the IOC’s investigation of the 2008 Olympic gymnasts still ongoing, but it now includes Chinese gymnasts from the 2000 Sydney Olympics.
This year my favorite comment from any sportscaster concerning the Olympics also concerned some mini-female gymnasts. In response to the IOC stating that they could not perform background checks on all of the tens of thousands of Olympic athletes, a commentator made the remark that at least they could afford to put forth the effort to perform back ground checks on the “ones who looked like they were 8 years old.”
I have my own opinions, but I have decided to keep them to myself until after the IOC investigation is complete.
Andre Gueisbuhler, secretary general of the International Gymnastics Federation, told The Associated Press on Wednesday that, “we did not have another choice,” he said. “If we want to remain credible, then we have to look into things.”
Here are a few links concerning the issue. Read them and feel free to share your thoughts on the matter with the rest of us. The first is recent, the second and third are from August.
AP article found at SI.com: FIG investigating members of China’s 2000 Olympic team, too
Huffington Post Article: Scandal of the Ages: Documents Reveal Underage Chinese Gymnast
NBC Olympic Website Article: Paperwork shows Chinese gymnasts are not underage
AQI A Best Kept Secret September 22, 2008
Posted by Aaron Wong in AQI.add a comment
We are very honored to mention that in the most recent Fall edition of the BusinessQ magazine, Arrow Quality International was recognized as one of the “Best Kept Secrets” in Utah County. When I read that in the magazine, my jaw dropped. I think this a testament that Utah businesses are beginning to recognize the opportunity to do business overseas. It is not just for the “BIG” business club anymore. By being able to work with various small, medium, and large companies, AQI has been able to gain recognition as an organization of quality and value.
We in no way are looking forward to be on the list as a “Best Kept Secret” next year, but want to become a known secret that anyone looking for Chinese consulting, such as finding and making products in China, taking products or services to China, or training in Chinese business, language and culture, can come to AQI with their needs. We are very honored for this recognition.
Also in this same BusinessQ issue, I was recognized as one of the Top 40 Under 40 Professionals in Utah County. I don’t know why or how I was nominated, but I need to find out who I need to pay off. Again, I am honored for this recognition and hope that this will help show the positive direction AQI is moving. I am extremely excited at the direction AQI is moving, especially after bringing on the best partner anyone can have, Jason Barber, who is in charge of US Operations.
“Little Red Book Wavers” September 20, 2008
Posted by jasonbarber in Business Culture, China, Doing Business In China.add a comment
This post is actually recycled from a post I made on my old blog some time ago that I thought was an important enough subject to re-share with a little sprucing-up. I read a post online that consisted of only a few paragraphs, but one of them really caught my attention. See below:
“…don’t fall into the trap of thinking that all Chinese are much the same. They have their own thoughts, hopes and dreams. Some are more introvert, some more extrovert and some are just plain weird, just like foreigners. They’re not all Little Red Book waving fanatics, or traditional Confucian sages or “insert stereotype here.”
I hate stereotypes, abhor racism and discrimination, (except against bad drivers!) and truly believe that “across the four seas, we are all brothers,” to quote a famous Confucian idiom. I have visited factories and seen armies of seemingly faceless factory workers. There is approaching 1.5 billion Chinese citizens, lead by a conformist government, rumored to be brainwashed by Party ideologies. As westerners we tend to group them into one group. I guess we think it is easier that way.
But we cannot do that, and those people are not faceless. They are families and mothers and brothers and sisters and friends. The girls love to shop and the boys love to pretend they like to go with the girls to shop. “But how can that be?” You may ask yourself. “That sounds similar to me and my friends.” Well here is a little piece of knowledge. What that little voice in your head is trying to tell you is not that the above mentioned people sound like you and your friends, but the above mentioned people are just that, they are people like you and me and our friends.
Taiwan Going International September 19, 2008
Posted by Aaron Wong in China, Taiwan.add a comment
With the Nationalist Party in Taiwan taking office and having the majority seats in the Executive Yuan, this new government is hoping to mend some of the ties that were ruined during the reign of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP). A milestone in the short reign of the Nationalist Party has been to approve the use of the standard Romanization of Chinese terms in English by using what is universally known as Hanyu Pinyin.
I like this decision for Taiwan to finally move to this new system. Most foreigners who travel to Taiwan can easily be confused with the current Romanization system of Wade-Giles mixed with the Tongyong Pinyin system. This system was created and adopted in Taiwan by the DPP because the Hanyu Pinyin system was created and is used in China. Unfortunately for Taiwan, that system has also been universally adopted by international agencies, such as the UN.
Even the use of the Taiwanese Romanization Pinyin system has been used very inconsistently. For example, the picture above shows street signs that are pronounced the same in Chinese, but are written differently in English. I can imagine the confusion this could cause to a foreigner who cannot read Chinese.
