#364

So many things just seem to be the luck of the draw. So many things in life for which to be grateful. I think of the old saying (not that I am into the theistic God, but I still like the intent), “There but for the grace of God go I.” It seems that so much is out of our control. And we have this amazing capacity to make the best of our circumstances. My dad will say, “Everything happens for the best.” My Uncle Charles will chime in, “And we make the best out of everything that happens.”

But then again, there is Einsteinian physics, quantum mechanics. Perhaps this is where paradoxes live side-by-side, contiguously. Imagine congruities and incongruities co-existing. Such unlimited potential, perhaps. But, I digress, perhaps.

I too gave up on self-help books, a long time ago. Imagine that, I am no longer of financial benefit to the Wayne Dyers, Robert Kiyosakis, Sharon Lechters, and Deepak Chopras of the world. How disloyal and uncaring of me.

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#365

Yes, I too tend to temper myself. The “go …” admonition or rebuke sounds very familiar, very familiar. LOL

Some of the greatest regrets in life were the pains I caused my beloved parents when I was myself a teenager, many many many moons ago. It was like one suffers from a temporary lapsed of reason of 3- 5 years. Often good kids get bad parents, bad parents have good kids, and every now and then, one sees a social anomaly, i.e. a healthy family among the normally cracked, wounded and broken others. It is all the cast of the dice, chance, luck and misfortunes. There are no rhymes or reasons. Kinda like Chomsky’s PhD thesis, which was also the antithesis to Skinner’s Behaviorism. The nature vs nurture argument. (Ok, now, I know I don’t know what I am talking about.)

#363, Authors may tend to pick and choose examples which fit the points they want to make.

You are right. Now that you mentioned it, I suddenly remember reading, Rich Daddy poor Daddy. Man, what a generous load of crap were sandwiched between the covers of that book!. I have read maybe 5 self-help books in my life. THing is, none of them actually did me any good, other than made me feel bad about myself for not measuring up with the Joneses, and missing out on all of the finer things in life. I think I got more out of watching Jack Nicholson and Morgon Freeman in, “Kick the Bucket.”

Incidently, the aforementioned book was the LAST Self-help book I read. And that was the best help it gave me. It helped me decide self-help books are totally useless. It sure help the authors get richer, though.

#359

HKer, I am in Hanoi and out of touch for a bit. I jest, sir. I love my kids. Can they be precocious? You bet. Are they successful? You bet. Do I believe in coddling? No way. Do I believe in discipline? You bet.

“Reading the stories of highly successful individuals, most of them started out their real world adult repsonsibility while they were teenagers.” I do not find the direct correlation which you do. I know people who come from all walks who are highly successful. People mature at different rates and at different ages. We call them early bloomers and late bloomers. Authors may tend to pick and choose examples which fit the points they want to make.

“Generally speaking, I think the majority reason for teen-age crisis – in affluent society – is because of letting this age group of society having it too easy, or modern society imposing on (most of) them the wrong vocation.” I think that modern children are at risk for a lot of reasons, including parents who have to work harder to provide for the family, predatory television programs and internet sites, an education system that has been dumbed down and a social safety nets which have been dismembered, to name a few of the risks. Yes, there are parents who coddle their children or impose unreasonable expectations on their children. Society occasionally stigmatizes some career paths and tries to push children into paths which they consider more acceptable.

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#360

Raffiaflower, am I a curmudgeon? At times, yes. Am I cynical and sarcastic? Yes I can be. Am I a right-winger? I doubt it. If that designation makes you happy, go with it. No one characteristic or category can completely describe me, my beliefs and my biases. And I can dish it out and I can take it. C’est la vie. A bi gezunt.

It’s very hard for these westerners, or acculturated ones, to grasp views other than their own. Sometimes, deliberately so.
They cannot understand that matters such as human rights are part of the maturation process of a society, so there will be differences of view. Universal values, varying cultural perspective.
Or that issues such as taiwan, tibet, etc, are framed within a sense of identity; personal or national, the matter of self is emotive. People within a group can very extremely self-critical about themselves, even open to criticism, but not when that criticism presents itself as arbitration of right and wrong.

We are all entitled to our beliefs and opinions.

Just because a Westerner doesn’t coddle someone or elaborate all they think about an issue, it does not mean that we don’t see other’s viewpoints. Thank you for enlightening me that there will be differences of view.

Please go ahead and continue to lecture in your pedagogical style. Your opinion shows a myopia regarding Western thinking and a willingness for unwarranted speculation. But you are entitled to think how you will. Far be it from me to tell you what to think or do. It is not my job to please you and or educate you. I know little about Arnault, but I would not mind some of his money.

