Podcasts about Shanghai

Linda Joyce is one of the most sought after media personalities and public speakers in New York City, London and Shanghai. Joyce is a one-woman powerhouse for people looking for a pragmatic strategy to solving difficult personal problems. Life coach and trusted personal counselor, Joyce's client list includes well-known celebrities and international business titans looking to merge the worlds of the intuitive with the practical. Joyce is the pioneer of a groundbreaking 12-step method which she presents in her best-selling book The Star Within. She believes that the right question can change your consciousness faster than any pat answer because it keeps digging and challenging your beliefs and fears. Author of the best-selling book The Day You Were Born, Linda is a frequent guest on radio and television and has appeared on 20/20 with Barbara Walters, the Howard Stern Show, The Late Show with David Letterman and Forgive and Forget with Robin Givens. Linda Joyce's always practical and no nonsense advice has been seen on PEOPLE.com. Linda has taken on China and is writing a column for Shanghai Talk, Beijing Talk and Guangzhou Talk and has been writing as a contributor to Italian Velvet.In October 2013 she was featured in the Financial Times under Spa Junkie. In Nov. 2014 she was interviewed in The Daily Mail on her new book on men:Men on Men, One Hundred Interviews with Men on Sex, Power and Intimacy. In between projects, Ms. Joyce divides her time between New York, London and Shanghai. She has done workshops for the English magazines Red and Here's Heath, written for Kindred Spirit, and was featured in Good Housekeeping, as well as British Vogue and Tatler.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-x-zone-radio-tv-show--1078348/support.Please note that all XZBN radio and/or television shows are Copyright © REL-MAR McConnell Meda Company, Niagara, Ontario, Canada – www.rel-mar.com. For more Episodes of this show and all shows produced, broadcasted and syndicated from REL-MAR McConell Media Company and The 'X' Zone Broadcast Network and the 'X' Zone TV Channell, visit www.xzbn.net. For programming, distribution, and syndication inquiries, email programming@xzbn.net.We are proud to announce the we have launched TWATNews.com, launched in August 2025.TWATNews.com is an independent online news platform dedicated to uncovering the truth about Donald Trump and his ongoing influence in politics, business, and society. Unlike mainstream outlets that often sanitize, soften, or ignore stories that challenge Trump and his allies, TWATNews digs deeper to deliver hard-hitting articles, investigative features, and sharp commentary that mainstream media won't touch.These are stories and articles that you will not read anywhere else.Our mission is simple: to expose corruption, lies, and authoritarian tendencies while giving voice to the perspectives and evidence that are often marginalized or buried by corporate-controlled media

Ruixi Hu has brought her passion for delicious local food to her company Lost Plate where she takes hungry visitors to the best spots in Shanghai and other cities in China. Ruixi tells Brent about a unique coffee drink made with fermented rice, something called exploding fish, the city's craft beer scene, a carb-tastic breakfast, and much, much, more! [Ep 364]. Show Notes: Destination Eat Drink foodie travel guide ebooks Destination Eat Drink foodie travel videos Lost Plate Shanghai Food Tours

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This week on Sinica, I welcome back Finbarr Bermingham, the Brussels-based Europe correspondent for the South China Morning Post, about the Nexperia dispute — one of the most revealing episodes in the global contest over semiconductor supply chains. Nexperia, a Dutch-headquartered chipmaker owned by Shanghai-listed Wingtech, became the subject of extraordinary government intervention when the Netherlands invoked a Cold War-era emergency law to seize temporary control of the company and suspend its Chinese CEO. Finbarr's reporting, drawing on Dutch court documents and expert sources, has illuminated the tangled threads of this story: preexisting concerns about governance and technology transfer, mounting U.S. pressure on The Hague to remove Chinese management, and the timing of the Dutch action on the very day the U.S. rolled out its affiliate rule. We discuss China's retaliatory export controls on chips packaged at Nexperia's Dongguan facilities, the role of the Trump-Xi meeting in Busan in unlocking a temporary thaw, and what this case reveals about Europe's agonizing position between American pressure and Chinese integration in global production networks.4:34 – Why the "Europe cracks down on Chinese acquisition" framing was too simple 6:17 – The Dutch court's extraordinary tick-tock of events and U.S. lobbying 9:04 – The June pressure from Washington: divestment or the affiliate list 10:13 – Dutch fears of production know-how relocating to China 12:35 – The impossible position: damned if they did, damned if they didn't 14:46 – The obscure Cold War-era Goods Availability Act 17:11 – CEO Zhang Xuezheng and the question of who stopped cooperating first 19:26 – Was China's export control a state policy or a corporate move? 22:16 – Europe's de-risking framework and the lessons from Nexperia 25:39 – The fragmented European response: Germany, France, Hungary, and the Baltics 30:31 – Did Germany shape the response behind the scenes? 33:06 – The Trump-Xi meeting in Busan and the resolution of the crisis 37:01 – Will the Nexperia case deter future European interventions? 40:28 – Is Europe still an attractive market for Chinese investment? 41:59 – The Europe China Forum: unusually polite in a time of tenterhooksPaying it forward: Dewey Sim (SCMP diplomacy desk, Beijing); Coco Feng (SCMP technology, Guangdong); Khushboo Razdan (SCMP North America); Sense Hofstede (Chinese Bossen newsletter)Recommendations: Finbarr: Chokepoints by Edward Fishman; Underground Empire by Henry Farrell and Abe Newman; "What China Wants from Europe" by John Delury (Engelsberg Ideas) Kaiser: The Three Musketeers: D'Artagnan and Milady (2023 French film adaptation)See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

