It's all about China

[dualstow]

Liz Ann Sonders @ Schwab pointed out today that steel and aluminum tarriffs haven't increased employment in those sub-sectors.

Haven’t galvanized the workforce?

[ochotona]

Liz Ann Sonders @ Schwab pointed out today that steel and aluminum tarriffs haven't increased employment in those sub-sectors.

Haven’t galvanized the workforce?

Naw, galvanization involves zinc.

[Kriegsspiel]

https://www.quora.com/How-is-China-able ... ustainable

Interesting read.

[shekels]

https://www.quora.com/How-is-China-able ... ustainable

Interesting read.

Smart thinking on there part.
But how many restrictions would surface if lakes were taken over to raise seafood
instead of jet ski's ?

[Xan]

https://www.quora.com/How-is-China-able ... ustainable

Interesting read.

Wow... They're going to take over, aren't they?

[MomTo2Boys]

https://www.quora.com/How-is-China-able ... ustainable

Interesting read.

Wow... They're going to take over, aren't they?

I call BS on a ton of different parts of that article. I'm typing with my fingers on my phone or I would go off even more about the problems in that article, but let's just start with the article's continued reliance on showing yuan in dollars to show just how "cheap" the food is there. Sure, if you're an American throwing dollars around, you can buy huge spreads of food in a restaurant like what the article pictures, but the article ignores that translating yuan into dollars isn't rational if your argument is that those paying in yuan are able to buy huge feasts of cheap food including tons of whole fish (they aren't).

And don't get me started on the real reason why China values the growth of vegetables, which is because its society and its government both agree that subsidizing vegetables is it's primary food plan for its country. Meanwhile, in America we're stressing junk food, sugar, dairy, more junk food, more sugar, sodas, etc. The result of this is that poor Americans can best afford Little Debbie snack cakes and cannot afford fresh vegetables, whereas in China it is reversed: poor Chinese families can load up on vegetables (but not fruit and CERTAINLY not meat/fish) and cannot begin to afford something like Little Debbie snack cakes, which don't even exist in China.

If we in America decided to prioritize the growth of fresh vegetables in our country so that even the poorest of the poor could afford them in abundance, and decided that sugar, processed foods, dairy, and sodas were products not even worth manufacturing in the first place, well, I'd bet we'd blow the fresh vegetable manufacturing lid off of China in no time. But we don't.

[Kriegsspiel]

I call BS on a ton of different parts of that article. I'm typing with my fingers on my phone or I would go off even more about the problems in that article, but let's just start with the article's continued reliance on showing yuan in dollars to show just how "cheap" the food is there. Sure, if you're an American throwing dollars around, you can buy huge spreads of food in a restaurant like what the article pictures, but the article ignores that translating yuan into dollars isn't rational if your argument is that those paying in yuan are able to buy huge feasts of cheap food including tons of whole fish (they aren't).

Good point. I found a source for median 2015 real incomes for different Chinese regions. In Xinjang, where the author says watermelons cost 10 RMB, median income looks like 15,000 RMB. In the US midwest, 2017 regional income was $61,136. I don't know where the author got that $1.50/watermelon figure, but around here they're $4.00.

So in Xinjang, a watermelon costs 0.8% of monthly income, in the midwest US, it costs 0.07%, 11x more relatively expensive in China.

The fancy dinner for 8 that the author says costs $50 (at current exchange rates, 357 RMB) in Shandong, or $300 (2,142 RMB) in California would be:

In Shandong - 1% (for a Californian on vacation in Shandong), and 19% (for a Shandonger)
In California - 5.3% (for a Californian), and 117% (for a Shandonger on vacation in California)

of their monthly household income.

Note that the Chinese incomes have had taxes taken out, but the US ones didn't, so the numbers are off some.

[dualstow]

...
whereas in China it is reversed: poor Chinese families can load up on vegetables (but not fruit and CERTAINLY not meat/fish) and cannot begin to afford something like Little Debbie snack cakes, which don't even exist in China.

Who needs it when they’ve got red bean cakes and moon cakes aplenty?

[Smith1776]

...
whereas in China it is reversed: poor Chinese families can load up on vegetables (but not fruit and CERTAINLY not meat/fish) and cannot begin to afford something like Little Debbie snack cakes, which don't even exist in China.

Who needs it when they’ve got red bean cakes and moon cakes aplenty?

I've been eating those moon cakes with enthusiasm all my life. It was just a couple years ago I actually decided to read the nutrition info. I really wish I was still in ignorant bliss.

[dualstow]

...
whereas in China it is reversed: poor Chinese families can load up on vegetables (but not fruit and CERTAINLY not meat/fish) and cannot begin to afford something like Little Debbie snack cakes, which don't even exist in China.

