“It Just Isn’t Looking Like Asia’s Century”: Proof that Expats Have No Idea What They Are Talking About

Posted on September 9, 2008 by Jun

Today I read an article from the Washington Post titled “So Far, It Just Isn’t Looking Like Asia’s Century,” and to be blunt, it was a bunch of generic bullshit slapped together. Joshua Kurlantzick, apparently a visiting scholar at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace and a fellow at the Pacific Council on International Policy, presents the argument that this is not “Asia’s century.” The problem I have with the argument is the author’s evidence to back up his statement, and to be blunt, he makes himself look like a ignorant fool. And I’m being kind here.

I’ve spent a lot of time in Asia over the past decade, as an expat and a traveler. From where I stand, the place is a geopolitical mess. Hogtied by nationalism and narrow self-interest, the countries of the East won’t be banding together to replace the West as the seat of global power — at least not anytime soon.

Wow, a whole decade in that country called Asia! He must know everything to know about Asia! Narrow self interest? You mean like Russia invading Georgia? Like America invading Iraq? Come on Mr. Kurlantzick, you cant deal in generalities here, I’m not as smart as you! Give me specifics!
Continue reading →

Posted in Current Events, Observations, Politics, WTF | 42 Comments

Religion May Make Asian Teenagers More Depressed

Posted on September 8, 2008 by Ernie


So to add to the rapidly growing laundry list of what makes Asian youth depressed, which we’ve so far contributed to family conflict, academic pressure and a mental health stigma — you guys keeping count here? — you can add religion, according to this study at Ohio State University.

As much as I do love me a study, where I can point to web site and tell my family and friends “SEE?! GROWING UP CHINESE BAPTIST IS WHY I WAS SO FUCKED UP AS A YOUNG ADULT,” the study doesn’t really do much digging:

Adolescents in grades 7 through 12 were initially interviewed in school and a random number of students were again interviewed at home. Students were asked to identify the positive and negative feelings they had experienced in the preceding week such as depression, loneliness, isolation, happiness, or excitement. They were also asked about their behavior in the last year and asked to identify their race, religious preference, and how often they attended services during the same period of time.

Really? That’s it? The study goes as far to say that religion is actually good for some kids but may effect others due to “tensions they face in balancing the conflicting ideals and customs of their religion with those of mainstream culture.” Like, say, a family full of conflict or undue academic pressure, perhaps?

As for me, I grew up Chinese Baptist, becoming a Presbyterian in High School and touring with a church choir. My big conflict with the church as a young adult was with trying to reconcile how a merciful God would make me go through having parents who fought and a sister with a mental illness and, oh yeah, that whole gay thing, but as a teenager I used a church as a means to escape from that environment. Of course, your results will vary.

As a teenager, did you find the church a positive or a negative re-enforcement in your life?

(Flickr photo credit: preciousj)

Posted in Lifestyles, Observations | 16 Comments

See Ping Pong Playa… free afterparty with ticket!*

Posted on September 5, 2008 by jozjozjoz

I was lucky enough to catch a private screening of Jessica Yu’s Ping Pong Playa a few weeks ago and I absolutely loved it.

The film follows the antics of Christopher C-Dub Wang, who thinks he could have been an NBA star if genetics hadn’t conspired against him. Instead, he’s got to defend his family’s ping pong legacy and see if he can rise to the challenge of being the ping pong star he never wanted to be.

It’s been reviewed a lot of different places already, including here on 8Asians by Lily, so I’m not going to repeat anything that’s already been said.

But I wanted to give you a heads up that if you live in LA, SF (or SJ), or NY, Ping Pong Playa is opening tonight (see the Ping Pong Playa website, click Screenings for details)! If you’re in Houston or Seattle… you’re in luck… the film opens in those two cities next week on 9/12.

*Anyway, if you’re in Los Angeles of San Francisco and catch the screenings, there are afterparties you can attend for free with your ticket stub!

Los Angeles: Friday, September 5. 10pm
Central Hollywood
1710 Las Palmas Ave, Los Angeles
Free with movie ticket stubs before 11pm ($10 cover after)

San Francisco: Saturday, September 6. 10pm-2am
Straits Cafe
845 Market Street, San Francisco
Bring a PPP ticket stub from any Bay Area theatre and get in for free!

Even if you don’t catch the parties this weekend, I highly recommend check out Ping Pong Playa while you can on the big screen… it’s a fun, funny movie.

