Quick, name the newest film directed by Taiwanese filmmaker Ang Lee. If you answered a certain movie about gay cowboys, you would be wrong – Lee recently directed a Taiwanese art-house movie called 色戒, or Lust, Caution.
Unfortunately, if you’re expecting to see it in theaters the same way you saw Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, you might have to wait a while, via IMDB:
Focus CEO James Schamus told the Associated Press in an email that the U.S. movie market is “insanely overcrowded.” He added, “Every art-house film that tries to go wide is having trouble, so while we are going out in every major market and getting great numbers, we are being very cautious until we see how the market shakes out.” He called Caution “a very Asian film … whose politics and sexuality are challenging.” So, it would seem, is the film’s NC-17 rating. Shamus said that newspapers in Salt Lake City are refusing to carry ads for the movie.
Aaah, NC-17 – the film-rating’s mark of death. They are showing the film in theaters that play more experimental films, including three in the Bay Area, so as long as you’re not in Utah, you can help yourself to some Asian porn a riveting story besieged with political and sexual intrigue.
[Link credit: George]
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Last week I watched Frontline’s episode on Cheney’s Law. It was an investigative report about how Vice President Cheney and his minions sought to change the Executive powers of the President. You can watch the full episode on Frontline’s website under Cheney’s Law. For the past couple years, Congress and the media have been questioning the privileges gained by the new powers of the Executive office. It’s a point of contention from both conservatives and liberals alike. And I’m sure it’s something we will be hearing about more often with the upcoming election.
One of the key people involved in writing and enabling the new powers of the Executive office is a Korean born American lawyer by the name of John Yoo. John Yoo could be characterized as a hardworking almost stereotypical first generation Asian American. He emigrated from South Korea at a young age, grew up in Philadelphia, graduated from Harvard, and then law school at Yale. He was an Asian American poised for greatness, serving as clerk to both Laurence H. Silberman at the Court of Appeals and Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas. There is a great profile of the man written in the Washington Post But his infamy did not come about till he wrote several helpful memos, that brought Cheney’s ideas of expanding executive powers to the forefront. Continue Reading »
Shopping With GASP!
Sunday afternoon, I attended the first ever San Mateo County Democratic Presidential Straw Poll. The guest of honor was presidential candidate Dennis Kucinich (my videoclip here on YouTube). There were over 750 who voted.
I think I saw about 20-to-30 Asian-Americans at the straw poll, which was pretty disappointing to see, considering that San Mateo & Santa Clara County is approximately 20% Asian, and San Francisco County is about 35% Asian. Where are the Asian-American citizens ? I did bump into a Huijun Ring, a Chinese-American who is running for Foster City’s City Council seat – she’s one of seven candidates running for three open seats this November. So if you live in Foster City – please consider Ring for office. In a county that is 20% Asian, it would be nice to see some representation in public office!
In “An unlikely treasure-trove of donors for [Hillary] Clinton,” The Los Angeles Times reports on New York’s Chinatown and its support for Hillary:
“All three locations, along with scores of others scattered throughout some of the poorest Chinese neighborhoods in Queens, Brooklyn and the Bronx, have
been swept by an extraordinary impulse to shower money on one particular presidential candidate — Democratic front-runner Hillary Rodham Clinton… And Clinton’s success in gathering money from Chinatown’s least-affluent residents stems from a two-pronged strategy: mutually beneficial alliances with powerful groups, and appeals to the hopes and dreams of people now consigned to the margins. Clinton has enlisted the aid of Chinese neighborhood associations, especially those representing recent immigrants from Fujian province… Many, on the other hand, said they gave for reasons having more to do with the Chinese community than with Clinton. He Duan Zheng, who gave $1,000, said of the Fujianese community: “They informed us to go, so I went. “Everybody was making a donation, so I did too,” he said. “Otherwise I would lose face.”
There are some references to the legality of some of these contributions, considering many in Chinatown are recent immigrants, poor, not legal residents, not registered to vote or do not speak English. Surprisingly though, there was no reference to the illegal bundling contributions by Norman Hsu to Hillary. Apparently, a key community leader has been Chung Seto, who came to the U.S. when she was young from Canton province and has been a long-time supporter of Bill and Hillary Clinton since the 1990s.
