ISHAM COOK CHINA
Question everything 切問而近思 – Confucius
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Isham Cook
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Questioning China’s “5,000 years” master trope
When measured against other ancient civilizations, China is not 5,000 years old but more like 3,000-3,500 years old.
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A modest proposal regarding sex work: Why all sex should be paid for
The sexual fees levied on hubby would compensate working wives for the housework they do on top of their day job.
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On harpsichords and white pianos: The challenge of music in China
Our distaste for the white piano stems from certain associated stars of the Easy Listening school (Liberace, Clayderman, etc.): music for people who don’t like music.
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The Chinese-Japanese cultural chasm on display at Starbucks
Profound cultural differences epitomized by Chinese and Japanese Starbucks.
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The old Chinese bathhouse, circa 2000
That Chinese bathhouses draw families and their children while operating simultaneously as brothels is a phenomenon found nowhere else in the world.
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From struggle sessions to public dressing-downs: China’s continuity of psychological control
At the Revolutionary University, students vie with another to express how much they enjoy hauling night-soil feces.
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Black forest cake blues: The customer service problem
The idea of cake, a jokester’s cake for flinging in the customer’s face.
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The high priests of medicine: U.S. and Chinese hospitals
The USA and China both bear the distinction of having the worst health care systems in the world not attributable to national poverty.