For those of you who understand Mandarin, I think they did a great job of inserting Mandarin conversations into the film. And I especially enjoyed Roger Fan’s “chinglish” conversations with his parents… sounds a lot like me when insert English into my conversations when I can’t think of the Chinese words.

Posted in Current Events, Entertainment, Movies | 4 Comments

The 8Asians.com Writers Talk About: Whether John Cho is Hot or Not

Posted on September 5, 2008 by Guest Writer

Our internal e-mail lists have us discussing all kinds of stuff: Asian American identity, representation in the media, the experiences of activism in an academia setting and its progression as we transition to the working, adult world. And sometimes, we talk about how hot John Cho is.

Ernie: “John Cho Says Sulu is Not Just Japanese, But is a Pan-Asian Character.” You know, Pan-Asian. Like PF Changs.

Moye: …I saw John Cho at my favorite restaurant in LA (this down to earth pizza/panini place). i totally stared at him, thinking how much he looked like John Cho and we had this awkward moment of me realizing it was him and him probably thinking, “oh look, only Asian girls recognize me.” And then he picked up his pizza and left.

Efren: Moye, is he more attractive in real life than he is on-screen? i don’t find him all that attractive (shrug).

Jen: have you seen the asian straight guys out there? John Cho, in comparison, is HOT.

John: How are the straight Asian guys on the 8Asians email list supposed to take this comment?

Xxxtine: Quietly.

Efren: lol, i beg to differ — i know lots of hot straight Asian guys. there’s just something about John Cho that just doesn’t do it for me. Not sure what it is; he was deliciously catty in Margaret Cho’s Bam-Bam and Celeste, though.

Xxxtine: If it makes you feel any better Efren – my loins don’t buzz for him either. Sung Kang — now HE’S HOT, and very charming.

Bo: I think it’s his ginormous Asian head. His head just seems bigger than most XXL Asian heads. Or maybe its just that he’s so skinny. Makes his head just look proportionally huge. Lollipopesque. As an Asian optometrist once told me. “We have big heads in order to fit our big brains.” Seriously though, what genetic benefit could gigantic craniums provide?

Moye: John Cho is HOT in person. i think maybe the camera kinda flattens his face so he looks okay on the screen, but seriously, i was totally checking him out in front of my boyfriend. And even he was like, “Really? John Cho?? Hot?? You sure??” And i was like “YES GO LOOK BEHIND YOU. Now excuse me while I go ask him out.”

Min Jung: Guys, guys, settle down. I’ve not only met John Cho, he’s “recognized me” as a writer for KoreAm. That was a weird moment, actually, because I was asking him to autograph a copy of the mag with him on the cover like a stupid fangirl.

Xxxtine: I say we title this post “The HOTNESS of John Cho”

Efren: Or “John Cho: Hot or Not?”

John: Yeah, we should totally upload a photo of John Cho on HotorNot.com! Me, I’m a 6.6 / 10.

Sometimes, 8Asians posts just write themselves.

Posted in Observations, TalkAbout | 17 Comments

Dragon Ball Z – The Movie

Posted on September 3, 2008 by Brian

I always KNEW Dragon Ball Z was white! And now I can prove it!

More pics at the Dragonball: The Movie blog. (Extra emphasis on the douche-chill-inducing Chow Yun Fat picture…)

This just in: the 2008 Beijing Summer Olympics The Movie has been announced!  They’re going to cast the 1996 Atlanta Summer Olympics as the film’s star.

Posted in Movies | 14 Comments

9/5 SF: Bay Area Korean Americans (BAKA) is hosting its 5th Annual Wine Tasting Event!

Posted on September 2, 2008 by John

BAKAs (Bay Area Korean Americans) is hosting its 5th Annual Wine Tasting Event!

Who: Open to the public
What: 5th Annual BAKAs Wine Tasting Event
When: September 5th, 2008, 6:30pm
Where: Golden Gate room, Fort Mason, San Francisco
Cost: Free!
Why: Celebrate and learn about Korean American groups, non-profits, and activities in the Bay Area

BAKAs is a virtual community of 1st and 2nd generation Korean American (KA) organizations. We are committed to bringing visibility and awareness to the diverse number of KA organizations in the Bay Area. The purpose of the wine tasting event is to allow members of the Bay Area KA public to learn about various organizations in the Bay Area.

This gathering allows both organizations and individuals to network and learn about each other. Each year, about 10-15 KA non-profit and community organizations participate to help raise awareness for various causes and to foster involvement in the community through this event. Attendance has also been growing each year reaching our apex of over 400 attendees in 2007.
We are reaching out to you and your organization in the hopes that you will be able to join us as participants and as a sponsor in this year’s event!

