Terra Incognita: The Undiscovered Country

A Soggy Farewell to Shanghai, and Hello to a Troubled America

Wed, 7 Jul 2010 12:18:21 +0800

Most of my recent days in Shanghai have been days when I wished it would just stop raining. Today, however, I leave the rain behind to return to the United States for the summer. There are a lot of things to love about Shanghai, but the weather isn't one of them. There are a lot of things to love about America, too, but much also to give me cause for trepidation as well as anticipation at my fast-approaching if temporary return.

I arrived in Shanghai from San Francisco a little more than ten months ago, and on the day I arrived, too, it was raining. There have been nice days in the months since my arrival, however, and there have been days I'll never forget. It has been an interesting ten months, to say the least, the greatest part of which has been teaching at Shanghai International Studies University (SISU), to which I'll be returning in September following my summer in the States. This is my second stint as an expat educator in China, and it is a life I sorely missed during my last several years in the States. The expat life has a lot to recommend it: it is a relatively free-and-easy life, with a largely tax-free foreign income, rent-free housing at least in my case, and a distinctly global flavor unavailable at home. At SISU are faculty members from more than 20 different countries, most of us live in the same building, and many of us are friends. Beyond SISU the city of Shanghai hosts tens of thousands of expat professionals and entrepreneurs from around the world. One's social circle in such a setting encompasses the globe, but also includes other expat Americans, most of whom tend toward a liberal or progressive point-of-view on politics and social issues. Among other Americans teaching at SISU is a fellow native of my home state of Arizona, and together we've had a lot of fun ragging on sheriff Joe Arpaio, governor Jan Brewer, and the state’s absurd new immigration law. While in China I’ve been active with Democrats Abroad, the official Democratic Party organization for Americans living overseas, with many thousands of members around the world.

As I've said, there are a lot of things to love about Shanghai. In a matter of mere hours now, however, I'll be touching down again in the USA, and I can't help wondering what to expect when I get there. From America, owing to my country's overwhelming sense of psychological isolation, the rest of the world always seems small and distant, but from the rest of the world America always seems big and close; and America's current problems seem almost as big and close from China as they seem at home. As I prepared to depart the United States for China in the summer of 2009, we had a new president with a new progressive agenda, and the afterglow of the 2008 election was still warm and fresh. Since then I’ve watched from Shanghai as so many of our hopes from 2008 seem to have faded; as the bold progressive renaissance we imagined in 2008 has turned to a tragic conservative resurgence much sooner than any of us expected; as Barack Obama's joyful new America has in little more than a year become a Tea Party Nation of bitterness and hate; as the economy has failed to recover, the Arizona of my birth has become a no-go area for immigrants, and the blue waters of the Gulf of Mexico have turned an oily black. I'll be spending much of my summer, not in liberal San Francisco, but in various regions of Sarah Palin's seething and stifling "Real America," where I'm all but certain to see and hear things that will make my stomach turn.

Not that I dread my summer in America: I look forward to seeing loved ones and old friends, to the mountains and tall trees of California, to the rolling green hills of Mississippi, to "walk" signals at intersections that actually mean something, and to weather that isn't rain. I look forward to walking the streets of San Francisco and Berkeley where I've spent the greater part of my adult life, to the fog rolling through the Golden Gate, and to all the familiar food items I’ve missed over the past ten months in Shanghai. Thankfully, my family no longer lives in Arizona, so like many of my fellow progressives in America I'll have no trouble faithfully boycotting the state of my birth, and honestly I won't miss it a bit. Joe Arpaio can have Arizona, and if President Obama would like to trade his birth certificate for mine, I'd be happy to say I was born in Honolulu instead of Tombstone. Nor, save a brief flight transfer in Dallas between San Francisco and Birmingham, will I have any need to mess with Texas, or for Texas to mess with me. Even as I steer clear of Arizona and Texas, however, I’ll certainly be treated to more than enough of Palin’s “Real America” to last me for another year. The xenophobic rage that has risen in volume and shrillness among these so-called “Real Americans” since Obama’s election is one of the very ugliest aspects of American life today, and couldn’t stand in sharper contrast to the liberal expat world I have grown to love.

One day, sooner or later, I'll be returning to America to stay, at least for a good long while. For this summer, however, I'll be glad to have a ticket back to soggy old Shanghai.

