#like a chinese american friend gave it 2.5. | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

darklight-owl · 10 months

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okay im here wit da ocs. anyway so i made 2!!! the first one is a chinese girl named xiaona (小娜) in hanzi, i believe (dont quote me on that). her design came to me in a dream, actually. i dreamed that there was a girl who was pretty as all get-out but she didn’t speak. like,, at all. just silent. she was very kind-hearted, though, and she gave everything her all. she had a lot of chronic diseases tho in her adult life (mostly ones that affected her muscles and stuff like that), but even tho, she powered thru. anyway, she’s a teenager right now (14-17 prolly). i also made for her to be a friend (maybe love interest? maybe?) for the second oc, but mostlt just a friend. i made her so dat she was born in japan to a chinese father and japanese mother, then she left to america with her family for undecided reasons when she was about nine. she was already taking care of her younger siblings by that time, though. she’s very motherly and caring, she just seems rude at first because she’s blunt and she doesn’t speak you know??? anyway. doesn’t she give off the same vibes as shoko komi. nah she’s not like that. anyway below is a picrew i made of her (creds to nellseto)

bbg wit da bridge piercing 😩🙏🏼. anyway. ((she has at least eleven eyeliners. actually she only wears eye makeup and lipgloss. anyway.)) i think she’s my first female oc i’ve made that’s actually in the average height range, considering where she’s from and all that! all my other female ocs have been at least 2.5 inches below the average height for their ages and ethnicities. anyway.... more about her later i just forget 💀.

SECOND OC!!!

so the second oc is this belarusian kid named aliyaksandr/aleksandr/Аляксандр. it’s complicated lmao. i usually refer to him as aliyaksandr or sasha/sanya. THERE!! this man has too many damn names. anyway, he’s in his teenaged years just like xiaona, he’s actually good friends with xiaona, they spend a lot of time together actually. they’re both pretty popular, but xiaona is more only popular bc she’s associated with aliyaksandr, yk? anyway. both his parents are from belarus. his mother works as a math teacher at the same school that sasha attends and his father works as a carpenter. they moved from belarus to america like only a few months before aliyaksandr enrolled in american school as the school year started up and all that, so all this is kinda new to him yk!! xiaona helps him out doe cuz they’re sort of in the same boat. anyway heres a picrew of the beautiful sasha himself!

i’m kinda down bad for him tbh. other details about his appearance... he’s tall, he has braces, and he wears lots of monochrome, greyscale clothes. man is basic. he has straight hair but it gets frizzy (it’s a little bit s t r a n g e </3.) anyway. he also has an unnamed older brother but i dont have much lore for him yet lolz. anyway here ya go bbg! my new ocs!

awww i love emm!

Especially Xiaona, there's not much representation of nonverbal or mute characters. I wish they be blessed with happiness forever <3

#mutuals #mutual ocs #mutual's oc #mutual ask #sage / buffporcupine

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cloudninetonine · 5 years

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A Favour for a Favour (Part 2.5)

Pairing: Peter Parker x Reader

Summary: Peter address a slight problem that he faces with (Name) and (Name) has a small, horrible reminder of what she had to go through.

A/N: Honestly this is more of a filler chapter than anything

Warnings: Bad language, mentions/hints of abuse/torture, also hints of suicidal thoughts and PTSD

“Your aunt is such a lovely lady”

(Name) merely grinned at the look that Peter sent her way, wandering past his tense figure to collapse on the bottom bunk with a little sigh and lay back with her hands behind her back.

May had talked with (Name) for a little while after Peter’s story and had offered her to stay here until she could find any means of a place that she could stay. With a mock sense of relief and gratitude, (Name) had squeezed May tightly and thanked her over and over again as tears slid down her face.

Peter watched from the side, the ball of nerves still playing at his gut as the two were sent to his room to relax while May started on dinner, something about chicken meatloaf recipe maybe?

Well, that didn’t matter at the moment, what did matter, however, was what the girl had mentioned earlier.

What you said wasn’t a complete lie.

What the hell did that mean?

“So, looks like May’s gonna talk with ya school to see if I can get a place” The wicked smirk sent towards Peter made a shiver go down his spine “Won’t that be fun, Spidey?”

“Yeah” Peter scoffed, seating himself at his desk “Fun”

“Awh don’t be like that”

“I’m not being like anything” (Name) raised her eyebrow mockingly.

“Sure”

“I- You- Ugh!” (Name) sat up as she watched Peter collapse into his chair, hairs running through his hair in an effort to calm his frustration. With an exaggerated sigh, (Name) stood from the bed and knelt before the boy like an adult would do with a child. Peter scowled at the sight. “You’re not helping”

“You don’t trust me” The girl still smirked, but Peter could see the emotion in her eyes; hurt. She stood to her full height once again and threw her hands up “Eh, that’s fine. I did kinda force you into this arrangement, I wouldn’t trust me either”

Jumping to his own feet, Peter shook his head viciously “No! It’s not like that-”

“But it is, Parker”

“Would you just let me finish!?” (Name)’s eyes widened at the slight outburst but other than that, she didn’t react to his exclamation, only cross her arms over her chest and wave her hand out in a gesture to continue. “I do trust you, I wouldn’t have agreed to this if I didn’t trust you. But, you just- you take everything as a joke and it annoys me that you can’t take this seriously. This isn’t a game but I feel like you’re treating it like one, I’m not the only one who could get in trouble for it, everyone you come into contact with can and that worries me”

Peter sighed, feeling a slight weight lift from his chest only to have it immediately return when he noticed the look on (Name)’s face. It seemed distant, cold and unwelcoming as she stared at him, eyes narrowed in offence with her lips twitching in what he guessed was repressed anger.

Before the boy could take back his words she spoke.

“I know exactly what could happen, Parker” Peter expected the anger in her expression would be spat full force back at him, but instead he only heard the hurt that was in her eyes earlier “I’ve had to deal with some real shit throughout my life and I know the real meaning of the word consequences”

“I-” (Name) held up her hand,

“I know you’re worried, I’d be worried if I was you too but listen to me when I say that I’ve got it under control. I know the law and I can handle it better than you expect me to, so you don’t need to worry about the people you care about being hurt because of me-”

“I’m not just worried about them, I’m worried about you too” Peter insisted, “You can get into trouble for coming back here, (Name)”

“And I can handle the heat that comes with that, Parker” The teen smiled back towards the other “Don’t worry”

Patting his arm, (Name) added: “Also, I’m sorry about making this seem like a joke, I’ll try to act more serious about this whole ordeal-”

“No, no, I’m sorry, I can see now that you’re just trying to bring down the tension between us” Peter smiled, holding out his hand “Friends?”

The smirk returned to (Name)’s face as she grabbed his hand and gave it a firm shake “Oh you better believe it, Parker”

The American took in a deep breath, holding back a delighted sigh at the scent of cupcakes and doughnuts, instead sending (Name) a bright look when the sound of the door caught the two’s attention.

Both jumped back, (Name) switching back to her nervous (but now more comfortable) attitude from before and Peter awkwardly standing by his desk as Aunt May leaned in. She paused for a moment, looking at the two with confusion then smiled a knowing smile, shaking her head.

