@Michael: I respect your disgust with yahoos who don't bother to know anything, or to ponder globally the implications of what they do know, but I suggest this may all have to do with the pasting of a restricted (although historically advanced, for its time) democratic polity onto a structure that prevents the yahoos, and everybody else, from actually being part of a democratic SOCIETY (not just a democratic POLITY, even if it were more democratic than it is), which is actually run, in all the important ways, by private wealth (somewhat dispersed among those few who can afford to own influential amounts of stock). This includes the relatively 'open' media, which is obviously seriously distorted (how could one expect otherwise?) by reliance (through advertising, etc.) on private wealth that is largely consolidated elsewhere in the society, and by all the systematic propaganda of the nationalism and legal structures that protect the wealth and its possessors. In such a situation, it's not entirely stupid to remain stupid concerning the details of the process and the events that it leads to (e.g., wars over petroleum, etc.), because your influence is smothered by those who really have it. Then shit goes bad and indoctrinated yahoos find scapegoats for what they can't understand, and candidates in the narrow political system pop up and promise CHANGE! (in my experience, all presidential candidates over the past century or so use the word a lot) - which simply means a 'minor' shift within the overall structure - yet such 'minor' shifts can indeed become major when they can be promoted by the MASSIVE military, economic and cultural power of this particular national government.
Trump supports this arrangement; so did Hilary. But now that the people have spoken - or perhaps have merely inarticulately gasped and shouted - we're supposed to remember that we're all free, and are spreading freedom everywhere, thanks to our (our?) tremendous, democratically-approved control of globally (or wouldbe globally)-hegemonic institutions. But of course it has to be America First, even though, in common with everybody else, most Americans themselves are not exactly first (or even second).
Not a new situation in history, but now it's one within an environment of advanced technology that presents tremendous dangers - though a comparison might be made with 1914. And we all know how that ended...
CHANGE - yeah, that's a thought. maybe Trump & co. will GIVE it to us...
Hmm - maybe I've drunk too much coffee.
Portraits from the Tea Horse Road
发布者Terrific photos, great portraits.
Mike, I don't understand about the 13 centuries, or what era is ending.
Yunnan Baiyao "secret" ingredients found on US websites
发布者In referring to 'the Chinese' and 'the US' I assume you mean certain bureaucracies located in China and the US. A common way to speak, admittedly - but doesn't it (subconsciously) corrupt the way we tend to think? Surely only a tiny percentage of real people are involved - we all know this, of course, and we forget it all the time. No blame on JHC, just a reflection that, um, we might all reflect on more often. Managed thought is dangerous and manipulative, let's not assist the managers out of carelessness and lack of attention to what really goes down.
Yunnan Baiyao rebounds after rough start to 2013
发布者Have scientific tests ever been done on this stuff (i.e., by other than company personnel) - not just on what's in it, but on what it can/does or cannot/doesn't do? I'm not suggesting it's bunk or anything like that, I'd just like to know.
Book Review: Unsavory Elements
发布者Somewhat stereotypical impression of 'foreigners' too, although I think I may have seen these 2 before.
Zhaotong official may face resentencing following weibo uproar
发布者I fail to see the point of an execution, public or otherwise. Has somebody confused vengeance with justice?