Hillary Meets and Matches Haibao at Shanghai Expo

Sun, 23 May 2010 21:58:16 +0800

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton visited the USA and China pavilions at the World Expo in Shanghai on May 22, meeting the expo's mascot, Haibao, in a matching sea-blue suit as shown in photo at right. During her visit to the expo Clinton met Chinese children and youth at the USA Pavilion and toured the China Pavilion with Shanghai mayor Han Zheng.

Asked how she felt about the USA Pavilion during her tour, Clinton said only that she was "relieved" the project was completed at all, noting that when she assumed her current position US participation in the expo remained unclear due to lack of public funding. Commercial branding of the privately-funded USA Pavilion has received a great deal of negative coverage in the media, in which it has been described as dull and overwhelmingly corporate in flavor.

While in Shanghai Clinton also met with Chinese Communist Party municipal secretary Yu Zhengsheng and visited a Boeing aircraft maintenance facility, highlighting the importance of the US-China trade relationship before heading to Beijing attend the second bilateral Strategic and Economic Dialogue scheduled for Monday and Tuesday. Clinton's visit to China comes as part of six-day Asian tour also including stops in Japan and Korea.

Photo: Independent. See also: BBC, CNN, Voice of America.

Hillary Clinton Asia Tour to Include Shanghai Expo Visit, Beijing Strategic and Economic Dialogue

Thu, 20 May 2010 22:52:22 +0800

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton departs Washington DC on May 20 for a six-day Asian tour that will include an extended visit to China and brief visits to Japan and South Korea. Her time in China May 21-26 will include a visit to the the USA Pavilion at the 2010 World Expo in Shanghai and participation in the US-China Strategic and Economic Dialogue in Beijing.

Clinton will first travel to Tokyo on May 21 to discuss regional and global issues with with Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama and Foreign Minister Katsuya Okada. Okinawa basing issues are expected to be among those Clinton will discuss with Japanese leaders.

Clinton will then travel on to Shanghai, where she will visit the 2010 World Expo on May 22. While at the Expo, she will attend a dinner in honor of the USA Pavilion sponsors and others who helped develop the USA Pavilion. On May 23, she will participate in a commercial diplomacy event to highlight the importance of US market access and job creation.

From Shanghai Clinton will travel to Beijing on May 23, where she and Treasury Secretary Timothy F. Geithner will join their respective Chinese co-chairs, State Councilor Dai Bingguo and Vice-Premier Wang Qishan, for the second joint meeting of the U.S.-China Strategic and Economic Dialogue. Over 200 US officials including cabinet members and agency heads will make up the US delegation. On May 25 Clinton and Geithner will meet with Chinese President Hu Jintao and Premier Wen Jiabao.

On May 26 Clinton will travel to Seoul, meeting with South Korean President Lee Myung-bak and Foreign Minister Yu Myung-hwan. While in Seoul Clinton will discuss regional stability and other issues with South Korean leaders including the sinking of the South Korean warship, the Cheonan.

Clinton will return to the United States on May 26.

(Sources: US State Dept. (Clinton World Expo visit briefing, U.S.-China Strategic and Economic Dialogue briefing), Foreign Policy, Agence France Presse)

Obama Club to Open in Shanghai

Wed, 21 Apr 2010 23:35:47 +0800

In yet another sign that the world looks upon the current U.S. president quite differently from his predecessors, Shanghai will see the opening of its very own Obama Club on April 26 (website under construction). I for one will make definite plans to be there on opening night, and can easily see it becoming a favorite watering hole for thirsty expats such as myself.

"Probably the largest entertainment clubhouse in Shanghai," according to its promotional materials, "the Obama Club is pampered and lavishly decorated - fitted with international top of the range multi-media, audio, and visual equipment designed to blow your mind.... The Obama Club will bring international glamour, excitement, and refined luxury to the Shanghai entertainment scene."

The club will open just in time for the opening also of the 2010 World Expo in Shanghai on May 1.

(see also Huffington Post)

Teabag Express: Nashville SUV Driver Rams Car for Obama Bumper Sticker

Sat, 27 Mar 2010 03:14:32 +0800

An incident of Driving While Teabagging resulting in violent road rage over an Obama bumper sticker occurred in Nashville, Tennessee today. From WKRN, Nashville (includes video):