“I kinda, messed up the chicken meatloaf” The older woman laughed, waving away some smoke “How does Chinese sound? I can order in and we can all eat together”

“I would like that” (Name) nodded her head in agreement, looking up at Peter shyly “What about you, Peter?”

“I’m all for it”

“Okay, continue with-” She glanced between them again “Whatever it is you guys were doing, just don’t be too loud~”

Both teens faces heated as the woman winked, closing the door behind her quickly with and evil cackle.

“May!”

—————————————————————————————————-

She’s screaming.

She’s so loud and the sound of her own voice almost deafens her.

But she just can’t help it, it’s so fucking painful and all she can do is scream.

Pain.

They always do this when they want to play. They give her back her feelings, her conscious, herself and that goddamn pain.

They think it’s so fucking funny. Watching her scream and cry as their newest little toy runs its course and tortures her in ways she wishes she can do to them.

And they watch. The smile and they laugh at her pain, they enjoy their abuse of her mind, heart, body and soul. Her torture brings light into their shattered morals and it infuriates her to no fucking end.

“Are you enjoying this?” He growls right next to her ear as she pants, trying to regain her lost breath “Because I sure as hell am”

And the pain starts all over again.

Slowly, her mind breaks, twisting into something evil and horrible as dark thoughts start to manifest in her head.

She wants to die.

She wants it to end.

But first,

She had to kill them all.

She had to let them feel her pain.

To teach them all a lesson in torture.

To know what it’s like to be broken down and rebuilt over and over and over and over AND OVER-

It would be so painful.

So brutal.

So merciless.

So delightful.

To watch them beg under her boot, to grovel, and to fucking cry while she would smile and tell them just the same thing that they told her.

“Why? Are you not enjoying this?” Then she’d lean down to whisper venomously into their ear “Because I sure as hell am”

Then she would-

The scene ends there.

A voice in her mind stops it just before she can break.

It’s so soft and comforting, it cradles her in a comforting warmth, it tells her not to break and it coos to her with such love.

It’s the only thing that keeps her sane.

Oh, how she wishes it would stay.

But it never does, it leaves her with a sense of sadness and despair, but she knows that it’ll always return.

It always does.

And so does the pain.

“Rise and shine, little viper~”

—————————————————————————————————-

(Name) doesn’t scream when her eyes finally snap open.

Instead, she bolts up from her position and grips the railing of the bunk bed with a dangerously powerful grip, her other free hand rushing up to slam against her mouth as she stares into the darkness of the room.

‘Don’t. Scream’, she told herself harshly, eyes running over everything ‘Don’t scream!’

And the feeling of nausea that had washed over her vanished with the feeling of panic when she remembered where she was.

“Fucking hell” She growled, swallowing her saliva and lying back against the pillows, eyes still wide and shaking violently from the adrenaline rush. “Fucking hell”

Only silence greeted her in return.

Well, for about five seconds.

“(Name)?”

The railing whined under her death grip when she tightened her hand in surprise.

“Are you okay?” (Name) took a deep breath of Peter’s scent, it wasn’t as musty as expected, like an Alpha’s scent was perceived, in fact, she could barely smell the stale odour, instead, there was only the smell of the forest. It was fresh, it was cool, it was heavenly and it calmed her down and brought her to her senses fast.

“I’m good, Parker” She responded nonchalantly, praising herself from keeping the crack away from her voice.

Peter was silent for a moment before he spoke up again “Hey (Name)?”

“Yep?”

“You know I can smell your fear, right?”

The girl removed her hand from the bed bunk railing to keep from crushing the metal under her grip and instead brought her clenched fist to her mouth, biting down hard on her first finger.

Blood poured into her mouth but she didn’t feel it.

‘Good’

“Do you wanna talk about it?” Peter asked and she responded in an instant.

“No”

Peter let out a small ‘oh’ of understanding and (Name) turned to her side, curled into the fetal position to hug herself close together.

She didn’t mean it, she just- she couldn’t tell him something like that. (Name) didn’t want to admit to the pain and suffering she had to go through to become this- whatever the hell she was now. Peter wanted to help but she couldn’t- she wouldn’t-

The bed shook when Peter climbed up the ladder, collapsing behind (Name)’s shaken form with a heavy huff and pulled her defeated self closer to his warm body.

His scent engulfed her softly and (Name) melted into him, turning to throw her arms around him and purr softly at the comfort.

“…Sorry” She whispered, nuzzling into his neck.

“It’s okay” He replied, tightening his hold.

“…If you tell anyone about this they’ll never find your body”

“Got it” With a yawn, Peter fell back asleep.

(Name) gazed at his sleeping face for a moment, then brought her hand close to her face to inspect it quietly and her lips pulled back into a disgusted scowl.

The skin around her finger was left untouched, no signs of a bite mark marring her skin, no blood dripping down onto her bed- nothing.

“What a fucking joke”

#peter parker imagine #peter parker x reader #peter parker #spiderman imagine #spiderman x reader #spiderman #A Favour For A Favour #avengers imagine #marvel imagine #tw: abuse #tw: torture #tw: trauma #tw: ptsd #tw: suicidal thoughts