To warm us into the new season, we've got a bit of a whisky thing going on product-wise with two new bottles for your drinking pleasure. One, The Stanhope has a Scottish connection but is made in the US, the other comes from one of our favourite family brands, it's Rosemaund from the Chase family and it's proudly English. Award-winning writer Noah Rothbaum shares all the intel on the subject in The Whisky Bible – A complete guide to the world's greatest spirit and there are whiskies aplenty in our bar pick which is the recently opened Eagle Bar perched atop the glam Chancery Rosewood in London.For the first conversation of the season, we're thrilled to welcome Lorenzo Antinori, talking openly and honestly about settling in a different country, embracing simplicity, his latest opening in Shanghai and Bar Leone Hong Kong being crowned Best Bar in the World.For more from The Cocktail Lovers, visit thecocktaillovers.comFor the products featured in this episode, see websites below:What we're drinking:Perfect Manhattan60ml bourbon15ml sweet vermouth15ml dry vermouthCherry/lemon or orange twist to garnishMethod:Stir all ingredients over ice. Pour into a chilled cocktail glass and garnish with a cocktail cherryk.Bar Leone Hong KongBar Leone ShanghaiEagle Bar at Chancery RosewoodRosemaund Single Malt English WhiskyThe Stanhope Kentucky Straight BourbonThe Whisky Bible – A complete guide to the world's greatest spirit by Noah RothbaumThe Cocktail Lovers theme music is by Travis 'T-Bone' WatsonEdited by Christian Fox Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A weekly magazine-style radio show featuring the voices and stories of Asians and Pacific Islanders from all corners of our community. The show is produced by a collective of media makers, deejays, and activists. Powerleegirl hosts, the mother daughter team of Miko Lee, Jalena & Ayame Keane-Lee speak with artists about their craft and the works that you can catch in the Bay Area. Featured are filmmaker Yuriko Gamo Romer, playwright Jessica Huang and photographer Joyce Xi.   More info about their work here: Diamond Diplomacy Yuriko Gamo Romer Jessica Huang's Mother of Exiles at Berkeley Rep Joyce Xi's Our Language Our Story at Galeria de la Raza     Show Transcript Opening: [00:00:00] Apex Express Asian Pacific expression. Community and cultural coverage, music and calendar, new visions and voices, coming to you with an Asian Pacific Islander point of view. It's time to get on board the Apex Express.    Ayame Keane-Lee: [00:00:46] Thank you for joining us on Apex Express Tonight. Join the PowerLeeGirls as we talk with some powerful Asian American women artists. My mom and sister speak with filmmaker Yuriko Gamo Romer, playwright Jessica Huang, and photographer Joyce Xi. Each of these artists have works that you can enjoy right now in the Bay Area. First up, let's listen in to my mom Miko Lee chat with Yuriko Gamo Romer about her film Diamond Diplomacy.    Miko Lee: [00:01:19] Welcome, Yuriko Gamo Romer to Apex Express, amazing filmmaker, award-winning director and producer. Welcome to Apex Express.   Yuriko Gamo Romer: [00:01:29] Thank you for having me.    Miko Lee: [00:01:31] It's so great to see your work after this many years. We were just chatting that we knew each other maybe 30 years ago and have not reconnected. So it's lovely to see your work. I'm gonna start with asking you a question. I ask all of my Apex guests, which is, who are your people and what legacy do you carry with you?    Yuriko Gamo Romer: [00:01:49] Oh, who are my people? That's a hard one. I guess I'm Japanese American. I'm Asian American, but I'm also Japanese. I still have a lot of people in Japan. That's not everything. Creative people, artists, filmmakers, all the people that I work with, which I love. And I don't know, I can't pare it down to one narrow sentence or phrase. And I don't know what my legacy is. My legacy is that I was born in Japan, but I have grown up in the United States and so I carry with me all that is, technically I'm an immigrant, so I have little bits and pieces of that and, but I'm also very much grew up in the United States and from that perspective, I'm an American. So too many words.    Miko Lee: [00:02:44] Thank you so much for sharing. Your latest film was called Diamond Diplomacy. Can you tell us what inspired this film?   Yuriko Gamo Romer: [00:02:52] I have a friend named Dave Dempsey and his father, Con Dempsey, was a pitcher for the San Francisco Seals. And the Seals were the minor league team that was in the West Coast was called the Pacific Coast League They were here before the Major League teams came to the West Coast. So the seals were San Francisco's team, and Con Dempsey was their pitcher. And it so happened that he was part of the 1949 tour when General MacArthur sent the San Francisco Seals to Allied occupied Japan after World War II. And. It was a story that I had never heard. There was a museum exhibit south of Market in San Francisco, and I was completely wowed and awed because here's this lovely story about baseball playing a role in diplomacy and in reuniting a friendship between two countries. And I had never heard of it before and I'm pretty sure most people don't know the story. Con Dempsey had a movie camera with him when he went to Japan I saw the home movies playing on a little TV set in the corner at the museum, and I thought, oh, this has to be a film. I was in the middle of finishing Mrs. Judo, so I, it was something I had to tuck into the back of my mind Several years later, I dug it up again and I made Dave go into his mother's garage and dig out the actual films. And that was the beginning. But then I started opening history books and doing research, and suddenly it was a much bigger, much deeper, much longer story.   Miko Lee: [00:04:32] So you fell in, it was like synchronicity that you have this friend that had this footage, and then you just fell into the research. What stood out to you?    Yuriko Gamo Romer: [00:04:41] It was completely amazing to me that baseball had been in Japan since 1872. I had no idea. And most people,   Miko Lee: [00:04:49] Yeah, I learned that too, from your film. That was so fascinating.    Yuriko Gamo Romer: [00:04:53] So that was the first kind of. Wow. And then I started to pick up little bits and pieces like in 1934, there was an American All Star team that went to Japan. And Babe Ruth was the headliner on that team. And he was a big star. People just loved him in Japan. And then I started to read the history and understanding that. Not that a baseball team or even Babe Ruth can go to Japan and prevent the war from happening. But there was a warming moment when the people of Japan were so enamored of this baseball team coming and so excited about it that maybe there was a moment where it felt like. Things had thawed out a little bit. So there were other points in history where I started to see this trend where baseball had a moment or had an influence in something, and I just thought, wow, this is really a fascinating history that goes back a long way and is surprising. And then of course today we have all these Japanese faces in Major League baseball.   Miko Lee: [00:06:01] So have you always been a baseball fan?   Yuriko Gamo Romer: [00:06:04] I think I really became a fan of Major League Baseball when I was living in New York. Before that, I knew what it was. I played softball, I had a small connection to it, but I really became a fan when I was living in New York and then my son started to play baseball and he would come home from the games and he would start to give us the play by play and I started to learn more about it. And it is a fascinating game 'cause it's much more complex than I think some people don't like it 'cause it's complex.    Miko Lee: [00:06:33] I must confess, I have not been a big baseball fan. I'm also thinking, oh, a film about baseball. But I actually found it so fascinating with especially in the world that we live in right now, where there's so much strife that there was this way to speak a different language. And many times we do that through art or music and I thought it was so great how your film really showcased how baseball was used as a tool for political repair and change. I'm wondering how you think this film applies to the time that we live in now where there's such an incredible division, and not necessarily with Japan, but just with everything in the world.   Yuriko Gamo Romer: [00:07:13] I think when it comes down to it, if we actually get to know people. We learn that we're all human beings and that we probably have more in common than we give ourselves credit for. And if we can find a space that is common ground, whether it's a baseball field or the kitchen, or an art studio, or a music studio, I think it gives us a different place where we can exist and acknowledge That we're human beings and that we maybe have more in common than we're willing to give ourselves credit for. So I like to see things where people can have a moment where you step outside of yourself and go, oh wait, I do have something in common with that person over there. And maybe it doesn't solve the problem. But once you have that awakening, I think there's something. that happens, it opens you up. And I think sports is one of those things that has a little bit of that magical power. And every time I watch the Olympics, I'm just completely in awe.    Miko Lee: [00:08:18] Yeah, I absolutely agree with you. And speaking of that kind of repair and that aspect that sports can have, you ended up making a short film called Baseball Behind Barbed Wire, about the incarcerated Japanese Americans and baseball. And I wondered where in the filmmaking process did you decide, oh, I gotta pull this out of the bigger film and make it its own thing?    Yuriko Gamo Romer: [00:08:41] I had been working with Carrie Yonakegawa. From Fresno and he's really the keeper of the history of Japanese American baseball and especially of the story of the World War II Japanese American incarceration through the baseball stories. And he was one of my scholars and consultants on the longer film. And I have been working on diamond diplomacy for 11 years. So I got to know a lot of my experts quite well. I knew. All along that there was more to that part of the story that sort of deserved its own story, and I was very fortunate to get a grant from the National Parks Foundation, and I got that grant right when the pandemic started. It was a good thing. I had a chunk of money and I was able to do historical research, which can be done on a computer. Nobody was doing any production at that beginning of the COVID time. And then it's a short film, so it was a little more contained and I was able to release that one in 2023.   Miko Lee: [00:09:45] Oh, so you actually made the short before Diamond Diplomacy.   Yuriko Gamo Romer: [00:09:49] Yeah. The funny thing is that I finished it before diamond diplomacy, it's always been intrinsically part of the longer film and you'll see the longer film and you'll understand that part of baseball behind Barbed Wire becomes a part of telling that part of the story in Diamond Diplomacy.   Miko Lee: [00:10:08] Yeah, I appreciate it. So you almost use it like research, background research for the longer film, is that right?    Yuriko Gamo Romer: [00:10:15] I had been doing the research about the World War II, Japanese American incarceration because it was part of the story of the 150 years between Japan and the United States and Japanese people in the United States and American people that went to Japan. So it was always a part of that longer story, and I think it just evolved that there was a much bigger story that needed to be told separately and especially 'cause I had access to the interview footage of the two guys that had been there, and I knew Carrie so well. So that was part of it, was that I learned so much about that history from him.   Miko Lee: [00:10:58] Thanks. I appreciated actually watching both films to be able to see more in depth about what happened during the incarceration, so that was really powerful. I'm wondering if you can talk a little bit about the style of actually both films, which combine vintage Japanese postcards, animation and archival footage, and how you decided to blend the films in this way.   Yuriko Gamo Romer: [00:11:19] Anytime you're making a film about history, there's that challenge of. How am I going to show this story? How am I gonna get the audience to understand and feel what was happening then? And of course you can't suddenly go out and go, okay, I'm gonna go film Babe Ruth over there. 'cause he's not around anymore. So you know, you start digging up photographs. If we're in the era of you have photographs, you have home movies, you have 16 millimeter, you have all kinds of film, then great. You can find that stuff if you can find it and use it. But if you go back further, when before people had cameras and before motion picture, then you have to do something else. I've always been very much enamored of Japanese woodblock prints. I think they're beautiful and they're very documentary in that they tell stories about the people and the times and what was going on, and so I was able to find some that sort of helped evoke the stories of that period of time. And then in doing that, I became interested in the style and maybe can I co-opt that style? Can we take some of the images that we have that are photographs? And I had a couple of young artists work on this stuff and it started to work and I was very excited. So then we were doing things like, okay, now we can create a transition between the print style illustration and the actual footage that we're moving into, or the photograph that we're dissolving into. And the same thing with baseball behind barbed wire. It became a challenge to show what was actually happening in the camps. In the beginning, people were not allowed to have cameras at all, and even later on it wasn't like it was common thing for people to have cameras, especially movie cameras. Latter part of the war, there was a little bit more in terms of photos and movies, but in terms of getting the more personal stories. I found an exhibit of illustrations and it really was drawings and paintings that were visual diaries. People kept these visual diaries, they drew and they painted, and I think part of it was. Something to do, but I think the other part of it was a way to show and express what was going on. So one of the most dramatic moments in there is a drawing of a little boy sitting on a toilet with his hands covering his face, and no one would ever have a photograph. Of a little boy sitting on a toilet being embarrassed because there are no partitions around the toilet. But this was a very dramatic and telling moment that was drawn. And there were some other things like that. There was one illustration in baseball behind barbed wire that shows a family huddled up and there's this incredible wind blowing, and it's not. Home movie footage, but you feel the wind and what they had to live through. I appreciate art in general, so it was very fun for me to be able to use various different kinds of art and find ways to make it work and make it edit together with the other, with the photographs and the footage.    Miko Lee: [00:14:56] It's really beautiful and it tells the story really well. I'm wondering about a response to the film from folks that were in it because you got many elders to share their stories about what it was like being either folks that were incarcerated or folks that were playing in such an unusual time. Have you screened the film for folks that were in it? And if so what has their response been?    Yuriko Gamo Romer: [00:15:20] Both the men that were in baseball behind barbed wire are not living anymore, so they have not seen it. With diamond diplomacy, some of the historians have been asked to review cuts of the film along the way. But the two baseball players that play the biggest role in the film, I've given them links to look at stuff, but I don't think they've seen it. So Moi's gonna see it for the first time, I'm pretty sure, on Friday night, and it'll be interesting to see what his reaction to it is. And of course. His main language is not English. So I think some of it's gonna be a little tough for him to understand. But I am very curious 'cause I've known him for a long time and I know his stories and I feel like when we were putting the film together, it was really important for me to be able to tell the stories in the way that I felt like. He lived them and he tells them, I feel like I've heard these stories over and over again. I've gotten to know him and I understand some of his feelings of joy and of regret and all these other things that happen, so I will be very interested to see what his reaction is to it.   Miko Lee: [00:16:40] Can you share for our audience who you're talking about.   Yuriko Gamo Romer: [00:16:43] Well, Sanhi is a nickname, his name is Masa Nouri. Murakami. He picked up that nickname because none of the ball players could pronounce his name.   Miko Lee: [00:16:53] I did think that was horrifically funny when they said they started calling him macaroni 'cause they could not pronounce his name. So many of us have had those experiences.   Yuriko Gamo Romer: [00:17:02] Yeah, especially if your name is Masanori Murakami. That's a long, complicated one. So he, Masanori Murakami is the first Japanese player that came and played for the major leagues. And it was an inadvertent playing because he was a kid, he was 19 years old. He was playing on a professional team in Japan and they had some, they had a time period where it made sense to send a couple of these kids over to the United States. They had a relationship with Kapi Harada, who was a Japanese American who had been in the Army and he was in Japan during. The occupation and somehow he had, he'd also been a big baseball person, so I think he developed all these relationships and he arranged for these three kids to come to the United States and to, as Mahi says, to study baseball. And they were sent to the lowest level minor league, the single A camps, and they played baseball. They learned the American ways to play baseball, and they got to play with low level professional baseball players. Marcy was a very talented left handed pitcher. And so when September 1st comes around and the postseason starts, they expand the roster and they add more players to the team. And the scouts had been watching him and the Giants needed a left-handed pitcher, so they decided to take a chance on him, and they brought him up and he was suddenly going to Shea Stadium when. The Giants were playing the Mets and he was suddenly pitching in a giant stadium of 40,000 people.    Miko Lee: [00:18:58] Can you share a little bit about his experience when he first came to America? I just think it shows such a difference in time to now.    Yuriko Gamo Romer: [00:19:07] Yeah, no kidding. Because today they're the players that come from Japan are coddled and they have interpreters wherever they go and they travel and chartered planes and special limousines and whatever else they get. So Marcie. He's, I think he was 20 by the time he was brought up so young. Mahi at 20 years old, the manager comes in and says, Hey, you're going to New York tomorrow and hands him plane tickets and he has to negotiate his way. Get on this plane, get on that plane, figure out how to. Get from the airport to the hotel, and he's barely speaking English at this point. He jokes that he used to carry around an English Japanese dictionary in one pocket and a Japanese English dictionary in the other pocket. So that's how he ended up getting to Shea Stadium was in this like very precarious, like they didn't even send an escort.   Miko Lee: [00:20:12] He had to ask the pilot how to get to the hotel. Yeah, I think that's wild. So I love this like history and what's happened and then I'm thinking now as I said at the beginning, I'm not a big baseball sports fan, but I love love watching Shohei Ohtani. I just think he's amazing. And I'm just wondering, when you look at that trajectory of where Mahi was back then and now, Shohei Ohtani now, how do you reflect on that historically? And I'm wondering if you've connected with any of the kind of modern Japanese players, if they've seen this film.   Yuriko Gamo Romer: [00:20:48] I have never met Shohei Ohtani. I have tried to get some interviews, but I haven't gotten any. I have met Ichi. I did meet Nori Aoki when he was playing for the Giants, and I met Kenta Maya when he was first pitching for the Dodgers. They're all, I think they're all really, they seem to be really excited to be here and play. I don't know what it's like to be Ohtani. I saw something the other day in social media that was comparing him to Taylor Swift because the two of them are this like other level of famous and it must just be crazy. Probably can't walk down the street anymore. But it is funny 'cause I've been editing all this footage of mahi when he was 19, 20 years old and they have a very similar face. And it just makes me laugh that, once upon a time this young Japanese kid was here and. He was worried about how to make ends meet at the end of the month, and then you got the other one who's like a multi multimillionaire.    Miko Lee: [00:21:56] But you're right, I thought that too. They look similar, like the tall, the face, they're like the vibe that they put out there. Have they met each other?    Yuriko Gamo Romer: [00:22:05] They have actually met, I don't think they know each other well, but they've definitely met.   Miko Lee: [00:22:09] Mm, It was really a delight. I am wondering what you would like audiences to walk away with after seeing your film.   Yuriko Gamo Romer: [00:22:17] Hopefully they will have a little bit of appreciation for baseball and international baseball, but more than anything else. I wonder if they can pick up on that sense of when you find common ground, it's a very special space and it's an ability to have this people to people diplomacy. You get to experience people, you get to know them a little bit. Even if you've never met Ohtani, you now know a little bit about him and his life and. Probably what he eats and all that kind of stuff. So it gives you a chance to see into another culture. And I think that makes for a different kind of understanding. And certainly for the players. They sit on the bench together and they practice together and they sweat together and they, everything that they do together, these guys know each other. They learn about each other's languages and each other's food and each other's culture. And I think Mahi went back to Japan with almost as much Spanish as they did English. So I think there's some magical thing about people to people diplomacy, and I hope that people can get a sense of that.    Miko Lee: [00:23:42] Thank you so much for sharing. Can you tell our audience how they could find out more about your film Diamond diplomacy and also about you as an artist?    Yuriko Gamo Romer: [00:23:50] the website is diamonddiplomacy.com. We're on Instagram @diamonddiplomacy. We're also on Facebook Diamond Diplomacy. So those are all the places that you can find stuff, those places will give you a sense of who I am as a filmmaker and an artist too.    Miko Lee: [00:24:14] Thank you so much for joining us today, Yuriko. Gamo. Romo. So great to speak with you and I hope the film does really well.    Yuriko Gamo Romer: [00:24:22] Thank you, Miko. This was a lovely opportunity to chat with you.   Ayame Keane-Lee: [00:24:26] Next up, my sister Jalena Keane-Lee speaks with playwright Jessica Huang, whose new play Mother of Exiles just had its world premiere at Berkeley Rep is open until December 21st.    Jalena Keane-Lee: [00:24:39] All right. Jessica Huang, thank you so much for being here with us on Apex Express and you are the writer of the new play Mother of Exiles, which is playing at Berkeley Rep from November 14th to December 21st. Thank you so much for being here.   Jessica Huang: [00:24:55] Yeah, thank you so much for having me. It's such a pleasure.   Jalena Keane-Lee: [00:24:59] I'm so curious about this project. The synopsis was so interesting. I was wondering if you could just tell us a little bit about it and how you came to this work.   Jessica Huang: [00:25:08] When people ask me what mother of Exiles is, I always say it's an American family story that spans 160 plus years, and is told in three acts. In 90 minutes. So just to get the sort of sense of the propulsion of the show and the form, the formal experiment of it. The first part takes place in 1898, when the sort of matriarch of the family is being deported from Angel Island. The second part takes place in 1999, so a hundred years later where her great grandson is. Now working for the Miami, marine interdiction unit. So he's a border cop. The third movement takes place in 2063 out on the ocean after Miami has sunk beneath the water. And their descendants are figuring out what they're gonna do to survive. It was a strange sort of conception for the show because I had been wanting to write a play. I'd been wanting to write a triptych about America and the way that interracial love has shaped. This country and it shaped my family in particular. I also wanted to tell a story that had to do with this, the land itself in some way. I had been sort of carrying an idea for the play around for a while, knowing that it had to do with cross-cultural border crossing immigration themes. This sort of epic love story that each, in each chapter there's a different love story. It wasn't until I went on a trip to Singapore and to China and got to meet some family members that I hadn't met before that the rest of it sort of fell into place. The rest of it being that there's a, the presence of, ancestors and the way that the living sort of interacts with those who have come before throughout the play.   Jalena Keane-Lee: [00:27:13] I noticed that ancestors, and ghosts and spirits are a theme throughout your work. I was wondering if you could talk a little bit about your own ancestry and how that informs your writing and creative practice.   Jessica Huang: [00:27:25] Yeah, I mean, I'm in a fourth generation interracial marriage. So, I come from a long line of people who have loved people who were different from them, who spoke different languages, who came from different countries. That's my story. My brother his partner is German. He lives in Berlin. We have a history in our family of traveling and of loving people who are different from us. To me that's like the story of this country and is also the stuff I like to write about. The thing that I feel like I have to share with the world are, is just stories from that experience.   Jalena Keane-Lee: [00:28:03] That's really awesome. I guess I haven't really thought about it that way, but I'm third generation of like interracial as well. 'cause I'm Chinese, Japanese, and Irish. And then at a certain point when you're mixed, it's like, okay, well. The odds of me being with someone that's my exact same ethnic breakdown feel pretty low. So it's probably gonna be an interracial relationship in one way or the other.   Jessica Huang: [00:28:26] Totally. Yeah. And, and, and I don't, you know, it sounds, and it sounds like in your family and in mine too, like we just. Kept sort of adding culture to our family. So my grandfather's from Shanghai, my grandmother, you know, is, it was a very, like upper crust white family on the east coast. Then they had my dad. My dad married my mom whose people are from the Ukraine. And then my husband's Puerto Rican. We just keep like broadening the definition of family and the definition of community and I think that's again, like I said, like the story of this country.   Jalena Keane-Lee: [00:29:00] That's so beautiful. I'm curious about the role of place in this project in particular, mother of exiles, angel Island, obviously being in the Bay Area, and then the rest of it taking place, in Miami or in the future. The last act is also like Miami or Miami adjacent. What was the inspiration behind the place and how did place and location and setting inform the writing.   Jessica Huang: [00:29:22] It's a good question. Angel Island is a place that has loomed large in my work. Just being sort of known as the Ellis Island of the West, but actually being a place with a much more difficult history. I've always been really inspired by the stories that come out of Angel Island, the poetry that's come out of Angel Island and, just the history of Asian immigration. It felt like it made sense to set the first part of the play here, in the Bay. Especially because Eddie, our protagonist, spent some time working on a farm. So there's also like this great history of agriculture and migrant workers here too. It just felt like a natural place to set it. And then why did we move to Miami? There are so many moments in American history where immigration has been a real, center point of the sort of conversation, the national conversation. And moving forward to the nineties, the wet foot, dry foot Cuban immigration story felt like really potent and a great place to tell the next piece of this tale. Then looking toward the future Miami is definitely, or you know, according to the science that I have read one of the cities that is really in danger of flooding as sea levels rise.   Jalena Keane-Lee: [00:30:50] Okay. The Cuban immigration. That totally makes sense. That leads perfectly into my next question, which was gonna be about how did you choose the time the moments in time? I think that one you said was in the nineties and curious about the choice to have it be in the nineties and not present day. And then how did you choose how far in the future you wanted to have the last part?   Jessica Huang: [00:31:09] Some of it was really just based on the needs of the characters. So the how far into the future I wanted us to be following a character that we met as a baby in the previous act. So it just, you know, made sense. I couldn't push it too far into the future. It made sense to set it in the 2060s. In terms of the nineties and, why not present day? Immigration in the nineties , was so different in it was still, like I said, it was still, it's always been a important national conversation, but it wasn't. There was a, it felt like a little bit more, I don't know if gentle is the word, but there just was more nuance to the conversation. And still there was a broad effort to prevent Cuban and refugees from coming ashore. I think I was fascinated by how complicated, I mean, what foot, dry foot, the idea of it is that , if a refugee is caught on water, they're sent back to Cuba. But if they're caught on land, then they can stay in the us And just the idea of that is so. The way that, people's lives are affected by just where they are caught , in their crossing. I just found that to be a bit ridiculous and in terms of a national policy. It made sense then to set the second part, which moves into a bit of a farce at a time when immigration also kind of felt like a farce.   Jalena Keane-Lee: [00:32:46] That totally makes sense. It feels very dire right now, obviously. But it's interesting to be able to kind of go back in time and see when things were handled so differently and also how I think throughout history and also touching many different racial groups. We've talked a lot on this show about the Chinese Exclusion Act and different immigration policies towards Chinese and other Asian Americans. But they've always been pretty arbitrary and kind of farcical as you put it. Yeah.   Jessica Huang: [00:33:17] Yeah. And that's not to make light of like the ways that people's lives were really impacted by all of this policy . But I think the arbitrariness of it, like you said, is just really something that bears examining. I also think it's really helpful to look at where we are now through the lens of the past or the future. Mm-hmm. Just gives just a little bit of distance and a little bit of perspective. Maybe just a little bit of context to how we got to where we got to.   Jalena Keane-Lee: [00:33:50] That totally makes sense. What has your experience been like of seeing the play be put up? It's my understanding, this is the first this is like the premier of the play at Berkeley Rep.   Jessica Huang: [00:34:00] Yes. Yeah. It's the world premier. It's it incredible. Jackie Bradley is our director and she's phenomenal. It's just sort of mesmerizing what is happening with this play? It's so beautiful and like I've alluded to, it shifts tone between the first movement being sort of a historical drama on Angel Island to, it moves into a bit of a farce in part two, and then it, by the third movement, we're living in sort of a dystopic, almost sci-fi future. The way that Jackie's just deftly moved an audience through each of those experiences while holding onto the important threads of this family and, the themes that we're unpacking and this like incredible design team, all of these beautiful visuals sounds, it's just really so magical to see it come to life in this way. And our cast is incredible. I believe there are 18 named roles in the play, and there are a few surprises and all of them are played by six actors. who are just. Unbelievable. Like all of them have the ability to play against type. They just transform and transform again and can navigate like, the deepest tragedies and the like, highest moments of comedy and just hold on to this beautiful humanity. Each and every one of them is just really spectacular. So I'm just, you know. I don't know. I just feel so lucky to be honest with you. This production is going to be so incredible. It's gonna be, it feels like what I imagine in my mind, but, you know, plus,    Jalena Keane-Lee: [00:35:45] well, I really can't wait to see it. What are you hoping that audiences walk away with after seeing the show?   Jessica Huang: [00:35:54] That's a great question. I want audiences to feel connected to their ancestors and feel part of this community of this country and, and grateful and acknowledge the sacrifices that somebody along the line made so that they could be here with, with each other watching the show. I hope, people feel like they enjoyed themselves and got to experience something that they haven't experienced before. I think that there are definitely, nuances to the political conversation that we're having right now, about who has the right to immigrate into this country and who has the right to be a refugee, who has the right to claim asylum. I hope to add something to that conversation with this play, however small.   Jalena Keane-Lee:[00:36:43]  Do you know where the play is going next?   Jessica Huang: [00:36:45] No. No. I dunno where it's going next. Um, exciting. Yeah, but we'll, time will   Jalena Keane-Lee: [00:36:51] and previews start just in a few days, right?   Jessica Huang: [00:36:54] Yeah. Yeah. We have our first preview, we have our first audience on Friday. So yeah, very looking forward to seeing how all of this work that we've been doing lands on folks.   Jalena Keane-Lee: [00:37:03] Wow, that's so exciting. Do you have any other projects that you're working on? Or any upcoming projects that you'd like to share about?   Jessica Huang: [00:37:10] Yeah, yeah, I do. I'm part of the writing team for the 10 Things I Hate About You Musical, which is in development with an Eye Toward Broadway. I'm working with Lena Dunham and Carly Rae Jepsen and Ethan Ska to make that musical. I also have a fun project in Chicago that will soon be announced.   Jalena Keane-Lee: [00:37:31] And what is keeping you inspired and keeping your, you know, creative energies flowing in these times?   Jessica Huang: [00:37:37] Well first of all, I think, you know, my collaborators on this show are incredibly inspiring. The nice thing about theater is that you just get to go and be inspired by people all the time. 'cause it's this big collaboration, you don't have to do it all by yourself. So that would be the first thing I would say. I haven't seen a lot of theater since I've been out here in the bay, but right before I left New York, I saw MEUs . Which is by Brian Keda, Nigel Robinson. And it's this sort of two-hander musical, but they do live looping and they sort of create the music live. Wow. And it's another, it's another show about an untold history and about solidarity and about folks coming together from different backgrounds and about ancestors, so there's a lot of themes that really resonate. And also the show is just so great. It's just really incredible. So , that was the last thing I saw that I loved. I'm always so inspired by theater that I get to see.   Jalena Keane-Lee: [00:38:36] That sounds wonderful. Is there anything else that you'd like to share?   Jessica Huang: [00:38:40] No, I don't think so. I just thanks so much for having me and come check out the show. I think you'll enjoy it. There's something for everyone.   Jalena Keane-Lee: [00:38:48] Yeah. I'm so excited to see the show. Is there like a Chinese Cuban love story with the Miami portion? Oh, that's so awesome. This is an aside, but I'm a filmmaker and I've been working on a documentary about, Chinese people in Cuba and there's like this whole history of Chinese Cubans in Cuba too.   Jessica Huang: [00:39:07] Oh, that's wonderful. In this story, it's a person who's a descendant of, a love story between a Chinese person and a Mexican man, a Chinese woman and a Mexican man, and oh, their descendant. Then also, there's a love story between him and a Cuban woman.   Jalena Keane-Lee: [00:39:25] That's awesome. Wow. I'm very excited to see it in all the different intergenerational layers and tonal shifts. I can't wait to see how it all comes together.   Ayame Keane-Lee: [00:39:34] Next up we are back with Miko Lee, who is now speaking with photographer Joyce Xi about her latest exhibition entitled Our Language, our Story Running Through January in San Francisco at Galleria de Raza.    Miko Lee: [00:39:48] Welcome, Joyce Xi to Apex Express.    Joyce Xi: [00:39:52] Thanks for having me.    Miko Lee: [00:39:53] Yes. I'm, I wanna start by asking you a question I ask most of my guests, and this is based on the great poet Shaka Hodges. It's an adaptation of her question, which is, who are your people and what legacy do you carry with you?   Joyce Xi: [00:40:09] My people are artists, free spirits, people who wanna see a more free and just, and beautiful world. I'm Chinese American. A lot of my work has been in the Asian American community with all kinds of different people who dreaming of something better and trying to make the world a better place and doing so with creativity and with positive and good energy.   Miko Lee: [00:40:39] I love it. And what legacy do you carry with you?   Joyce Xi: [00:40:43] I am a fighter. I feel like just people who have been fighting for a better world. Photography wise, like definitely thinking about Corky Lee who is an Asian American photographer and activist. There's been people who have done it before me. There will be people who do it after me, but I wanna do my version of it here.   Miko Lee: [00:41:03] Thank you so much and for lifting up the great Corky Lee who has been such a big influence on all of us. I'm wondering in that vein, can you talk a little bit about how you use photography as a tool for social change?   Joyce Xi: [00:41:17] Yeah. Photography I feel is a very powerful tool for social change. Photography is one of those mediums where it's emotional, it's raw, it's real. It's a way to see and show and feel like important moments, important stories, important emotions. I try to use it as a way to share. Truths and stories about issues that are important, things that people experience, whether it's, advocating for environmental justice or language justice or just like some of them, just to highlight some of the struggles and challenges people experience as well as the joys and the celebrations and just the nuance of people's lives. I feel like photography is a really powerful medium to show that. And I love photography in particular because it's really like a frozen moment. I think what's so great about photography is that. It's that moment, it's that one feeling, that one expression, and it's kind of like frozen in time. So you can really, sit there and ponder about what's in this person's eyes or what's this person trying to say? Or. What does this person's struggle like? You can just see it through their expressions and their emotions and also it's a great way to document. There's so many things that we all do as advocates, as activists, whether it's protesting or whether it's just supporting people who are dealing with something. You have that moment recorded. Can really help us remember those fights and those moments. You can show people what happened. Photography is endlessly powerful. I really believe in it as a tool and a medium for influencing the world in positive ways.   Miko Lee: [00:43:08] I'd love us to shift and talk about your latest work, Our language, Our story.” Can you tell us a little bit about where this came from?   Joyce Xi: [00:43:15] Sure. I was in conversation with Nikita Kumar, who was at the Asian Law Caucus at the time. We were just chatting about art and activism and how photography could be a powerful medium to use to advocate or tell stories about different things. Nikita was talking to me about how a lot of language access work that's being done by organizations that work in immigrant communities can often be a topic that is very jargon filled or very kind of like niche or wonky policy, legal and maybe at times isn't the thing that people really get in the streets about or get really emotionally energized around. It's one of those issues that's so important to everything. Especially since in many immigrant communities, people do not speak English and every single day, every single issue. All these issues that these organizations advocate around. Like housing rights, workers' rights, voting rights, immigration, et cetera, without language, those rights and resources are very hard to understand and even hard to access at all. So, Nik and I were talking about language is so important, it's one of those issues too remind people about the core importance of it. What does it feel like when you don't have access to your language? What does it feel like and look like when you do, when you can celebrate with your community and communicate freely and live your life just as who you are versus when you can't even figure out how to say what you wanna say because there's a language barrier.    Miko Lee: [00:44:55] Joyce can you just for our audience, break down what language access means? What does it mean to you and why is it important for everybody?   Joyce Xi: [00:45:05] Language access is about being able to navigate the world in your language, in the way that you understand and communicate in your life. In advocacy spaces, what it can look like is, we need to have resources and we need to have interpretation in different languages so that people can understand what's being talked about or understand what resources are available or understand what's on the ballot. So they can really experience their life to the fullest. Each of us has our languages that we're comfortable with and it's really our way of expressing everything that's important to us and understanding everything that's important to us. When that language is not available, it's very hard to navigate the world. On the policy front, there's so many ways just having resources in different languages, having interpretation in different spaces, making sure that everybody who is involved in this society can do what they need to do and can understand the decisions that are being made. That affects them and also that they can affect the decisions that affect them.   Miko Lee: [00:46:19] I think a lot of immigrant kids just grow up being like the de facto translator for their parents. Which can be things like medical terminology and legal terms, which they might not be familiar with. And so language asks about providing opportunities for everybody to have equal understanding of what's going on. And so can you talk a little bit about your gallery show? So you and Nikita dreamed up this vision for making language access more accessible and more story based, and then what happened?   Joyce Xi: [00:46:50] We decided to express this through a series of photo stories. Focusing on individual stories from a variety of different language backgrounds and immigration backgrounds and just different communities all across the Bay Area. And really just have people share from the heart, what does language mean to them? What does it affect in their lives? Both when one has access to the language, like for example, in their own community, when they can speak freely and understand and just share everything that's on their heart. And what does it look like when that's not available? When maybe you're out in the streets and you're trying to like talk to the bus driver and you can't even communicate with each other. How does that feel? What does that look like? So we collected all these stories from many different community members across different languages and asked them a series of questions and took photos of them in their day-to-day lives, in family gatherings, at community meetings, at rallies, at home, in the streets, all over the place, wherever people were like Halloween or Ramadan or graduations, or just day-to-day life. Through the quotes that we got from the interviews, as well as the photos that I took to illustrate their stories, we put them together as photo stories for each person. Those are now on display at Galleria Deza in San Francisco. We have over 20 different stories in over 10 different languages. The people in the project spoke like over 15 different languages. Some people used multiple languages and some spoke English, many did not. We had folks who had immigrated recently, folks who had immigrated a while ago. We had children of immigrants talking about their experiences being that bridge as you talked about, navigating translating for their parents and being in this tough spot of growing up really quickly, we just have this kind of tapestry of different stories and, definitely encourage folks to check out the photos but also to read through each person's stories. Everybody has a story that's very special and that is from the heart   Miko Lee: [00:49:00] sounds fun. I can't wait to see it in person. Can you share a little bit about how you selected the participants?    Joyce Xi: [00:49:07] Yeah, selecting the participants was an organic process. I'm a photographer who's trying to honor relationships and not like parachute in. We wanted to build relationships and work with people who felt comfortable sharing their stories, who really wanted to be a part of it, and who are connected in some kind of a way where it didn't feel like completely out of context. So what that meant was that myself and also the Asian Law Caucus we have connections in the community to different organizations who work in different immigrant communities. So we reached out to people that we knew who were doing good work and just say Hey, do you have any community members who would be interested in participating in this project who could share their stories. Then through following these threads we were able to connect with many different organizations who brought either members or community folks who they're connected with to the project. Some of them came through like friends. Another one was like, oh, I've worked with these people before, maybe you can talk to them. One of them I met through a World Refugee Day event. It came through a lot of different relationships and reaching out. We really wanted folks who wanted to share a piece of their life. A lot of folks who really felt like language access and language barriers were a big challenge in their life, and they wanted to talk about it. We were able to gather a really great group together.    Miko Lee: [00:50:33] Can you share how opening night went? How did you navigate showcasing and highlighting the diversity of the languages in one space?    Joyce Xi: [00:50:43] The opening of the exhibit was a really special event. We invited everybody who was part of the project as well as their communities, and we also invited like friends, community and different organizations to come. We really wanted to create a space where we could feel and see what language access and some of the challenges of language access can be all in one space. We had about 10 different languages at least going on at the same time. Some of them we had interpretation through headsets. Some of them we just, it was like fewer people. So people huddled together and just interpreted for the community members. A lot of these organizations that we partnered with, they brought their folks out. So their members, their community members, their friends and then. It was really special because a lot of the people whose photos are on the walls were there, so they invited their friends and family. It was really fun for them to see their photos on the wall. And also I think for all of our different communities, like we can end up really siloed or just like with who we're comfortable with most of the time, especially if we can't communicate very well with each other with language barriers. For everybody to be in the same space and to hear so many languages being used in the same space and for people to be around people maybe that they're not used to being around every day. And yet through everybody's stories, they share a lot of common experiences. Like so many of the stories were related to each other. People talked about being parents, people talked about going to the doctor or taking the bus, like having challenges at the workplace or just what it's like to celebrate your own culture and heritage and language and what the importance of preserving languages. There are so many common threads and. Maybe a lot of people are not used to seeing each other or communicating with each other on a daily basis. So just to have everyone in one space was so special. We had performances, we had food, we had elders, children. There was a huge different range of people and it was just like, it was just cool to see everyone in the same space. It was special.    Miko Lee: [00:52:51] And finally, for folks that get to go to Galleria de la Raza in San Francisco and see the exhibit, what do you want them to walk away with?   Joyce Xi: [00:53:00] I would love for people to walk away just like in a reflective state. You know how to really think about how. Language is so important to everything that we do and through all these stories to really see how so many different immigrant and refugee community members are making it work. And also deal with different barriers and how it affects them, how it affects just really simple human things in life that maybe some of us take for granted, on a daily basis. And just to have more compassion, more understanding. Ultimately, we wanna see our city, our bay area, our country really respecting people and their language and their dignity through language access and through just supporting and uplifting our immigrant communities in general. It's a such a tough time right now. There's so many attacks on our immigrant communities and people are scared and there's a lot of dehumanizing actions and narratives out there. This is, hopefully something completely different than that. Something that uplifts celebrates, honors and really sees our immigrant communities and hopefully people can just feel that feeling of like, oh, okay, we can do better. Everybody has a story. Everybody deserves to be treated with dignity and all the people in these stories are really amazing human beings. It was just an honor for me to even be a part of their story. I hope people can feel some piece of that.    Miko Lee: [00:54:50] Thank you so much, Joyce, for sharing your vision with us, and I hope everybody gets a chance to go out and see your work.    Joyce Xi: [00:54:57] Thank you.   Ayame Keane-Lee: [00:55:00] Thanks so much for tuning in to Apex Express. Please check out our website at kpfa.org/program/apexexpress to find out more about the guests tonight and find out how you can take direct action.   Apex Express is a proud member of Asian Americans for civil rights and equality. Find out more at aacre.org. That's AACRE.org.   We thank all of you listeners out there. Keep resisting, keep organizing, keep creating, and sharing your visions with the world. Your voices are important.    Apex Express is produced by  Miko Lee, Jalena Keene-Lee, Ayame Keene-Lee, Preeti Mangala Shekar, Anuj Vaida, Cheryl Truong, Isabel Li, Nina Phillips & Swati Rayasam. Thank you so much to the team at KPFA for their support and have a good night.       The post APEX Express – 11.20.25 – Artist to Artist appeared first on KPFA.

