Friday, Jul 10, 2009 2:41AM /
Standard Entry
Why is it Ok in Hong Kong for all the upscale malls and bars to shed all traces that it is an Asian city? All the billboards depict white people, all the stores feature white models, and a significant portion of these areas are all-English. In the store signs, in the promotions posters, the shirts.
Does Hong Kong really need to be nearing the end of the 50 year transition to an "official" Chinese city to admit to itself that, yes, Asian males can also be masculine, Asian females can have great figure, that the white minority is not just some elite simply because it is white?
I have nothing wrong with immigrants and a mix of culture. But there is no "mix" of culture here: Those who are not ethnically Chinese are rarely interested in learning the local language, culture.
The British here continue to stay in the same areas that look like the UK; Non-Chinese speakers still stay in Central and go to the same bars and clubs at night. Where they (I see mostly white businessmen) pick up Asian girls. They don't eat local food, and the most "Hong Kong" they get is using the Octopus Card or riding the MTR.
They can get away with this. Imagine an Asian going to a European country or America and refusing to learn the language and culture. Think: first-generation immigrants living in Chinatown. Even they usually have to learn a LITTLE English. Plus, this population gets condescending looks from white America, and most disturbingly, the Asian Americans that descend from them. Meanwhile, the exact same situation occurs in Hong Kong, but in reverse, and the minority group, living in "Europe town", is supposed to be one class above everyone.
I find it very upsetting that people in Hong Kong do not think about this. There is a certain attitude... "that's just the way it is" type of attitude, that is holding the city back from being anything these days other than a financial giant. This type of complacency is why people continue to look outward for "culture", trends, and how to live their lives. There is very little independent thinking. Could be the educational system. Could be the colonial history, which is permanent but with a fixable effect. Either way, it bugs me.
Another note, to the opposite party: the Chinese population in Hong Kong also needs to open up to its minority groups. One reason why there is such an imbalance between the white male, Asian female couples and the Asian male, white female couples is because the guys here have been told since birth to marry within the race. Not only does this makes them closed minded as an adult, it also closes them off from a lot of good women who don't happen to be Chinese. Please get out more, learn to talk to people of other races, and understand that being a "pure" race will be unimportant in world that is so internationally dependent.
I guess that's my rant for the day. This blog doesn't have to make sense, but I hope people start to wake up.
P.S. I understand that English is the international language of today, that many of the whites in Hong Kong also happen to be fairly affluent. But behind these two answers lie the same issues that I address in the blog itself.
Add a comment
Sunday, Mar 15, 2009 8:39PM /
Standard Entry
As you might know, I am a student at UC Davis. It is currently our centennial year, meaning it has been 100 years since the first UC Davis class came here and sat their butts down and studied.
To celebrate this anniversary, the school held a simple contest: make a 30-second video that displays Aggie pride in some way (we call ourselves the Aggies). So I made one... can't say I planned it out for very long, but I tried! Here is the end result... The contest results will be announced next week. I will update you!
Add a comment
Saturday, Feb 28, 2009 5:37PM /
Video
I slapped together a 30 second clip for a contest called I Got Aggied, in which you are supposed to describe, in one form or another, what aggie pride is. I would appreciate it if you could go to the following page to vote
http://igotaggied.ucdavis.edu/watch-videos/
You don't have to necessarily vote for my video, but at least check it out, do a VERY quick registration, and choose your favorite! Tell your friends to do it too! Unfortunately there is a tag limit so i can only tag so many people.
I think this is only open for a few weeks, so do it now! =)
special thanks to Eva, Stan, and Anne for helping out!
Add a comment
Tuesday, Mar 11, 2008 3:51PM /
Standard Entry
/ Music
As of now... seems like it will be a great year for Hong Kong's alternative/underground music scene. I'm glad!
Add a comment
Friday, Feb 29, 2008 5:12PM /
Standard Entry
It's like beating a dead horse now, but I've wanted to ask for a long time. When someone intrudes a celebrity's privacy it does not matter who the victim is. Seeing the two press conferences, I really want to know exactly why Hong Kong's public seemed to demand an apology from Gillian, Edison. What are they apologizing for exactly? For being sexually active? For being well-known/ Because for some reason your child decided to choose an entertainer, of all people, to be a role model? How does that make any sense? I do not care about the celebrities as much as how much this scandal has shown about Hong Kong: the public somehow believes that entertainers are their slaves; everyone must report to them, the police have nothing better to do, and headline news is always regarding pop culture.
And that just saddens me.
1 comment– Add a comment