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orbemnews · 3 years

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How a Chinese website for pirated TV shows became a cultural touchstone for millennials But the site — one of China’s largest, longest-running and last-remaining destinations for pirated, subtitled foreign content — was shuttered on February 3 as part of a sweeping police clampdown on piracy. While the website is still live, none of its services work anymore. “I was heartbroken when I found out,” Liang told CNN Business. “I feel like there is one place fewer in China through which we can expand our horizons.” Police in Shanghai arrested 14 people they claim ran the website and app after a three-month investigation into suspected intellectual property infringement. At the time of its closure, Renren Yingshi had amassed over eight million registered users and was home to more than 20,000 pirated TV shows and movies. The site’s operators made some 16 million yuan ($2.5 million) in the past couple of years from ads, subscription fees, and selling hard drives loaded with pirated content, according to police. Renren Yingshi did not respond to a request for comment from CNN Business. The crackdown was lauded by state media and intellectual property experts as a sign of China’s resolve to enforce copyright protection — criticism over which has dogged Beijing for years. But it also drew a wave of backlash from fans who, like Liang, had long relied on the site for uncensored foreign content. An outpouring of support for Renren Yingshi dominated China’s Twitter-like Weibo platform in the days after the crackdown. Some thanked the site for “opening a door for us to the world.” The public outcry came, at least in part, because of how tightly the Chinese government restricts access to foreign content. It is one of only four countries or regions, alongside North Korea, Syria and Crimea, that doesn’t allow access to Netflix, the world’s most-popular streaming platform, for example. China also strictly limits how many foreign films can be screened in cinemas each year. And of the content that is allowed to air in the country, much is heavily censored. For Chinese millennials, watching foreign shows and movies is not only a favorite pastime — it’s an opportunity to learn about the world. And many of them say the roadblocks imposed by the Chinese government leave them with little choice but to turn to pirated websites, even though they are willing to pay for legitimate access to uncensored, foreign content. While the demise of Renren Yingshi and the country’s censorship crackdown suggests the status quo might not change, the reaction to its closure and the popularity of uncensored work shows that there remains a huge appetite for such content within China. Strict censorship rules Founded in 2003 by a group of Chinese students in Canada, Renren Yingshi — a phrase that means “everyone’s film and TV” — was born out of a desire to spread foreign TV shows and movies more widely within China. Young, internet-savvy Chinese were drawn to foreign content as China reformed its economy and opened up to the world. They found that such films and shows offered an edgier, more diverse alternative to the heavily censored content produced at home — as well as a way to learn about other cultures and societies. Getting access to that kind of content through legitimate means, though, is difficult in China. Since the early 1990s, authorities have allowed just a few dozen foreign films to be screened in the country each year — only nine of the 26 Oscar best picture winners were screened publicly in China from 1994 to 2019, for example. International streaming services, including Netflix, Hulu and Amazon Prime Video, have also been unable to crack the market. Netflix, for example, told shareholders in 2016 that the “regulatory environment for foreign digital content services” was “challenging” in China. A subsequent attempt to partner with a local company to distribute content failed. The content that is allowed to air in China, meanwhile, needs to meet strict guidelines. Movies or shows with controversial themes — such as those that depict China in a bad light, portray taboo subjects like the 1989 Tiananmen Massacre, or feature LGBTQ storylines — are kept out entirely. And since China lacks a film rating system, any content approved by Chinese regulators is heavily edited to remove certain scenes, such as graphic sex or violence. When the Oscar-winning Freddie Mercury biopic “Bohemian Rhapsody” was released in China in 2019, for example, any mention of the Queen singer’s sexuality — as well as his AIDS diagnosis — was edited out. And the American blockbuster fantasy drama “Game of Thrones,” which built its popularity on graphic sex and violence, was censored so heavily on Chinese streaming giant Tencent Video that some viewers complained that it was turned into a staid “medieval European castle documentary.” “There were too many ‘sensitive’ scenes deleted that I could hardly understand the plot anymore — it was so confusing,” said a fan of the show who watched on Tencent Video. The fan asked to remain anonymous because she once helped translate shows for a website that featured pirated content, and she also spoke to CNN Business about that experience. There’s little indication that these rules may change. Under Chinese President Xi Jinping, tolerance for foreign ideas and values has declined drastically. Popular Western culture is seen by Beijing as a key risk for foreign infiltration that targets Chinese youth — making such content important for the government to control. A long history of legal issues The sweeping restrictions have motivated fans of shows and movies that run afoul of censorship rules to subtitle them in Chinese and upload unauthorized copies online. They operate in loose networks of volunteer translators known as fansub groups. Renren Yingshi was among the largest of these networks, exploding in popularity as American series like “Prison Break,” “The Big Bang Theory” and “Gossip Girl” became smash hits in China. Long before the latest crackdown, Renren Yingshi was running into trouble with authorities. In 2009, it was one of more than 100 Chinese websites shut down for “rectification” after the government issued rules that banned the dissemination of unapproved movies and TV shows on the Chinese internet. At the time, Renren Yingshi vowed to give up its video downloading service, and in 2010 pivoted to translating open online courses offered by American universities. The strategy won the blessing of Chinese state media, which heralded the website as “a knowledge evangelist in the internet age.” That love-in didn’t last. The website eventually resumed offering pirated shows, and its servers were shut down by Chinese regulators in 2014, not long after the Motion Picture Association of America included Renren Yingshi on a list of pirate sites. It eventually popped back up, and at one point even moved its servers to South Korea for a time as it continued to look for ways to stay operational. Ultimately, Renren Yingshi’s interest in making money might have led to its downfall. While it began as a volunteer endeavor, Renren Yingshi eventually started accepting advertisements on videos, and charged members to view its content. “According to Chinese law, if copyright infringement was conducted for the purpose of making a profit, it is very easy to constitute a crime,” said Xu Xinming, an intellectual property lawyer at Beijing Mingtai Law Firm. Xu noted that in China, a business needs to make just a few thousand dollars in order to run afoul of copyright crime laws — well short of the millions police claim Renren Yingshi raked in. It’s not surprising, Xu says, that Beijing would want to go so hard against a platform with such a high profile. The government has worked harder over the last decade to address infringement, especially given Western accusations that copyright abuse runs rampant in the country. In 2020 alone, Chinese authorities shut down more than 2,800 websites and apps offering pirated content and deleted 3.2 million links, according to the most recent data available from the National Copyright Administration of China. ‘Using my love to generate power’ It’s not clear when the case may be resolved, though copyright infringement results in a punishment of up to seven years in prison, depending on the severity of the violation. Police in Shanghai did not respond to a request from CNN Business for more information on the case. No matter what happens to Renren Yingshi, though, it leaves behind a vast legacy of cultural exchange. “Many friends around me have grown up watching American series. They gave us a lot of extra parameters in our way of thinking,” said Lin, the Game of Thrones fan. She said she volunteered for a fansub group in high school called “Garden of Eden.” “If you’ve had so much exposure to different cultures, races and people from different backgrounds since a young age … it is easier for you to be able to see things from another perspective.” She said she was “using my love to generate power” — a phrase commonly cited by volunteers who want to emphasize that they are motivated by their passion for the shows, and not money. The translation work wasn’t easy, Lin said. “Every Friday, when the latest episode came out, the timer was on,” said Lin, who translated episodes of the American supernatural teen drama “The Vampire Diaries,” as well as sitcoms “The Big Bang Theory” and “Two Broke Girls.” Someone in the United States or Canada would record the show and send it along with English subtitles. Teams would then divide the episode into 10-minute segments and assign them to translators. “There was a lot of stuff I needed to look up,” said Lin, adding that it took her about two hours to translate 10 minutes of video. “Sometimes the characters would tell a joke that I couldn’t get, and I had to search for it online.” “It was difficult because I had to use [Chinese search engine] Baidu within the Great Firewall,” she said, referring to the government’s sprawling internet censorship apparatus. The work of fansub volunteers has effectively acted as a fourth wave of “translation activity that has had a huge impact on Chinese culture,” wrote Yan Feng, a professor of Chinese language and literature at Fudan University in Shanghai, in a widely shared Weibo post on February 3. By comparison, Yan said the other three major waves included the translation of Buddhist texts in ancient China, the translation of Western literature and social science works during the late Qing dynasty, and the translation of modern works on humanities and social sciences after the Cultural Revolution. For many Chinese millennials, fansub work is also a way to learn about the world. Many groups don’t just do translation work — they also add footnotes explaining background and context for certain dialogue to help Chinese audiences better understand historic, political or cultural references. “I think it’s a good thing for a child to be exposed to different cultures and different ways of thinking growing up,” said Joy Tian, a 23-year-old English teacher in Beijing. She said she was struck by the individualistic values at the center of many Western series and films, having grown up in a culture that emphasizes collectivism. “It helps promote diversity of thought,” she added. Xu, the Beijing-based lawyer, said it is up to the public to “do some self-reflection” following the crackdown on Renren Yingshi. “There’s no free lunch in this world, and they shouldn’t download or stream pirate films and TV shows anymore,” he said. But Tian stressed that she’d be willing to pay for the shows if they were uncensored. After all, she has paid for licensed American shows on legitimate Chinese streaming sites before — but she couldn’t get past all of the editing. Even Xu said that Chinese fans will likely continue to be tempted to watch pirated shows. People who watch such content and don’t profit off of it have not, traditionally, been punished in China. And if the government doesn’t ease up on its rules on content, the demand won’t go away. “This is indeed a problem. And as the government steps up its crackdown on copyright infringement, this problem will only become more acute,” Xu said. “With pirated access cut off, [the government and companies] should compensate by broadening legal access.” Source link Orbem News #Chinese #Cultural #Millennials #pirated #Shows #touchstone #website

