Residents gather next to burnt-out tanks in the aftermath of the crackdown (via CNN)

Last year was the 25th anniversary of the “June 4 Incident,” as it is officially known. State security went full bore over the ultra-sensitive date, harassing journalists and activists, detaining anyone who sneezed on the subject.

They succeeded in maintaining the collective amnesia in-house, earned their bonuses and overtime, but in doing so, trolled foreign media so hard that the blowback was intense. I don’t know how much coverage was originally intended, but several journalist friends indicated they’d been so royally pissed off with the constant intimidation, their editors were all but sounding the bugle on the topic. Coverage was wall to wall, with stories everywhere.

This year, of course, will be much quieter: 26 isn’t as catchy as 25. But Global Times hasn’t forgotten, and duly produces a bungled editorial on the subject, attacking – and casually libeling – a group of overseas students for writing an open letter, requesting transparency over the crackdown. Here’s the closing paragraph:

Chinese society has reached a consensus on not debating the 1989 incident. Students born in the 1980s and 1990s have become the new targets of overseas hostile forces. When China is moving forward, some are trying to drag up history in an attempt to tear apart society. It’s a meaningless attempt and is unlikely to be realized.

Frankly, the rest of the rant isn’t worth the click. Moreover, there is really little point to GT’s article (even less so than usual, that is). No mainstream outlet had even reported on the letter prior to the editorial. The first was the Guardian, which published its article shortly before midnight a day later, referencing GT in the third graf.

If Streisand Effect was the intention of the trolling, so be it. There aren’t any other logical reasons for flagging the date by turning the full glare of the Batshit Signal on this group of 11 Chinese students while accusing them, ad hominem, of being “brainwashed” by a “paranoid minority” in an “attempt to tear society apart.” (Just because they’re “paranoid,” GT, doesn’t mean the government isn’t out to get them.)

It’s telling how an authoritarian apparatus that has engineered a culture of amnesia and self-censorship is, itself, quite incapable of either. Like a sinner with a guilty conscience, GT can’t help running its own mouth. An annual hit-piece on Tiananmen has become almost as symbolic and ritualistic as the candlelit gathering in Hong Kong’s Victoria Park. Rather than memorializing the victims, though, it simply serves to shame the perpetrators.

UPDATE: The shambles continues with an order from the goon squad to “urgently delete the Global Times commentary.” So dignified.

Here’s a strange little story from the other side of the world. Frances Chan, a 20-year-old history major at Yale, was apparently told by her school’s health center officials that she was dangerously underweight at 92 pounds. She’s 5-foot-2, and according to the ideal weight calculator, someone between her age and height should weigh at least 97 pounds. As Chan wrote on Huffington Post last month about her ordeal:

I asked my health-conscious friends what they do to remain slim and did the exact opposite. In addition to loading up on carbs for each meal, I’ve eaten 3-4 scoops of ice cream twice a day with chocolate, cookies, or Cheetos at bedtime. I take elevators instead of stairs wherever possible.

The sound you hear right now is half of America crying.

Then there’s this New Haven Register article from last week:

Since December, Chan has had multiple medical appointments and mandatory weigh-ins. She met with a nutritionist and a mental health counselor, as well, to determine whether she might have an eating disorder. She said a nurse told her at one point that her low weight would kill her if she didn’t do something about it.

Although she attempted to do as she was told and eat more, Chan only managed to gain two pounds. Yale said that wasn’t enough.

Chan’s still in school — Yale wouldn’t actually expel her for her weight, I don’t think (is that legal?) – though officials check in with her every semester.

As a fellow Asian who can gorge without consequence, I want to tell Frances to enjoy what she’s got, consume to her heart’s delight, but I know the truth: the weight is merely hiding, stored in some invisible alternate-universe pouch. One day the cosmic bridge will break and all those extra pizza slices and ham before bedtime and dessert at Old Country Buffet will drop into my belly, making it look like a watermelon. Metabolism rates slow as one ages, but food remains ever delicious. Fat years, here we come.

(H/T Katie) (Image via LinkedIn)

PEN America organized a protest called “Take a Stand for Free Expression in China: An Evening of Literary Protest” last Thursday, April 10, in front of the Brooklyn Public Library in New York. Ai Weiwei was more or less the face of the event, attended by several hundreds of people / bored Brooklynites, which was also had the purpose of raising awareness of persecuted Chinese writers. Art Daily reports that Ai Weiwei appeared via video message to thank his supporters. Surely he would’ve preferred to appear in person, but he still doesn’t have his passport — never has since his 81-day Beijing detention in 2011 for tax evasion.