I like you too, raffiaflower. Like SK in #361, I have my beliefs and am happy to entertain others. I will adapt and change as I see fit. But I do appreciate the advice. I just hope that you won’t be offended if I decide not to change.

Maybe someday I will learn to stop being so “snarky”? I would not hold your breath on that one. It just seems to arise from time to time. Damn! It’s like hell being human.

Raffiaflower, it is very hard for me to take your post very seriously. Maybe it is just me? Maybe I am just missing something here?

And if you ran out of time to edit the piece, how did you have time to add those lines after the “BTW”?

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#361

‘For if CHina issued such a statement to “the west”, the response she’d receive would probably be along the lines of “go fly a kite”.’ I have been known to use a little stronger than that, SK.

Your comments are well-stated and cogent. Thanks, SK.

And what kind of a guy owns handbags?

Raffiaflower? Isn’t that the flower of some kind of fruit-bearing palm tree? Or is it a flower made of raffia fibers? Anyway, are you sure raffiaflower is of the male gender? He/she “talks” like a gal, if ya asked me. Either that or he’s gay. Now, before anyone releases from your expanded lungs the indignant gulp of breathe you’d drawn to spit vitriolic hot-air at me, let me say this. I adore women and I love gay people.
As for SKC questions, I’m afraid, other than Italian men, Chinese businessmen too, carry manbags. Has anyone seen the movie, YPF? It is hilarious!

I think it was Buxi who wrote many moons ago that, if someone is going to present a point of view in these parts, it had better make sense, or they should expect to be challenged. And to me, that edict works both ways. So if BXBQ takes a stroll through the furthest recesses of left field, he should expect to be lit up like a Christmas tree; and if I or anyone else ever venture into similar locales, we should expect no better, or worse. Oh, and the nails are stick on…only to be applied when the need arises. Otherwise, as Allen says, I’m a softie. But if you’d like to see those nails up close, write something goofy, and I’d be happy to oblige.

Now, you’ve gone to the trouble of writing a bunch of stuff, but what have you really said (the answer, btw, is sweet jack all). What do you stand for? Which wing are you on? And what kind of a guy owns handbags?

BTW: Too late to edit this, SK & Jerry, so I apologise for calling you dear. NYT recently ran a piece which opines the prefix is bad for the health, especially on seniors.
The article came out after I called Cathy Horyn “dear’’ on her blog. Maybe she was upset…
But really, I like you, guys.
Have to run and take my vertigo pills. Recovering from the southward plunge of the China mutuals.

“Regarding correcting frontal lobe deficiencies/immaturities in teenagers, that would be worth a Nobel Prize in Medicine. And there are always frontal lobotomies, I dare suggest..”

There’s a chinese saying, “穷人的孩子早当家.” It means – something like – “Precocious children are found in every poor and destitude family.” Generally speaking, I think the majority reason for teen-age crisis – in affluent society – is because of letting this age group of society having it too easy, or modern society imposing on (most of) them the wrong vocation.

Reading the stories of highly successful individuals, most of them started out their real world adult repsonsibility while they were teenagers. Many also went back to school after they had their own families, and after theyhave become wealthy.

I can understand the “piss” they sell in China at (US$0.50 / 4.00RMB) for a 750ml of Qing Dao brewed and bottled in Guangdong couldn’t possibly compare with genuine german style brewsky from the Green Island(Qing Dao) for exports at US$2.00 / HK$15. The first time I bought a 350ml can of Guiness in Shenzhen, I had to chuck it after the second sip just to be sure it wasn’t some fake shit. The unfortunate thing is that it was the real thing – but watered down for the huge market! FOARP, I suspect what you might have tasted in HK was a china produced can-Guiness, right? These are my favourite brews, Stella Artois, Kilkenny and Guiness on tap, but they are between US$4.5 and $6.00 / HK$30-40 (Happy Hour or 2for 1 prices) a pint of smooth happy frothy. Otherwise they are around HK$60- HK$80 a pint, dudes. Yikes!

SKC,

Have you seen Winslet in the movie”Smoke?”

Tsk, tsk, tsk, see what I mean by having no expectation? It’s not your fault, we’ve all together been fooooled.
I know, it is probably not possible to live forever, but 150? Man, that’s how long we are all supposed to live. Which means, to live to see AD 2100 is entirely possible, if all the money and energy wasted on wars and WMD are poured into finding ways to cure all diseases and to slow down the aging process.

SKC, I dunno if I am pulling your leg or if some Englishman was yanking my Foomanchu-piggytail, but I was told that Imported GUINNESS draft in HK actually taste better than they do in Dublin…???? Is that possible????