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10892275 · 4 years

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Opinion Editorial

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During a time of a great pandemic, we haven't had for nearly a century. We've seen people fight over toilet paper for crying out-loud, what has this world come too. It seems to get worse and worse because people don't limit the time they're outside in the community becoming hoarders and buying everything to the thin bone. Now we just wonder why haven't we heard anything more about the outbreak since the release of it? Why haven't we seen more information on what it does to the human body and easily spread we must seem to get more and more rules to restrict us. Ever since this disease has came out into the world, less and less info has been given by the Chinese government about how it spreads so easily we can't even go around family members without knowing we have it till a couple days later or even a week and that's the scary part we never see it coming and that's why it has become such a huge pandemic. I often wonder why didn't the Chinese government tell us about the strength of this when it first came out at the end of 2019. Are they hiding something we don't know yet to where it's going to surge out of oblivion? I often tend to think maybe it's all planned, maybe they let this virus spread into the animal meat market in Wuhan to reduce population? Maybe... or even just to show that they're a strong country and basically don't need us for our economical standpoint?

This has all been a blur since it really struck the world in January when it really started to become a wide world problem. I've done some research on even theories or even conspiracies about the Covid-19 and some are pretty convincing and seem to be backed up by evidence. In this one journalist post it explains how we think this pandemic is all for a Geopolitical ploy written by Renee DiResta stating "But this time, Chinese state media picked up the story from internet chatter and turned it into an international phenomenon involving not only official media channels but influential diplomats as well"

This begins to show they're doing not only to scare us but to only show that if this diplomat was in charge it would've been handled better and we could've saved lived and even begins by stating that "State-sponsored media have long played a role in geopolitical power games. Since World War II, the TV, radio, and print media channels of many governments have created what some experts call “white propaganda”: messaging for which official sources claim authorship" This begins to show it has role of why they withheld their information from the world for their own growth since the beginning of this pandemic.

As the Chinese government finally let the world know this was a problem they took ahold of the attention to not only self promote their country but by in doing so they'll be able too be called a branding exercise for people to think favorably of it's rulers.

As she beings to state that The revelation that the Chinese government knew of the outbreak for two full weeks before taking steps to contain it outraged people worldwide and prompted accusations of a cover up." This only goes to show the Chinese residents that their leader is such a great leader for trying to contain it and by shutting a whole country down basically that he took the proper steps in doing so to help his political role when in reality it didn't many people are outraged by the withhold of information. This has helped build their white propaganda from even The Chinese Communist Party has prioritized “persuasion and information management (Links to an external site.)” for years. It has amassed (Links to an external site.) an extensive white-propaganda apparatus since 2000, building and buying TV, radio, and print media, optimizing localized content and messaging in a wide range of languages. Since 2015, it has invested in building a massive English-language presence for its media properties on the very same social networks it has banned within its own border." They've invested in an entire building to build their status as a country to show they're bigger then the rest and the best economical fit for people to live in when everything is banned from doing things such as religion, childbirths, and many more absurd stuff we see in the news.

To continue on with my last thought i want to transition to more deeper indention into this virus by looking at some news information and coverage of the Covid-19 outbreak. Things such as the thin line of info the world and even in our own country gave us. This includes things such as distancing we never even had a clue how far our saliva traveled until we got research to tell us this. There is a lot the Mask issue we have tons and tons of mask that many people never used before this and everyone would use a mask lying around or the very cheap useful mask people use for many daily uses then we learned that won't even help us and the only good thing to do is to seclude ourselves or even wear face masks and the only mask that was perfect for citizens was the N95 mask and then we started to have a mass shortage of the masks just like the toilet paper.

Every little thing we have been told late and the vague information of the virus and how cautious you really had to be when we had signs of the virus way before people ignored everything and it wasn't as bad of a problem.

As you continue further into the deep research we see that China is no hero in this they turn out to be the tragic hero for the miscount or misleading number of cases they had or that their leader XI JinPing has not come to a pillar to speak about it or give a update the only updates we really got as a whole world was the shutdown of Wuhan ground zero of the virus. The next few things are the rough estimates and how they're trying to handle the virus with building more hospitals and shutting down a whole country. These few things are the only real life updates we received.

This great pandemic has started I feel as if this is all misleading we don't have enough info to truly shutdown a whole country or how and what really can happen once you get it we haven't seen real visual for people to understand the circumstances and how it truly affects our bodies. I have not seen one visual representation on what really happens why haven't we seen a real visual scene of it unfolding or a scientific standpoint of what it affects first and how it spreads through out the body fast and effectively.

I know i haven't been the only one to experience this but have we not seen just diagrams and been told what happens not how it happens to what extent has nobody noticed this i truly think if they informed us deeply on what are the true effects and to visually show us uninformed people how it is really a threat to us and our daily life instead of sugar coating everything i really think we as Americans and we as people will comply with any directed order to ensure our safety as individuals.

Since this has come out there have been over 2.5 million cases of Covid-19 since it has first been know and little over 176,926 deaths as well and we have lost a lot of families, loved ones, and friends to me it seems as if the government told us more to an extent of how bad this would be instead of telling us to do this or not do that we would've saved thousands of people from this tragic death. Just even a little more info on how far it spreads from bodily fluids there could've been a reduced amount of cases and we have a world now that doesn't like to do things when told they need to be shown the consequences of still going on with daily life as if this isn't a problem when really it is. As for China if the information was given more sooner instead of withholding it we could've started a cure or lock down a segment of the country to slow the process of spreading and limiting people out of their homes could've been substantially enough. To examine all these factors of the misleading information and the restriction of information from the news and world helps you understand more deeply that when a crisis comes nobody is prepared for it until it's to late.

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rolandfontana · 6 years

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Fan Bing Bing’s International Business Lesson

Photo by George Baird

I had a sorta friend in college who smoked like a chimney and drank like a Supreme Court Justice. When people would point out the danger of his ways he would respond by emphatically noting that his grandfather also smoked and drank just as much and he was still alive and kicking at 88. Does anyone not see a problem with this analysis?

And yet, my firm’s international lawyers often hear something similar as an excuse for why some company or some person is doing XY or Z that is not legal. Sometimes they will add that so and so who is a native of the country in which they are doing business has told them that this or that is okay, which to me is the equivalent of relying on someone with no medical training saying it’s okay to smoke.