La France est tombée d'entrée contre les Belges en phase finale de la Coupe Davis. Favoris sur le papier, les Bleus se sont inclinés dès les quarts de finale sans même disputer le double. D'abord il y a eu la défaite de Corentin Moutet contre Raphael Collignon puis celle d'Arthur Rinderknech, finaliste à Shanghai, contre Zizou Bergs. Peut-on parler de fiasco français ? Quelles sont les raisons d'un tel échec ? Retour sur un mercredi noir dans cette émission.Dans la 2e partie de Sans Filet, l'équipe revient également sur la qualification de l'Italie en demi-finale de la Coupe Davis sans oublier les pronostics sur les rencontres du jour.

In this episode, we unpack the $4M-$10M funding gap that's stranded hundreds of Indian startups, why Anand raised $45M during COVID when everyone else froze, and the brutal truth about unicorn valuations in India's tech ecosystem. Anand Prasanna is the Managing Partner of Iron Pillar, a $400M+ venture growth fund that's cracked the code on taking Indian companies from $10M to $100M in revenue and shepherding them to IPO. With exits like Bluestone's NSE listing and Vyome's historic Nasdaq debut, Iron Pillar proves that the "India for the World" thesis isn't just talk, it's delivering real returns. From his days at McKinsey and Sequoia to running Morgan Creek's Asia office in Shanghai, Anand brings a rare global lens to Indian venture capital. He shared his contrarian playbook, investment discipline, and why he's passing on the AI hype cycle in this candid, no-holds-barred conversation with host Akshay Datt. Whether you're a founder navigating Series B, an LP evaluating fund managers, or an operator curious about what metrics actually matter at scale, this episode breaks down growth-stage VC like never before. You'll learn the 444 process for picking winners, why CAC payback matters more than growth rate, the dual exit strategy for Indian startups, and Anand's brutally honest takes on Zepto, Cred, Physics Wallah, and why 30% of India's unicorns are overvalued.#VentureCapital #GrowthStageVC #IndiaStartups #SeriesBFunding #StartupFunding #IndianUnicorns #VCInvesting #StartupIPO #BluestoneIPO #FounderThesisPod #StartupMetrics #CACPayback #UnitEconomics #InvestmentStrategy #PrivateEquity #IndiaVC #StartupEcosystem #FundingGap #ScalingStartups #IndiaForTheWorld #GlobalExpansion #VCReturns #LPCapital #StartupValuationDisclaimer: The views expressed are those of the speaker, not necessarily the channel

This week on Swimming with Allocators, Jay Rongjie Wang, Founder and CEO of Primitiva Global, shares her journey from her pioneering upbringing shaped by her mother's tech entrepreneurship to becoming a leading venture investor bridging Silicon Valley, Hong Kong, and Shanghai. Jay discusses the importance of authenticity and “congruence” in investment decisions, her “impossible triangle” theory for evaluating AI opportunities, and cross-border fundraising strategies. Listeners will gain actionable insight into aligning personal strengths with business practices, understanding global LP/GP dynamics, and balancing boundless curiosity with focused execution in the rapidly evolving world of tech and venture capital. Also, don't miss our insider segment as Idan Netser and Jason Kropp from Sidley discuss key tax incentives for venture funds, including carried interest treatment and Qualified Small Business Stock benefits, as well as recent FDA regulatory changes impacting biotech and medtech startups, offering timely guidance for VC investors and founders.Highlights from this week's conversation include: Welcoming Jay to the Episode (0:22) Impact of Parenting on Risk, Creativity, and Early Career Choices (5:24) Lessons Learned from Running Community Website: Career Preparation (7:17) Discussion of Gender Dynamics, Over-Preparation, and Confidence (10:00) Traits for Successful Fund Managers: Concept of Congruence (11:38) Practical Framework for Identifying "Winner Energy" and Reference Checks (17:55) Consistency in Feedback About GPs (21:46) Regulatory Topics: Carried Interest, Tax, and FDA Insights (23:54) Energy Management, Executive Capacity, and Inner Focus (28:48) Impossible Triangle Theory on AI Progress and Investment Filtering (30:27) Applying the Theory: GPU and Data Center Investments (36:06) Fundraising Successes Outside the US and Motivations of International LPs (39:09) Balancing Curiosity with Focus for Investors (41:20) Personal Advice on Career Methodology and Venn Diagram Specialization (44:24) Final Thoughts and Takeaways (45:15) Primitiva Global is a family office and investment platform operating across Silicon Valley and Hong Kong. Primitiva backs first-check venture managers and invests in companies expanding the frontiers of artificial intelligence, deep technology, and global innovation. The firm combines deep research, top-down analysis, and hands-on partnership to support the next generation of builders and allocators. Learn more at www.primitivaglobal.com Sidley Austin LLP is a premier global law firm with a dedicated Venture Funds practice, advising top venture capital firms, institutional investors, and private equity sponsors on fund formation, investment structuring, and regulatory compliance. With deep expertise across private markets, Sidley provides strategic legal counsel to help funds scale effectively. Learn more at sidley.com. Swimming with Allocators is a podcast that dives into the intriguing world of Venture Capital from an LP (Limited Partner) perspective. Hosts Alexa Binns and Earnest Sweat are seasoned professionals who have donned various hats in the VC ecosystem. Each episode, we explore where the future opportunities lie in the VC landscape with insights from top LPs on their investment strategies and industry experts shedding light on emerging trends and technologies.  The information provided on this podcast does not, and is not intended to, constitute legal advice; instead, all information, content, and materials available on this podcast are for general informational purposes only.

Shanghai's electronic music scene has been shaped by a handful of key figures, and Yu Yang is undoubtedly one of them. Since the early 2000s, through her work with M Agency and club Haze, she's been brought international heavyweights to China for the first time, whilst consistently championing local talent. After serving as musical director for W Shanghai – the Bund and the Shanghai EDITION, Yu Yang co-founded ALTER., a party series that brought together the world's most forward-thinking selectors and China's finest in carefully chosen venues. What developed was one of Shanghai's most sought-after nights and a genuinely strong community around it. Yu Yang crafts sets that balance introspection with ‘fun'. Interview here: https://www.theransomnote.com/music/mixes/yu-yang-the-shine-a-light-on-ransom-note-mix/ @yuyang11

Finanzminister Lars Klingbeil reist durch Peking, Shanghai und Singapur. Treffen mit der KP-Führung, darunter Chefideologe Wang Huning, Diskussionen über Ukraine, Handelsfragen und die kritische Abhängigkeit bei Seltenen Erden. Peking bietet einen direkten Kommunikationskanal an. Gleichzeitig wird deutlich, wie sensibel die Reise ist: strikte Sicherheitsregeln, Überwachungsrisiken, das „Wechselhandy“ des Ministers. In Singapur richtet Klingbeil den Blick auf Investitionen und Staatsfonds – mit der Botschaft, dass Deutschland international besser dasteht, als es zu Hause oft wirkt. Das Update von gestern mit Pål Jonson zum Nachlesen und ins Deutsche übersetzt gibt es hier. Das Berlin Playbook als Podcast gibt es jeden Morgen ab 5 Uhr. Gordon Repinski und das POLITICO-Team liefern Politik zum Hören – kompakt, international, hintergründig. Für alle Hauptstadt-Profis: Der Berlin Playbook-Newsletter bietet jeden Morgen die wichtigsten Themen und Einordnungen. Jetzt kostenlos abonnieren. Mehr von Host und POLITICO Executive Editor Gordon Repinski: Instagram: @gordon.repinski | X: @GordonRepinski. Legal Notice (Belgium) POLITICO SRL Forme sociale: Société à Responsabilité Limitée Siège social: Rue De La Loi 62, 1040 Bruxelles Numéro d'entreprise: 0526.900.436 RPM Bruxelles info@politico.eu www.politico.eu Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Det är inte bara de svenska KInakrogarna som anpassats till lokala förutsättningar. Lin Herngren berättar en fascinerande global historia. Lyssna på alla avsnitt i Sveriges Radios app. ESSÄ: Detta är en text där skribenten reflekterar över ett ämne eller ett verk. Åsikter som uttrycks är skribentens egna.I öppningsscenen av Ang Lees film ”Mat, dryck, man, kvinna” från 1994 möter vi mästerkocken Chu, som förlorat sina smaklökar. Han förbereder familjens söndagsmiddag och hanteringen av råvarorna sker under rituella former – som i en dans rör han sig i det välutrustade köket. Med den breda kniven finhackas grönsaker, skärs kött och fileas fisk. Rytmiskt slår knivbladet mot skärbrädan medan oljan fräser i wokpannan och locket darrar på bambutråget. Mitt i tillagningen ringer telefonen. Chu svarar och yttrar filmens första replik: ”Chi le ma?”Har du ätit?Råkar du i samtal med någon bekant kring lunch- eller middagstid i en kinesiskspråkig miljö är detta en vanlig fråga. Men den grundar sig inte i nyfikenhet utan är närmast en hälsningsfras: Att fråga om du ätit är det samma som att fråga hur du mår. Maten – och måltiden – har en central plats i det kinesiska medvetandet.På 1990-talet fanns två kinarestauranger i Trelleborg där jag växte upp. Och det såg liknande ut runt om i landet. I dag är den klassiska kinakrogen en raritet. Jag kan fortfarande se skyltarna med deras namn framför mig men jag minns inte längre hur de såg ut inuti. När jag fantiserar om att kliva in genom dörrarna smälter inredningen ihop till en röra av detaljer. Jag passerar akvarium med slöa guldfiskar. I hörnen står porslinsvaser med blå dekor. Musiken som spelas låter som droppande vatten och på borden ligger tjocka menyer med inplastade sidor.Den nostalgiska känslan får en personlig och samhällelig klangbotten i Lap-See Lams konstnärskap. Med hjälp av en 3D-scanner har hon dokumenterat flera Stockholmsrestauranger innan de bytt skepnad eller slagit igen. Bland annat den restaurang som öppnades av av Lams mormor på 1970-talet. Inscanningen har gjorts om till en animation som kan upplevas i virtual reality, men tekniken har inte riktigt varit anpassad för att återge en levande miljö. Så när människor rör sig genom rummet uppstår visuellt sönderfall. Det glappar mellan verklighet och avbild och konstverket förmedlar en kuslig stämning av deja vu; av att vara fast mellan olika rum.Och är inte det just vad kinakrogen är? Ett slags mellanrum. Restaurangerna är en plats för möten mellan öst och väst; en sorts illusion som en gång stillade besökarens begär efter något annat, lagom främmande, men som i en mer globaliserad tid i stället anklagas för att inte vara tillräckligt autentisk.Vårrullar, friterade räkor i sötsur sås, fyra små rätter… den typiska maten som serveras på våra kinakrogar kommer från det kantonesiska köket, men är anpassad till råvaror och smaker i 1970-talets Sverige. Då lämnade många Hongkong eftersom de var trötta på det sociala och politiska tumult som spillt över från det kommunistiska fastlandet efter kulturrevolutionen. På samma sätt har andra politiska skeenden bidragit till den kinesiska migrationen, och spridningen av dess olika kök runt om i världen. I USA kan man äta chop suey, en slags såsig pyttipanna på ris som uppfanns av de kineser som emigrerade kring förra sekelskiftet för att finna guld och bygga järnvägar. Turkiets äldsta kinarestaurang serverar inte fläskkött och alkohol eftersom den grundades av en man som var hui – kinesisk muslim – och som tog sig till fots från Xinjiang när Nationalistpartiet retirerade till Taiwan.Dokumentärfilmaren Cheuk Kwan besöker och berättar om alla dessa platser i boken som heter just ”har du ätit”: ”Have you eaten yet? – Stories from Chinese Restaurants Around the World” Likt Lam använder sig Cheuk av kinakrogen som utgångspunkt för att berätta om diasporan, men i skildringarna är det snarare maten än det faktiska rummet som fungerar som utgångpunkt för att undersöka vad som är autentiskt och kinesiskt.Det är svårt, rent av omöjligt, att vara entydig när man pratar om 'kinesisk mat'. På fastlandet bor mer än 1 miljard människor. Vid sidan om majoriteten hankineser finns 55 minoritetsfolk. Störst är zhuang som räknar över 16 miljoner. Andra stora grupper innefattar manchuer, hui, miao, uigurer, mongoler och tibetaner. Utanför fastlandet, Hongkong och Taiwan bor mer är 40 miljoner kineser, som ofta har flera nationaliteter, kulturer och språk. Själv har Cheuk rötter i Kina men är född i Hongkong. Innan han emigrerade till Kanada var han bosatt i Singapore och Japan. Kanske är det därför hans inställning till autenticitet är så flexibel. För honom är maten kinesisk om den framkallar ett minne från måltiderna han åt under uppväxten.Äkthetstestet får mig att tänka på när jag själv som 20-någonting flyttade till Shanghai. Då fick jag för första gången smaka förlagan till den strimlade biffen med grön paprika som jag alltid beställde på krogarna i Trelleborg. Shanghairätten var kanske rikare i smakerna, men den hakade också i barndomens upplevelse av balansen mellan sälta och sötma, mellan de krispiga grönsakerna och det fluffiga riset.De flesta ställena som Cheuk besöker är familjeägda. Precis som i Sverige anpassar de sina menyer efter lokala förutsättningar för att verksamheten ska gå runt. I Kenya beställer han wokad biff med vattenmelon. I Brasilien får mapo-tofun hetta från en lokal superchili i stället för sichuanesisk blompeppar. På flera platser har den kinesiska maten transformerats genom råvaror eller tillredningstekniker och blivit del av andra kök. I Peru finns exempelvis chifa-köket, där gränserna mellan det kantonesiska och peruanska suddats ut. En typisk rätt är den wokade biffgrytan lomo saltado. Köket är så välintegrerat att det i dag finns 20–30 000 chifa-restauranger runt om i Peru, vilka även spridit sig till närliggande länder som Ecuador, Chile och Bolivia.Den sista söndagsmiddagen i filmen ”Mat, dryck, man, kvinna” är inte lagad av stjärnkocken Chu utan av hans distanserade, karriärdrivna mellandotter. När han för skeden till munnen känner han för första gången på länge smaken av ingefära. Genom att återskapa moderns kycklingsoppa har dottern inte bara väckt hans smaklökar till liv, utan också påmint honom om en annan tid. Även om de två nu lever helt olika liv växte dottern upp i Chus kök. De delar erfarenheter och är av samma kött och blod. På samma sätt är maten som serveras på kinesiska restauranger runt om i världen en spegling av tillhörigheter och identiteter. Beroende på vem som äter den, när eller var den äts blir den uttryck för samhörighet eller främlingskap.Lin Herngrenförfattare och sinologLitteraturCheuk Kwan: Have you eaten yet? Stories from Chinese Restaurants Around the World. Pegasus books, 2023.

