Summer 2013 book reading/reviews at bigWOWO

Posted on June 13, 2013 by bigWOWO

Those of you who have been here for a while know that my posting frequency typically decreases over the summer. Actually, those of you who have been here for a while probably noticed that my posting frequency has decreased over the last year in general. It’s been very busy as my kids are now occupied with activities of their own and our family has adjusted to make it work. It’s been a life change not just for this blog, but for all activist-type activities. This blog will live on, but as the summer is once again here, the posting frequency will go down, down, down, even lower than it’s been! BUT…if you’re interested in either helping with the summer posts or knowing what is going on, I’ve got a book review agenda. Here it is. Please let me know if you’d be interested in discussing any of the following books. If you are, we’ll set up a schedule and coordinate. I don’t know if we’ll get to all of them, but we can do what we can do.

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Posted in books, Site Administration | Tagged | 2 Comments

Rupert Murdoch files for divorce

Posted on June 13, 2013 by bigWOWO
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Thumbnail: AFP/Getty images (see link below)

NOOOO!!! NOOOO!!! Say it ain’t so! Wendi,Wendi, what went wrong?

I’m guessing they have a prenup, but I’m also guessing the prenup gives her enough money to live for the rest of her life without working. Man, this is the end of an era. From discussing their surprise marriage to Wendi’s status as wife of the most powerful media man in history to her producing Snow Flower and the Secret Fan (starring Hugh Jackman…well, at least they pretended it was an Asian film) to her pie deflection, we’ve covered it all here.

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Posted in AF/WM Theme-orama | Tagged , | 14 Comments

Man of Tai Chi

Posted on June 12, 2013 by bigWOWO

Now when you see old people doing it in the park, you’ll never think of Tai Chi in the same way again. This movie looks awesome.

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NSA leaker

Posted on June 10, 2013 by bigWOWO

edward-snowden
29-year-old ex-CIA worker Edward Snowden has revealed himself as the NSA leaker. He leaked information about the NSA’s monitoring of phone and internet records a few days ago, and the government is having a fit. Snowden is currently hiding in Hong Kong, hoping they’ll grant him some kind of asylum, but it looks like Hong Kong might only grant it for Chinese dissidents. He might apply for asylum from Iceland, but I think Iceland only grants it to people who are currently in Iceland. So Snowden is in a bit of a bad situation.

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Posted in News | Tagged | 33 Comments

Supercapitalist on Hulu

Posted on June 7, 2013 by bigWOWO

If you’re low on funds and need a date movie this weekend, Derek Ting’s Supercapitalist is free on Hulu. (I’m assuming this means he’s raking it in…in most cases, Hulu is much more prestigious than YouTube.) I found out on Alpha-Asian. These days, in general it’s hard for me to review movies given my limited exposure to them, so I won’t review this one, but check it out. It does feature an AM/AF couple for those of you who are interested in seeing such movie rarities (although it is fortunately becoming more and more common).

Posted in Arts and music, Asian American | Tagged | 16 Comments

Interview with Darren Leung about The Grandmaster

Posted on June 5, 2013 by bigWOWO


Darren is a friend of mine from college. He was Tony Leung’s trainer for the Wong Kar Wai movie The Grandmaster. Darren’s father Duncan Leung is one of the world’s top authorities on Wing Chin and has trained top martial artists around the world, as well as military and police. I’ve trained with Darren, and I can vouch for the fact that he’s got some awesome kung fu skills. I’m looking forward to seeing this movie.

Posted in Arts and music, Asian American, media | Tagged | 6 Comments

“Want an ethical career? Become a banker.”

Posted on June 4, 2013 by bigWOWO

The title comes from a talk given by Will McAskill, which was referenced here.

In his latest column The Way To Produce a Person, David Brooks raises a great question again, one that I’m sure many Asian American people–and probably many people, for that matter, ask themselves. Is it better to take a job that makes lots of money, and then use that money to do something great? Or is it better just to do something great? In other words, is it better to work for the Red Cross, standing on the front lines and handing out food, or is it better to buy that food and to donate it with money that you earn on Wall Street? In the article, Brooks talks about a young Wall Street guy named Jason Trigg who donates lots of money to fight malaria and discusses his situation and life choices.

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Posted in Citizenship | Tagged , | 3 Comments

We Sinners by Hanna Pylvainen (Review)

Posted on June 2, 2013 by bigWOWO

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bigWOWO rating: Asian American GOLD

I’m always on the lookout for literature that:

a) covers a perspective that is out of the ordinary, and

b) has something to do with my own personal experience

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Posted in Asian American, books, Reviews | Tagged | 5 Comments

China’s lack of branding (or Universalism Pt. 2)

Posted on May 31, 2013 by bigWOWO

Chinese Brands

Great article (as usual) by David Brooks right here: The Romantic Advantage. In the article, Brooks talks about how China manufactures a lot, but they have yet to build many well-known brands. 94% of Americans, according to Brooks, can’t name a single Chinese brand. According to his research, it’s because the Chinese treat business as transactional rather than based in relationships.

Brand managers who’ve worked in China say their executives tend to see business deals in transactional, not in relationship terms. As you’d expect in a country that has recently emerged from poverty, where competition is fierce, where margins are thin, where corruption is prevalent and trust is low, the executives there are more likely to take a short-term view of their exchanges.

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Posted in Asian American, News | Tagged , | 21 Comments

Where are you from?

Posted on May 30, 2013 by bigWOWO

Ken sent the video above, which he made. It’s pretty funny. And based on our favorite question.

Now let me just throw this out there. Notice how when the girl asks the guy if he’s “Native American,” he says, “No, just regular American.” It’s the cultural appeal to universalism, the idea that white Americans are post-ethnicity, that their culture is universal, unbiased, based on some higher plane of existence. This assumption, however, is something we ought to question.

Posted in Asian American | 11 Comments