Also, check out our Facebook event at
http://www.facebook.com/home.php?ref=logo#/event.php?eid=27950360049

If you have any questions, please contact Koun Han.

Lead Organizers:

KACSF (Korean American Coalition – SF) was established in March 2001 to carry out the mission of educating, organizing and empowering the Bay Area Korean American community.

KASE (Korean American Society of Entrepreneurs) is a non-profit organization chartered by entrepreneurs, engineers, corporate executives, venture capitalists, and other professionals with roots or interests in Korea.

KAPS (Korean American Professional Society) is a nonprofit organization that is devoted to the professional and social development of Korean Americans in the San Francisco Bay Area.

Posted in Announcements | 2 Comments

John McCain and a Steward

Posted on September 1, 2008 by Jeff

I recently learned about the following story about John McCain in the Mercury News. At the Navy Academy, an upperclassman was berating a Filipino steward who was serving food in the mess hall. McCain, at that time a lower classman, risked being expelled by challenging the upperclassman, who backed off. There are questions raised by this incident. What does this imply about McCain’s character and how he would be if president? How does this reconcile with his other somewhat alarming comments?  Why do the accounts of this story mention a Filipino Steward?

Of these questions, I’ll answer the last one. The United States and the Philippines had a treaty that allowed the US to recruit Filipinos nationals into the U.S. Navy. These were coveted positions because of the opportunity to go to the US, although for a long period of time, the main job given to these Filipinos was as a steward (read serving personnel). My father came to the US this way, and he spent a few years as an admiral’s stewards (basically a servant). The large Filipino populations around San Diego, Norfolk Virginia, and to an extent, the Bay Area, formed because of these Filipino sailors.

My dad put in 20 years, and I grew up around and on Navy bases. Looking back, it was a weird lifestyle — shopping at the Commissary and Exchange, having the military dependents ID card, and going to the military hospital when you were sick. It had some big downsides, like not seeing ones father for months at a time. [Are there any other fellow Filipino navy brats out there who remember flying space available on a military charter to the Philippines? If so, give a shout out!]

My father tells some great stories about his life in Navy. He said that during the Jim Crow era in the South, he and his fellow Filipino didn’t know from which water fountain to drink (“colored” or “white”). He served several tours off of Vietnam, and he was part of the Cuban missile blockade. He still has his sea legs – we visited the USS Hornet (an interesting place to visit if you have the time), and even though he was in his 70s, he moved like a cat, traveling easily up and down the decks and through bulkheads.

After the American bases closed in the Philippines, the US stopped taking Filipinos nationals into the Navy. His generation is getting old, and he and my Mom attend a lot of funerals of Filipino American Navy veterans. I actually thought about writing a book on his generation, but there are already a few books about this era. I’ll read a few and see if any are worth recommending.

Posted in Discrimination, History, Observations, Politics | Tagged , , | 9 Comments

Don’t Forget to Flush!

Posted on September 1, 2008 by Brian

I’ve always considered Flushing, Queens a second home.  My parents have been working there about twenty five years, taking me along since before I started grade school.  Hard to imagine that, what’s now considered the second largest Chinatown in the US (!), my parents describe Flushing in the late 70’s, early 80’s as almost completely void of any Chinese at all.  Today, what’s also a huge central hub of subway, rail road and buses, there’s a complete cluster of Chinese restaurants, supermarkets, bakeries, and retail stores.  (My morning commute takes me right through Flushing, and every morning I duck into one of the Chinese bakeries and get a cup of coffee and some baked goods for the 7 Train ride into Manhattan.  I swear these Chinese bakeries put crack into their coffees… BEST coffee anywhere, hands down.)

Jumbo-tron! Respeck!

I’ve been away from the NY area and was shocked to see just how much change a year’s worth made.  Yes, we got a Pinkberry opened up (and the obligatory Red Mango just half a block down), and across the street is a four story Old Navy (FOUR whole floors of shitty clothing!).  But now we got a jumbo-tron!!!  So take that all you other Chinatowns!
Continue reading →

Posted in Lifestyles | 2 Comments

“What [Asian Media] … Would Be Appropriate for a 7-year old Girl?”

Posted on September 1, 2008 by Ernie

Every so often we get e-mails. Here’s one from Julie, and while I don’t necessarily have a wealth of information on appropriate inspirational materials, maybe some 8Asian readers can help out:

Can you recommend any books, magazines, or websites spotlighting a variety of Asian women that would be appropriate — and interesting, hopefully — for a seven year-old girl?