Ai’s comments, via Art Daily:

“As an artist, I think freedom of expression is an essential foundation for any kind of activity,” said Ai, his larger-than-life image hovering on the Brooklyn Museum wall. “Freedom of expression is to encourage every individual to question authority, and to become creative, so these are essential values for artists to protect and to fight for.” The artist ended his video message with a strong statement: “We have to encourage individuals to become a part of the society through free expression … to bare responsibility and to contribute our ideas, our thinking about what kind of society we live in, and what kind of future we will have.”

And here’s a promotional portrait of Ai Weiwei that American artist Shepard Fairey created in his “Obey Giant” style:

An episode of The Colbert Report last Wednesday used the words “ching-chong ding-dong” in an attempt to satirize / skewer Washington dunderhead Dan Synder. When the show’s Twitter account tweeted the joke the next day without context — “I am willing to show #Asian community I care by introducing the Ching-Chong Ding-Dong Foundation for Sensitivity to Orientals or Whatever” — a bit of hell broke loose on social media, resulting in Korean-American Twitter activist Suey Park starting the hashtag #CancelColbert. It reeked of so much faux outrage and willful ignorance that I did all I could to ignore it.

Something strange happened though: the story became about more than Colbert, Synder, Park, or hashtag activism. How do Asians fit within the scheme of liberal / white privilege? Are Asians and white Americans so intricately linked, socially and economically, that one could adopt the joke of the other without crossing the red line of race? Having lived abroad as long as I have, I don’t have a good answer anymore; in so many ways, this is purely an American question, reserved for those living in America. (Can you imagine what a good liberal in America would say if they found out that Chinese people in China call themselves “yellow-skinned”? Or this.) If I had ventured a comment over the weekend though, I suspect I would have sounded like I did last October when Asian Americans feigned anger at Jimmy Kimmel over a joke about “killing Chinese people.”

I’ll point out here that the two stories you should read, if you’re interested in this #CancelColbert story and haven’t already read, is “Gooks Don’t Get Redskins Joke,” written by Deadspin’s Tommy Craggs and Kyle Wagner, and “The Campaign to ‘Cancel’ Colbert,” written by Jay Caspian Kang for The New Yorker. Craggs and Wagner, who are both Korean-Americans like Park, assert that Park’s reading of Colbert’s joke is “problematic; it flattens out all meaning and pretends, in effect, that there is no ironic distance between Jonathan Swift’s satire and actual cannibalism, not to mention that it’s tighter-assed than life itself, as a funny white man once said.” Kang, generous nearly to the point of his own argument’s destitution, writes sympathetically of Park’s hashtag campaign:

#CancelColbert may have been silly and dumb and wrong in spirit, but it’s worth asking if those of us who find it distasteful know as much about the intentions of the hashtag activists as we think we do. If we take #CancelColbert at face value, we can easily dismiss it as shrill, misguided, and frivolous. But after speaking to Park about what she hoped to accomplish with all this (a paternalistic question if there ever was one), I wonder if we might be witnessing the development of a more compelling—and sometimes annoying and infuriating—form of protest, by a new group of Merry Pranksters, who are once again freaking out the squares in our always over reacting, always polarized online public sphere.

And all this is a longwinded way of introducing the below, which is Colbert breaking kayfabe on Tuesday’s The Colbert Report to tell his audience that he is, in fact, a satirist. Hopefully this is the last time we write about this story. It won’t be, I suspect, the last time we talk about racism, specifically what constitutes it.

Via Gawker:

“That ends that controversy,” Colbert concluded. “I just pray that no one tweets about the time I said that Rosa Parks was overrated, Hitler had some good ideas, or ran a cartoon during Black History Month showing President Obama teaming up with the Ku Klux Klan because, man, that sounds pretty bad out of context.”

Q: Tell me a little bit about your background.
A: I’m an actor, a stand-up comedian, a theatrical performer, a writer, a singer, a rapper, and blah blah blah person in the entertainment industry. I mean we all have to wear multiple hats in this industry especially as an Asian American Artist (AAA). There is limited opportunity for AAA to shine in front of the big screen, so I try my best to survive in my work field.