Road Rage, Accident Centers on Obama Bumper Sticker
Mar. 26, 2010
NASHVILLE, Tenn. - A Nashville man says he and his 10-year-old daughter were victims of road rage Thursday afternoon, all because of a political bumper sticker on his car.
Mark Duren told News 2 the incident happened around 4:30p.m., while he was driving on Blair Boulevard, not far from Belmont University.
He said Harry Weisiger gave him the bird and rammed into his vehicle, after noticing an Obama-Biden sticker on his car bumper.
Duren had just picked up his 10-year-old daughter from school and had her in the car with him.
"He pointed at the back of my car," Duren said, "the bumper, flipped me off, one finger salute."
But it didn't end there.
Duren told News 2 that Weisiger honked his horn at him for awhile, as Duren stopped at a stop sign.
Once he started driving again, down Blair Boulevard, towards his home, he said, "I looked in the rear view mirror again, and this same SUV was speeding, flying up behind me, bumped me."
Duren said he applied his brake and the SUV smashed into the back of his car.
He then put his car in park to take care of the accident, but Weisiger started pushing the car using his SUV.
Duren said, "He pushed my car up towards the sidewalk, almost onto the sidewalk."
Police say Harry Weisiger is charged with felony reckless endangerment in the incident.

Friends don't let friends teabag and drive.

Teabaggers and Segregationists: You Compare (Photos)

Thu, 25 Mar 2010 02:49:42 +0800

Alan Grayson Calls Sarah Palin a "Wild Alaskan Dingbat"

Thu, 18 Mar 2010 00:42:04 +0800

U.S. Representative Alan Grayson's re-election campaign had the following to say this week on Sarah Palin's wild and wacky campaign appearance against Grayson last Friday in Orlando, Florida:

On Friday night, Sarah Palin came to Orlando, and attacked Rep. Alan Grayson. This is what she said:
"I got to meet quite a few candidates who are lining up in a contested primary who want to take out Alan Grayson. And I think Alan Grayson -- what can you say about Alan Grayson? Piper is with me tonight, so I won't say anything about Alan Grayson that can't be said around children. [Good one, Sarah!] But thank you, Florida, for allowing candidates in a contested primary to duke it out over ideas and principles and values, all with the same goal, and that is unseating those who have such a disconnect from the people of America. That's what the goal is here in this race against Alan Grayson. Please fight hard, and do this for the rest of the country. Fight hard, and send a conservative to Washington, DC."
Palin, the former half-term Governor, current-nothing and future-even-less, charmed the all-Republican audience with her folksy folksiness and her homespun homespunnery. Atypically, Palin was wearing clothes that she had paid for herself. At the end of the event, she shared her recipe for mooseface pie.
In response to Palin's attack on Rep Grayson, Grayson actually complimented Palin. Grayson praised Palin for having a hand large enough to fit Grayson's entire name on it. He thanked Palin for alleviating the growing shortage of platitudes in Central Florida. Grayson added that Palin deserved credit for getting through the entire hour-long program without quitting. Grayson also said that Palin really had mastered Palin's imitation of Tina Fey imitating Palin. Grayson observed that Palin is the most-intelligent leader that the Republican Party has produced since George W. Bush.
When asked to comment about what effect Palin's criticism might have, Grayson pointed out, "As the Knave's horse says in Alice in Wonderland, 'dogs will believe anything.'" Earlier, as the Orlando Sentinel reported, Grayson said, "I'm sure Palin knows all about politics in Central Florida, since from her porch she can see Winter Park," which is part of Grayson's district.
Grayson said that the Alaskan chillbilly was welcome to return to Central Florida anytime, as long as she brings lots of money with her, and spends it. "I look forward to an honest debate with Governor Palin on the issues, in the unlikely event that she ever learns anything about them," Grayson added, alluding to Politifact's "liar, liar, pants on fire" evaluation of much of what Palin has said.
Scientists are studying Sarah Palin's travel between Alaska and Florida carefully. They hope to learn more about the flight patterns of that elusive migratory species, the wild Alaskan dingbat.

I would almost move to Florida for the privilege of voting for Alan Grayson. He's my kind of Democrat.

Republicans Turned Off by Size of Obama's Package

Sat, 13 Mar 2010 16:57:33 +0800

See Tom Brandt, The Eastern Echo (Ypsilanti MI):

Observes Mr. Brandt, probingly: "Republicans are not sparing the rod when it comes to beating up on President Obama’s economic stimulus package, but it’s clear they are unable to raise their membership to withstand the newly found vigor of his congressional muscle.... The Obama package may not be the best piece of stimulative legislation ever to enter the Oval Office, but...it certainly beats any package Bush ever raised." [More]

What Would a New Republican America Look Like?