I’m surprised that I haven’t been able to find better resources on this. My daughter is adopted from Anhui Province, China, and at a stage where she’s really looking for images of this kind.

We’re fortunate to be members of a great group here in Augusta, GA — the Chinese Consolidated Benevolent Association of Augusta (CCBA). The multi-generational group has been so welcoming and great for learning more about her Chinese heritage.

Posted in Ask an Asian, Family, Meta | 12 Comments

‘Samurai Girl’ coming to ABC Family this Friday

Posted on September 1, 2008 by John


I think had read about the new TV series ‘Samurai Girl’ from that other Asian American blog you might read earlier this summer, but just came across this article in the Wall Street Journal: “Teen Drama, With a Twist – ‘Samurai Girl’ puts an action spin on a genre aimed at young women“:

“”Samurai Girl” begins on ABC Family with a two-hour premiere next Friday. The show follows a 19-year-old named Heaven who has been adopted by one of Japan’s most powerful families after mysteriously surviving a plane crash as a child. As she is set to be married against her will, ninjas invade and attack her and her family, sending her into a new quest to reclaim her identity and discover her calling.”

San Francisco native Jamie Chung will be starring as ‘Samurai Girl.’ Since the SF Bay Area is so small, I wouldn’t be surprised if someone who reads this knows her? Apparently, Chung’s first television appearance was on MTV’s “Real World: San Diego (anybody catch her on the show?)

Personally, I don’t think we need another martial arts or “ancient” Japanese or Asian television series, but it’s cool that there is a TV series starring an Asian American, though not on network television.

Posted in Entertainment, Observations | 58 Comments

“Zen Shaolin”, a Chinese theatrical extravaganza in the Hunan Province

Posted on August 31, 2008 by Jen

I just found out about an extravagant show “Zen Shaolin” that is being performed among the mountains of the Hunan Province in China that looks amazing. With its cast of 500 performers (wow!), locals and “city” performers, Shaolin Buddhist monks, acrobats, Peking opera singers, musicians, dancers and martial artists, they all meld together to create a unique setting for a theatrical show like no other.

The music for “Zen Shaolin” is written by Mr. Tan Dun (composer of the Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon soundtrack as well as the Met Opera hit two years ago featuring Placido Domingo in The First Emperor), this show is reflective of China “redefining” its image — celebrating China’s rich history, beautiful natural settings, traditional art and music, and even religious roots as this show reflects Buddhist principles — thankfully recently blessed by the propaganda department in the Chinese government. A true Cirque du Soleil kind of show, I’d say, with extreme creativity, traditional arts meshed together with a modern sensibility with a hint of Hollywood, I would love to see this show. Apparently, so does a lot of other people, more than 300,000 people have seen it in the last 16 months. After investing $15 million on the theater itself, nestled among the mountains, with government and private funding… seriously, it’s amazing that this amazing gamble on such a show was even considered. If this was a Broadway show, no one produces a show with that kind of budget unless Disney is involved. And how jealous I am that China has the guts to actually fund theater productions — whereas in America, arts funding is highly limited so that investors are very risk-averse in making huge productions, resulting in Broadway producing mostly mediocre shows based on familiar Hollywood movies.

How cool does an actual rolling-stone orchestra sound?

Until a bag of money falls from the sky and I can see this show in person, I can try to get a sense of the show from the New York Times slideshow. Central Park Delacorte Theater, eat your heart out…

Posted in The Arts | 2 Comments

Questions for Bobby Jindal

Posted on August 31, 2008 by John

This week is the Republican National Convention, but given the conditions of Hurricane Gustav, it is questionable whether or not Governor of Louisiana, Indian-American Bobby Jindal, will speak. However, the New York Times does a brief Q&A with Jindal in “Questions for Bobby Jindal” this weekend. What surprised me the most was:

Q: You oppose abortion and stem-cell research, and just this month, you declined to renew a bill prohibiting discrimination in the workplace. Do you see yourself as an archconservative?

A: I am conservative. No doubt about it. But when you go back to what it means to be a conservative, I also think, as conservatives, we should believe in universal health care coverage.

I am shocked, just shocked, to hear that any Republican is for universal health care coverage and wonder what he exactly means in terms of implementation. I wonder how his fellow Republicans feel about this?

Although I don’t agree with most of Jindal’s policy positions, I am disappointed that he probably won’t be speaking at the RNC. I think it is a good thing when any “people of color” are highlighted at the highest levels of government, especially Asian Americans, which are often overlooked.

Posted in Current Events, Observations, Politics | Leave a comment