Q: How did you get involved with Patrice Wilson of Rebecca Black “Friday” fame?
A: It was just a simple phone call, and that was all. Patrice’s assistant was looking for a Mandarin speaking actor for “Chinese Food,” and my name showed up on a casting website. I guess I was just lucky!

Q: Your recent videos “Chinese Food” and “Get in My Car” both touch on Asian themes and feature Mandarin. Why this China focus?
A: It all started with Chinese Food, and only because Patrice loves Chinese Food, so we made a song about Chinese Food. Despite the remarks and comments from American viewers on YouTube, the song actually had a lot of positive feedbacks from the Chinese viewers on Youku. After the song became a huge hit, he had another vision to make a Chinese song catering to Chinese viewers. I would guess it’s his way of thanking all his Chinese viewers and fans. That is how “Get In The Car” was created.

Q: What have been the reactions to your videos? Have you been getting a lot of reactions from people in China?
A: The song is now 300,000 in China, and we are the top song right now on Youku. We get a lot of comments of the song been very catchy. The music definitely gets stuck in your head when you listen to it just once. It’s Patrice’s magic!! Other comments are there to generate hits for the music video to go viral, so they can be negative, but effective for sustaining views. I, myself, haven’t really seen many reviews about me which I am pretty bummed out about. I also like to get notice! I want to shine too! Thank you Patrick for giving me the spot light here by the way. I think I want to steal the light from Grace since most reviews were about her and not me. HaHa.

Q: “Where is a very good place to ride my horse? Santa Monica, Las Vegas? Where is my coffee mug? Hey, there’s a China Girl!” Which is to say, what exactly?
A: I came up with the lyrics, and I was trying to see how many words I could fit in before Grace sang hers. Actually it’s a mirroring element that we put into the video from Chinese Food if you remember. Patrice likes to bring old elements into the new video. It’s purely experimental, but it’s relatable from one video to another. In Chinese Food, I said everything in Mandarin as quick and as much as possible. Get In My Car is just a reverse of that. Were things very random? Well, you could say that, but it was based on the reverse idea as well. In Chinese Food, I was saying “I would rather make a pancake” while I was cooking noodle. In Get In My Car, I was saying “I would rather ride a horse” while I was on a plane. You get the idea? Another one I would let you guess… it’s from the Rebecca Black’s Friday. (Driving and Rapping in the car…)

Q: Where are you going with these videos? Tell me about the big dream.
A: I’m not going anywhere with these videos since they weren’t really focusing on me! Just kidding. Actually I enjoy working with Patrice and his crew, I would love to work with them on their future projects as well. My big dream is to win Oscar if you ask me, but for these videos, I want people to enjoy, to talk about them, to strike a conversation with someone, to appreciate the art work and music, to come up with more creative comments, and to sing them in the shower. I maybe will follow Patrice’s footstep and create my own music videos and feature different artists in the future.

Q: Why do you think these videos get so many views?
A: Lucky! I’m kidding again. There are so many elements and methods that Patrice put into making a hit. One of the simplest idea is to understand the curiousity of the audience. If I tell you to check out something on youtube that I THINK it’s amazing, you MIGHT watch it. And if I tell you to check out something that is TERRIBLE but definitely have to check it out, you WILL watch it. Because your curiosity will want to see how BAD can this be. The idea of BAD IS GOOD is genius! You rather watch something dramatic and crazy than something boring because it entertains you more.

Q: You’re @RealTomChou. Got any thoughts on those fake Tom Chou posers out there?
A: I have not yet find a fake Tom Chou poser. Is there any out there yet? It’s simply a twitter account name. It’s just first come first serve you know. Maybe I’m actually the fake Tom Chou here! Please don’t sue me.

Q: Anything else you want to tell folks?
A: For all the dreamers out there, myself included, don’t jump off the cliff just yet! I know it’s tough out there, and I’m still struggling like rest of you, but one day your hard work will be known and appreciated. Luck is substantial, but working hard is the key to success. Life is too short to dream big, so dream bigger! See you at the Oscar!

In case you missed the videos:

It was more than a year ago (has it been so long?) that we posted about a Kickstarter called “Awesome Asian Bad Guys,” in which two Los Angeles-based filmmakers sought to make an action-comedy Web series featuring a bunch of Asian bad guys you might have forgotten.

Well, it’s happening, much to our delight. The premiere won’t be until next year, but check out the trailer above. Kickass.

Hitler?

