Year of the Rabbit

Happy Lunar New Year (Spring Festival). It’s the Year of the Rabbit in China, Malaysia, Thailand, Singapore, the Philippines, Taiwan, and Korea, but the Year of the Cat in Vietnam. Either way, the holday lasts until the Lantern Festival on February 5th. If that’s not enough partying for you, the Mongolian Lunar New Year is February 21st (same for Tibet, Nepal, Bhutan, and parts of India). It’s the Year of the Rabbit (“Water Hare”) there, too.

More:

“Lunar New Year: What to expect as we hop into the Year of the Rabbit,” Adela Suliman, Washington Post

“From Chinese to Tibetan, all the most delicious Lunar New Year dishes explained,” Eileen Cho, NBC News

“While many ring in the Year of the Rabbit, Vietnam celebrates the cat,”Suzanne Nuyen, NPR News

“All you need to know about the Year of the Rabbit,” Brian Wang, South China Morning Post

Note: Japan hasn’t celebrated Lunar New Year since 1873.

Update:

“For the first time, the White House celebrates the Lunar New Year,” Simon Druker, UPI

__________________
Shortlink: https://wp.me/p6sb6-CXR

Top Image (“Lunar Year of the Rabbit, after Georges-Louis Leclerc”) by Mike Licht. Download a copy here. Creative Commons license; credit Mike Licht, NotionsCapital.com

Comments are welcome if they are on-topic, substantive, concise, and not boring or obscene. Comments may be edited for clarity and length.

The Abacus and Cognitive Memory

Asia’s ancient calculator, the abacus, still has proponents in Japan. A video by Terushi Sho.

_________________
Short link:  https://wp.me/p6sb6-yBE

Comments are welcome if they are on-topic, substantive, concise, and not boring or obscene. Comments may be edited for clarity and length.

The Korean War Is Over! Sorta. Maybe. Possibly.

“South and North Korea, China and the US have agreed ‘in principle’ to declare a formal end to the Korean war, almost 70 years after the conflict ended in a shaky truce, the South Korean president, Moon Jae-in, has said.

But Moon conceded that talks on the 1950-53 war were being held back by North Korean objections to present-day ‘US hostility’.

Speaking in Canberra on Monday during his four-day visit to Australia, Moon said he believed the four main parties agreed in principle to a peace declaration.

But he added that North Korea had made an end to US hostility a precondition for talks.”

— Justin McCurry, The Guardian

More:

“President Moon Jae-in: End to Korean War agreed to ‘in principle,'” Rebecca Falconer, Axios

“Is South Korea close to officially ending the Korean War?” Julian Ryall, DW News

_____________
Short link: https://wp.me/p6sb6-yhs

Comments are welcome if they are on-topic, substantive, concise, and not boring or obscene. Comments may be edited for clarity and length.

 

Trump-Kim Summit, a Triumph for Something-or-Other.

Singapore: They came, they gripped-and-grinned, they ate lunch, they went home. Supreme Leaders Donald Trump and Kim Jong Un held a photo-op and everybody came. The two dictators had a jolly time talking science fiction, hotels, and real estate. They watched videos, and Mr. Kim taught Mr. Trump to call joint military exercises “provocative war games” so they were easier for him to unilaterally cancel. The White House called Dennis Rodman to thank him.

President Trump went home early so he could talk to Fox News and play golf.

More:

“The North Korea summit was a triumph of Trumpian stagecraft, and the media fell for it,” Margaret Sullivan, Washington Post

“Trump just struck a shockingly weak deal with North Korea,” Zeeshan Aleem, Vox

“Trump really has achieved a historic breakthrough – for the Kim dynasty,” Jonathan Freedland, The Guardian

“Trump Was Outfoxed in Singapore,” Nicholas Kristof, New York Times

“North Koreans ‘Love’ Kim Jong Un, President Tells ABC,” Daily Beast

“Trump’s summit military concession to Kim surprises everyone,” Alexander Smith, NBC News

“Trump-Kim summit: South Koreans wary of losing US defense assurance,” Fabian Kretschmer, Deutsche Welle

“‘What the hell?’ Trump-Kim lovefest ignores human rights nightmare,” Nahal Toosi, Politico

“Bush Center highlights North Korean human rights abuses after summit,” Jacqueline Thomsen, The Hill

“Kim Has Accepted Trump’s Invite To Visit Washington,” Kate Riga, TPM Livewire

Yes. Repeat, No:

“Pence: ‘regular readiness training’ to continue in South Korea,” Alayna Treene, Axios

Updates:

“North Korea’s Media Tout Trump Concessions You Won’t Find In The Joint Statement,” Anthony Kuhn, NPR News

“All The Times North Korea Promised To Denuclearize,”Brian Barrett, Wired

“Trump and Kim Stir Confusion About What They Actually Agreed To,” Margaret Hartmann, New York Magazine