As I have noted before, I know the founder of ORIENTED.com. In the most recent issue of AsianWeek, the paper reports “The Global Handshake: Networking around the world with ORIENTED.com“:
“Is it possible to network with professionals in the Asia Pacific, North America and other regions, all at the same time? Yes, says Christine Hsu, founder of ORIENTED.com, a global network of more than 28,000 professionals interested in Asian businesses and partnerships. Its signature happy hours are held simultaneously every
month in more than 12 cities, bringing together professionals in Beijing, Shanghai, Taipei, Hong Kong, Macau, Singapore, Sydney, Toronto, New York, Portland, Los Angeles and the San Francisco Bay Area. Business lunch hours and China industry tours are also in the works….Linda Kong, the group’s business development manager, said many members are affectionately referred to as “BMWs” — bilingual, mid-career, Western-trained professionals. “They are some of the most active movers and shakers in their communities, because they understand the importance of networking and building partnerships,” Kong said. “Through our online services and offline events, we have effectively created a global guanxi that is helping people to find jobs, new business opportunities and new friends, all over the world.” Guanxi means “network” or “connection” in Chinese…The group partners with businesses and organizations that serve Asia’s international business communities. “
There’s an ORIENTED.com happy hour event this coming Thursday in San Francisco. Check out the details here.
Wow – three straight days of reporting by The New York Times on Louisiana Governor-elect Bobby Jindal, with “In a Southern State, Immigrants’ Son Takes Over“:
“…Public high school in Baton Rouge was followed by Brown, where Mr. Jindal was Phi Beta Kappa, and a conversion to Roman Catholicism … After Oxford, a well-paid stint at the Washington consultants McKinsey and Company was followed by an interview for the job of secretary of the state Department of Health and Hospitals
with the newly elected Republican governor of Louisiana, Mike Foster, in 1995. Mr. Jindal was 24;…More high-level jobs followed in quick succession: chairman of a bipartisan Medicare reform commission in Washington, head of the statewide University of Louisiana system, assistant secretary in the Department of Health and Human Services under Mr. Bush. He and his wife, Supriya, returned to Louisiana to so he could run for governor in 2003… Mr. Jindal was elected to Congress from the New Orleans suburbs in 2004, and it was common knowledge that he was biding his time for another run at the governor’s mansion. His short time in Washington was unobtrusive, and he continued to campaign at home while others in the state’s Congressional delegation established a more forceful presence as hurricane recovery efforts unfolded.”
I guess Jindal comes across as a “Model Minority” with his credentials and quick rise up the ranks of Louisiana politics. And as noted in the article, many Indian-Americans may take pride in Jindal’s political success, but if they dig deeper, may not like his stances on the issues. But that is for the state of Louisiana to decide, and they have spoken. Whether or not Jindal can lead Louisiana out of its many challenges, time will only tell. As a fellow American, I wish him the best of luck.
Bobby Jindal wins, as reported in The New York Times article: “Indian-American Congressman Elected Louisiana’s Governor“:
“Bobby Jindal, a conservative Republican congressman from the New Orleans suburbs and the son of immigrants from India, was elected Louisiana’s
governor Saturday…Mr. Jindal, 36, defeated three main challengers in an open primary, becoming this state’s first nonwhite governor since a Reconstruction-era figure briefly held the office 130 years ago. With more than 90 percent of the vote counted, Mr. Jindal received 53 percent, above the 50 percent-plus-one threshold needed to avoid a runoff in November. He will be the nation’s first Indian-American governor when he takes office in January.”
Although I don’t agree with Jindal’s politics at all, Jindal definitely is breaking down racial barriers in Louisiana and in the United States. Hopefully Jindal is just the beginning for Asian-Americans reached elected office! As I have noted previously, Asian-Americans are alarmingly apathetic to being involved in the public service, politics, let alone exercising the basic fundamental right in a democracy – voting.
A friend of mine just forwarded this New York Times article on “An Improbable Favorite Emerges in Cajun Country:”
“An Oxford-educated son of immigrants from India is virtually certain to become the leading candidate for Louisiana ‘s next governor in Saturday’s primary election….peculiar circumstances have combined to make Representative Bobby Jindal, a conservative
two-term Republican, the overwhelming favorite. Analysts predict Mr. Jindal, 36, could get more than 50 percent of the vote in the open primary, thus avoiding a November runoff and becoming the nation’s first Indian-American governor…For months, the congressman has cultivated the rural areas where he lost in 2003, “witnessing” in remote Pentecostal churches, neutralizing his image of being hyperqualified — head of the state health department at 24, head of the university system at 28 and under secretary for the Department of Health and Human Services at 30 under President Bush — that did not help him the last time…Insinuations about his excessive intellectual capacity are still being made. “
When I first clicked on the URL that my friend sent me, I thought that the Caucasian male was the one running for governor, not the scrawny Indian-American to the left. I find this truly remarkable! It’s not that big of a surprise that there is Asian-American representation in the halls of government in the Wester United States as well as Hawaii, but in the deep South where former Ku Klux Klan leader David Duke ran for governor in the early 90s? It’s pretty inspiring, even if you don’t agree with Jindal’s politics.