This is the stuff I expect out of Global Times, not fellow Asian Americans. Speaking of Global Times:

Although the comment was made by a child, the episode has in some ways, offered a reflection of mainstream public opinion in the US on China.

Jesus.

It is difficult to read what the US is really thinking when it looks at China especially with China expected to play a bigger role in geopolitics alongside the US in future.

Stop.

Sino-US relations cannot be viewed in the same light as those of the former Soviet Union and the US during the Cold War. China and the US have a more complicated relationship…

Horse on cow dung clopping on your living room carpet. You see the people you’ve sided with, Asian American protesters? Does this convince you to stop?

Friends: if we can’t take an off-the-cuff remark from a 6-year-old child without referencing Nazis or building straw men with ridiculous hypotheticals (“what if he said that about Jews?”), we’re done. Finished. We’re hopeless, and we will never be liberal participants in an open society. We might as well shack up in the Singaporean subway system and count down the hours toward a copacetic death. If you want to begin a conversation with a friend about ethnocentricism and casual racism, try using YouTube videos as a springboard. But have a little bit of self-respect and realize, please, that we’re talking about Jimmy Kimmel and his brand of niche comedy, and a 6-year-old who really probably does not think we should kill all Chinese people. It is not a reflection of mainstream public opinion on anything, in the same way — looking at you, American media — that those San Francisco protesters are not a reflection of Asian American opinion on this issue.

H/T: 

My fellow Asian-Americans, portraying Jimmy Kimmel as Hitler does none of us any good: http://t.co/ftyz28tLMI h/t @samuel_wade

— Josh Chin (@joshchin) October 31, 2013

Jimmy Kimmel held a “kid’s table” a couple of weeks ago and asked blah blah blah, and it was all pretty boring until some young’un said we should “kill everyone in China.” If you’re interested in the context, read up on it here. “Kill everyone in China” isn’t the best joke, even out of the mouth of a young child — it’s certainly not the best thing* Kimmel’s done with kids — but whatever, it’s Jimmy Kimmel, it’s late-night comedy, who really cares?

Turns out, a lot of people. As of late Monday, a White House petition demanding an apology had garnered 55,000 signatures. And guess what? Congrats, people, you win. Now watch as ABC performs corporate ablution in the form of an apology so that we can all get on with our lives. SCMP with this:

“We’re writing to offer our sincere apology,” read a copy of a letter obtained by the South China Morning Post sent from ABC on Saturday to 80-20 Initiative, a cyberspace-based organisation in US promoting equal opportunities for Asian Americans.

“We would never purposefully broadcast anything to upset the Chinese community, Asian community, anyone of Chinese descent or any community at large…our objective is to entertain,” read the letter signed by Lisa Berger, ABC Entertainment’s executive vice president who oversees the Jimmy Kimmel Live show, and Tim McNeal, vice president of ABC’s talent development and diversity branch.

A serious question, fellow Chinese community members: what kind of joke — something actually funny — with the word “China” or “Chinese” in it would you consider acceptable? Where’s the line that, if not crossed, won’t make you go signing an online petition as if anyone** thinks killing all Chinese people is actually a good idea?

S.B. Woo, the chairman of the 80-20 Initiative with Hong Kong roots, said he was not satisifed with the apology.

Woo added that the incident only reflected that Asian-American communities were not doing enough to have their voices heard in American society and he urged them to unite in the face of similar situations in the future. If they had done so in this case, “the outcome of this incident would have been even more satisfactory,” he said.

The outcome of this incident would have been even more satisfactory. S.B. Woo is one serious motherfucker who is NOT to be trifled with. The head of Jimmy Kimmel on a pike OR ELSE WAR.

*The actual best thing was when he brought a kid onstage to take a basketball shot to win something or other, and with all the pressure on, Kimmel jumped out of nowhere and redirected the shot into the front row. I can’t seem to find video of that.

**I know out of millions of people, at least five or six or seven might seriously get behind killing all Chinese people. But don’t be a pedant. That’s the lesson of this post. Don’t be a dirty, dirty pedant.

UPDATE, 10/31: This is bad:

UPDATE, 11/4, 3:30 pm: Here’s Kimmel apologizing on air:

A 37-year-old mother, Li Qiaozhen, and her four children, ages 9, 7, 5, and 1, were stabbed to death inside their home on Saturday night in Brooklyn, New York. At least one of the victims may have been decapitated.