Le cours de l'or a atteint un sommet historique, notamment parce que la Banque centrale de Chine a multiplié ses achats. Avec toujours en tête, la volonté de dédollariser un peu l'économie mondiale. L'or a battu tous les records en 2025. Et depuis le mois d'octobre, son cours a dépassé 4 000 dollars l'once. Et ce sont les achats des banques centrales qui ont soutenu la hausse. Que ce soit par exemple la Banque centrale d'Azerbaïdjan ou du Kazakhstan. Mais Pékin est de loin le premier acheteur. La banque centrale chinoise pourrait, selon certaines sources, avoir acheté dix fois plus d'or qu'elle ne l'a officiellement déclaré. Les analystes de la banque Société générale, interrogés par le Financial Times, estiment que les achats chinois représentent cette année un tiers de la demande mondiale de l'ensemble des banques centrales. Pas moins de 250 tonnes. Contester le dollar Le phénomène s'est accéléré depuis 2022 et le gel des avoirs de la banque centrale russe après l'invasion de l'Ukraine. Le but est à la fois de moins dépendre de la justice occidentale et c'est aussi la preuve de la contestation du dollar comme pierre angulaire du système financier mondial. Ces motivations concernent au-delà de la Chine un grand nombre de pays en développement. L'achat de l'or se fait notamment au détriment des bons du trésor américain. Cela répond à un objectif de dédollarisation des réserves de valeur des banques centrales. Et cela, personne ne veut publiquement l'assumer, surtout avec l'imprévisible Donald Trump à la Maison Blanche. Les banques centrales restent donc discrètes concernant leurs achats. Il y a quatre ans, 90 % d'entre eux étaient rapportés spontanément au Fonds monétaire international (FMI) qui tient les comptes. Aujourd'hui, on estime que seul un tiers des achats est déclaré. Le Cambodge en pionnier Pour aller plus loin, la Chine propose même désormais à ses amis de stocker pour leur compte l'or qu'ils achètent. C'est une information rapportée par l'agence Bloomberg en septembre dernier concernant l'or acheté sur la place de Shanghai. Un service historiquement offert à de nombreux pays : l'Angleterre, la Suisse et les États-Unis. Le Cambodge est le premier pays à avoir accepté pour de futurs achats. Son or sera stocké dans la zone économique de Shenzhen (Shenzhen's bonded warehouses). Pour Pékin, il s'agit tout à la fois de favoriser le développement de sa place financière, d'offrir une alternative aux services occidentaux, et bien sûr au dollar, utilisé partout ailleurs dans le monde pour le commerce de l'or. Pour Phnom Penh, c'est avant tout un geste politique à l'égard de son principal partenaire commercial, qui détient par ailleurs plus de 30 % de la dette du pays. À lire aussiLa demande pour l'or atteint un record grâce aux investisseurs

Hello again Pacific War Week by Week listeners, it is I your dutiful host Craig Watson with more goodies from my exclusive patreon podcast series. This is actually going to be a two parter specifically looking at the failure and responsibility of Emperor Hirohito during the 15 year war Japan unleashed in 1931. Again a big thanks to all of you for listening all these years, you are all awesome.   Hello everyone, a big thanks to all of you who joined the patreon and voted for this to be the next episode, you all are awesome.    Now I realize very well when I jumped into my former patreon episode on Ishiwara Kanji, I fell into a rabbit hole and it became a rather long series. I wanted to get this one done in a single episode but its also kind of a behemoth subject, so I will do this in two parts: this episode will be on Hirohito's failure and responsibility in regards to the China War from 1931-1941. The next one will cover Hirohito's failure and responsibility in the world war from 1941-1945.   I am not going to cover the entire life of Hirohito, no what I want is to specifically cover his actions from 1931-1945. Nw I want you to understand the purpose of this episode is to destroy a narrative, a narrative that carried on from 1945-1989. That narrative has always been that Emperor Hirohito was nothing more than a hostage during the war years of 1931-1945. This narrative was largely built by himself and the United States as a means of keeping the peace after 1945. However upon his death in 1989 many meeting notes and diaries from those who worked close to him began emerging and much work was done by historians like Herbert P Bix and Francis Pike. The narrative had it that Hirohito was powerless to stop things, did not know or was being misled by those around him, but this is far from the truth. Hirohito was very active in matters that led to the horrors of the 15 year war and he had his own reasons for why or when he acted and when he did not.   For this episode to be able to contain it into a single one, I am going to focus on Hirohito's involvement in the undeclared war with China, that's 1931-1941. For those of you who don't know, China and Japan were very much at war in 1931-1937 and certainly 1937 onwards, but it was undeclared for various reasons. If you guys really like this one, let me know and I can hit Hirohito 1941-1945 which is honestly a different beast of its own.   For those of you who don't know, Hirohito was born on April 29th of 1901, the grandson of Emperor Meiji. Hirohito entered the world right at the dawn of a new era of imperial rivalry in Asia and the Pacific. According to custom, Japanese royals were raised apart from their parents, at the age of 3 he was placed in the care of the Kwamura family who vowed to raise him to be unselfish, persevering in the face of difficulties, respectful of the views of others and immune to fear. In 1908 he entered elementary education at the age of 7 and would be taught first be General Nogi Maresuke who notoriously did not pamper the prince. Nogi rigorously had Hirohito train in physical education and specifically implanted virtues and traits he thought appropriate for the future sovereign: frugality, diligence, patience, manliness, and the ability to exercise self-control under difficult conditions. Hirohito learnt what hard work was from Nogi and that education could overcome all shortcomings. Emperor Meiji made sure his grandson received military training.   When Emperor Meiji died in 1912, Hirohito's father, Yoshihito took the throne as emperor Taisho. Taisho for a lack of better words, suffered from cerebral meningitis at an early age and this led to cognitive deficiency's and in reality the Genro would really be running the show so to say. When Taisho took the throne it was understood immediately, Hirohito needed to be prepared quickly to take the throne. After Meiji's funeral General Nogi politely told the family he could no longer be a teacher and committed seppuku with his wife. He wrote a suicide letter explained he wanted to expiate his disgrace during the russo japanese war for all the casualties that occurred at Port Arthur, hardcore as fuck. Hirohito would view Nogi nearly as much of an iconic hero as his grandfather Meiji, the most important figure in his life.   Hirohito's next teacher was the absolute legendary Fleet Admiral Togo Heihachiro who would instill national defense policy into him. Hirohito would be taught Admiral Alfred Thayer Mahans theories as all the great minds were taught at the time. Now I know it sucks but I cant delve deep into all this. What I want you to envision is a growing Man, instilled with the belief above all else, the Kokutai was most important. The Kokutai was the national essence of Japan. It was all aspects of Japanese polity, derived from history, tradition and customs all focused around the cult of the Emperor. The government run by politicians was secondary, at any given time the kokutai was the belief the Emperor could come in and directly rule.   If you are confused, dont worry, I am too haha. Its confusing. The Meiji constitution was extremely ambiguous. It dictated a form of constitutional monarchy with the kokutai sovereign emperor and the “seitai” that being the actual government. Basically on paper the government runs things, but the feeling of the Japanese people was that the wishes of the emperor should be followed. Thus the kokutai was like an extra-judicial structure built into the constitution without real legal framework, its a nightmare I know.    Let me make an example, most of you are American I imagine. Your congress and senate actually run the country, wink wink lets forget about lobbyists from raytheon. The president does not have actual executive powers to override any and all things, but what if all Americans simply felt he did. Thus everyone acted in accordance to his wishes as they assumed them to be, thats my best way of explaining Japan under Hirohito.    Emperor Taisho dies in 1926, and Hirohito takes the throne ushering in the Showa Era. He inherited a financial crisis and a military that was increasingly seizing control of governmental policies. Hirohito sought to restore the image of a strong charismatic leader on par with his grandfather Meiji, which was sorely lacking in his father Taishos reign. He was pressured immediately by the Navy that the national sphere of defense needed to be expanded upon, they felt threatened by the west, specifically by the US and Britain who had enacted the Washington Naval Treaty. Hirohito agreed a large navy was necessary for Japan's future, he was a proponent of the decisive naval battle doctrine, remember his teacher was Togo.    From the very beginning Hirohito intensely followed all military decisions. In 1928 the Japanese covertly assassinated the warlord of Manchuria, Zhang Zuolin. The current prime minister Tanaka Giichi had performed a thorough investigation of the incident and presented his report to Hirohito on December 24th of 1928. He told Hirohito he intended to court martial the criminals, purge the army and re-establish discipline. However the rest of Tanaka's cabinet wished to allow the army to deal with the matter and quiet the entire thing down. Hirohito responded by stating he had lost confidence in Tanaka and admonished his report. Hirohito allowed the army to cover up the incident, he sought to have it hushed up as well. Thus Hirohito had indulged the army in its insubordination and the kwantung army officers now felt they could take matters into their own hands.   Also in 1928 the Tanaka cabinet failed to endorse the international protocol banning chemical and biological warfare. The next year the privy council, pressured by the military, failed to ratify the full geneva convention of prisoners of war. Hirohito in response began doing something Emperor Meiji never had done, he began to scold officials to force them to retire from positions. Tanaka Giichi was bullied out. Hirohito then stated his endorsement of Hamaguchi Osachi as Tanaka's successors.   Just a few months after Hamaguchi cabinet formed, Hirohito overrode the advice of his naval chief of staff and vice chief of staff, Admiral Kato and Vice Admiral Suetsugu. The Americans and British were hinting they might form a naval alliance against Japan if she did not abide by the Washington Conference mandates on naval tonnage. Kato and Suetsugu refused to accept the terms, but prime minister Hamaguchi stood firm against them. The navy leaders were outraged and accused Hamaguchi of signing the treaty without the support of the Navy General Staff thereby infringing upon the “emperor's right of supreme command”. Two months after signing the treaty, Hamaguchi was assassinated and upon learning of this Hirohito's first concern apparently was “that constitutional politics not be interrupted”. The military felt greatly emboldened, and thus began the age of the military feeling “its right of supreme command”. Generals and Admirals fought back against arms reduction talks, discipline within the officer corps loosened, things spiraled out of control. Alongside this came the increasing cult of the emperor, that they were all doing this in his name.   When rumors emerged of the emerging Mukden Incident in 1931, Hirohito  demanded the army be reigned in. Attempts were made, but on September 18th of 1931, Kwantung army officer detonated an explosion at Liut'iaokou north of Mukden as a false flag operation. The next day the imperial palace were given a report and Hirohito was advised by chief aide de camp Nara Takeji “this incident would not spread and if the Emperor was to convene an imperial conference to take control of the situation, the virtue of his majesty might be soiled if the decisions of such a conference should prove impossible to implement”. This will be a key theme in Hirohito's decision making, protect the kokutai from any threats.   As the Mukden incident was getting worse, the Kwantung officers began to demand reinforcement be sent from the Korea army. The current Wakatsuki cabinet met on the issue and decided the Mukden incident had to remain an incident, they needed to avoid a declaration of war. The official orders were for no reinforcements of the Korea army to mobilize, however the field commander took it upon his own authority and mobilized them. The army chief of staff Kanaya reported to Hirohito the Korea army was marching into Manchuria against orders. At 31 years of age Hirohito now had an excellent opportunity to back the current cabinet, to control the military and stop the incident from getting worse. At this time the military was greatly divided on the issue, politically still weak compared to what they would become in a few years, if Hirohito wanted to rule as a constitutional monarch instead of an autocratic monarch, well this was his chance. Hirohito said to Kanaya at 4:20pm on September 22nd “although this time it couldn't be helped, [the army] had to be more careful in the future”. Thus Hirohito accepted the situation as fait accompli, he was not seriously opposed to seeing his army expand his empire. If it involved a brief usurpation of his authority so bit, as long as the operation was successful. Within two weeks of the incident, most of Japan had rallied being the kwantung army's cause. Hirohito knew it was a false flag, all of what they had done. Hirohito planned the lightests punishments for those responsible. Hirohito then officially sanctioned the aerial strike against Chinchou, the first air attack since ww1.   A message had gone out to the young officers in the Japanese military that the emperors main concern was success; obedience to central command was secondary. After the Mukden incident Prime Minister Wakatsuki resigned in december after failing to control the army and failing to contain the financial depression. The new Priminister Inukai took to action requesting permission from Hirohito to dispatch battalions to Tientsin and a brigade to Manchuria to help the Kwantung army take Chinchou. Hirohito responded by advising caution when attacking Chinchou and to keep a close eye on international public perception. Nevertheless Chinchou was taken and Hirohito issued an imperial rescript praising the insubordinate Kwantung army for fighting a courageous self defense against Chinese bandits. In a few more years Hirohito would grant awards and promotions to 3000 military and civil officials involved in the Manchurian war. When incidents broke out in Shanghai in 1932 involved the IJN, Tokyo high command organized a full fledged Shanghai expeditionary force under General Shirakawa with 2 full divisions. But within Shanghai were western powers, like Britain and America, whom Hirohito knew full well could place economic sanctions upon Japan if things got out of hand. Hirohito went out of his way to demand Shirakawa settle the Shanghai matter quickly and return to Japan.   And thus here is a major problem with Hirohito during the war years. On one end with Manchuria he let pretty much everything slide, but with Shanghai he suddenly cracks the whip. Hirohito had a real tendency of choosing when he wanted to act and this influenced the military heavily. On May 15th of 1932, young naval officers assassinated prime minister Inukai at his office. In the political chaos, Hirohito and his advisors agreed to abandon the experiment in party cabinets that had been the custom since the Taisho era. Now Hirohito endorsed a fully bureaucratic system of policy making, cabinet parties would no longer depend on the two main conservative parties existing in the diet. When the diet looked to the genro as to who should be the next prime minister, Hirohito wrote up “his wishes regarding the choice of the next prime minister”. Loyal officials backed Hirohito's wishes, the cult of the emperor grew in power. To the military it looked like Hirohito was blaming the party based cabinets rather than insubordinate officers for the erosion of his own authority as commander in chief. The young military officers who already were distrustful of the politicians were now being emboldened further.    After Manchuria was seized and Manchukuo was ushered in many in the Japanese military saw a crisis emerge, that required a “showa restoration' to solve. There were two emerging political factions within the military, the Kodoha and Toseiha factions. Both aimed to create military dictatorships under the emperor. The Kodoha saw the USSR as the number one threat to Japan and advocated an invasion of them, aka the Hokushin-ron doctrine, but the Toseiha faction prioritized a national defense state built on the idea they must build Japans industrial capabilities to face multiple enemies in the future. What separated the two, was the Kodoha sought to use a violent coup d'etat to do so, the Toseiha were unwilling to go so far. The Kodoha faction was made up of junior and youthful officers who greatly distrusted the capitalists and industrialists of Japan, like the Zaibatsu and believed they were undermining the Emperor. The Toseiha faction were willing to work with the Zaibatsu to make Japan stronger. Hirohito's brother Prince Chichibu sympathized with the Kodoha faction and repeatedly counseled his brother that he should implement direct imperial rule even if it meant suspending the constitution, aka a show restoration. Hirohito believed his brother who was active in the IJA at the time was being radicalized. Chichibu might I add was in the 3rd infantry regiment under the leadership of Colonel Tomoyuki Yamashita.   This time period has been deemed the government by assassination period. Military leaders in both the IJA and IJN and from both the Kodoha and Toseiha began performing violence against politicians and senior officers to get things done.    A enormous event took place in 1936 known as the february 26 incident. Kodoha faction officers of the IJA attempted a coup d'etat to usher in a showa restoration. They assassinated several leading officials, such as two former prime ministers and occupied the government center of Tokyo. They failed to assassinate the current prime minister Keisuke Okada or take control over the Imperial palace. These men believed Japan was straying from the Kokutai and that the capitalist/industrialists were exploiting the people of the nation by deceiving the emperor and usurping his power. The only solution to them was to purge such people and place Hirohito as an absolute leader over a military dictatorship.    Now the insurrectionists failed horribly, within just a few hours they failed to kill the current prime minister, and failed to seize the Sakashita Gate to the imperial palace, thus allowing the palace to continue communicating with the outside, and they never thought about what the IJN might do about all of this. The IJN sent marines immediately to suppress them. The insurrectionists had planned to have the army minister General Kwashima who was a Kodoha backer, report their intentions to Hirohito who they presumed would declare a showa restoration. They falsely assumed the emperor was a puppet being taken hostage by his advisers and devoid of his own will.   At 5:40am on February the 26th Hirohito was awakened and informed of the assassinations and coup attempt. From the moment he learnt of this, he was outraged and demanded the coup be suppressed and something I would love to highlight is he also immediately demanded his brother Prince Chichibu be brought over to him. Why would this be important? Hirohito believed the insurrectionists might enlist his brother to force him to abdicate. Hirohito put on his army uniform and ordered the military to “end it immediately and turn this misfortune into a blessing”. Hirohito then met with Kwashima who presented him with the insurrectionists demands to “clarify the kokutai, stabilize national life and fulfill national defense, aka showa restoration”. Hirohito scolded Kwashima and ordered him to suppress the mutiny. On the morning of the 27th Hirohito declared administrative martial law on the basis of Article 8 of the Imperial Constitution, pertaining to emergency imperial ordinances. Formally he was invoking his sovereign power to handle a crisis. Hirohito displayed an incredible amount of energy to crush the mutiny as noted by those around him at the time. Every few hours he demanded reports to be given to him by top officials and at one point he was so angry he threatened to lead the Imperial Guard division himself to go out and quell it. Hirohito met with Chichibu and its alleged he told his brother to end any relationships he had with the Kodoha members. By february 29th, Hirohito had firmly crushed the mutiny, most of the ringleaders were arrested. In april they were court martialed secretly without even given a chance to defend themselves in court and 17 were executed by firing squad in July. As a result of it all, the Kodoha faction dissolved and the Toseiha faction reigned supreme.    On the morning of July 8th of 1937 came the Marco Polo Bridge incident, a nearly identical false flag operation to what occurred at Mukden in 1931. Hirohito's reaction was first to consider the possible threat of the USSR. He wondered if the communists would seize the opportunity to attack Manchukuo. This is what he said to Prime Minister Konoe and army minister Sugiyama “What will you do if the Soviets attack us from the rear?” he asked the prince. Kan'in answered, “I believe the army will rise to the occasion.” The emperor repeated his question: “That's no more than army dogma. What will you actually do in the unlikely event that Soviet [forces] attack?” The prince said only, “We will have no choice.” His Majesty seemed very dissatisfied.    Hirohito demanded to know what contingency plans existed. After this he approved the decision of the Konoe cabinet to move troops into Northern China and fixed his seal to the orders of dispatch. The emperor had tacitly agreed to it all from the start. With each action taken for the following months, Hirohito would explicitly sanction them after the fact. In his mind he kept thinking about a fight with the USSR, he believed he had no choice in the China matter. All of his top ranking officials like Sugiyama would tell him “even if war with China came… it could be finished up within two or three months”. Hirohito was not convinced, he went to Konoe, to imperial conferences, to other military officials to get their views. None convinced him but as Hirohito put it  “they agreed with each other on the time factor, and that made a big difference; so all right, we'll go ahead.”     Two weeks into the conflict, the kwangtung army and Korean army were reinforced by 3 divisions from Japan and on July 25th were reaching Beijing. What did the man who was not responsible in such decision making say? On July 27 Hirohito sanctioned an imperial order directing the commander of the China Garrison Force to “chastise the Chinese army in the Peking-Tientsin area and bring stability to the main strategic places in that region.” Hirohito wanted a killing blow to end the war, and thus he escalated the incident. Historian Fujiwara Akira noted “it was the [Konoe] government itself that had resolved on war, dispatched an army, and expanded the conflict,” and Hirohito had fully supported it”   Chiang Kai-shek abandoned northern China pulling into the Interior and unleashed a campaign in Shanghai to draw the Japanese into a battle showcased in front of western audiences. Chiang Kai-shek tossed the creme of his military all into Shanghai to make it as long and explosive as possible to try and win support from other great powers. On August 18 Hirohito summoned his army and navy chiefs for a pointed recommendation. The war, he told them, “is gradually spreading; our situation in Shanghai is critical; Tsingtao is also at risk. If under these circumstances we try to deploy troops everywhere, the war will merely drag on and on. Wouldn't it be better to concentrate a large force at the most critical point and deliver one overwhelming blow? Based on our attitude of fairness, Do you, have in hand plans for such action? In other words, do we have any way worked out to force the Chinese to reflect on their actions?”   The chiefs of staff returned 3 days later with an aerial campaign to break China's will to fight and strategic cities needed to be seized. Hirohito gave his sanction and on August 31st gave the order “for the Dispatch of the North China Area Army. [D]estroy the enemy's will to fight and wipe out resistance in the central part of Hepei Province,” Over the course of weeks Hirohito sanctioned 6 troop mobilizations to the Shanghai area where the fighting had bogged down. Then he sanctioned 3 divisions from Taiwan to Shanghai, but for units in northern Manchuria to stand guard firmly in case the USSR attacked. The entire time this was happening both China and Japan referred to it as an incident and not a real war lest either of them lose the backing of their great power allies. Japan needed oil, iron and rubber from America, China was likewise received materials from the USSR/America/Britain and even Germany.    By november the war was not going well and Hirohito had the Imperial Headquarters established within his palace as a means to exercise his constitutional role as supreme commander, the army and navy would act in concert. For a few hours in the morning a few days every week, the chiefs of staff, army and navy ministers and chiefs of operations would meet with Hirohito. At these imperial conferences Hirohito presided over and approved decisions impacting the war. This was Hirohito's device for legally transforming the will of the emperor into the will of the state. Hirohito not only involved himself, sometimes on a daily basis he would shape strategy and decide the planning, timing and so on of military campaigns. He even intervened in ongoing field operations. He monitored and occasionally issued orders through commanders to subordinate units. Now I can't go through the entire 1937-1945 war and showcase all the things he did but I will highlight things I think we're important.    On November 9th, the Shanghai battle was finally falling apart for the Chinese as they began a withdrawal to the Nanking area some 180 miles away. The Japanese forces chased them and for the first time were really coming into direct contact with Chinese civilians, when it came to Shanghai most had evacuated the areas. The Japanese burned, plundered and raped villages and towns as they marched towards Nanking. On december 1st, Hirohito's imperial HQ ordered the 10th army and Shanghai expeditionary force to close in on Nanking from different directions, a pincer maneuver. Prince Asaka took command of the Shanghai expeditionary force and General Matsui commanded the Central China Area Army consisted of the Shanghai force and 10th army. Asaka led the forces to assault the walled city of Nanking with a population estimated to be 4-5 hundred thousand and it would fall on December 13th. Was there an order to “rape Nanking”, no. The Imperial HQ did not order the total extermination of the Chinese in Nanking, they had ordered an encirclement campaign. However, the standing orders at this time were to take no prisoners. Once Nanking fell, the Japanese began to execute en massage military prisoners and unarmed troops who surrendered willingly. There was a orgy of rape, arson, pillage and murder. The horror was seen in Nanking and the 6 adjacent villages over the course of 3 months far exceeding any atrocities seen during the battle for Shanghai or even the march to Nanking. General Nakajima's 16th division on its first day in Nanking was estimated to have murdered 30,000 POWs. Estimate range insanely, but perhaps 200,000 POW's and civilians were butchered over the course of 6 weeks.   Prince Asaka the 54 year old grand uncle to Hirohito and other members of the Imperial Family commanded the attack on Nanking and supervised the horrors. 49 year old General Prince Higashikuni chief of the army air force alongside Prince Kan'in knew of the atrocities occurring. Army minister Sugiyama knew, many middle echelon officers of the Imperial HQ knew. Hirohito was at the top of the chain of command, there is no way he was not informed. Hirohito followed the war extensively, reading daily reports, questioned his aides. It was under his orders that his army “chastise China”, but did he show any concern for the breakdown of his army's discipline? There is no documented evidence he ordered an investigation, all we are met with as historians is a bizarre period of silence. Hirohito goes from supervising the war with OCD precision, to silence, then back to normal precision. Did Hirohito show anything publicly to show angry, displeasure or remorse, at the time he energetically began spurring his generals and admirals on their great victories and the national project to induce “Chinese self-reflection”.    On November 24th Hirohito gave an after the fact sanction to the decision of General Matsui to attack and occupy Nanking. Hirohito was informed the city was going to be bombarded by aircraft and artillery and he sanctioned that as well. That was basically him removing any restrictions on the army's conduct. On December 14th the day after Nankings fall, he made an imperial message to his chiefs of staff expressing his pleasure at the news of the city's capture and occupation. Hirohito granted General Matsui an imperial rescript for his great military accomplishments in 1938 and gave the order of the golden early to Prince Asaka in 1940. Perhaps Hirohito privately agonized over what happened, but publicly did nothing about the conduct of his armed forces, especially in regards to the treatment of POW's.   Emperor Hirohito was presented with several opportunities to cause cease-fires or peace settlements during the war years. One of the best possible moments to end it all came during the attack on Naking when Chiang Kai-sheks military were in disarray. Chiang Kai-shek had hoped to end the fighting by enticing the other great powers to intervene. At the 9 power treaty conference in Brussel in november of 1937, Britain and the US proposed boycotting Japan. However the conference ended without any sanctions being enacted upon Japan. The Konoe government and Imperial HQ immediately expanded the combat zone. Chiang Kai-shek in desperation accepted a previous offer by Germany to mediate. Oscar Trautmann, the German ambassador to China attempted to negotiate with Japan, but it failed. China was offered harsh terms; to formally recognize Manchukuo, cooperate with it and Japan to fight communism, permit the indefinite stationg of Japanese forces and pay war reparations.    On January 9th of 1938, Imperial HQ formed a policy for handling the China incident which was reported to Hirohito. Konoe asked Hirohito to convene an imperial conference for it, but not to speak out at it  “For we just want to formally decide the matter in your majesty's presence.” Konoe and Hirohito were concerned with anti expansionists within the army general staff and wanted to prevent German interference in Japanese affairs. On January 11th, the policy was showcased and adopted, there would be no peace until Chiang kai-shek's regime was dissolved and a more compliant regime followed. Hirohito presided over the conference in full army dress uniform and gave his approval. He sat there for 27 minutes without uttering a word, appearing to be neutral in the matter, though in fact he was firmly backing a stronger military policy towards China.    The Konoe cabinet inaugurated a second phase to the China incident, greatly escalating the war. By this point in time Japanese had seen combat casualties at 62,007 killed, 160,000 wounded. In 1939 it would be 30,081 killed, 55,970 wounded, then 15,827 killed and 72,653 wounded in 1940. Major cities were under Japanese control ranging from the north east and south. Chiang Kai-shek fled to Chongqing, the war was deadlocked without any prospect of victory in sight.    On July 11 of 1938, the commander of the 19th division fought a border clash with the USSR known to us in the west as the battle of Lake Khasan. It was a costly defeat for Japan and in the diary of Harada Kumao he noted Hirohito scolded Army minister Itagaki “Hereafter not a single soldier is to be moved without my permission.” When it looked like the USSR would not press for a counter attack across the border, Hirohito gave the order for offensives in China to recommence, again an example of him deciding when to lay down the hammer. Konoe resigned in disgrace in 1939 having failed to bring the China war to an end and being outed by his colleagues who sought an alliance with Germany, which he did not agree with. His successor was Hiranuma a man Hirohito considered a outright fascist. Hiranuma only received the job because he promised Hirohito he would not make enemies of Britain or the US by entering in a hasty alliance with Nazi Germany. However his enter prime ministership would be engulfed by the alliance question.   In May of 1939 there was another border clash with the USSR, the battle of Khalkhin Gol. This one was much larger in scale, involving armored warfare, aircraft and though it seems it was not used, the Japanese brought biological warfare weapons as well. The Japanese had nearly 20,000 casualties, it was an unbelievable defeat that shocked everyone. Hirohito refrained from punishing anyone because they technically followed orders based on a document “outline for dealing with disputes along the manchurian soviet border” that Hirohito had sanctioned shortly before the conflict arose.   In July of 1939, the US told Hiranuma's government they intended not to renew the US-Japan treaty of commerce and navigation. Until this point Roosevelt had been very lenient towards Japan, but now it looked to him war would break out in europe and he wanted Japan to know they could expect serious economic sanctions if they escalated things. Hirohito complained to his chief aide de camp Hata Shunroku on August 5th “It could be a great blow to scrap metal and oil”. Then suddenly as Japan was engaging in a truce with the USSR to stop the border conflict, Germany shocked the world and signed a nonaggression pact with them. This completely contravened the 1936 Japan-German anti-comintern pact. Hiranuma resigned in disgrace on august 28th.    Hirohito was livid and scolded many of his top officials and forced the appointment of General Abe to prime minister and demanded of him “to cooperate with the US and Britain and preserve internal order”. Then Germany invaded Poland and began a new European War. Abe's cabinet collapsed from the unbelievable amount of international actions by January 14th 1940. Hirohito appointed Admiral Yonai as prime minister  and General Tojo to vice army minister. As we have seen Hirohito played a active role appointing high level personnel and imposed conditions upon their appointments.    Hirohito dictated what Yonai was to do, who he was to appoint to certain positions so on and so forth. When a large part of the military were calling for an alliance with Germany, Hirohito resisted, arguing Japan should focus on the China war and not ally itself to Germany unless it was to counter the USSR. Three months passed by and Germany began invading western europe. Norway fell, Denmark fell, Luxembourg, Belgium, the netherlands and then France, it was simply stunning. While Japan had been locked in a deadlock against China, Germany was crushing multiple nations with ease, and this had a large effect on asia. Britain, France and the Netherlands could not hope to protect their holdings in asia. But Hirohito kept pressuring Yonai not to begin any talks of an alliance, and the military leaders forced Yonai's cabinet to collapse.    So Hirohito stood by while Hiranuma, Abe and Yonai met each crisis and collapses. He watched as the China war went nowhere and the military was gradually pushing for the Nanshin-ron doctrine to open a southern war up with the west. Not once did he make a public effort on his lonesome to end the war in China. Japan's demands of China were unchanged, relations with the west were getting worse each day. The China war was undeclared, hell it was from the Japanese viewpoint “chastising China”. Japan was no respecting any rules of war in China, atrocities were performed regularly and for that Hirohito shared responsibility. For he alone was free to act in this area, he needed to act, but he did not. He could have intervened and insisted on respecting the rules of war, especially in regards to POW's and the results could have been dramatically different. Hirohito bore direct responsibility for the use of poison gas upon Chinese and Mongolian combatants and non combatants even before the undeclared war of 1937.    Then on July 28th of 1937 Hirohito made his first directive authorizing the use of chemical weapons which was transmitted by the chief of the army general staff prince Kan'in. It stated that in mopping up the Beijing-Tientsin area, “[Y]ou may use tear gas at suitable times.” Then on September 11th of 1937 he transmitted again through Kan'in the authorization to deploy special chemical warfare units in Shanghai. Gas weapons were one weapon the imperial HQ, aka Hirohito held effective control over throughout the China war. Front line units were never free to employ it at their own discretion, it required explicit authorization from the imperial HQ. During the Wuhan offensive of August to October 1938, imperial HQ authorized the use of poison gas 375 separate times. Hirohito authorized on May 15th of 1939 the carrying out of field studies of chemical warfare along the Manchukuo-soviet border.  In 1940 Hirohito sanctioned the first experimental use of bacteriological weapons in China, though there is no documented evidence of this, given the nature of how he micro managed everything it goes without saying he would have treated it the same as the poison gas. He was a man of science, a person who questioned everything and refused to put his seal on orders without first examining them. Imperial HQ directives went to unit 731 and as a rule Hirohito overlooked them. There again is no documents directly linking him to it, but Hirohito should be held responsibility for strategic bombing campaigns performing on cities like Chongqing. Alongside such horror Hirohito sanctioned annihilation campaigns in China. Such military campaigns were on the scale of what occurred at Nanking. Take for example the Hebei offensive which saw the infamous “three alls policy, burn all, kill all, steal all”.    Before Pearl Harbor and the ushering in of the war against the west, look at the scene that had unfolded. China and Japan were not officially at war until December of 1941. Not to say it would have been easy by any means, but look at the countless opportunities the man, emperor, so called god if you will, held in his hands to stop it all or at the very least stop escalating it. Why did he not do so? To protect the Kokutai. Above all else, the role and survival of the emperor's divinity over the people of Japan was always at the forefront of his mind. He did what he thought was always necessary to thwart threats internal and external. He allowed his military to do horrible things, because they did so in his name, and likewise they were a threat to him. I know its abrupt to end it like this, but for those of you who perhaps say to yourself “well he really was powerless to stop it, they would have killed him or something”, who chose suddenly to intervene in 1945 and made the decision to surrender?