Sat, 6 Mar 2010 02:12:50 +0800

For an all-too-brief period between the Democratic congressional victory of 2006 and Barack Obama's inauguration as President of the United States in 2009, many progressives hoped and believed that the long conservative era in contemporary American politics was over, and that the dawn of a bold new progressive era was upon us. As Democrats in Washington have shown themselves utterly lacking in the political will to carry out their own campaign promises, however, such hopes have greatly evaporated, and a conservative movement that seems to have recovered its strength much faster than most of us expected now threatens to turn back the Democratic victories of 2006 and 2008 as quickly as they were won. Not only triumphalist Republicans, but even some on the Left are openly suggesting that, if Democrats in Washington don't change their weak-kneed ways, the coming election cycles of 2010 and 2012 could conceivably end in a Republican recapture of not only Congress, but perhaps even the White House. Given such a depressing prospect, it seems worth considering what a new Republican America might look like.

To say that today's G.O.P. is no longer "your father's G.O.P." would be the understatement of the century: Today's G.O.P. is not even your slightly older sibling's G.O.P. In 2000, George W. Bush ran for president as a "compassionate conservative." Of course the Bush years turned out to be anything but compassionate, but it's hard to imagine any Republican today playing even such a quaint tidbit of lip-service as this to any form of moderation. For any Republican politician to stand before CPAC or a "tea party" convention today and describe himself or herself as a "compassionate conservative" would be only to invite boos and hisses of angry ridicule. Today's Republican Party and today's conservative movement, purely and simply, is a raging and seething engine of hate. We gained an early look into this ugly new brand of conservatism during the 2008 campaign, when vice-presidential candidate Sarah Palin was openly questioning Obama's loyalty to his country and Palin's enraged followers were openly attacking Obama on the basis of his race and calling for his death. Since that time, the face of American conservatism has grown uglier almost by the day.

If I were to grasp at an historical precedent for what a new Republican America might look like, my first guess would be something like the McCarthy era, with touches of the South during the darkest days of the struggle for civil rights. I would guess that Republican leaders would be eager both to exact payback for their defeats in 2006 and 2008 and to make sure nothing like that is allowed to ever happen again. I would expect to see measures resembling those of the McCarthy era taken against progressive groups across the country, to see trumped-up charges leveled against groups such as ACORN, backed up by the full weight of a deeply politicized Justice Department and judiciary, to see crackdowns on free expression carried out in the name of national security, domestic spying programs enhanced, and blacklists written up. I would also expect to see such measures greeted with enthusiastic joy by a "tea party" grassroots eager and feeling entitled to engage in a little repression of its own. In such an atmosphere of impunity, the threats that "we're coming for you liberals" already abundant in angry comments to left-wing blog posts could quickly become a reality.

This may be only a worst-case scenario, admittedly expressed in rather extreme terms, but it's not wholly outside the realm of possibility, particularly given recent history. I've already noted the hate-filled 2008 Republican campaign, which was truly astonishing to watch, as well as the increasingly ugly "tea party" events that have taken place since the election. These events have proven to be a rich recruiting ground for white supremacist and anti-government militia groups, whose memberships have swelled since the 2008 elections as many reports have observed. Obama’s election seems to have touched a raw nerve in conservative white America, unleashing a torrent of right-wing rage unseen in this country since integration was imposed on white Southerners more than forty years ago. Conservatives are not only engaging in all manner of insane conspiracy theories regarding the election; some are now showing up at political events carrying guns. This didn’t happen when Bill Clinton was elected president in 1992, nor do I think it would be happening with such ferocity had the victorious Democrat in 2008 likewise been white. as many reports have observed. Obama’s election seems to have touched a raw nerve in conservative white America, unleashing a torrent of right-wing rage unseen in this country since integration was imposed on white Southerners more than forty years ago. Conservatives are not only engaging in all manner of insane conspiracy theories regarding the election; some are now showing up at political events carrying guns. This didn’t happen when Bill Clinton was elected president in 1992, nor do I think it would be happening with such ferocity had the victorious Democrat in 2008 likewise been white. whose memberships have swelled since the 2008 elections as many reports have observed. Obama's election seems to have touched a raw nerve in conservative white America, unleashing a torrent of right-wing rage unseen in this country since integration was imposed on angry white Southerners more than forty years ago. Conservatives are not only engaging in all manner of insane conspiracy theories regarding the election; some are now showing up at political events carrying guns. This didn't happen when Bill Clinton was elected president in 1992, nor do I think it would be happening with such ferocity had the victorious Democrat in 2008 likewise been white.