What has happened to Fan Bing Bing spurs me to mention the above. Fan Bing Bing is a terrific movie actress who recently got into BIG trouble with the Chinese tax authorities for having underreported her income via a dual-contract system in which only one contract is disclosed to the tax authorities. For more on this, check out China Movie Stars and The Two-Contract Problem. But it isn’t just movie stars that employ the two-contract tax dodge; many foreign companies and expats do as well:

Even if Fan Bingbing hasn’t done a single thing wrong (which is very possible), it wouldn’t be surprising to learn that tax evasion is rampant in the film business. Tax evasion is like a national sport in China. Mainland factories regularly misreport income by having payments go to a Hong Kong or Taiwanese holding company. So-called “independent contractors” in China rarely report their income because they and their foreign employer are both operating illegally. And the billion-dollar daigou business is profitable largely through tax and customs fraud.

Around once a month (and 4-5 times in December and January — not kidding), our international lawyers get a call from a foreigner in big trouble somewhere like China or Indonesia for having done something illegal. I myself have taken many of these calls and they usually start out with the person in trouble saying something like the following:

I always follow the law and I wanted to follow the law in __________ [country] but my ___________ assured me that this is how things are done in ___________[country] and so I reluctantly went along. And now I am in legal trouble for having done…..

The person who usually gets the blame is the accountant or general manager or even the person’s wife who is a native of whatever country in which the person is having his legal problems — I say “his” here because I cannot remember getting such a call from anyone not male. My tactic is to quickly push through this sort of discussion by bluntly saying, well yes, not paying your taxes or not doing X is illegal pretty much everywhere in the world and I am not aware of any country in the world where it is a defense to say that everyone else is operating illegally as well. So at this point, what I suggest is that we bring in a top-flight criminal lawyer and work on doing whatever we can to prevent you from going to jail and to reduce what you will need to pay.

Around ten years ago, A reader sent me an article regarding the Sri Lankan parents being denied the return of their 17 year old daughter by a United States judge because the family was unable to prove they were in the United States legally. The judge was denying the daughter’s return both for immigration reasons and because her parents’ credibility had been so damaged by their history of immigration untruths. The reader asked if we were aware of anything like this having happened in China or the United States with Chinese businesspeople and whether “something like this” can impact one’s business in China. I responded by listing out all sorts of examples we had seen where one’s immigration status has harmed a business.

Many years ago, I was involved in an international litigation matter involving two Russian fishing companies. One of the key witnesses for the Russian company on the other side was a woman who had secured a US visa based on her supposed extensive education and experience in the fishing industry in Russia. She had secured this visa by claiming a college degree from one of Russia’s best fishing institutes and by claiming to have spent many years working for one of its largest fishing companies. One of my firm’s crackerjack paralegals somehow acquired a copy of this person’s visa application and noticed that her college degree from a college in Town A in Russia had been stamped by someone in Town B in Russia. This was the equivalent of a Harvard degree with an official Yale stamp on it. In other words, it could never happen if the degree were not a fake.

Our next move was to depose this person and depose her we did. At her deposition, we asked her a series of questions intended to make clear we knew she had lied to get into the United States, including the following:

1. Who was your favorite professor? She said she had no favorite. 2. Name one of your professors. She said she could not remember a single one. 3. Name one professor at the entire college. She said she could not remember a single one. 4. Who was your best friend at college? She said she was too busy studying to have had any friends. 5. Name one fellow student at your college. She said she could not remember a single one. 6. List the classes you took. She gave a really vague answer. 7. Name some of the buildings on your campus. She could not remember a single one. 8. Describe the campus. She gave an incredibly vague description.

We asked the same sort of questions regarding the fishing company at which she had allegedly worked in Russia and we got the same sort of answers.

And guess what, this key witness for the other side never showed up to testify at trial, which greatly strengthened our case and probably helped us prevail. I have no doubt her failure to appear stemmed from her fear of her illegal immigration status being publicly exposed.

I was once contacted by a Russian-American company that wanted my firm to sue an American company over a debt. I pushed my client about skeletons in his and his company’s closet and he admitted he was in the United States on a student visa and so should not have been working at all. We talked about how his bringing this case would probably expose him to visa issues and how he should think long and hard before he brought it. He chose not to bring the case and instead to just walk away from a not insubstantial debt.

We have had to tell a number of foreigners in China the same thing when they have sought our help in collecting on a debt in China or in suing their Chinese partner for having run off with what the foreigner thought was its own business. If you or your business are not 100% legal in China, you have pretty much foreclosed your ability to sue anyone in China, no matter what they do to you. To put it bluntly, you are ripe for the plucking.

A handful of times (usually during periods of stepped-up visa enforcement), my firm has been contacted by foreigners with illegal businesses in China who have either been denied re-entry into China or have been told to leave. These people are desperately seeking our help to get them back into China. They are desperate because their profitable China based businesses cannot function without them. The odds of our being able to help them are slim.

One of the most underrated benefits of having a Wholly Foreign Owned Entity (WFOE) in China is that entity’s ability to hire foreigners and those foreigners’ ability to secure Chinese work visas (Z visas). These companies are legal and they have standing to sue and since their employees are working in China legally on Z visas, they have nothing to fear by testifying on the company’s behalf.

And we too have seen our share of double contracts. Many years ago, a European company hired us to sue an American company for having failed to pay around 2.5 million dollars for the sale of a used airplane (I have forgotten the exact amount). This company told us they had a written contract for this transaction and we told them we like their case. They then sent us the contract and instead of it listing the airplane price at $2.5 million, it listed it at $600,000. We raised the monetary discrepancy with the client who explained that “yes, this is what the contract says but the deal was for $2.5 million and the only reason it wasn’t written in the contract that way was because the other side insisted on it saying $600,000 to minimize its duties when it took the plane to its own country. We told them we were no longer interested in pursuing the case and as far as I know they ended up having to walk away from $2.5 million.

One of my favorite stories is when I went to Papua New Guinea to help a Sakhalin Island client secure the return of two helicopters. When I landed in Port Moresby, I was asked if I was in the country as a tourist or for business. The tourist visa was something around $35 and the business visa was something around $350, but I said “business” and I paid the much higher fee. I then flew to Goroka where I met the next day with the governor of the Eastern Highlands Province, Malcolm “Kela” Smith. I was told “Kela” means bald man. The first thing Mr. Smith did when I met with him was to check my passport. When it revealed I was there on a business visa, I could sense a change in his view of me. Though he never confirmed this to me, I am convinced that had my passport revealed I was in PNG on a tourist visa, Mr. Smith would either have had me thrown out of the country or he would have refused to meet with me because I was in the country illegally. Kela Smith ended up meeting with me and with my client and within a day or two we had a deal whereby my client would get his helicopters back.

With so many companies these days looking to set up in Asian countries with even weaker law enforcement than China, our international business lawyers are often finding ourselves stressing the advantages of scrupulously following a country’s laws even when doing so is difficult and expensive. Our experience is that this virtually always pays off in the end — economically, with stability, and with peace of mind.

The simple and obvious bottom line here is that if you are going to be doing business in a foreign country it pays to do so legally.

Fan Bing Bing’s International Business Lesson syndicated from https://immigrationattorneyto.wordpress.com/

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weeklybreakdown-blog · 6 years

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This Week: Corrections and Nuclear Warfare?

Hey, Homies!

The News: A Haiku Justice retreats And only Twitter remains Please God help us all.