In this episode, we're joined by long-time friend of Xi'an International School, Steven Hou. From teaching middle school English at an international school, to working with engineers at an IT firm in Shanghai, and now consulting Chinese families on college admissions abroad, Steven brings a wealth of experience working across cultures. We'll also hear some perceptive cultural insights from XIS G11 student Maia Fong, including the saying “民以食为天” (“The people regard food as their heaven”).

Amid the country's call to push an "AI+" initiative for improving scientific and technological strength, a key market player has showcased its latest achievements to power the current artificial intelligence drive.在国家号召推进“AI+”战略、提升科技实力的背景下，一家核心市场参与者亮出最新成果，为当前人工智能发展注入强劲动力。Kingdee International Software Group Co Ltd, a Hong Kong-listed company headquartered in Shenzhen, Guangdong province, showcased the country's first enterprise-levelAI native super entrance —"Xiao K"—which works 24/7 to help businesses reduce labor costs, and upgraded its "Kingdee Cloud" to "Kingdee AI".一家总部位于广东深圳的香港上市公司金蝶国际软件集团有限公司推出国内首个企业级AI原生超级入口——“小K”。该入口全天候24小时运行，可帮助企业降低人力成本，同时将其“金蝶云”升级为“金蝶AI”。Speaking in Shanghai on Nov 4 at Kingdee's Global Changemakers Conference 2025, Kingdee Chairman and CEO Xu Shao chun, said the Kingdee Xiao K has aggregated nearly 20AI native intelligent agents, covering multiple fields such as marketing, supply chain, human resources, finance and environmental, social and governance, all of which can be used out of it.11月4日，在上海举办的2025金蝶全球创变者大会上，金蝶集团董事长兼首席执行官徐少春表示，金蝶小K已整合近20个AI原生智能体。这些智能体覆盖营销、供应链、人力资源、财务及环境、社会和治理（ESG）等多个领域，均可直接调用。He stressed that in the wave of technological advancement, those who are brave enough to change themselves, constantly innovate and have independent thoughts are "changemakers".徐少春强调，在技术进步的浪潮中，勇于自我革新、持续创新且拥有独立思考能力的人，便是“创变者”。The Fourth Plenary Session of the 20th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China issued a communique on Oct 23, with an urge to markedly boost China's scientific and technological capabilities by the year 2035. Yin Hejun, minister of science and technology, said on Oct 24 that for this end, the "AI+" initiative will be fully implemented to empower all industries across the board.中国共产党第二十届中央委员会第四次全体会议于10月23日发布公报，提出到2035年显著提升国家科技实力的目标。10月24日，科技部部长阴和俊表示，为实现这一目标，将全面实施“AI+”战略，推动人工智能全方位赋能各行各业。Experts say embracing intelligent transformation and developing new quality productive forces are the most powerful drive in the current era.专家指出，拥抱智能转型、发展新质生产力，是当下时代最强劲的发展动力。Xu said Kingdee, a globally recognized provider of cloud-based enterprise management software as a service solutions by serving over 7.4 million enterprises and government organizations worldwide, will better embrace AI—"said to be the greatest technological revolution in human history".徐少春表示，金蝶作为全球知名的云原生企业管理软件服务解决方案提供商，已服务全球超740万家企业及政府机构。未来，金蝶将更好地拥抱这场“被誉为人类历史上最伟大的技术革命”的人工智能浪潮。Xu said: "This AI revolution is transforming ourselves."徐少春说：“这场人工智能革命正在重塑我们自身。”Founded in 1993 with multiple cloud service products, Kingdee emerged as the highest-scoring Chinese vendor at the Asia-PacificEnterprise Resource Planning Marketscape, which was recently released by International Data Corp.金蝶成立于1993年，拥有多款云服务产品。在国际数据公司近期发布的《亚太地区企业资源规划市场格局报告》中，金蝶成为评分最高的中国厂商。Liu Zhong wen, vice-president of Kingdee China and general manager of R&D center, said AI should not only be a tool for executing commands, but also an intelligent agent that can actively understand business goals and drive the entire process until measurable business results are achieved.金蝶中国副总裁、研发中心总经理刘仲文表示，人工智能不应只是执行指令的工具。更应成为能够主动理解业务目标、推动全流程直至取得可量化业务成果的智能体。"The entire pattern has undergone a fundamental change," he said, noting that "Previously, humans were in the driver's seat and AI was copilot. Now, AI has become the dominant force and humans have become copilot. This is what intelligent agents are."刘仲文表示：“整个格局已经发生根本性转变，”他指出，“过去，人类是主导者，人工智能是辅助者；如今，人工智能成为主导力量，人类转为辅助者——这就是智能体的核心价值。”Chen Ning, chairman and CEO of Shenzhen-based Intellifusion Technologies Co Ltd—one of China's earliest AI chip developers and listed on Shanghai's STAR Market—said: "2025 will be a defining year for AI. Today we stand at the doorstep of the fourth industrial revolution, where algorithms, big models, chips and data have become a series of key elements."中国最早的AI芯片研发企业之一，已在上海科创板上市的深圳云天励飞技术股份有限公司董事长兼首席执行官陈宁表示：“2025年将是人工智能发展的关键一年。我们正站在第四次工业革命的门口，算法、大模型、芯片和数据已成为一系列核心要素。”He added: "It is highly likely that by 2030, humanity will fully enter the fourth industrial revolution represented by AI new quality productive forces."陈宁补充道：“到2030年，人类极有可能全面进入以人工智能新质生产力为代表的第四次工业革命。”Chen noted that in this context, Intellifusion has partnered with Kingdee to launch a deep integration plan called "Core Software Symbiosis", with an aim to connect with 100 Kingdee ecosystem partners by next year and promote 1,000 enterprises to complete the intelligent upgrade of "software + computing power" to AI in the next three years.陈宁表示，在此背景下，云天励飞与金蝶达成合作，推出“软硬共生”深度融合计划。目标是明年接入100家金蝶生态伙伴，并在未来三年内推动1000家企业完成“软件+算力”向人工智能的智能升级。On Aug 18, Kingdee signed a strategic cooperation agreement in Kuala Lumpur with Chin Hin Group Berhad, a diversified construction industry leader in Malaysia, to deepen its global footprint.8月18日，金蝶在吉隆坡与马来西亚多元化建筑行业领军企业振兴集团签署战略合作协议，进一步拓展其全球业务版图。Chiau Haw Choon, president of Chin Hin Group Berhad, said in Shanghai that while over 95 percent of businesses in Malaysia have chosen ERP systems from the United States or Europe, his group chose Kingdee as a partner due to its AI and its ecosystem.振兴集团总裁周豪俊（Chiau Haw Choon）在上海表示，尽管马来西亚95%以上的企业选择欧美企业资源规划系统，但振兴集团因金蝶的人工智能技术及其生态体系，选择与金蝶牵手。"We have come to China and we have seen many implementation projects, and AI is the strategic driving force, representing the engine for enterprises to enter the era of intelligence," he said.周豪俊说：“我们来到中国，考察了众多落地项目，人工智能是战略驱动力，更是企业迈入智能时代的核心引擎。”"We are eager to become a benchmark enterprise in Malaysia, making our successful example a role model for many businesses in Southeast Asia," he said.周豪俊补充道：“我们渴望成为马来西亚的标杆企业，让我们的成功案例成为东南亚众多企业的榜样。”AI native super entranceAI原生超级入口AI native intelligent agentsAI原生智能体Enterprise Resource Planning企业资源规划Core Software Symbiosis“软硬共生”

