Chapter #9

            China is compared to the west, with regard to technology, government control and human rights and while it seems that the Chinese are more advanced in some aspects the west has placed more value on human rights.

            China has a far more rigid and competitive educational system then we do here in the United States, education is taken more seriously in China.

            Qin was the first emperor to unify all the different provinces of China, and he also began the construction of the Great Wall of China.

Chapter #10

            He writes about the teachings of Dao and how they were very prominent earlier in Chinese History but have more recently begun to fade into the background.

            The original masters of Daoism are considered gods today; I found it interesting that they would not just be seen as profits but rather as gods.

            There are more people in China today that are business oriented than there are that find it their duty to spread religion, but there are still monasteries and monks that practice religion as a way of life.

Chapter #11

            Today there are 75 million Christians in China, which to me was a big surprise, even though it is only a small percentage of the population.

            The reason that many of the major cities in China are so large and densely populated is because of Chairman Mao and his efforts to industrialize China.

            Its citizens see China as the last great empire, and they are often very proud of the culture and history that got them to where they are today.

Chapter #12

            Lanzhou is one of the world’s most highly populated cities, if not the world’s most highly populated city.

            Some of the western provinces of China do not wish to be a part of China like Tibet, and other provinces.

            It struck me as interesting that at one point someone was saying that they prefer light skin and that they don’t really like dark skin.

Chapter #13

            In the late 1950s Tibet began to fight for political independence, and Mao and the rest of the communist party fought against this.

            This was the reason for the Dalai Lama’s exile and even though he was exiled people still talk about him and his teachings in China.

            In an interview that he had with Ziao it was clear that some of these topics are not ones that the Chinese feel comfortable talking about.

Chapter #14

            The Chinese prefer to be seen as ocean people and do not like it when their history, way of life, or they them selves are referred to as yellow. It is understandable that they would see this as offensive seeing as most cultures to not like to be defined by their skin tone.

            Gifford also writes about peasants and migrant workers are needed to keep China afloat because they supply the cheap labor and vast amount of food needed to keep the economy growing steadily.

            I also found it interesting that the geography of China is so diverse, I knew that there were mountains and plains and some tropical seeming regions but I had no idea that there were desert areas as well.

Chapter #15

            This chapter talks a fair amount about propaganda and rules, the basic feeling is that we know that the Communist party controls the news.

            It also touches on the one child rule and how it can be enforced.

            The public pretty much has to care about what the government cares about, and share the same perspective of the one-sided news papers and stations that they get their information from.

Chapter #16

            Having the newest technology is a big thing to people in Chinese cities that can afford to keep up with the rapidly changing technological goodies.

            Gifford also portrays Chinese people as very entrepreneurial because it seems they are always trying to find a new or better way to make money.

            There was a very strong movement toward western style living, which was lead by people who were in search of a higher standard of living; mostly those who generally could not afford to live so comfortably.

Chapter #17

            Gifford talks about improvements to China and how they are most noticeable along route 312 but after you stray from route 312 it is hard to see much of an improvement in the lifestyle of people in rural areas.

            He also talks about China’s strong borders and how it is hard to pass through them to get in or out of the country, and he refers to China as a still emerging country.

            The subject of censorship comes up again, which is becoming a trend in each chapter I feel like it is mentioned at least once, and it makes me feel like our stereotype of just how censored China is might be right for once.

Postcards

China has the same bad television and style of games shows that we have here in the United States.

Business moves very rapidly in China, and it seems as if it takes less time to make big decisions and implement changes than it does in the US.

Once again it is mentioned that television is censored and controlled by the government, which I still find to be overbearing.

Foxconn has an enormous number of employees and I remember hearing about them when apple went over and tried to get working conditions and wages improved upon because oh just how poor the conditions were previously.

I never really thought about how many cars we have in the US in comparison to other countries around the world but apparently in relation to China we have quite a few more than they do.