Good Morning! Hopefully any emotions swirling around the Super Bowl have subsided. You have to admit, regardless if your preferred team won or lost, it was a pretty satisfying game with some decent commercials of Tide trolling the audience. This week I’ll be reminding the president that the stock market is not the economy, updating you on the nuclear modernization laid out in the State of the Union, and Space X’s Falcon Heavy Launch and its significance in space flight. Keep on keeping on and tell your friends about the Breakdown and sign up here.

About that Correction

For a president who loves economic numbers -- when it’s under his watch -- Monday was not the best of days. For the past year the president crossed the country making speech after speech touting his economic agenda. He capped this performance with his pièce de resistance, signing legislation in December that provided major tax cuts for large corporations and businesses. The flip side is that this same law gave nearly nothing to those in our society facing the blight of poverty and destitution. Oh and if you did get something and you’re in the middle class, expect to start paying more in the next 6 years.

Well, reap what you sow. Not only was there a 2.5% drop in the Dow Jones Industrial Average last week, of 666 points, but Monday saw another major sell off. Marking the largest point drop in the Market’s history, the DJIA declined 1,175 points, equivalent to 4.6%. Now, the fundamentals point to a fairly robust economy. Unemployment is at a record low and non-farm payroll jobs increased to 200,000 for January. There is solid strength and reason to act bullish on the economy. Donald Trump wishes to take credit for this. However, there are leading indicators that Trump’s claims fall short. Trends over the past 88 months of record job growth started under Barack Obama in 2009. While there is something to be said for the massive partisan swing in the perception of the economy following Trump’s election, it takes time for each successive president’s policies to have an affect. If anything, heavy future borrowing like the Trump tax cuts could overheat the economy, resulting in a raising of interests rates. Raise the rates, and it costs people more to pay back their student loans, mortgage their house, buy a car, etc. So while Donald may be galavanting around the country praising his stewardship skills while picking a fight with virtually everyone, the impact of his agenda will slowly start to permeate, and boy, will that impact be with us for a while.

Call of Duty: Nuclear Warfare?

The Trump administration released a Nuclear Posture Review last Friday. The report, the first since 2010, seems par for the course with this administration that loves undoing things simply because, well, Obama. The report is downright reckless. It calls for the use of "low-yield" nuclear warheads for submarine-launched ballistic missiles. The goal here that they would be “...able to penetrate adversary defenses." This strategy assumes that there is a tolerance level for a limited nuclear strike, be it on a battlefield or specific target. Can we just absorb that fact? A limited nuclear strike, say, on a military target in Iran, that may or may not be far enough away from civilians, is an acceptable policy to pursue? Sure, you’ll hit the damn thing, but what about the precedent this sets. Yes, this administration seems to love breaking that word, precedent, but doing that has catastrophic consequences downstream. Nuclear fallout, radiation poisoning, PR, violation of nuclear arms agreements such as the INF, the list goes on.

The forceful change has a lot to do with what is going on abroad. Russia and China are engaging in massive military modernization methods. Simply check out a recent reportfrom the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace that details Russian modernization methods taking place. You can also examine the RAND corporation’s assessment of Chinese and American capabilities here. Sure, it’s a changing, dynamic, and frightful world out there, but let’s add some perspective. Russia has rarely operated out of its “near-abroad” aka the former Soviet satellite states and neighbors. Yes, Syria, Georgia, and Ukraine are all examples of pushing this envelope. However, I would argue that these engagements reflect less of a strategy than that of a more tactical opportunity conditioned by other factors.

Finally, understand that the United States has 6,800 nuclear weapons. Russia has 7,000. Most nuclear accords were between these two countries. In the last 30 years we’ve added 3 nuclear weapon proliferators to this list (India, Pakistan, and North Korea) which was at a faster pace than the previous 50. If anything, that’s a sign that technology is speeding up nuclear adoption, not slowing it down - shouldn’t that be the priority?

Elon Musk - Starlord

If you missed the launch at 3:45pm EST yesterday, then you missed a little bit of history. Space X’s Falcon Heavy had a successful launch. The Falcon Heavy is currently the largest operational rocket in the world. Only dwarfed in historical terms by the Apollo Saturn V rocket which last flew in 1973. But what about this launch was so great besides size? It marked the first time that a private company, not a government agency, successfully launched a rocket this large into near Earth orbit. The payload consisted of Musk’s personal Tesla Roadster which is currently blaring “Space Oddity” by David Bowie in an endless loop - though no one will hear it. The car will be most likely be parked in a Hohmann transfer orbit (aka an orbit between Mars and the Sun) and will remain there for thousands of years, untouched. Most importantly both first-stage rocket boosters successfully landed back on Earth. Retrieving these rockets helps bring down the cost of each successive launch, which is part of Space X’s M.O. What’s next? The company plans to send two tourists around the Moon by the end of this year.

What to watch...

Reports have been coming out that Donald Trump wants a military style parade akin to France’s Bastille Day celebrations.

The Winter Olympics kick off Friday in Pyeongchang, Korea. They will also be one of the coldest on record.

Gerrymandering has been given a swift kick in Pennsylvania. However, politicians have been threatening to impeach the Supreme Court judges in retaliation. Hello 2018.

If you care about this and other issues we discuss in the Weekly Breakdown, we ask you to call your representatives to ask them what they are doing to protect our friends and neighbors. This is an admittedly progressive call tool you can use, and this is an apolitical one.

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nuttytyranttyphoon-blog · 6 years

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The First American Woman To Win The NYC Marathon In 40 Years Required Simply 3.