The murderer has been identified as Chen Mingdong, 25, reportedly an illegal alien from China who was staying with the family. (He is apparently Li’s husband’s cousin.) The New York Post reports that, according to a police source, Chen said he killed the family because they “had too much.”

“The family had too much. Their income (and) lifestyle was better than his,” the source said.

More disturbing details:

Inside, cops found a house of horrors in which all five victims were hacked to death and one — a 1-year-old boy — was decapitated, the source said.

Chen also assaulted an officer while in custody at the 66th Precinct.

But he became violent at one point during questioning at the 66th Precinct station house, punching a detective while cuffed to a table by one of his hands, a source said.

Earlier, he also threw a pair of eyeglasses at a sergeant who serves as a Chinese-language interpreter, then kicked the table and knocked the sergeant to the ground, the source said.

Li’s cousin said that Chen was “crazy” and that he has stayed before with the victims.

New York’s chief of police Philip Banks III spoke Sunday about the incident. Here’s Metro New York:

Responding officers arrived to find four young children and their mother “cut and butchered with a kitchen knife” in their Sunset Park home, Banks said.

“It’s just a scene that you’ll never forget,” Banks said. He called the killing “an unspeakable act.”

In total, Chen has been charged with one count of murder in the first degree, four counts of murder in the second degree, assaulting an officer, resisting arrest, and five counts of weapon possession.

Banks did not confirm whether Chen was staying illegally in the US, nor did he officially reveal any motive.

Officers have been assisting detectives with translation, Banks said.

Banks said the NYPD does not know if Chen had any documented history of mental illness.

“But we believe if you commit such an act like this, you cannot be too sane,” Banks said.

(Image via NY Daily News) (H/T Andrea P.)

Jimmy Kimmel hosted a “kid’s table” discussion on the US government shutdown last week, eliciting the usual spate of “kids say the darndest things” chuckles from the audience. But one sound bite in particular stood out. Let’s roll the tape.

“America owes China a lot of money, $1.3 trillion,” Kimmel says. “How should we pay them back?”

The first child to respond, Braxton, suggests — after a bit of mumbling — that we should “kill everyone in China.”

Awww.

“Kill everyone in China?” Kimmel asks with an incredulous chuckle.

“Yeah.”

“Okay, that’s an interesting idea.”

“Put a huge wall so they can’t come to us,” says another child, leading to a Great Wall joke.

And then the discussion continues about whether we should really kill everyone in China (is that even possible?), whether America should pay their debts (“Yes!”), and, well, whether we should kill everyone in China. I think the four kids voted 3-1 against the idea.

POSTSCRIPT: We can’t not mention this, though we’d rather not: as reported by SCMP, there’s a White House petition to “investigate Jimmy Kimmel’s Kid’s Table Government Shutdown Show on ABC Network,” tagged “Human Rights.” Quote:

It is extremely distasteful and this is the same rhetoric used in Nazi Germany against Jewish people. Please immediately cut the show and issue a formal apology.

If we find there’s any way to petition this petition, I’ll let you know.

UPDATE, 10/29, 2:15 am: As of late Monday the petition had 55,000 people who really hated the joke, so ABC has been dragged into the ablution of apologizing so that we can all get on with our lives.

(H/T Alicia)

The wonderfully idiotic adults behind Rebecca Black’s “Friday” have done it again, kidnapping what appears to be a sweet teenage girl and forcing her in front of the camera to perform the world’s worst song. Ark Music Factory, led by producer Patrice Wilson (he’s the dude in the panda costume; what panda costume, you ask? hang on), has topped itself with “Chinese Food,” simply a glop of bewilderment and suburban American camp.

I’m not going to pretend to hate this, because I don’t. I’m just, like you, astonished to have this opportunity to peel back the skin of music and art and stick my head in — all the way in — so that the other side comes into plain view: a blond girl, a man in a panda suit, a chaperoned slumber party… and Chinese food. Welcome to the aesthete’s Technicolored nightmare.

If you’d rather avoid losing three-and-a-half unrecoverable minutes of your life, here’s basically what happens: a peppy young blond walks in a field complaining about her hunger after “I go clubbing” (white person problem No. 2,491). In the classic patois of teenage girls everywhere, she uses reduplication (e.g., “I like-like him”) to tell you exactly how she feels: “getting getting getting grumpy grumpy.” But lo! Is that a Chinese restaurant? Yes it is!