Everyone loves babies. Seriously, a near fight could break out over Iraq or health care or interracial relationships and the media perception of the Asian male, and then someone could bring a baby in the room and everyone would just all collectively “aww.” Which is why I draw attention to YoBaby’s Cover Baby contest, a baby yogurt promotion where the winner gets fame and money and, of course, more yogurt. Because we’re in politically correct America, there is the obvious inclusion of African American and, yes, Asian American baby.
It just so happens that I know the mother of Asian Baby, named Kayla and thus abbreviated to ABK for the rest of this blog entry. Her name is Peggy and she went to my college. And as part of a way to shamelessly use the Internet to fish for votes, Peggy agreed to a short interview over Instant Messenger, after the jump.
A vote for ABK is a vote for proper health care for children all over the world! Well, no it isn’t, but vote for her anyway.
Continue Reading »
John Cho just did an interview with AsianPopcorn about what it’s like being an Asian American actor in the US.
It’s a great interview; go check it out. But if you want just the highlights:
“I didn’t think it was possible for Asians to be actors,” he said. But things changed with his first professional role in a play called “The Woman Warrior,” written by Chinese-American Maxine Hong Kingston. “When I met all these (Asian) professionals, it really opened a door for me.”
…
Cho was voted one of the 2006 “Sexiest Men Alive” by People magazine. “I think that was a mistake… a typo… It’s very nice, but it’s difficult to take that sort of thing seriously. You know what, print ‘I am sexy,”‘ he told reporters, and the room burst into laughter.
…
Cho pointed out the problem of actors agreeing to play an insulting or racist role in Hollywood, thereby endorsing those values. He said actors can advance change very simply and powerfully by “saying no.”“What if they audition 100 people and 100 actors said no. Then two things would happen: One is that they would know that what they wrote was offensive. They would know that. And secondly, they couldn’t do it. So we take their tools away because we are their tools. So when we do stereotypical roles we are helping them, and so I think to turn that around, we should say no, and that’s the most powerful tool that we have,” he said.
Since his rise in popularity — being one of the most searched names in Youtube, and appearing on popular TV shows like “The Singles Table” and “Kitchen Confidential” — Cho has become a face for the Asian American community. Asked if he ever feels burdened about it, he said that he is sometimes “jealous” of white actors because “they don’t have to think about representing their race.
“We (Asian American actors) shouldn’t have to do this. So it feels unfair. And yet, it is an opportunity. It just so happens that I’m in a position to, by some bizarre act of God, I’m in a position to change things… So I might as well do what I can,” he said.
Hey Everyone … brand new show with brand new songs in this enhanced version of POP 88.
New Hirai Ken, Bada, Yuna Ito plus, Spring Waltz Contest winners announced.
If you have any feedback, questions, comments or requests, leave a comment at Popcast88.com or send an email to christine [at] popcast88.com.
All political inclinations aside, I thought this was interesting: Barack Obama has a page on AsianAvenue.com!
First, let me just get this out of my system. AsianAvenue.com is still around? Huh. Jenn from reappropriate echoed my thoughts when she wrote:
Doesn’t anyone else remember way back when AsianAve was the meat-market for the tween APIA community? When it was all about girls and boys dolling up in their clubb-y best, frost-tipped hair and all, to pose all pouty-lipped for the camera, and then try to get into each others’ cyber-pants? Does no one else get a little twinge of je ne sais quoi at the idea of Obama jumping into that fray of overwrought adolescence?
It all kind of blows my mind.
Hahaha! It totally blows my mind too.
Now on a more serious note, all of the politicians are on MySpace now. It’s the new way to reach younger, more technically-inclined audiences. I think it’s pretty smart too, though the low barriers-to-entry mean hi-jinx can ensue, such as Rep. Ron Kind, D-Wis. voting to fund studies of “the sex lives of Vietnamese prostitutes.”
Aside from Obama, Hilary Clinton has also made inroads into the Asian American community. But she doesn’t have an AsianAvenue.com page yet… c’mon Hilary, don’t you want to be a part of that tween APIA meat-market? Hehe.
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