Nina Metayer, élue Meilleure Cheffe pâtissière du monde en 2024 et cheffe d'entreprise d'un empire de 100 employés.Elle dirige aujourd'hui plusieurs points de vente dont un à Shanghai.Et pourtant ? Elle reste d'une humilité déconcertante.Le plus drôle ? Nina n'aimait pas les gâteaux étant petite.À 16 ans, elle part un an au Mexique.Là-bas, une idée : « et si j'ouvrais une boulangerie française ? »De retour en France, elle se forme.Nina se retrouve à Paris. Sans emploi.Elle devient pâtissière… par dépit.Ce sera finalement le métier de ses rêves et le début de la construction de son empire.

After President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping met in South Korea late last month, some tariffs have been suspended or lowered, and China said it will restart purchases of U.S. soybeans and other agricultural goods. To hear about the mood among Chinese buyers and U.S. exporters, Marketplace's Jennifer Park recently attended a trade show in Shanghai. But first: an ethics violation by a former Fed and the impacts of delayed government data.

After President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping met in South Korea late last month, some tariffs have been suspended or lowered, and China said it will restart purchases of U.S. soybeans and other agricultural goods. To hear about the mood among Chinese buyers and U.S. exporters, Marketplace's Jennifer Park recently attended a trade show in Shanghai. But first: an ethics violation by a former Fed and the impacts of delayed government data.

Daniel Kritenbrink delivered the 2025 Barnett-Oksenberg Lecture on Sino-American Relations in Shanghai on October 27. Now in its fourteenth year, this annual lecture affords the opportunity for a frank and forthright discussion of current and potential issues between the two countries; it is the first and only ongoing lecture series on U.S.-China relations that takes place on the Mainland. Daniel Kritenbrink is a former ambassador to Vietnam and assistant secretary of state for East Asia and Pacific Affairs. He is currently a Partner at The Asia Group. Watch the full lecture, including the question and answer section, here.

Tattoos are commonplace among young women of many western countries, but what about in China? You might be surprised how many tattoos you'll see on girls in big cities like Beijing and Shanghai. In this lesson, we'll hear two Chinese girls discuss whether or not to ink their bodies. Episode link: https://www.chinesepod.com/1497

When Jo Robinson joins Shane, they focus on a simple, urgent problem: too much of what passes for professional development in schools is one-off, inspirational, and then forgotten. Jo — Chief Programmes Officer at the International Centre for Coaching in Education — gives school leaders practical steps to move from occasional workshops to coaching-led development that actually improves teaching and retention. You'll learn concrete moves you can make straight away: how to replace single observation feedback with short coaching conversations, how to set small monitored goals that staff will actually keep, and how to gather a fuller picture of practice by triangulating evidence rather than relying on one visit. Shane and Jo discuss examples from international schools, the role of accredited coaching programmes for leaders, and simple templates you can adopt this term to protect staff time while growing expertise. Press play if you want a practical plan for making leadership development stick. Resources & Links Mentioned: International Centre for Coaching in Education (ICCE)Joanne Robinson on LinkedInEEF Guidance: Effective Professional Development (practical evidence for PD design) Episode PartnersInternational Centre for Coaching in Education (Use discount code SHANE5 for 5% off)International Curriculum AssociationJoin Shane's Intensive Leadership Programme at educationleaders.co/intensiveShane Leaning, an organisational coach based in Shanghai, supports school leaders globally. Passionate about empowment, he is the author of the best-selling 'Change Starts Here.' Shane is a leading educational voice in the UK, Asia and around the world.You can find Shane on LinkedIn and Bluesky. or shaneleaning.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Oracle of Omaha makes a surprise tech bet - what does Warren Buffett know that the rest of the market doesn’t? Hosted by Michelle Martin with Ryan Huang, we break down the Berkshire Hathaway portfolio twist. What earnings in the week ahead are being watched closely? We dive into a mixed week for US indices and the shifting narratives driving investor positioning. Luxury markets heat up as Bernard Arnault shops Chinese brands in Shanghai. UP or DOWN features Pop Mart’s Labubu, Frasers Property and more. Plus, how the STI is trading today - and your “Last Word” from the global box office.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Un salariu pe patru ani plus fonduri pentru cercetare în valoare totală de 3 milioane de zloți (aproximativ 690.000 de euro) - așa speră Polonia să atragă cercetători de la cele mai bune universități din lume, relatează Gazeta Wyborcza. „Trebuie să ne deschidem larg fereastra științifică către lume”, subliniază ministrul științei, Marcin Kulasek. Acesta anunță lansarea programului „TOP200”, care își propune să atragă cercetători străini excepționali în Polonia. Obiectivul este ambițios. Polonia vizează persoane care lucrează sau au lucrat la universități clasate în top 200 în principalele trei clasamente globale: Shanghai, QS și Times Higher Education.  Astăzi, doar aproximativ 3% dintre cercetătorii din Polonia sunt cetățeni străini. Unul din cinci dintre ei provine din Ucraina. Guvernul polonez consideră că acum este unul dintre cele mai oportune momente din istorie pentru a încerca să atragă talente străine, în special pe cele care desfășoară cercetări în Statele Unite, având în vedere reducerile la finanțarea științei din timpul administrației președintelui Donald Trump. Programul oferă două direcții: una pentru cercetătorii consacrați cu cel puțin trei ani de experiență în conducerea echipelor de cercetare în străinătate, iar cealaltă pentru cercetătorii mai tineri, cu condiția să dețină doctoratul de cel puțin șapte ani. Contactul trebuie inițiat de o universitate sau un institut polonez. Cererea trebuie să includă nu numai CV-ul, ci și propunerea de cercetare. Apelul la candidaturi este acum deschis și se va încheia în februarie 2026. Pentru această ediție pilot a programului, bugetul este de 17 milioane de zloți, ceea ce ar fi suficient pentru 5 sau 6 cercetători. În Croația este solicitată interzicerea legală a comentariilor sub articole despre violența împotriva femeilor Senzaționalismul în reportajele din mass-media consolidează o cultură a tăcerii și descurajează femeile să raporteze violența; aceasta este concluzia unei mese rotunde a Comisiei parlamentare pentru egalitatea de gen din Zagreb, citată de site-ul de știri Index. Participanții la discuțiile în cadrul Comisiei, printre care mulți activiști pentru drepturile femeilor, au solicitat modificări legale și editoriale privind publicarea articolelor despre violența împotriva femeilor pe portalurile online și pe rețelele de socializare. Statisticile arată că în ultimii zece ani 165 de femei au fost ucise în Croația, iar 43,6% dintre aceste crime au fost comise de partenerii lor. Linia telefonică specială pentru violența domestică primește în medie zece apeluri de la femei în fiecare zi, totalizând peste 2.000 de apeluri pe an. „Trebuie să evităm senzaționalismul, trivializarea și romantizarea violenței”, a declarat Nataša Vajagić de la Centrul pentru Inițiative Civice din Poreč. Ca exemplu, ea a citat cazuri în care infracțiunea este descrisă drept „dragoste nefericită”. Recomandarea este de a modifica legea în sensul interzicerii comentariilor sub articole pe această temă pentru a preveni victimizarea secundară și discursul instigator la ură. Amendamentul ar trebui să impună, de asemenea, publicarea informațiilor de contact ale organizațiilor de sprijin sub fiecare articol pe această temă. De asemenea, se propune consolidarea modelelor de finanțare publică prin reînnoirea modelului de „media non-profit”, care a fost abolit în 2016, pentru a încuraja și mai mult independența editorială față de presiunile pieței.  Pe lângă modificările legislative, a fost subliniată și importanța politicilor editoriale: aplicarea consecventă a codurilor etice, selecția riguroasă a interlocutorilor și surselor și evitarea titlurilor și detaliilor care nu sunt de interes public. Îngrijorare față de numărul mare de accidente feroviare în Slovacia Transportul feroviar, utilizat zilnic de sute de mii de oameni în Slovacia, a fost zdruncinat din temelii, relatează săptămânalul Tyzden. Slovacia nu a mai experimentat niciodată două incidente atât de grave în mai puțin de o lună: primul pe 13 octombrie, cu 69 de răniți, și al doilea pe 9 noiembrie, cu 79 de răniți. Partidul de opoziție, Democrații, afirmă că guvernul nu a făcut suficient pentru a investiga primul incident și, prin urmare, nu a reușit să-l prevină pe al doilea, care a fost similar în multe privințe. Democrații solicită ministrului Transporturilor, Jozef Ráža, să prezinte imediat măsuri pentru consolidarea siguranței feroviare. Experții spun ca furtul de cale ferată și sistemele de securitate învechite se află în spatele creșterii recente a accidentelor feroviare. Democrații propun comunicarea radio la nivel național, adică stații walkie-talkie în fiecare tren pentru a permite comunicarea între centrul de control și mecanic. De asemenea, este necesară dotarea tuturor trenurilor cu ETCS (Sistemul European de Control al Trenurilor), care împiedică mecanicul să depășească limita de viteză, să treacă de un semafor roșu și să intre pe o linie ocupată. Partidul consideră, de asemenea, că este necesar să se abordeze problema calificărilor și a remunerației mecanicilor de locomotivă.

Joe Lu, Co-Founder of HeyMax, joins Jeremy Au to unpack how layoffs, timing, and conviction turned a setback into a startup opportunity. They trace Joe's journey from Shanghai to Michigan to Facebook Singapore, and how getting laid off in 2022 pushed him to co-found HeyMax. The conversation explores his reflections on building a consumer-first fintech, understanding mindshare arbitrage, and predicting how AI will reshape loyalty and value distribution between businesses and consumers. Joe also shares how fatherhood, risk-taking, and curiosity shaped his path as a founder. 00:45 From Shanghai to Silicon Valley engineer: Joe recounts growing up in China, studying in the U.S., and joining Expedia and Facebook during the golden age of software engineering. 06:27 Building Facebook Singapore's tech office: He helped establish one of Facebook's first Asia engineering hubs, seeing firsthand how global tech scales into the region. 12:17 Meta layoffs spark a new beginning: Losing his job in 2022 became the catalyst to start HeyMax with three co-founders instead of returning to corporate life. 19:15 Pivoting from AI-for-money to credit card tools: The team experimented with finance bots before hitting traction with a merchant category search tool that drew thousands of users. 23:50 Discovering the miles community: Joe realized that while few people care about miles, those who do care deeply, creating a niche with high engagement and clear demand. 30:37 Building a consumer-first value model: Joe envisions a future where AI helps people capture their own value directly from brands instead of intermediaries taking the largest cut. 46:42 Being brave as a founder and father: Joe shares how starting a company during a funding drought with two young kids taught him resilience, balance, and optimism. Watch, listen or read the full insight at https://www.bravesea.com/blog/joe-lu-money-meets-ai Get transcripts, startup resources & community discussions at www.bravesea.com WhatsApp: https://whatsapp.com/channel/0029VakR55X6BIElUEvkN02e TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@jeremyau Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jeremyauz Twitter: https://twitter.com/jeremyau LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/bravesea English: Spotify | YouTube | Apple Podcasts Bahasa Indonesia: Spotify | YouTube | Apple Podcasts Chinese: Spotify | YouTube | Apple Podcasts Vietnamese: Spotify | YouTube | Apple Podcasts #HeyMax #JoeLu #StartupJourney #AIFintech #MilesAndRewards #ConsumerEmpowerment #FounderLife #MetaLayoff #SoutheastAsiaTech #BRAVEpodcast

☄️No te pierdas este estudio de César Vidal: un viaje a los orígenes del mundo caído, donde nacen la ciudad, la cultura, la familia rota, la violencia y la gracia que todavía sostiene a la humanidad. Génesis 4 como nunca lo escuchaste. Imperdible. Podés hacernos preguntas a través de nuestras cuentas en Facebook o Instagram. Toda la música del podcast es de Pippo y Banda IA. Pippo y Banda IA ya tiene su propio canal en Telegram, ahí podes escuchar y bajar su música. https://t.me/+Nr8mhrQJZFpjNzdh Unite a nuestro canal de difusión en Telegram https:/t.me/radioshanghai. También podés escucharnos en Youtube, Applepodcast, Ivoox y muchos lugares más.Recordá que podés seguirnos en Facebook e Instagram, dejanos tus comentarios y si te gusta compartilo…Si queres colaborar con nosotros podés hacerlo a través de Cafecito https://cafecito.app/radioshanghai Soli DEO Gloria

In this episode of The Negotiation, host Todd Embley welcomes back Olivia Plotnick, Founder of Wai Social and one of the most insightful voices on Chinese consumer culture and digital marketing.Olivia recently embarked on a remarkable journey across 32 cities in China over 60 days, immersing herself in the country's diverse regional cultures and uncovering how people live, shop, and connect with brands today. From Tier 1 cities like Shanghai and Beijing to emerging urban centers, Olivia shares her firsthand observations of the evolving Chinese consumer landscape — revealing both common threads and striking regional contrasts.The conversation explores the resurgence of offline retail, the growing influence of local brands, and what international businesses can learn from how China's next generation of consumers engage with products, experiences, and storytelling. Olivia also reflects on her favorite moments from the road and offers advice for brands and travelers alike seeking an elevated understanding of today's modern China. Enjoy!Discussion Points:·       What inspired Olivia's 60-day, 32-city journey across China·       High-level takeaways about Chinese consumer trends and culture·       Differences in consumer behavior between major cities and emerging markets·       How offline retail and experience-driven shopping are evolving·       Insights into how Chinese and international brands connect differently with consumers·       What the trip revealed about the next generation of Chinese shoppers·       Stories and standout moments from her travels·       Olivia's personal recommendations for cities to visit in China

Two venture capitalists dissect why biotech burns billions while China runs trials in weeks—and why the next Genentech won't look anything like the last one. Elliot Hershberg reveals the "three horsemen" strangling drug development as costs explode to $2.5 billion per approval, while Lada Nuzhna exposes how investigator-initiated trials in Shanghai are rewriting the competitive playbook faster than American founders can file INDs. When the infrastructure that built monoclonal antibodies becomes the commodity threatening to hollow out an entire industry, the only path forward demands inventing medicines that are literally impossible to make without tools that don't exist yet—and they're betting everything on which approach survives. Resources:Follow Jorge on X: https://x.com/JorgeCondeBioFollow Lada on X: https://x.com/ladanuzhnaFollow Elliot on X: https://x.com/ElliotHershbergFollow Erik on X: https://x.com/eriktorenberg Stay Updated: If you enjoyed this episode, be sure to like, subscribe, and share with your friends!Find a16z on X: https://x.com/a16zFind a16z on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/a16zListen to the a16z Podcast on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/5bC65RDvs3oxnLyqqvkUYXListen to the a16z Podcast on Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/a16z-podcast/id842818711Follow our host: https://x.com/eriktorenbergPlease note that the content here is for informational purposes only; should NOT be taken as legal, business, tax, or investment advice or be used to evaluate any investment or security; and is not directed at any investors or potential investors in any a16z fund. a16z and its affiliates may maintain investments in the companies discussed. For more details please see a16z.com/disclosures.   Stay Updated:Find a16z on XFind a16z on LinkedInListen to the a16z Podcast on SpotifyListen to the a16z Podcast on Apple PodcastsFollow our host: https://twitter.com/eriktorenberg Please note that the content here is for informational purposes only; should NOT be taken as legal, business, tax, or investment advice or be used to evaluate any investment or security; and is not directed at any investors or potential investors in any a16z fund. a16z and its affiliates may maintain investments in the companies discussed. For more details please see a16z.com/disclosures. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

All aboard, Culture Kids! In this week's magical adventure, Mom and Asher hop on the Culture Train and travel to Beijing, China, a city filled with history, color, and stories that stretch back thousands of years. Together with special guest Ms. Dan Song, author of the My City Adventures series, they step through the mighty red gates of the Forbidden City, where emperors once ruled and legends were born. You'll hear the echoes of ancient footsteps, learn what the color red means in Chinese culture, and even discover why the Forbidden City was once “forbidden.” From dragons and phoenixes to royal bedrooms and bronze cranes, this episode brings China's past to life in a way kids can see, hear, and imagine. And of course, no Culture Kids adventure would be complete without food!