I see Chow, by my right
I smell food in the air
It’s Chinese Food, my favorite
So I’m getting getting getting getting hungry

How much do you like Chinese food, Alison Gold?

I love Chinese food (Yeah)
you know that it’s true (Yeah)
I love fried rice (Yeah)
I love noodles (Yeah)
I love Chow mein
Chow Mo-Mo-Mo-Mo Mein

It goes on like this for a while until a stuffed panda comes into play. He looks, at first, like a stalker, but Alison takes fondly to him and they hold hands while skipping through a field. (No, really. Also, I thought kids hated pandas.) Patrice Wilson reveals himself and eats some barbecue in the creepiest way. And then the coup de grace: Alison and her bratty friends put on qipao and white face powder in what looks to be a chaperoned party. Check out the adult on the left of this screen grab. She is every suburban mother you know.

The final scene is Alison looking down on a fortune cookie slip telling her “The panda will fly away on a rainbow.”

Then:

People on the Internet are calling casual racism on this thing, but honestly, there’s no need to pile on. Just give these people the blame –

Written and Produced by: Patrice Wilson
Co-Produced and Mixed by: Heath Ripplinger
Video Directed by: Ian Hotchkiss, Chris Lowe and Patrice Wilson

– and move on with your lives.

Also, enjoy these screenshots:

The lyrics:

After balling I go clubbing
Then I’m hugging
Then I’m hungry and I’m walking on the street
and I’m getting getting getting getting grumpy grumpy

I see Chow, by my right
I smell food in the air
It’s Chinese Food, my favorite
So I’m getting getting getting getting hungry

I love Chinese food (Yeah)
you know that it’s true (Yeah)
I love fried rice (Yeah)
I love noodles (Yeah)
I love Chow mein
Chow Mo-Mo-Mo-Mo Mein

I love Chinese food (Yeah)
you know that it’s true (Yeah)
I love fried rice (Yeah)
I love noodles (Yeah)
I love Chow mein
Chow Mo-Mo-Mo-Mo Mein

Read the menu
They got broccoli
Even chicken wings
Make it spicy
And you like it
Cause it’s beautiful
And it tastes so so so good

I like the egg rolls
And the wonton soup
This makes me feel so so good
Fortune cookies, tell my future
Chinese Chinese Food

I love Chinese food (Yeah)
you know that it’s true (Yeah)
I love fried rice (Yeah)
I love noodles (Yeah)
I love Chow mein
Chow Mo-Mo-Mo-Mo Mein

I love Chinese food (Yeah)
you know that it’s true (Yeah)
I love fried rice (Yeah)
I love noodles (Yeah)
I love Chow mein
Chow Mo-Mo-Mo-Mo Mein

[Patrice Wilson:]
Yo!
I like Chinese food
And some Wonton soup
Get me broccoli
While I play Monopoly
Don’t be a busy bee
Cause it’s your fantasy
To eat Chinese food
Egg roll and Chop Suey
I use the chopsticks
To eat pot sticks
Put some hot sauce and sweet and sour make it sweet
Because Chinese food takes away my stress
Now I’m going to go eat Panda Express

I love Chinese food (Yeah)
you know that it’s true (Yeah)
I love fried rice (Yeah)
I love noodles (Yeah)
I love Chow mein
Chow Mo-Mo-Mo-Mo Mein

I love Chinese food (Yeah)
you know that it’s true (Yeah)
I love fried rice (Yeah)
I love noodles (Yeah)
I love Chow mein
Chow Mo-Mo-Mo-Mo Mein

(H/T Sheehan)

An international student with limited language skills arrives in an airport and is approached by a helpful-looking taxi driver. The student needs to get to a place 150 miles away. Sorry kid, no more buses, says the driver. But I can take you.

Great, the kid replies. How much?

Oh, only 1,000 RMB.

Sound familiar? Except this didn’t happen in China, and the driver didn’t quote RMB. He said dollars, as in 1,000 USD — for a trip from Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport to Urbana-Champagne. Oh, and he also lied about the buses.

After reaching his destination, the driver changed his mind and said the fare would actually be $4,800. The student didn’t have that much, so he forked over $4,240 — all of his money.

Reports Illinois’s The News-Gazette:

(UI police Sgt. Tom) Geis said the student initially tried to reach Chicago police via email and that the case came to their attention on Monday of this week. They then contacted the Chicago police station at O’Hare in hopes of identifying the scammer. The only description police have is that he is a white male, about 5 feet 9 inches tall, with a medium build and lighter short hair. The student did not supply an age.