Group Cal - Chicago Marathon Ashley 2017-10-25T09:10:04 +00:00. The very first half of the course is totally shaded by high-rise buildings making the preliminary part of the race very enjoyable to run through. We partner with other members of the Christian Greek neighborhood to host themed occasions each night of Homecoming Week to commemorate custom and tradition at the University of Florida. Tom Derderian, Boston Marathon: History of the World's Premier Running Occasion, Human Kinetics, 1994, 1996. Among the WORLD'S BEST little marathons."-- Runner's World Publication, 2006. For the remainder of the country: See live coverage from 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. ET on race day on ESPN2 and via Watch ESPN on computer systems, tablets, smart devices, Amazon Fire TELEVISION and Fire TV Stick, Apple TV, Chromecast, Roku, Xbox 360 and Xbox One, for those who have video memberships from associated suppliers. As the Bank of America Chicago Marathon weaves its method through 29 varied areas, spectators and participants experience the history, culture, prominent architecture and vibrant spirit that make Chicago great. It's a great race, good to chase after someone down," he stated. . Q&A: Chinese runners accept their very first NYC Marathon: Many Chinese runners are taking a trip abroad to run major marathons as the sport gains appeal throughout the nation. Training program includes strength training, group runs, yoga and pilates sessions, speed work, and nutrition assistance. If you turn race weekend into a getaway with friends and family, it can feel like a vacation with a big, catered run at the end. If you have not been doing any aerobic workout, you might begin with only one mile at a time (or less) throughout each training session for the first week or more. Switzer, looking as lean and fit, with shoulder-length blond hair, put on a burgundy Group 261 Brave" zip-up track jacket and matching t-shirt, black leggings and orange Adidas sneakers. With this structure in place, we classified all the website content and grouped it by each event along with content type. Runners can likewise hit the feared wall" here, so it's a terrific place to cheer them on! The last and first 2.5 miles of both races are on paved roads and the ATT surface area is compressed screenings with some sections a mix of asphalt and compressed screenings. . There is complimentary parking available all day at 23rd Street and Crystal Drive in Crystal City, Va. Free shuttle bus will take participants and fans from the totally free parking to the Runners Town, roughly 1.5 miles away. There are several other methods to help you obtain a number, which includes running other New york city Road Runners races, volunteering, running for charity, and going into due to the fact that of previous race efficiencies. The half marathon course is flat and fast with legendary views of the valley of the sun, consisting of Papago Park and Tempe town lake. This will be our very first year partnering with the event, and we would love to have you sign up with the team to help us find efficient treatments to End NF! Training Schedules for runners aged 18 - 75 years. The Kappa Sigma fraternity's foundation rests on four pillars of character all of us strive to display in our lives: Fellowship, Leadership, Scholarship, and Service. Viewers can see their runner in as many as 5 areas on the course. The formation of the Greek army was one with the central armed forces having soldiers in rank of 4 while the flanking forces had soldiers in rank of 8. This development then either ran or marched (most likely marched) the distance to the Persian forces and stopped some 200 metres except the Persian army. It is said that some of 'zealous' hoplites even handled to capture around 7 enemy ships by simply rushing on to their decks. In my strategy, you simply add one mile a week till you reach ten miles. marathon training On bringing it on the stage he was fined one thousand drachmae for having actually remembered to them their own misfortunes.-- SMITH. Inning accordance with the marathon site, spectators are not allowed in the staging area or begin villages. To prevent injuries and stay healthy while half marathon training, increase your mileage slowly and include rest and recovery into your program.

With approval in place, mile five on the MCM course gave runners an up-close view of the terrorist attack on the Pentagon. An excellent method is to run your very first few miles 10 to 20 seconds slower than your goal. Refer 5 or more individuals and get a refund of up to $15.00. You can discover your referral link in your verification email. It was a blast dancing with the trainees, and I still cannot get the music from my head. On Monday, April 16, 2018, #RunLikeAGirlScout with Team Lady Scouts in support of our health and health efforts. It's an amazing four-park event with your host Mickey Mouse throughout the 25th Anniversary Walt Disney World ® Marathon event. The boost in donations was due in part to this year's development of an alumni association, she stated, which serves to extend students' connections to Dance Marathon beyond the four years they spend on school.

The event has grown significantly since then, attracting runners from worldwide, some vying for an opportunity to make history as the course winner; others just hoping to end up the run upright. Central Park West, south of West 66th Street: The post-finish location in and near Central Park (north of the goal) is a runners-only zone. Runners who are looking for more of a difficulty can take part in among the two special difficulties that the weekend offers. Race personnel readily available at the Pebble Beach Resort ® to address course and race questions the day prior to the race. The Chicago marathon is among the largest and earliest big-city marathons in the world. Above all, pay attention to your body Scale back mileage and take an additional rest day or more if you feel discomfort that's beyond common training pain. So, naturally I had to go down and support him - and let me inform you - it's a whole different experience being there than exactly what one sees on TELEVISION. The enormity of this event is practically frustrating. Mayor Lenny Curry, City board member Tommy Hazouri and YMCA of Florida's First Coast CEO Eric Mann signed up with youth-focused Northeast Florida nonprofits last week to celebrate Children's Advocacy Week at the Spring Break Celebration. After each uphill, I tried to recuperate and unwind on the following downhill, so on and so on. The wind had picked up a bit too, and while I'm the very first person to grumble about a headwind, it felt SO good to get a breeze. For more on all the qualifying standards, including the qualifying window and what makes a qualified course, click on this link A list of leading certifying U.S. marathons can be found here.

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spanlish-blog · 7 years

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White Privilege as a Western Student in China

When some friends of mine came back from an exchange program in Beijing, each with a wad of $1,200 in cash they'd received from the Chinese government, my response was, "Um, what?"

The cash was their scholarship money, given to them in crisp 100 yuan bills after class one day.

Turns out you don't need a 4.0—or even a 2.5—to get that kind of money. After interviewing several more exchange students about their experiences in China, I learned that even if your grades are "shit," you might still be offered a scholarship, free accommodation, and a monthly allowance to study in the Middle Kingdom.

You may also get free booze, free entry into clubs, and professors who won't care if you skip class or use your phone during an exam. These are tough things to resist when you're a broke college student who'd rather explore the city than actually attend your lectures.

"Foreigners enjoy a very favorable situation in China, for sure," says Jon*, who worked at a Chinese university as a liaison between international business students and the staff. "If you go to a club, yes, you'll get free drinks, and you'll get in for free. Whereas Chinese people still have to pay."

These perks are a way for China to make itself more appealing to foreigners, who, Jon says, are still viewed by Chinese citizens as "super powers" and also enjoy advantages like higher wages and better job opportunities than locals.

But according to students I spoke with, not all exchange students are treated equally. While white skin awards you near-celebrity status, black skin might get you spat on outside a McDonald's or labeled as "dangerous." You might also be sized up according to your assumed race and gender at clubs, then treated in accordance with that value.

Hello again, white privilege.

For the purposes of global education, VICE has included six stories about what it's really like to live and study in China and why being treated like a VIP can either be wildly fun or weirdly dehumanizing.

Ashton*, 25 Exchange Student From: Germany Program: Marketing

In 2015, I went on a six-month exchange program to China. I really had no restrictions at the university. You're late? It's fine. You want to change your exam date? Fine. It's easy to use; "this is how we do things in Germany" as a justification for anything. Even bringing your phone to an exam. I'm actually going back there for my master's degree because it'll be easy for me to get good grades. I tried to find a program in Germany or the Netherlands, but it was really difficult because my grades are shit. When I asked my old university in China if they had any programs in management, they said: "Yes, of course, we'll give you a scholarship." They're also giving me free housing, an allowance per month, and no tuition fees. So I said, "OK, yeah, I'm coming back." But all this makes you feel pretty weird because while a lot of non-white foreigners are just so fucking happy to have the chance to come to China, you're only there because it's free. For example, I'm in a WhatsApp group with 40 people who have applied for scholarships in China. There are three Westerners and 37 people from either Africa, Bangladesh, or Pakistan. The only people who got replies from the university were the three Westerners.

Before my trip, I'd heard China preferred foreigners at clubs, but I didn't understand the racism until I went there. My ex-girlfriend was a promoter at one of these clubs—she sold guest list spots to people—and got paid according to what types of people she brought in. Non-Western foreigners were level one and worth nearly nothing to promoters. The second level was Western foreigners, and the third level was pretty girls. So there was a man at the door checking "is she pretty or not pretty?" and if she was pretty, the promoter would get more money for bringing her in. The last level was models—like real models, ones staying in Beijing for shoots and stuff. Promoters would get about $20 for bringing them in.