Humanoid robots are capturing global attention, moving from Shanghai's assembly lines to viral videos out of Silicon Valley. Yet for every genuine breakthrough, a cleverly engineered demo seems designed solely for investor buzz. With China pushing for mass production by 2025 and global rivals close behind, the world is waiting to see when these machines will finally become a practical part of our daily lives. On the show: Niu Honglin, Steve & Yushun

Citi Chair and CEO Jane Fraser discusses Citi's growing presence in China, the current state of the US economy, and her views on how to deploy AI in the financial sector. She speaks with Bloomberg's Stephen Engle at the Citi China Conference in Shanghai.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The salient point of our discussion centers on the nuanced dichotomy within the furniture market, where a reported year-over-year sales increase of 4.9% in October belies a troubling decline in actual transaction volume, which fell by 6.1%. This phenomenon indicates that the growth is largely attributable to escalated prices rather than an uptick in consumer purchasing activity, a situation exacerbated by tariff impositions and inflationary pressures that weigh heavily on the industry. We also delve into notable corporate developments, such as J and K Home Furnishings' strategic acquisition of Infinger Furniture, which not only signifies market expansion but also emphasizes a commitment to sustainability through substantial renovations aimed at achieving a 93% eco-friendly operation. Furthermore, we examine the evolving landscape of supply chain dynamics, particularly the significant reductions in global container freight rates, juxtaposed against rising costs on transcontinental routes. Lastly, we address pressing consumer safety issues arising from recalls in the sector, underscoring the imperative for manufacturers to adhere rigorously to safety standards to protect vulnerable populations, particularly children.The intricate landscape of the furniture industry is currently experiencing a confluence of growth and challenge, as evidenced by the latest data released by Fiserv. The reported 4.9% increase in sales at furniture stores for October paints a picture of burgeoning market vitality. However, a more granular examination reveals a disconcerting 6.1% decline in actual transaction volumes, indicating that the sales surge is not a result of increased consumer activity, but rather a consequence of elevated prices driven by ongoing tariffs and inflationary pressures. This dichotomy prompts a critical reflection on the sustainability of such growth amidst a backdrop of economic uncertainty, highlighting the need for industry stakeholders to recalibrate their strategies in response to these evolving market dynamics.In a significant corporate development, J and K Home Furnishings has strategically acquired Infinger Furniture, a well-established retailer in South Carolina, thereby expanding its market presence into the Charleston area. This acquisition is not merely a transactional event; it represents a broader strategic initiative aimed at enhancing operational efficiencies and embracing sustainability within the retail framework. J and K's ambitious plans for a comprehensive remodel of the Infinger location, including the installation of solar panels and a commitment to achieving a 93% green certification, exemplify a forward-thinking approach that aligns with contemporary consumer values surrounding environmental responsibility. Furthermore, the establishment of a local warehouse is poised to streamline logistics and improve service delivery, thereby positioning the company favorably within a competitive marketplace.As the discussion progresses to supply chain dynamics, the podcast elucidates the recent downward trend in global container freight rates, particularly a notable 15% drop for shipments from Shanghai to New York. This decline can be largely attributed to the completion of pre-holiday import activities by U.S. retailers, resulting in diminished demand for container space. In stark contrast, rising shipping costs on Asia-Europe routes signal the complexities and variances inherent in global logistics. Such fluctuations necessitate agility and foresight from retailers as they navigate the evolving landscape of supply chain management. The podcast also brings to light critical consumer safety concerns, particularly regarding the significant recalls of non-compliant clothing storage units, which underscores the imperative for manufacturers to adhere to safety regulations. The convergence of these themes ultimately reinforces the necessity for industry vigilance and adaptability in...

AI host George talks about the wild new ATM in Shanghai that melts your old bling for instant cash, Terminator-style. Then, a family used AI to fight a ridiculous $195k hospital bill and won, saving $160k. Plus, laugh at the cop who attended virtual court... pantsless. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Asian stocks fell after uncertainty over Federal Reserve interest-rate cuts and stretched valuations in technology shares dragged Wall Street lower. Gauges in Japan, South Korea and Australia all opened weaker, even as an index of the region was poised for its third gain in four weeks. We then take you to the Citi China Conference in Shanghai, where Citi CEO Jane Fraser spoke to Bloomberg's Stephen Engle. They discussed Citi's growing presence in China, the current state of the US economy, and her views on how to deploy AI in the financial sector. In the states, investors are bracing for a flurry of economic data now that the government shut-down is over. Stocks fell, led by a decline in tech stocks was met by concern that the Federal Reserve's plans for a December rate cut maybe in doubt. For a closer look, we spoke to Mike Green, Chief Strategist and Portfolio Manager for Simplify Asset Management.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

IMG's SVP of Strategy and Growth Josh Humbler joins James Emmett in the Leaders studio in the second of a three-part series looking at how to do business around the global sports industry. After digging into the unique sports media market that is Australia, Brisbane native Humbler is joined by two Shanghai-based colleagues Ellein Cao, VP, Commercial, Greater China and Rufio Zhu, VP, Digital at what was until very recently the Mailman agency. On the agenda: how to make an impact in China and unearth the real economic opportunity ; making sense of the platforms, the numbers, and the content culture in China; tennis, soccer and the sports that are breaking through.

TO BUY SILVER & GOLD, contact Andy's firm at info@milesfranklin.comThe precious metals appear to have recovered from their recent pullback as gold futures vaulted over $4,200/oz today while silver futures surpassed $53/oz.So, is the precious metals rally back on?I asked this question to Andy Schectman in today's livestream. He think it very well may be.We discuss this plus a host of other PM-related topics. To hear it all, click here or on the video below.FYI: if you're looking to purchase bullion online, Thoughtful Money recommends Miles Franklin, co-founded, owned and operated by Andy. The firm has been in operation since 1989, and is a full-service precious metals broker with a mission to educate the masses on the benefits & principles of sound money and deliver fair pricing.Given the important of the partnership between Thoughtful Money and his firm, Andy himself has offered to give Thoughtful Money followers the “white glove” treatment. So if you're interested in learning more about their services, email them directly at info@milesfranklin.com and Andy or one of his lieutenants will give you personal attention, answer all your questions and work to get you the products that best meets your needs at the best possible price.#goldprice #silver #preciousmetals 00:00:00 — Is the rally back on? — initial take00:02:53 — How the price was knocked down (overnight dump, low liquidity)00:03:38 — Who bought the dip (Bank of America, Morgan Stanley)00:08:35 — Concern: inventory squeeze — intro to supply question00:09:56 — Tether and stablecoin buying of gold explained00:11:19 — Retail premiums and US Mint supply issues00:13:53 — Thesis: revaluing gold to devalue the dollar and reshore manufacturing00:18:01 — Kystan USD stablecoin backed by gold — broader trend00:20:22 — Tether at mining summit / disintermediation of miners00:23:14 — Silver as a strategic battleground (industrials vs investors vs states)00:24:32 — Silver added to US critical minerals list — implications00:26:04 — Primary silver production challenges; byproduct supply issues00:28:13 — Will silver become an heirloom metal again?00:38:44 — Shanghai futures, Russia, Hong Kong vaults — repo facility theory00:46:04 — Institutional positioning: $96M GLD call block (December bets)00:52:16 — User questions: selling bullion — process overview01:00:16 — Shipping & insurance details (USPS vs FedEx; insurance limits)01:06:24 — Confiscation risk discussion — likelihood and institutional focus_____________________________________________ Thoughtful Money LLC is a Registered Investment Advisor Promoter.We produce educational content geared for the individual investor. It's important to note that this content is NOT investment advice, individual or otherwise, nor should be construed as such.We recommend that most investors, especially if inexperienced, should consider benefiting from the direction and guidance of a qualified financial advisor registered with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) or state securities regulators who can develop & implement a personalized financial plan based on a customer's unique goals, needs & risk tolerance.IMPORTANT NOTE: There are risks associated with investing in securities.Investing in stocks, bonds, exchange traded funds, mutual funds, money market funds, and other types of securities involve risk of loss. Loss of principal is possible. Some high risk investments may use leverage, which will accentuate gains & losses. Foreign investing involves special risks, including a greater volatility and political, economic and currency risks and differences in accounting methods.A security's or a firm's past investment performance is not a guarantee or predictor of future investment performance.Thoughtful Money and the Thoughtful Money logo are trademarks of Thoughtful Money LLC.Copyright © 2025 Thoughtful Money LLC. All rights reserved.

In China there's a whole special language reserved for counting out change (and no, Shanghai poddies, we're not talking about Shanghainese!). This is the language where the Chinese word for "to search for" suddenly becomes "to give back money." Learn all the essential Mandarin in this lesson to make sure you get the right change back. Episode link: https://www.chinesepod.com/1494

