Chinese Student Caught Sneaking Into Newark Security Area

Just days after the attempted airliner attack, a 28 year old Chinese doctoral student Haisong Jiang was arrested in New York Newark Airport for sneaking into secured terminal areas without going through regular check.

The male student was caught by secure cameras (dude, they are everywhere these days!). The student was seen being warned to get too close to the security gate and he waited until no one is watching, and then crossed the gate, kissed his girlfriend (Hello, Gal, Are you standing behind this?), and they wondered towards the terminals.

The ending: the massive airport was shut down temporarily, and all passengers were ordered to re-enter the security gates. The incident had prompted a security breach that shut down Terminal C for hours and forced the rescreening of thousands of passengers.

You Decide: Obama, Xi Jinping and Japanese Emperor

Amid the uproars caused by both the two photos. One is heavy criticized by conservatives in the U.S. for "forehead banging to the floor" bow to the Japanese Emperor Akihito. And another on in Japan, where the visit of Chinese vice President Xi Jinping and his meet with the Japanese Emperor has been criticized for "Political using of the Emperor".

(credits: Mark Silva for the Obama_bows_Emperor, the Xi Jinping one was taken by representatives from the office of the Japanese royal family)

Enough of the media noises, now is your turn to decide the two photos, which do you agree? Comment the below...

Items of Interest

China, Ghana explore new ways to further collaboration. The Chinese ambassador Yu Wenzhe told an audience in Accra, Ghana. (GBN News)


Obama handpicked Nanfang Zhoumo (Southern Weekend) for only interview with a Chinese media while he visited Beijing last month, and now the top editor of Southern Weekend had been punished for that. You bet some one in top is not happy about it. (Reuters)


Thiland finds a plane full of weapons from North Korea en route to a third country. (Reuters)


After 10 year hilatus, China, two Koreas and the U.S. will start new round of Peack Talks. (Reuters)
Is North Korea desperate or a gesture for liver branch in the year of soccer world cup where North Korea will be a part of after decade of absense?


Fake receipts are creating huge problems and posign grave threats to Chinese economy. (TBS News)


A rule of 30 day advance notice was broken when Chinese vice president Xi Jinping wanted to pay a visit to Japanese Emperior, and Hatoyama administration pressed the office of Emperior to receive Mr. Xi. Should the rule be bent for the Chinese? A debate is on in Tokyo. (TBS)


Hatoyama's right hand man Ozawa took a 600-puls delegate visited Beijing. With or without a 30 day notice, Hu Jintao sit down with Ozawa and the two shared plenty of plesantries. (TBS)


The U.S. and Japan agree to open each other's sky. (TBS)


Still want more Maguro (raw Salmon fish filet famous for making shushi), it may not be there tomorrow. Japan signs the first international treaty to limit the fishing of Maguro in Pacific occean. (TBS)

Rio de Janeiro Wins, My Memory of Beijing Bid 16 Years Ago

I can only image how emotional people are when the IOC president announced the name, Rio de Janeiro!

Sixteen years ago in Xi'an, around the same time in 1993, the day when I got up at 3am along with many many coworkers, and we were all standing outside amid early morning chill and watching anxiously the only TV set available for the whole work unit, many of us were young and feeling strong about the Beijing's bid to host the 2000 Olympic games.

Finally the moment came, the president opened the exactly same envelop, I remember clearly the envelop because they all had the five ring mark. I held my breath, and my heart nearly jumped out of my chest.

I had to look around to ease the breathlessness, and found that my colleagues, young in their 20s, many fresh out of schools and went through the 1989 Tiananmen student pro-democracy movement, looked just as tense as if they were ready to jump up and grape someone in their throats.

All in a sudden, no one utter a single word. Some of us even closed their eyes. But all ears were on the mouth that uttered the simple words....

I announce the host city for the 2000 Olympics......(the envelop was opened) The moment was unbearable long and enduring.

Sydney!
OHHHHH.......Aaaa...........

Everyone looked confused and in denial. We turned to each other, as if the opponent has a answer for the obvious question: How come for we put so much hope, it could be busted like a balloon?

Still in disbelieve, people disappread into the predawn darkness, all the excitment, anexity, wish went along with them.

Hello From Accra

It has been one full month before I finally have a feel of settling down in Africa.

The coldest month here is August, with daily temperature around 25C (85F)so I am grateful for the pleasant change from sizzling hot DC. Now is also the cigar butt end of a raining season, so the sky is mostly overcast with only one short rain fall during the whole month.

Due to limited manufacturing factors in Ghana, most stuff are imported from Europe, China, Mideast and the U.S., the prices are quiet high considering the national average income is around $510. However, local produce are very reasonable, for example, 1 cedi ($1=1.46 cedis) can buy you a big bunch of fresh bananas, and locally grown vegetables are also inexpensive.

Billed the friendliest people in Africa, Ghanaian I met are hardworking, warm and ready to help. According to a local media who did a study on how friendly the people really are, there is a price you pay for the friendliness. They found that when one person entered a supermarket and asked for something in a nice way, no immediate services were tended. However, when asked for the same thing in a more bitchy way, the service was fast and professional.

I certainly can relate that to getting my internet service installed. After three weeks of back and forth, almost daily telephone calls to many different people who all seemed to be in charge but couldn't answer my questions, one trip matching down to the phone company and paying the service upfront, I got a fully functional internet access Today.

I can't help but comparing China with Ghana, I wonder, are there more to the development models that put China ahead?

More to come, stay tuned.

China Japan In Africa

Dear Readers and Friends,

As many of you know, I am off to Africa to spend 2 years in Ghana and leave on August 3rd. The last few weeks have been a stressful whirl of activities --I just finished packing out and saw the giant 20 foot moving track pulling away from the house this evening.

It has been a great learning experience writing and covering about Sino-Japan relations and I plan to continue to do so with my ultimate efforts. It is something I desire to do more and more.

Even more exciting is a new angle will be added to the topic, an African angle. I intend to see how China and Japan are spreading love in this continent, how locals view the two cultures, and whether the foregin aids and youth volenteers from the coutries are winning hearts and minds in Africa?

You are invited to onboard this journal, and I will update and share information on this blog, as I have been doing. However, I encourage you to be a part of it, any questions on your mind that you'd like to ask, anything you'd like to know about Beijing and Tokyo Policies are impacting African people's lives, and whatever in you mind?

However, as it is always has been, this blog has taken a chunck of time from me. I have every intention and will make every effort to update it on a regular basis, hopefully on a daily basis if I have something worthly to share. I appreciate your understanging and encouragment.


I look forward to the new adventure along with you


Brian Yang

North Korea Saga

Chinese media reports that North Korea's Kim is having a worsening situation, his successor is his third son Jyowun.


It seems that the Chinese side was annoyed by recent media reports that North Korea's next great leader-- the third son of Kim Jung Il has recently visited China. Foreign Ministry spokesman denied the report as the James Bond fiction. (TBS)


North Korea enters the final round for the FIFA World Cup to be held in South Africa in 2010, the first in 44 years.


Too much North Korea for the U.S. top diplomat? Hillary Clinton fell on the way to meet Obama and hurt herself.


I will be on vocation from June 20 and will return on July 6. I will be updating the posts by then.


Have a great summer time to all of you!