To show the seriousness of changing to the Hanyu Pinyin system, the Taiwanese government will not give financial assistance to local governments who do not switch over to the universal Hanyu Pinyin system.
With President Ma Ying-jeou’s (Ma Yingjiu in Hanyu Pinyin) promise to build better relations with Mainland China and to help rebuild Taiwan’s economy, this is definitely an important step in fulfilling it. The affects of this change may not be immediately seen, but in the long run Taiwan will benefit.
To Read More: Gov’t to improve English-friendly environment
Exercise In China September 11, 2008
Posted by Aaron Wong in China.add a comment
I remember watching Rocky (the movie) and then immediately running out into the garage to lift weights. Or watching Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls play basketball and then running outside to lower the hoop to 7ft so I could dunk. Well after watching the Olympics the Chinese people are running to the gym.
Exercising, at least in the sense that the Western world would categorize it, is relatively new in China. Forsaking the interest of Mother China to pretty or improve your own body was thought to be shameful bourgeois indulgence a mere 20 years ago during the Mao era. But with the economic development explosion that China is in the midst of, people have money and they have time. In the past exercise was as simple as working in the fields. People worked to survive. People worked for food, not for a rippling six-pack or toned biceps. Urban Chinese and their lifestyles have changed. Investment in sports and other recreational activities has increased 8.5% over the same period of time last year and continues to grow at a tepid pace.
I have been to a mega-bath house in China and lounged around in varying temperature and colored waters (supposedly dosed with herbal potions and elixirs) to leisurely relax after a long day of crowded streets factories and pollution. I have also visited an up-scale health and fitness center for a quick work-out. One experience I must share is smoking at the gym: Chinese love to smoke, but at the gym? Yes, at the gym. Every locker room of any gym in China is filled with men sitting around in nothing but a towel smoking. I think they are missing something.
Source: AP article China’s new prosperity fuels fitness craze
Who is Jason Barber, and What is Food Addicts Anonymous? September 4, 2008
Posted by Aaron Wong in Uncategorized.add a comment
I like to tell people that I grew-up in the dirt. And in a way I kind of did. I was raised in a picturesque fishing/logging village on the coast of Oregon, called Coos Bay. It is really a city, but the word village sounds so much more quaint, but is really just farther from the truth. I grew-up in a redneck town. But I loved it still the same. I served a mission for the LDS Church in Taiwan and that is where I was introduced to Asia. Upon high school graduation and a stop-over in Hawaii (Brigham Young University) I ended up in Provo at the real BYU. I married a princess in June of 2005 and have been living an adventure for as long as I can remember. I met my wife at BYU, but she is originally from Taiwan. (Which kind of makes me half Chinese!) She is the best.
Other than my family, I love golf, motorcycles and food. I love being an entrepreneur. I started a company called Seatability <http://seatability.com/> with my best friend in early spring of 2005 and have worked hard to make it a great company. Seatability manufactures and distributes contemporarily designed office furniture products through-out the USA, and other international markets.
Speaking of food, I have to share my thoughts on a news story I saw last night on the local news. This might go a little ways in helping you better understand me, or at least how my mind works. The article was on the local chapter of Foods Addicts Anonymous <http://www.ksl.com/?nid=148&sid=4164232> . I am not going to make light of the fact that some people have addictions that are harmful to their bodies. And I guess food could be one of them. Hey, I have been happily addicted to food for more than a quarter century! But one comment the president of the local Utah chapter of Foods Addicts Anonymous shared scared me. She said, “I don’t obsess about food. It’s just for energy and fuel, and then I have this beautiful life in between my meals.” I have no problem with the part about obsessing over food, but the part about how food is just for energy and fuel?! She makes it sound like food is a necessary evil that intrudes on the rest of her blissful life. Well, I feel sorry for her. I love food. I love flavors and the cultures behind food. Wherever I travel, inevitably one of the strongest impressions I leave with is the food I encounter and experience. I eat with my friends and my family to celebrate, to share time together and to build relationships. And by the way, I fancy myself a connoisseur of beef jerky, gummy candy (yes there is a
Why am I talking about food in a blog about Taiwan, China and business?
1) It is on my mind, and 2) food is something I am passionate about, business in China is something I am also passionate about. I am excited to bring my passion towards life, China, food and business to AQI.
Aaron Wong. AQI founder and CEO is an extremely talented person and consultant and I am lucky to have the opportunity to work with him. At AQI our goal is to be the best, and then do even better, and to be a part of that is fun. In the future I hope to use this forum to share thoughts, articles and news concerning business and culture in China, but please forgive me if I regress into a post about a nice Italian restaurant I visited or my motorcycle. That is just me.