Geis said he’s heard of students being taken advantage of through Craigslist scams for apartment rentals or fake checks sent as downpayments for summer jobs — but never anything quite like this.

The incident happened on August 20, with the student’s plane touching down at around 6 pm.

Also:

Geis said the student was so overwhelmed that he left his cellphone in the scammer’s vehicle.

There is, as far as we can tell, only one difference between getting scammed in China and in the US. You can call the police in the latter, and they’ll actually help. Of course, with such limited descriptions of the scammer — not even an age estimate? — it seems unlikely the student will see his lost money.

Julie Misa, director of the International Student and Scholar Services program, said her office has a website with all kinds of information that foreign students can view before they ever leave home.

“We point them to our web page where we have extensive pre-arrival information, including information about transportation from Chicago to Champaign.

“We try to get them basic information. We do talk about how much cash to bring to get started. I think our suggestion is more in the neighborhood of $2,000,” said Misa.

There’s a reason programs exist to prepare students for their trips abroad. What an awful way to start an international adventure, this. We do, of course, wish the best for the kid. It can only get better from here.

UI student from China scammed out of thousands at O’Hare (The News Gazette, h/t Daily Mail via Nick Papa)

Enjoy the dance moves of Jabbawockeez, a mostly Asian American hip-hop troupe that performs at the Luxor on the Las Vegas strip.

8Asians has the write-up for you:

Despite some skepticism at first, I liked Prism.  So if you have some time and in are in Las Vegas, see the Jabbawockeez’s show.  Not just because it shows how Asian American Urban dance is breaking stereotypes and entering the mainstream, but because it is fun and entertaining.

Perhaps only a matter of time before they make it to China.

The character for demolish (or dismantle) — 拆, chai – appeared on the Chinese embassy in Washington DC on Wednesday morning. According to Voice of America, the characters appeared three times: on two of the pillars on the embassy’s front gate, and on the entrance of an office building.

This happened on the same day as the opening of the fifth annual Strategic and Economic Dialogue, a two-day session between top leaders of China and the US. Vice President Joe Biden started talks by telling China to stop hacking — “We both will benefit from an open, secure, reliable Internet. Outright cyber-enabling theft that US companies are experiencing now must be viewed as out of bounds and needs to stop” — which means you can expect the Chinese to respond by saying basically the same thing. Also on the docket is North Korea, nuclear programs, trade, investment, climate change, the usual.

No group has claimed responsibility for the graffiti, but Initiatives for China sure seems proud of it. They write:

Citizen Power for China, also known as Initiatives for China, has recently launched a campaign, code named the Sparrow Initiative (2nd stage), to defend land rights of the Chinese people and obtain justice for the victims of  China’s violent dismantling and forced eviction activities. We believe everyone deserves to have a home, even a sparrow–. Any brutal action in taking that basic right away from the Chinese people is absolutely unacceptable.

The organization’s founder, Yang Jianli, told Voice of America, “People widely believe the graffiti on the Chinese embassy in the US is in support of the Sparrow Initiative.”

If you say so.

H/T:

@austinramzy Rather see US Embassy in Beijing get 拆'd. One of the ugliest, least-welcoming buildings in a city that sets a pretty high bar.

— Brendan O'Kane (@bokane) July 11, 2013

Okay, this looks bad — replacing an L with an R in a story about a flight from Asia in which two Chinese teenagers died. But no editor could have possibly done this intentionally, right? Make an L-R confusion joke amid a tragedy, I mean. Spoonerisms really aren’t even very clever.

In any case, expect an apology soon. We’ll give the Sun-Times the benefit of the doubt and call “Fright 214” an error in carelessness, but it’s an error they’ll regret nonetheless.

You’re Kidding Me, Right? Check Out This Headline in Chicago Sun Times. ht/ @jfdulac (AsAm News)

UPDATE, 7/9, 7:37 pm: Via Kotaku:

Sun-Times Publisher and Editor-in-Chief Jim Kirk told the Asian American Journalist Association that his staff didn’t even think about how the headline could be perceived as insensitive.

“There was nothing intentional on our part to play off any stereotypes. …If anybody was offended by that, we are sorry,” Kirk told AAJA. “We were trying to convey the obviously frightening situation of that landing.”