With her exhortations to those hate-filled "real Americans" who attended her rallies in 2008, Sarah Palin knew exactly what she was doing, and bears as much guilt as anyone for their ugly outcome. Palin is as vicious a hatemonger as Rush Limbaugh, Glenn Beck, Ann Coulter, or any other media figure on the far right, the only difference being that Palin aspires to national office and just might achieve it given the current mood of much of the country. Should this woefully come to pass, Palin would join such official Republican luminaries as Michele Bachmann, Jim DeMint, Jim Inhofe, Virginia Foxx, and others who have turned the Republican Party into something even Ronald Reagan might have trouble recognizing, not to mention Dwight Eisenhower or Barry Goldwater: conservatives, for whom I would never have voted, but who at least seem to have maintained some hold on reality. It's hard to imagine what Ike would have to say to a "tea party" convention.

Liz Cheney's recent McCarthyite attack on seven Justice Department lawyers for carrying out their assigned task of defending terror suspects detained at Guantanamo bodes equally ill for what we can expect if Republicans succeed in recapturing power in Washington. For simply doing their jobs, providing the defense representation to which anyone accused of wrongdoing is entitled under U.S. and international law (even Nazi war criminals tried at Nuremberg had defense attorneys), Cheney and her group, "Keep America Safe," have branded these lawyers terrorist sympathizers, questioned their loyalty to the United States, and publicly blacklisted them on their website, while Cheney's allies in right-wing media branded the Obama Justice Department "the Department of Jihad" (see TPM, HuffPo, Salon). Liz Cheney is obviously as vicious and vile a piece of work as her infamous father, if not worse, and would be almost certain to play a role in any future Republican administration.

Democrats and progressives truly have cause for concern at the grim prospect of Republican victories in the coming election cycles of 2010 and 2012, and the whole country - with the exception of its far-right lunatic fringe - will soon have cause for concern if this grim prospect comes to fruition. Should such a nightmare come to life, Democrats in Washington will have only themselves to blame for their failure to deliver on the mandate and the opportunity handed them in 2006 and 2008. We cannot blame Republicans who, after all, are only doing what Republicans do. It's time for Democrats in Washington to get off their lazy and timid rear-parts and start doing what Democratic voters elected them to do, so that Democratic voters will have a reason to elect them again, and again, and again. For the sake of every sane and civilized one of us, today's Republican Party cannot ever be allowed to hold the reins of power.

MoveOn Raises Massive Funds to Fight Lieberman on Health Care Reform

Thu, 17 Dec 2009 23:48:56 +0800

Progressive political action group MoveOn is raising massive funds to run ads against conservative independent senator Joe Lieberman of Connecticut for his opposition to health care reform. From an initial goal of $400,000 on Dec. 15, MoveOn has at time of this writing raised more than $900,000 toward a new goal of one million dollars, and the contributions keep rolling in. Says MoveOn:

"First, Joe Lieberman helped President Bush invade Iraq. Then he endorsed John McCain and attacked Barack Obama at the Republican National Convention. Now he's single-handedly gutting health care reform. It's time to hold him accountable. Senator Lieberman must go.... So we're going to make sure every voter in Connecticut knows what he's doing. And then, when he comes up for re-election, we'll make sure we send him home for good. Can you chip in to make Joe pay? "

Although Lieberman won't be up for re-election until 2012, it's never too early to start working toward getting rid of him once and for all. Recent polls in Connecticut have consistently shown low approval and high disapproval ratings for Lieberman, and indicate that if the election were held today he would likely lose.

In the meantime, Harry Reid and other Senate Democrats can and should be pressed to strip Lieberman of his seniority, his chairmanship of the Homeland Security Committee, and his other committee memberships for his opposition to health care reform. Polls on health care reform indicate that a majority in Connecticut and across America want robust reform including a public option now. A recent Research 2000 poll commissioned by Daily Kos found that 68 percent of likely voters in Connecticut support a public option, while only 21 percent oppose. National polls likewise show that a clear majority support the public option (Boston Globe, Reuters, Washington Post). Lieberman clearly has his own agenda, however, serving not only his own obvious arrogance and vindictiveness but also the for-profit health and insurance industries that have given him millions of dollars in campaign contributions while residents of his state have suffered due to lack of health insurance (See also Rachel Maddow, Salon).

MoveOn's gallant and stunningly successful fundraising efforts against Lieberman on behalf of health care reform deserve the support of progressives everywhere. Donate now.