“Reporters thought this video was North Korea propaganda. It came from the White House.”  Avi Selk, Washington Post

“The Sensational Idiocy of Donald Trump’s Propaganda Video for Kim Jong,” Troy Patterson, The New Yorker

“Trump’s North Korean Propaganda Reveals His Contempt for Democracy,” Eric Levitz, New York Magazine

Related:

“James Clapper tells CNN’s Chris Cuomo that Dennis Rodman is ‘our best resource’ for understanding Trump, Kim Jong Un,” Catherine Garcia, The Week

“When Hitler met Hoover and eight other instances dictators scored presidential face time,”  Erick Trickey, WaPo via National Post

“Trump’s ‘Great Chemistry’ With Murderous Strongmen,” Conor Friedersdorf, The Atlantic

“Trump has officially been nominated for the Nobel Prize for his summit with Kim Jong Un,” Jeva Lange, The Week

“Can the US, China and North and South Korea find peace on the peninsula? War veterans hope so,” Minnie Chan, Robert Delaney, Lee Jeong-ho, China Morning Post

_____________

Shortlink:  https://wp.me/p6sb6-rN6

Comments are welcome if they are on-topic, substantive, concise, and not obscene. Comments may be edited for clarity and length.

Add to: Facebook | Digg | Del.icio.us | Stumbleupon | Reddit | Blinklist | Twitter | Technorati | Yahoo Buzz | Newsvine

Hong Kong Strong

“Hong Kong Strong,” directed by Brandon Li, with music by Steven Richard Davis. Peek behind the scenes here.

______________

Short Link: http://wp.me/p6sb6-o7y

Comments are welcome if they are on-topic, substantive, concise, and not boring or obscene. Comments may be edited for clarity and length.

Add to: Facebook | Digg | Del.icio.us | Stumbleupon | Reddit | Blinklist | Twitter | Technorati | Yahoo Buzz | Newsvine

Tajik Bread

Bread baking at Shamsullo Dustov’s house in Kumsangir, Tajikistan, near the Afghan border. A film by John Wendle, selected for the National Geographic Short Film Showcase.

_____________
Short link: http://wp.me/p6sb6-nAm

Comments are welcome if they are on-topic, substantive, concise, and not boring or obscene. Comments may be edited for clarity and length.

Add to: Facebook | Digg | Del.icio.us | Stumbleupon | Reddit | Blinklist | Twitter | Technorati | Yahoo Buzz | Newsvine

Year of the Monkey

Much of East Asia, 1/5 of the world’s people, started celebrating the Lunar New Year on Monday, February 8th, while it was still Superbowl Sunday in America — International Date Line and all that — so Yanks had better party hearty to catch up. Don’t forget to put crisp new bills or gift cards into red envelopes to give as, um, gifts to officials and other decision makers, and mind the taboos. The holiday period continues for another two weeks, until the Lantern Festival on February 22nd.

Dumplings, anyone?

______________

Short link: http://wp.me/p6sb6-n8Z

Image (“Year of the Monkey, after Wiktor Górka“) by Mike Licht. Download a copy here. Creative Commons license; credit Mike Licht,NotionsCapital.com

Comments are welcome if they are on-topic, substantive, concise, and not obscene. Comments may be edited for clarity and length.

Add to: Facebook | Digg | Del.icio.us | Stumbleupon | Reddit | Blinklist | Twitter | Technorati | Yahoo Buzz | Newsvine

Umbrella Revolution: Folded

When Hong Kong’s protest for self-rule began in September, police responded with pepper spray and tear gas, and demonstrators sheltered behind umbrellas. The “Umbrella Revolution” ended this week as protest leaders surrendered to police and told their comrades to go home. Hong Kong police cleared protest barricades and tent sites, some protesters are in jail, and movement spokesman Joshua Wong is on a hunger strike. Everyone in HK is asking “What’s next?” and they don’t mean the winter monsoon cold snap.

Where in the World in Kim Jong Un?

North Korea’s Kim Jong Un, Marshal of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, First chairman of the National Defense Commission, First secretary of the Workers’ Party, Chairman of the party’s Central Military Commission, and Supreme commander of the Korean People’s Army, didn’t show up at the huge ceremony commemorating the 69th anniversary of North Korea’s only political party, which he heads, like his daddy and granddaddy before him. In fact, Mr. Kim hasn’t been seen in public since September 3rd. What’s up with that?

Taiwan Busts Racing Pigeon Kidnapping Ring

“Five people have been arrested in northern Taiwan for allegedly kidnapping dozens of racing pigeons for ransom, police said Tuesday. The suspects were accused of setting traps along racing routes to capture the pigeons before demanding up to Tw$10,000 ($333) per bird from their owners in ransom money, the Taipei City police department said.”