This week on Sinica, I welcome back Jeremy Goldkorn, co-founder of the show and my longtime co-host, to revisit the "vibe shift" we first discussed back in February. Seven months on, what we sensed then has fully borne out — there's been a measurable softening in American attitudes toward China, reflected not just in polling data but in media coverage, podcast discussions, and public discourse. We dig into what's driving this shift: the chaos of American politics making China look competent by comparison, the end of Wolf Warrior diplomacy, the gutting of China hawks in the Trump administration, Trump's own transactional G2 enthusiasm, and the generational divide in how younger Americans encounter China through TikTok rather than legacy media. We also discuss the limits of this shift, the dangers of overcorrection, and what it feels like to watch the fever break after years of panic and absolutism in U.S.-China discourse.5:29 – The [beep] show in America as the biggest factor 8:38 – China hawks deflated: from Pompeo to Navarro's pivot to India 11:21 – Ben Smith's piece on the end of a decade of China hawkism 13:30 – Eric Schmidt and Selina Xu's Atlantic piece on tech decoupling 17:17 – Long-form China podcasts: Dwarkesh Patel with Arthur Kroeber, Lex Fridman with Keyu Jin 19:35 – Jeremy's personal vibe shift: distance from The China Project and renewed perspective 23:33 – The world turning to predictability and stability 26:05 – The Chicago Council poll: dramatic shift away from containment 29:09 – The generational shift: TikTok, infrastructure porn, and Gen Z's globalized worldview 31:15 – The end of Wolf Warrior diplomacy and why it mattered 37:03 – Kaiser's "Great Reckoning" essay and why it didn't get the usual hate 39:00 – The destruction of Twitter and the vicious China discourse culture 41:10 – The pendulum swinging too far: China fanboys and new hubris 43:20 – How the vibe shift looks from inside China Paying it forward: Echo Tang (Berlin Independent Chinese Film Festival organizer) and Zhu Rikun (New York Chinese Independent Film Festival organizer)Recommendations: Jeremy: Ja No Man: Growing Up in Apartheid Era South Africa by Richard Poplak Kaiser: Rhyming Chaos podcast with Jeremy Goldkorn and Maria RepnikovaSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Hey guys before you listen to this one, do realize this is part 4 on a series about General Kanji Ishiwara, so if you have not already done so I would recommend listening to Part 1-2-3.    This episode is General Kanji Ishiwara part 4: Ishiwara vs Hideki Tojo So I promised this would be the last one and it is, rest assured. Sheesh what started as a suggested episode turned into an entire series, but then again Ishiwara Kanji was quite a figure. I recently did a podcast with Cody from AlternateHistoryHub, and at the end of the podcast he poked at me for some alternate history ideas related to the Pacific War. My first thought was what if the Triple Intervention after the Russo-Japanese War never occurred, but then I thought….hell what if Ishiwara Kanji never existed or I dunno got hit by a car. Imagine how different things would have been if not for this one, I am just gonna say it, instigator haha. Now I think when one looks at this mans life, we attribute much of the story towards the Mukden Incident and the eventual full scale China war, but thats not where it ends of course. Ishiwara did a lot during the war and after, so to close it all up lets jump back into it.   Ishiwara is now a Major General , chief of the most powerful office on the general staff. He was fighting tooth and nail to limit operations in what was the new China War. A month before everything hit the fan he declared in front of the General staff “I shall never send a single soldier to China as long as I live”. But in mid-June of 1937 rumors emerged that the China garrison was planning another incident in the Beijing area, similar to Ishiwara's famous Mukden incident of September 1931. Two weeks later the Marco Polo Bridge incident occurred on July 7th. The Japanese army were divided on the issue. There was the expansionists who sought to smash China in a single blow and the non-expansionists who sought to settle everything between their nations before the conflict became too large. Ishiwara was on the side of the non-expansionists and from the earliest hours of the war he directed a losing fight to try and localize the conflict. Fight as he must to stop mobilization of further forces, he was forced to relent multiple times and to his horror the conflict grew and grew. Ishiwara's efforts or some would say meddling, ironically made things worse for the non-expansionists. Some of the expansionists would go on the record to state Ishiwara bungled the situation, years after the China incident, Colonel Shibayama would say with bitterness “The idea that Ishiawara Kanji opposed the expansion of the China incident is nonsense. If he really had opposed it he wouldn't have agreed to the mobilization. There were certainly other ways of solving the problem” Ishiwara was stuck between a rock and a hard place. While he wanted to stop the mobilization of more forces to China, the men at the front kept sending reports that Japanese citizens were underthreat in areas like Beijing, his wrists were turned as they say. Ishiwara did not cave in without a fight however, as I said in the last episode he turned to Prime Minister Konoe to strike a deal with Chiang Kai-shek, and Konoe nearly did, but at the last minute he canceled his flight to Nanking.   When the North China incident saw action spring up in Shanghai, it then became officially the China incident and Ishiwara attempted once more to push for a peace settlement in September. However by that point Ishiwara's influence had dropped considerably, few in the Operations division were still following his lead. Many of the expansionists began to bemoan Ishiwara as nothing more than a nuisance. Prince Sainji would go on the record telling Konoe “Ishiwara is like a candly in the wind ready to be snuffed out at any moment”. By late september Ishiwara was removed from the General staff by General Tada. The expansionists had won the day. There were other non-expansionists like Horiba Kazuo and Imai Takeo who carried on fighting the non-expansionist cause, but in january of 1938 Konoe decalred the Japanese government would not treat with Chiang Kai-shek. It was the nail in the coffin.   The war escalted, by 1938 24 divisions were tossed into China, in 1939 it would be 34 bogged down. The IJA was without mobilization divisions and less than half the ammunition necessary for the 15 divisions assigned to the borders with the USSR and that critical weakness became only to apparent with two border clashes in 1938 and 1939. To Ishiwara it was all too predicatable, he had continuously argued the folly of a China War. He lectured about how it was impossible to conquer China “China is like an earthworm. Cut it in two and it will still keep on wriggling”. Ishiwara believed China's territory and self-sufficiency built upon its masses would always make up for Japanese military might. Ishiwara unlike his colleagues believed Japan was not capable of dealing a knock out blow against China. He would criticize many for promoting the idea stating “those who excite the public by claims of victory, just because the army has captured some out of the way little area, do so only to coneal their own incompetence as they squander the nation's power in an unjustified war”.   In the fall of 1937 Ishiwara found himself back in mainland Asia with an appointed as the vice chief of staff of the Kwantung army. But he came back with a scarred reputation now, for his non-expansionist fight earned him a lot of scorn. All of his ideas of a political independent and racially equal Manchukuo in 1932 had all but disappeared. The Japanese military and civilians occupied all important positions in the puppet state. The Kwantung army authorities, particularly that of Hideki Tojo wgo was at the time a provost marshal in Manchuria had taken a stern line against any efforts to revive East Asian League or their ideals. So when Ishiwara arrived, he quickly realized his influence had deminished significantly. None the less he took up his old cause trying to work with the barely relavent Concordia association, but they were fighting against Tojo who received a promotion to chief of staff in Manchuria in March. Tojo was now Ishiwara's superior, it was a hopeless cause, but Ishiwara persisted.    Ishiwara began insisting the Kwantung army must step asie to allow for self-government to reing over Manchuria. He argued Japan's special holdings in Manchuria should be turned over to the Manchukuo government and that the Concordia association should act as a guiding source. He also pointed out how dangerous the USSR was too Manchuria and that Japan must increase its forces in the border areas of Manchuria. For all of this he recommended a solution would be a Asian union, that if Manchukuo flourished under racial equality and harmony, perhaps it would show the rest of China Sino-Japanese cooperation was possible and maybe China would join an East Asian league. Ishiwara would continously hammer the idea, that the solution to the China war was to create an effective east asian league. With China in the fold, they would have unrivaled airpower, a prime element in his preparation for the Final War. Not a single one of his arguments were given any consideration.   Ontop of his radical ideas, Ishiwara also advised reducing salaries for Japanese officials in Manchuria and was as you can imagine denounced quickly by his colleagues for this. Then Ishiwara found out Tojo was embezzling Kwantung army funds to the officers wives club, a pet project of Mrs Tojo. So Ishiwara went ahead by pointing out Tojo's corruption and added a large insult by suggesting Tojo had the mentality of a mere sergeant. In a public speech at the Concordia association infront of a mixed Japanese/manchurian audience he tore into many of his colleagues like General Hashimoto Toranosuke who was an honorary president of said association and Ishiwara said “he did nothing but sit around and draw a high salary, setting a disgraceful example to junior officers”. So yeah Ishiwara soon found himself very very isolated in the Kwantung army staff. Tojo received a promotion to vice minister of war in May of 1938, with the support of notable expansionist types. As for Ishiwara he had became quite a headache to his colleagues. Depressed and disgusted with the situation, Ishiwara decided to quit the army before he was tossed out. He first tried to apply at the war ministry to be placed on the reserve list but was told the matter required approval of the minister of war. At that time, it was actually his old buddy Itagaki Seishiro as minister of war. While the decision was being made, Ishiwara was authorized to return to Japan, but when he did the Kwantung army inisted he had departed without authorization to do so, basically arguing he just walked away from his desk one day.   Itagaki made no move to summon Ishiwara once he was back in Tokyo, but Tojo as vice minister got wind of the situation and was all too eager to pounce. It turned out Tojo had Kenpeitai waching Ishiwara and some of his closest colleagues for awhile and he chose this moment to haul Ishiwara up for military indiscipline. The case against Ishiwara was quite a controversy and in the end all Itagaki could do for his old friend was get him an command over the Maizuru fortress area on Japan's seacost of Kyoto prefecture. The day before the orders were posted, Tojo managed to toss one last punch at Ishiwara. He order his Kenpeitai friend, special service commander Colonel Otani Keijiro to carry out a lightning raid on the Tokyo offices of the Concordia Association which saw the arrests of some of Ishiwara's close colleagues.   1939-1941 marked a terrible time for Ishiwara's military career, but he did take the time to build more so upon his Final War theory, the national defense state, the Showa restoration and the East Asian league. Ishiwara's lackluster Maizuru assignment was a quite backwater, not demanding much attention. During his leisure time he came to the conclussion based on his analysis of military history with some fresh readings of Buddhist texts that the Final War was destined to break out within the next 40 years or so. On March 10th of 1939 he made an address to the Concordia association in Toyko “a concept of world war “sekai sensokan”. He stated based on his analysis that Japan had to prepare for the final war because “world conflict is now in the semifinal round and it is for this reason that the necessity has arrived for an east asian league”. In August of 1939 Itagaki resigned as war minister to take up a position on on the chief of staff in the China expeditionary army which was then grinding to a halt. But before he did so, he made one of his final acts as war minister to give Ishiwara command of the 16th reserve division in Kyoto.   It was not a frontline position, but it was an important one, as the Kyoto command was notable for developing infantry tactics. Japan had just received some major defeats to the USSR at the battle of Lake Khasan and Khalkhin Gol so Ishiwara went to work developing some anti soviet tactics. This led to some infiltration techniques that would see application with the IJA during the early battles of the Pacific War. But despite his work on tactics, what really consumed his mind was pressing for the East Asian League. He argued a Showa restoration needed to happen, like the Meiji restoration, but this new one would be pan-asian, to face the west. In May of 1940 he put all of his arguments together in a public address that gained fame under the title “on the final war”. It was here he unleashed two decades of his thoughts into the Japanese public. He added some new features to his theories such as a “the world had entered a second industrial revolution”. He pointed out German had pioneered in the field of electrochemistry, producing energy for both industrial production and weapons of war. Such discoveries he argued would permit Asian nations to catch up and eventually overtake the west in productive and destructive power. But above all else he kept hammering the necessity for an east asian league, which required a Showa restoration to finally bring pan-asianism.   In November of 1939, as a successor to the Concordia Association, the association for an east asian league was established with its HQ in tokyo. Ishiwara was unable to officially become a member because he was part of the military, but he was an unofficial advisor and more importantly in the eyes of the public it was his association. By 1941 the association blew up to 100,000 members, mostly ex-soldiers, businessmen, journalists, farmers and such. They had a monthly magazine, training courses, meetings, lectures, the works. They extensively studied Ishiwara's writings on the history of war, the Showa restoration and his Final War theory. They spent extensive resources securing bases on the asian mainland trying to recruit supporters amongst other asian peoples to create a federation. Within Japanese controlled portions of China, they propagated the concept of the East Asian league. For the small group of collaborationists in China, many were attracted to it. In February of 1941 the General China assembly for the east asian league, was established in Nanjing with Wang Jingwei as chairman. Oh Wang Jingwei…having spent so much time learning about the Warlord Era and Northern Expedition, it never surprises me this guy would cling to anything for power. The influence of the league even found its way to Chongqing, and Chiang Kai-shek allegedly declared that peace negotiations could be pursued based on some aspects of the movement. But come spring of 1941, all of the leagues efforts would be dashed by Tojo. In early 1941, Tojo as war minister began plotting against the league and its architect Ishiwara. Tojo believed the east asian league was very defeatists and antithetical to his own hard line stance on Sino-Japanese relations. It also provided his nemesis Ishiwara with a political base to generate public opposition to his government's policies. Tojo obviously thought Ishiwara would use such a thing to overthrow him, so he went to war. His first move was to put Ishiwara on the retired list in december of 1940. However Ishiwara was still a influential figure and held some considerably powerful friends like Prince Higashikuni, so he was unable to safely pull this off. Instead he chose to harass the league.    Initially Premier Konoe was backing the league, but Tojo began to pressure Konoe to take a position against it. On January 14th, the konoe cabinet stated “as it appears that they violate respect for the nation and cast a shadow on the imperial authority, theories advocating leagues of states are hereby not permitted”. Thus the east asian league became illegal. Taking the cue on the cabinets decision, the Japanese media began a running hit pieces on the league, kind of like how America works today, ompf. By february of 1941 the criticism towards the league was smashing them. All of Ishiwara's allies within the league were hit hard, some even tortured, it was a purge. For Ishiwara nothing really happened, except for the continual surveillance by the Kenpeitai. Ishiwara proceeded to vent his wrath in public speeches, pretty bold ass move if you ask me and he delivered one fiery one at Kyoto university on east asia problems where he told his audience “the enemy is not the chinese people, but rather certain Japanese. It is particularly Tojo Hideki and Umezu Yoshijiro, who, armed and pursuing their own ambition, are the enemy of Japan. As disturbers of the peace they are the enemies of the world. They should be arrested and executed”. Excuse my french, but the fucking balls on this guy haha. Ishiwara made this statement in public and at the time he was still in military service, its simply incredible he did not suffer horrible punishment after slandering the minister of war and commander of the kwantung army. Why was he not punished, well again it was awkward as he still had a cult following and going after him might see violence. Ishiwara would later state the reason he was not persecuted was because “Tojo was a coward who never had the courage to arrest me. The fact that a man like Tojo and his henchmen came to power was one reason for Japan's downfall”.    Regardless Ishiwara's public statements finally led to him being placed on the retirement list on March 1st of 1941 and yes it was 100% Tojo who pushed this. Tojo ordered the Kenpeitai to watch Ishiwara closely for weeks after his forced retirement. Ishiwara enthusiastically went into retirement as he now was fully dedicated to his four great concerns: the east asian league, the showa restoration, the national defense state and of course the final war theory.   In the meantime another league had opened up, the Greater East Asia Co-prosperity sphere and you would be forgiven to believe it was the same as the east asian league if not its successor. Both perpetuated common ideology, like racial harmony, stemming from the Concordia association. Ishiwara's concepts of national defense also found their way in the Greater east asia co-prosperity sphere. It advocated for most of the basic principals of the league, common defense, political independence and integration of economic systems. How did they differ you might ask? Well Ishiwara's east asian league did not share the formers racial superiority of the Japanese as its cornerstone. The east asian league was not built upon the premise that China was incompetent as a modern state and needed to be led. For you american listeners, its actually pretty easy to summarize the co-prosperity sphere idea, its was Japan's monroe doctrine. The east asian league had been undone by the China War and then Pacific War, leaving the co-prosperity sphere to monopolize the asian continent and it did so through brute force and undermined any chance of pan-asianism. Ishiwara sought the east asian league solely because he truly believed pan-asianism would be required to build up enough forces to fight the final war.    During his retirement Ishiwara went on lecturing in major universities, but Tojo unleashed the Kenpeitai upon him, whom often demanded he cancel a lecture or not talk about certain subjects. I guess its like Youtube today, haha. Though ever the more isolated, when the Pacific War kicked off, Ishiwara could not be fully muzzled. He did not opposed the surprise attack on pearl harbor publically, but privately he predicted Japan had begun a war it would lose, based solely on material terms. A famous thing he once said to Satomi Kishio which appears in an cooky anime called Zipang where some member of the SDF accidentally go back in time to june 4th of 1942 if you were curious, really funny premise, but anyways, Ishiwara said this “inevitably, we shall lose this war. It will be a struggle in which Japan, even though it has only a thousand yen in its pocket, plans to spend ten thousand, while the United States has a hundred thousand yen, but only needs to spend ten thousand…we simply cannot last. Japan started this war without considering its resources beforehand”. I love this passage. It's an excellent way to speak to a general public, very effective I find.   Ishiwara criticized the military for spreading themselves out too thinly in the early months of the war, dispersing countless men on small islands in the pacific. But above all else, he kept hammering the fact the China war needed to end. China was sucking up the vast majority of Japan's military resources and men, how could Japan hope to wage a war against a nation like the US when it was stuck in China? When Saipan fell in 1944, Ishiwara said all hope was lost. He believed the only possible way Japan could avoid disaster was if the USSR broke its pact with its allies and offered a settlement to Japan, but he knew that was a long shot given how anti-communist Japan was. I have to make a point here to say a LOT of Ishiwara's talk, comes postwar and feels like a “i told you so”. Ishiwara gave testimony at the Tokyo war crime trials and declared “despite its material inferiority, Japan did not need to suffer a defeat, if its strategy had been well planned and carried out”. He even made a remark to an American correspondent named Mark Gayn in 1946 stating if he held command of the forces he would have ended the war with China, consolidated Japanese defensive lines and made a proper stand.   Throughout the war, Ishiwara battled Tojo, often referring to him as a simpleton. In fact in late 1942 he arranged an audience with Tojo and told him to his face that he was too incompetent to run the nation or wage a war and that he should step down. There was a rumor Ishiwara was part of a plot to assassinate Tojo in the summer of 1944. This was a scheme hatched by some junior officers in the central HQ, and one of their members was a east asian league associate. Ishiwara was called upon to Tokyo during an investigation of the plot and as much as Tojo and his team tried to find evidence of his involvement, they were unable to nail him. The Kenpeitai chased after Ishiwara until Tojo's regime collapsed.    By the end of the war, Ishiwara was asked by Prince Higashikuni if he could join the “surrender cabinet' as an advisor. Ishiwara declined on the grounds he wanted to be unsullied by Japans defeat.    It should be noted again, Ishiwara was a man of countless contradictions. While he was one of the first to be outspoken against the Pacific War and predicted Japan's defeat, during the end half of the way he got really caught up in the war fever. For example in 1944 he began stating Japan needed to prepare to “shed the blood of a million lives in the south seas in a do or die battle”. He also had this blind faith that a German victory in Europe would turn the tide of the war in the east. He said of Hitler in 1944 “he is the greatest hero in Europe since Napoleon”. Some argue his later public stances were the result of him not being in the military and thus he had to conform to the wartime propaganda to get his message across to the general public. He also began linking concepts of the east asian league to the greater east asian co-prosperity sphere, which is quite the contradiction. Again personally I see him as a fence sitter, he loved to always have a backdoor in his arguments.   One major thing that he faced during the Pacific War, was trying to explain to his followers, the current war was not the Final War. As he stated publicly in February of 1942 “Many people think that the greater east asian war is the final war. Nothing could be further from the truth… the greater east asian war is the grand rehearsal for the final war. In other words, it will lead to the liberation of east asia and the establishment of an east asian league and will provide to the league the necessary material and strategic base for the final war”. Well the failure of the China War, Pacific War, the complete military collapse of Japan, the take over of communism in mainland asia, the emerging cold war….I guess that all kind of ruined his final war theory.    With Japan's defeat looming in 1944, Ishiwara began to shift his focus towards a reconstruction effort. He began as early as 1944 to talk about what would happen to Japan. He predicted she would lose much overseas territory, her cities would be in ruins, her people would be starving. He turned his attention to agriculture, how could food production be increased, he became particularly interested in fertilizers. By the end of the war he gathered a farming community to discuss how things could be improved. When the surrender proclamation was made, he began to ponder the meaning of his life's work. After the emperor made his speech, Ishiwara gathered his followers to speak to them about how Japan could regain world power and thus keep his theory intact. Ishiwara had many ideas going forward about how Japan could take a positive footing. He advocated Japan dismantle the remnants of its bureaucratic despotism, abolition the special police force, apologize to the global community for war crimes, but he also argued America needed to answer for her war crimes as well. He especially pointed fingers at President Truman for two atomic bombs and that efforts needed to be made to use bombings to lessen Japan's punishment. Ishiwara also argued Japan should gain sympathy from asia so their former enemies could come together to form an east asian league.   Emperor Hirohito proclaimed the surrender and abolition of all stocks of war materials, and Ishiwara said that was fine because he believed the final war would require new armaments that would be completely different from what existed. He predicted the future wars would be more scientific, fought with decisive weapons developed in laboratories that did not require large organized military forces. He thought perhaps a small body of underground scientists could create terrible new weapons to prepare for the Final War, thats a terrifying idea. In autumn of 1945, Ishiwara found himself in the limelight again. His lectures had made him a viable alternative to the Tojo regime during the last year of the war and his reputation as an opponent and victim of said regime made him special. Many journalists, both Japanese and American came flooding to him followed by a legion of followers who were unable to publicly come forward during the Tojo years.   Ishiwara took advantage of this new situation to make some very large speeches. He spoke about how the Tojo clique was the reason for Japan's defeat, how they all needed to establish a new Japan. He brought out the usual theories he had spoke about for years, and argued the necessity for national reconstruction to prepare for the final war. However he changed his argument a bit, stating while Japan had military been crushed, it now must prepare for the final war by building the highest culture. In this new age, Japan needed to obtain supremacy in fields of science, because he now believed that was the new power. “A single laboratory, a single factory, or perhaps a single man working alone will make the most fantastic discovery that will make war decisive”. He would continue to make speeches throughout 1945, but come 1946 the high authority, one Emperor Douglas MacArthur, haha sorry I had to say it, General MacArthur stamped down on any Japanese leader, especially former military leaders. So Ishiwara had a few months of fame, but then he found himself yet again purged, though not arrested. Alongside this came a ban on the East Asian League association.    Ishiwara was then incapacitated by illness, something that plagued his life. His condition became so bad he required surgery in Tokyo. In April of 1946 he was interviewed by American correspondent Mark Gayn who left with a very memorable impression of the man, he had this to say “ Ishiwara received us in his small room, whose window frames were still buckled from bomb explosions. He is a lean man with a deeply tanned face, close shaven head and hard, unblinking eyes. He was sitting Japanese style on his cot, his hands in his lap. Even in a shapeless gown of yellow silk, his body looked straight as a steel rod… We asked Ishiwara just two questions: what of Japan in defeat and what of himself? He answered readily and at length, in a sharp firm voice. He talked like a man who believed every word he said”. Ishiwara told his life story, the Mukden incident, the China war escalation, his feud with Tojo all of his failed attempts with the East Asian League.    In 1947 Ishiwara was put on a list of those Japanese who were purged from public life. He was extremely bitter about this and at the same time he was called as a defense witness in the Tokyo War Crimes Trials. Ishiwara was too sick to travel to Tokyo, so a special military court was convened in Sakata city. He made his deposition in front of 50 people, talking about his role in the Mukden incident and China War. He stated President Truman should be indicted for the atomic bombs and firebombing campaigns and turned upon his American audience about the denunciation for Japanese expansionism. “Havent you ever heard of Perry? Don't you know anything about your country's history? Tokugawa Japan believed in isolation; it didnt want to have anything to do with other countries, and had its doors locked tightly. Then along came Perry from your country in his black ships to open those doors; he aimed his big guns at Japan and warned that ‘if you don't deal with us, look out for these; open your doors, and negotiate with other countries too'. And then when Japan did open its doors and tried dealing with other countries, it learned that all those countries were a fearfully aggressive lot. And so for its own defense it took your country as its teacher and set about learning how to be aggressive. You might saw we became your disciples. Why dont you subpoena Perry from the other world and try him as a war criminal?”    In November of 1948 Ishiwara declared on a home recorded video “we must utterly cast war aside. We must firmly avoid questions of interest and advantage and judge our national policy purely on a spirit of righteousness…Japan may be devastated, but we must live by a complete rejection of war. The nation must compose itself like Nichiren at Takenoguchi or Christ on his war to the crucifixion”. It seems Ishiwara at the very end gave up on his theories, and supported Japan attaining a permanent peace. That last years of his life were spent in constant pain due to his illness. In 1949 he contracted a fatal case of pneumonia and realizing he was going to die, dictated a message that summed up all his speculation in the recent years on Japan and its future. The document was originally done in English and directed at General Douglas MacArthur. A month after Ishiwara's death, a Japanese version came out titled “the course for a new Japan / Shin Nihon no Shinro”. The primary purpose of the document was to get MacArthur to lift the ban on the east asia league, but it was also a last apologia. He talked about how Germany, the USSR, Italy and Japan had started on the path of state control, and they all fell prey to group despotism, because all decisions were being made by a few men in the center. He argued Britain's socialist government, the United States New Deal and Marshall plan were great example of a good control system. He argued pure liberalism no longer existed anywhere, not even in the US, yet the US was trying to make Japan a liberal nation. He argued all nations should be allowed to move ahead freely. To end it all of he said this as well “I realize now in my predictions concerning a final war between the east and west I was supremely overconfident and that the facts have proven my wrong. I fear that the real final conflict may be the United States and USSR”   At the age of 61 Ishiwara died in August of 1949, in a small house with some of his followers gathered around him. He said to them before dying he was glad to die at the same age as Nichiren

This is a preview — for the full episode, subscribe: https://patreon.com/newmodels https://newmodels.substack.com Olivia Kan-Sperling joins to talk about her recent work, "Little Pink Book: A Bad Bad Novel" (Archway Editions, 2025). "It's like girl, China, sex, postmodernism, conceptual romance—a book that sells itself to you over and over and over again as you read it,” she remarks. Published in parallel English/Chinese, the novel was originally written to accompany a piece by Diane Severin Nguyen show at the Rockbund Art Museum in Shanghai. It now circulates as a kind of Reena Spaulings (the novel) for the Exocapitalism era, testing the limits of what fiction now is and what content could be. Based in NYC, Olivia is the author of the Kendall Jenner x Lil Peep fanfic, Island Time (Expat Press, 2022) as well as an associate editor + regular contributor to The Paris Review. Her words have also appeared and been channeled through outlets such as Heavy Traffic, Viscose, Kaleidoscope, n+1, and Montez Press Radio, among others. For more: @dianadiagram https://oliviaks.page/ 
 https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/Little-Pink-Book/Olivia-Kan-Sperling/9781648230417 Also feat. Olivia: NM60: https://soundcloud.com/newmodels/code-couture-olivia-kan-sperling-nm60 Heavy Traffic x New Models: https://soundcloud.com/newmodels/heavy-traffic-olivia-kan-sperling-perfect-glove

This week I am joined by comedian Vickie Wang. Vickie tells us about growing up in Taiwan, coming to the states in high school, living in Sweden, spending time as an adult in Shanghai, then eventually settling down in New York.Great EX Drinking Buddy stories this week: Vickie tells us about the first time she drank, how she discovered she was actually allergic to alcohol, still trying to drink (even though it made her sick), finding weed, and (responsibly) dabbling in other recreational areas to find what works for her.Follow Vickie on INSTAGRAM and check out her comedy show "Wang's World"Find everything for me and the podcast through the LINKTREE

After miraculously surviving the assault on Gray Dragon Island, the investigators return to Shanghai to confront the aftermath and tie up loose ends. Help shape the future of The Glass Cannon Network by taking this brief survey: ⁠https://forms.gle/pbhUCFyBBfiayAx38 Watch the video here: ⁠https://youtu.be/jOJdbsRPH5o For a limited time, use code "TFC2" to save 15% on Cthulhu products at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠chaosium.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. Access exclusive podcasts, ad-free episodes, and livestreams with a 30-day free trial with code "GCN30" at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠jointhenaish.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. Join Troy Lavallee, Joe O'Brien, Skid Maher, Matthew Capodicasa, Sydney Amanuel, and Kate Stamas as they tour the country. Get your tickets today at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://hubs.li/Q03cn8wr0⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. For more podcasts and livestreams, visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://hubs.li/Q03cmY380⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. Watch new episodes when they premiere every Friday at 8PM ET on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠youtube.com/theglasscannon⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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From the BBC World Service: The summit is part of an effort to show that the climate crisis remains a top priority, although some big names won't be in attendance, including leaders of China, India, and the U.S. What can the conference achieve without them? Then, China has announced it's easing tariffs and export controls on U.S. firms following last week's seemingly productive meeting between Xi Jinping and Donald Trump. And in Shanghai, foreign businesses are being welcomed to a major trade import expo.

From the BBC World Service: The summit is part of an effort to show that the climate crisis remains a top priority, although some big names won't be in attendance, including leaders of China, India, and the U.S. What can the conference achieve without them? Then, China has announced it's easing tariffs and export controls on U.S. firms following last week's seemingly productive meeting between Xi Jinping and Donald Trump. And in Shanghai, foreign businesses are being welcomed to a major trade import expo.

This week on Sinica, I chat with Lizzi Lee, a fellow on the Chinese economy at the Asia Society Policy Institute and one of the sharpest China analysts working today. We dig into the 4th Plenary Session of the 20th Party Congress and what it reveals about China's evolving growth model — particularly the much-discussed but often misunderstood push against "involution" in key sectors like EVs and solar. Lizzi walks us through the structural incentives driving overcompetition, from local government finance and VAT collection to the challenges of rebalancing supply and demand. We also discuss her recent Foreign Affairs piece on China's manufacturing model, why "overcapacity" is a misleading frame, the unexpected upsides of China's industrial strategy for the global green transition, and what happened at the Trump-Xi meeting in Busan. This is a conversation about getting beyond the binaries and understanding the actual mechanisms — and contradictions — shaping China's economic trajectory.4:43 – What Western reporting missed in the 4th Plenum communique 6:34 – The "anti-involution" push and what it really means 9:57 – Is China's domestic demand abnormally low? Context and comparisons 12:41 – Why cash transfers and consumption subsidies are running out of steam 15:00 – The supply-side approach: creating better products to drive demand 18:33 – GDP vs. GNI: why China is focusing on global corporate footprints 20:13 – Service exports and China's ascent along the global supply chain 24:02 – The People's Daily editorial on price wars and profit margins 27:31 – Why addressing involution is harder now than in 2015 29:56 – How China's VAT system incentivizes local governments to build entire supply chains 33:20 – The difficulty of reforming fiscal structures and local government finance 35:12 – What got lost in the Foreign Affairs editing process 38:14 – Why "overcapacity" is a misleading and morally loaded term 40:02 – The underappreciated upside: China's model and the global green transition 43:14 – How politically potent deindustrialization fears are in Washington and Brussels 46:29 – Industry self-discipline vs. structural reform: can moral suasion work? 50:15 – BYD's negotiating power and the squeeze on suppliers 53:54 – The Trump-Xi meeting in Busan: genuine thaw or tactical pause? 57:23 – Pete Hegseth's "God bless both China and the USA" tweet 1:00:01 – How China's leadership views Trump: transactional or unpredictable? 1:03:32 – The pragmatic off-ramp and what Paul Triolo predicted 1:05:26 – China's AI strategy: labor-augmenting vs. labor-replacing technology 1:08:13 – What systemic changes could realistically fix involution? 1:10:26 – Capital market reform and the challenge of decelerating slowly 1:12:36 – The "health first" strategy and investing in peoplePaying it forward: Paul TrioloRecommendations: Lizzi: Chokepoints: American Power in the Age of Economic Warfare by Edward Fishman Kaiser: Morning Coffee guitar practice book by Alex RockwellSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

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