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Listed below are comments made by tkbutt between Tuesday, 2nd December 2008 and Thursday, 26th March 2009.

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US and China's verbal duel 12:52pm on 26 Mar 2009 The focus of China's ongoing military development is to enable it to "fight local wars under high-tech conditions". This is hardly a global military ambition, especially when it is still struggling to simply hold itself together.
The foundations of today's world 04:25am on 18 Feb 2009 James,

By ranking the Chinese-Vietnamese conflict alongside the other monumental events you've mentioned here you must have came to the conclusion that this brief conflict was a watershed moment in global history.

If that's the case, could you please explain how and why?

As far as I know this conflict ended in a bloody draw with no territorial gain by either sides. It also had minimal impact to relations between the two countries which was already sour since the end of the Vietnam War.

What is the people's opinion and recollection of this conflict? How are the Chinese and Vietnamese governments planning to commemorate its 20th anniversary?

Why wasn't 1973 an important year as that was the year that the US lost its first international war - through its withdrawal from the Vietnam War? Surely the global impact of that would have been far greater than the 1979 conflict.
The last bangs 00:28am on 13 Feb 2009 48. At 01:58am on 12 Feb 2009, funnyanotherblogger

If you know your Chinese history thoroughly, that wasn't the only instance that the imperial palace was burnt down. Besides, the one you're referring to is probably burning of the Summer Palace (yuen-ming yuen) - apologies for my Cantonese pronounciation!

On May 9, 1421, lightning struck the newly constructed Imperial Palace in Beijing, burning it to the ground, with great loss of life. The Emperor, Zhu Di, tearfully concluded that he had offended the Gods by building the fleets. An edict was soon issued prohibiting future voyages and foreign travel.

Under Zhu Di, Zheng He made 6 voyages between 1405-1421. The 7th and final voyage didn't occur until 9 years later, and 5 years after Zhu Di's death, in 1430. By then the Ming Dynasty was on a permanent decline.

Of course there are other more pressing reasons for the banning of maritime travel during that time that have gradually drained the Ming treasury. Among them were renewed Mongol attacks in the north, failing expeditions against rebellions in Annam in the south, and disastrous floods on the Yellow River. The burning of the new palace was a devastating psychological blow that led to the curbing of excesses including its effort of reaching out to the world.
Saying sorry to the Chinese 11:48pm on 12 Feb 2009 If you have done wrong against someone and you wish to be forgiven for it then an apology is a must. This is a universal rule not just a Chinese one. In that sense an apology is important to the Chinese just as it is to any other cultures.

In any case, as a Chinese, I don't think Phelps has done anything that warrants him to apologise specifically to the Chinese people.
The last bangs 05:21am on 11 Feb 2009 The burning of the imperial palace during the Ming Dynasty resulted in China's centuries-long exile from the rest of the world.

With the burning of one of China's symbol of resurgence, and on the first full moon of the new lunar year, let hope that the current crop of leaders are more rational than their Ming counterparts.
The last bangs 00:19am on 10 Feb 2009 Zheng He's treasure fleets were armed with cannons and incendiary range weapons. And no, they were not brought along for fun!
The wrong side of history 01:22am on 22 Jan 2009 Re my comment #99,

What Obama said was "To those who cling to power through corruption and deceit and the silencing of dissent, know that you are on the wrong side of history".

Based on that, he didn't mention specifically Communism or Fascism, but rather people who corrupt and deceive. Then, yes, they and their propaganda are on the wrong side of history.
The wrong side of history 00:55am on 22 Jan 2009 History is a collection of events recorded by man. The rise of communism in Russia, the Japanese invasion of Asia, the German genocide of Jews, and the starvation of millions of Chinese under Mao's failed policies are all part of world history.

The only instances that are on the "wrong side" of history are falsified stories designed to whitewash real events the fabricators don't want other people to know.

To label Communism and Fascism themselves as on the wrong side of history is not only a misnomer, but also highly ideological - something that Obama himself has vowed to stay away from.
How to spot a fake banknote 00:00am on 15 Jan 2009 #52. Baganye,

The problem with those type of posts is that of "face". The people who needs a lot of face ("hen yao mien") are those who feel insecure, constantly feel they have something to lose and too afraid to lose them.

They are the type of people who when warned not to approach the cliff would not only not back off but continue to defiantly walk toward it. When they do fall, would make it as hard as possible for rescuers to assist them.

If this mentality prevails in China then the country has a major challenge in its hand before it wins any respect by the outside world.

The final paragraph of Jame's blog is nothing but a feeling by many ordinary Chinese who felt disillusioned with the path the country is heading. Forgery is a cancerous problem in China. There is no justification for it just because forgery is also a problem in other countries. We should all strive to be better without comparing with others!
What do people in China do with a day off? 11:06am on 02 Dec 2008 An interest non-politicised report into daily lives of ordinary Chinese.

Your curiosity into the choice of western models used in domestic advertisements illustrates the difference in worldview between the Chinese and the west. Could you think of a time when Chinese/Indian/Islamic models were used to sell a domestic UK product?

In Australia, people are being indoctrinated to buy Australian made goods. In China, the aim of most people is to own goods that are made in anywhere but China!

I read recently that China has almost 10 times more pianists and violinists than the US. Soon it may even have the largest English speaking population in the world. The danger is not that the world is becoming more Chinese, but rather China is in danger of becoming more like us!

There are more to China than rusty red politics. Keep it up.

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