It's also normal to get free drinks the whole night if you're white. For my farewell party, we went to a club, and there were ten people, six of them blond girls. We got two bottles of Grey Goose—worth about $300 in that club—all for free. I felt like a king at first, but it was also really weird. They were catering to our every need, and we didn't pay a thing.

It's hard to enter certain clubs if you're with black people. I have a friend from Mozambique, and once we went to a really nice club and booked a table in advance. We all met at the entrance—five Westerners and one black person—and the promoter was like, "Yeah, you cannot enter." When we asked why, he told us it was because my friend looked dangerous, which was just crazy. We argued with the guy for about 15 minutes and told him that if he didn't let us in, we'd post on WeChat that the club was racist, and so he finally let us in. From there, it was open bar all night.

Sami, 25 Exchange Student from: Finland Studying: Law

I studied international and Chinese law in Beijing, and the first night I was there, I went out with some master's students, and they took us out to a street filled with different clubs. We got in free to all of the clubs; all the alcohol was free, and we got VIP tables. That first night I was like, "Woah, what is this?" I'm not sure if it felt wrong, but it felt weird. There'd be big lines of Chinese people waiting to get in, and we'd walk right by. Also, we went to this pretty famous club in the center of Shanghai—it's called M1NT, they've got sharks in the dance floor—and again, we just walked past this huge line, got VIP cards, and also free alcohol the whole night. Just because we were European. All the free stuff and better treatment was fun in the beginning, but in the long run, it felt... it didn't feel good.

I got preferential treatment outside the party scene, too. When my parents came to visit, we went to a restaurant that was a little fancier. I didn't book a reservation, and so there was a two-hour wait when we got there. We thought, Well, that's OK, we'll go shopping for a bit. But when we left, the staff came running after us and said, "Wait, we have a free table for you." We thought that since it was just the three of us, maybe a small table had opened up and that's why we got in, but inside there was a whole other room full of Chinese people still waiting. Throughout the meal we had four waiters serving us, people taking photos of us, and the whole experience was very strange. In China, you're often perceived as super rich if you're Western. They think you have a lot of money and you're there to party, and that's it. It gets annoying because in reality most of us are there because of grants, scholarships, and wanting to travel; we even take out loans to do it.

Erin*, 24 Exchange Student from: Canada Studying: Law

My boyfriend and I chose to study abroad in Beijing this past summer through a program where Chinese government scholarships are available for Canadian students. Being fairly poor law students who love to travel, we were pretty intrigued by the idea of government funding.

We didn't know when we would be getting our scholarship—$1,200—or even how it would be given to us. We didn't get anything when we arrived, which we thought was a little odd, but then during our last week, a Chinese student came to the front of the class and was like, "Hey, everyone, your money's here!" Everyone cheered. Then the next day they brought in cash—stacks of freshly printed 100 yuan bills, all put into envelopes and stored up in the program administrator's office. So, 80 students lined up in the hallway, all waiting for their $1,200. Considering you can buy lunch for the equivalent of $0.80, it was a ton of money to have in cash.

Edson, 21 Exchange Student from: Africa Studying: Accounting

There aren't many black people in China. I didn't want to study abroad there, but in recent years China has been investing a lot in Africa, so our government has started giving scholarships to students. From the moment I got there, things were just really different. I walked out of the airport, and my nose just started itching. There was so much pollution. I thought instantly: This place isn't good for me. Then came the stares on the train. People look at you as if you're really, really different; they've never seen someone like you, and so they take pictures.

China is growing economically, about 6 percent every year, but I don't think it's a good place to study. Some foreigners really like it because of all the free stuff. I mean, I still got the free drinks and free entry into the clubs, but it would depend on what kind of club it was and who I was with. I was with a bunch of friends from the Netherlands most times, and so I was viewed as part of their group. Actually, most people would assume that since I'm black and speak English, I must be American. And if you're American or European, Chinese girls love it, but I didn't like the attention because I'd rather be liked for who I am. The fact is if you tell them you're African, you're viewed as poor, like you don't know what an iPhone is, etc.

There were only two black people in the entire university, which was a problem for me. I would invite people in my class to go to clubs, or I'd say, "Hey, let's grab a drink or something," because I wanted to make friendships with the Chinese students. But they'd say they had to go to the library. Every time it was the same: "I have to go to the library." I tried to make friends, but they didn't let me in. Eventually, I met some people from Europe and just hung out with them. And so I didn't go to a lot of classes. My teachers never gave me a hard time about it because I think they knew it was difficult fitting in. I could do whatever I wanted. In that way, I was treated basically the same as the white students.

I remember one very sad day in particular. In China, they have a habit of spitting on the floor, and so one day I went to McDonald's and bought a Big Mac. As I was leaving, there was a Chinese man who spit on my shirt. I don't know why he did it. Anyway, I thought maybe it was a mistake, but when I looked at him, he didn't say sorry, just gave a look like "I don't like you" or something. I was sad but also angry. I didn't do anything, just walked away. And that was when I thought, You know, I can't put up with this bullshit anymore. It's too hard. I wasn't OK with myself over there.

Jackie*, 26 Exchange Student from: Canada Studying: Law

I went on a summer exchange program to China, and afterward, I got an internship at a big law firm in Beijing. At the firm, some other interns and I would get invited every week or two to go have dinner with a group of lawyers from the firm. They'd bring us to these fancy restaurants, and they'd pay the bill, and you knew it wasn't the type of dinner they were inviting their Chinese colleagues to every week. We got invites because we were international interns. And even though I was the only white person in this particular group of interns, I was the only one they invited personally, and from there, they allowed me to bring friends. Once, during dinner, the woman who invited us was really making sure we were having a good time. She even started to dance and sing. Often, my friends and I would go out as a big group, and night after night our table would be given several bottles of spirits, solely based on the color of our skin. Some people in my group would abstain from drinking because it was discriminatory, like white privilege at its finest. That's the kind of racial privilege caucasian people have access to in Beijing. That said, we always hear that China is taking a bigger place in the world and its economy, and so it's good to go there and see what's behind these great firewalls that prevent us from exchanging with them.

There's also a local version of Tinder, it's called Tantan, and if you're a foreigner, this app can really open some doors if you're looking to meet new people. Some of the people in my group were using it, and every single time they'd swipe, they'd get a swipe back in return. If you're white, it just isn't the same game.

Shaun, 26 Exchange Student from: Canada Studying: Law

During my exchange program, I was photographed quite often. I remember being approached three distinct times, and each time it happened at a pretty big tourist attraction. I'm tall and caucasian, and from what I heard, Chinese people are interested in photographing someone like me because by doing so they can show their family and friends that the places they're visiting have such a high status that they attract white Westerners as well. It's like, "Look, this place is so cool, even this white guy went there!" I just kind of went along with it because I didn't feel like it was doing any harm, but it always felt a little awkward. It's like, why me? It's uncomfortable to be this, well, image of beauty or whatever. But I also think it's learned behavior culturally. One time my girlfriend and I were approached by a family, and the mother and grandmother were super into getting a picture with us, but their six-year-old daughter wanted nothing to do with it. It was like she hadn't learned the rule about wanting photos with white people.

*Names have been changed.

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Source: White Privilege as a Western Student in China Source: White Privilege as a Western Student in China

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