Who needs it when they’ve got red bean cakes and moon cakes aplenty?

I've been eating those moon cakes with enthusiasm all my life. It was just a couple years ago I actually decided to read the nutrition info. I really wish I was still in ignorant bliss.

Ok, there's a quote and a person that I did not expect to match up! As a....non-bodybuilding slob* like myself, whose diet mainly comprises belgian ales, pizza, salmon and brie, it's probably not going to change much to eat mooncakes.

But you, sir. I thought you'd avoid anything that ends in "cake" like the plague. And as far as cakes go, these have to be at the top of the list for promoting atherosclerosis.

Oh well. At least you had many years of fun.

*I actually look almost fit except for a blooming beer gut, but I don't doubt that my organs are not pretty.

[ochotona]

Moon Cakes suck. They're made from duck fat. It's literally the Chinese Christmas fruit cake that no one wants to eat.

[Kriegsspiel]

Who needs it when they’ve got red bean cakes and moon cakes aplenty?

I've been eating those moon cakes with enthusiasm all my life. It was just a couple years ago I actually decided to read the nutrition info. I really wish I was still in ignorant bliss.

Ok, there's a quote and a person that I did not expect to match up! As a....non-bodybuilding slob* like myself, whose diet mainly comprises belgian ales, pizza, salmon and brie, it's probably not going to change much to eat mooncakes.

But you, sir. I thought you'd avoid anything that ends in "cake" like the plague. And as far as cakes go, these have to be at the top of the list for promoting atherosclerosis.

You know, Dave Tate is pretty famous in the world of lifting for housing Little Debbie:



Same with Mark Bell:



Steroids are the shit.

[Kriegsspiel]

By the way, is it just me or do Moon Cakes sound Korean?

[dualstow]

By the way, is it just me or do Moon Cakes sound Korean?

Moonies

[Smith1776]

Who needs it when they’ve got red bean cakes and moon cakes aplenty?

I've been eating those moon cakes with enthusiasm all my life. It was just a couple years ago I actually decided to read the nutrition info. I really wish I was still in ignorant bliss.

Ok, there's a quote and a person that I did not expect to match up! As a....non-bodybuilding slob* like myself, whose diet mainly comprises belgian ales, pizza, salmon and brie, it's probably not going to change much to eat mooncakes.

But you, sir. I thought you'd avoid anything that ends in "cake" like the plague. And as far as cakes go, these have to be at the top of the list for promoting atherosclerosis.

Oh well. At least you had many years of fun.

*I actually look almost fit except for a blooming beer gut, but I don't doubt that my organs are not pretty.

Haha yup, since the bodybuilding type stuff became a thing I haven't eaten them. Though, honestly, I am frequently tempted!

The explosion of different kinds in recent years is pretty bewildering. I remember growing up only really seeing two kinds: the one with the yolk and the one without. I was always partial to the one without. Now there are just truly bizarre variations.

But yeah, I really wish I never saw infographics like this hahaha.

mooncake-infographic.jpg (105.67 KiB) Viewed 13323 times

[dualstow]

Cool, I’m partial to the lotus seed ones like that at the top left. I guess that’s the “skinny” option.

[dualstow]

Has anybody seen American Factory on Netflix? Very interesting.

[Smith1776]

Has anybody seen American Factory on Netflix? Very interesting.

No, but I will definitely watch it now. Thank you for the recommendation.

Being of Asian descent myself, all this talk about China lately does pique my interest.

[dualstow]

Cool! Tell us more. Cantonese-Canadian? Vietnamese-Vancouverite? Or, prefer to keep it a mystery?

[Smith1776]

Cool! Tell us more. Cantonese-Canadian? Vietnamese-Vancouverite? Or, prefer to keep it a mystery?

First generation Canadian-born Chinese.

My parents came to the country in the 70s when they were already 20 somethings. Since I grew up here my english was better than theirs by the time I entered high school or so.

Honestly, I get incredulous sometimes hearing my father talking about investments. He just keeps talking about how great China is. It's seriously a mirror image of the American exceptionalism you always see on the Bogleheads forums.

Like really, I'm not saying that China doesn't have any great investment or growth opportunities. However, listening to him you'd think that China was the only game in town when it comes to good stocks to buy.

[dualstow]

My Chinese father-in-law does the same, though not about investments.

[ochotona]

Like really, I'm not saying that China doesn't have any great investment or growth opportunities. However, listening to him you'd think that China was the only game in town when it comes to good stocks to buy.

My folks hopped from China to Taiwan to the USA. My Mom is a die-hard gambler, but she's given that up due to age. She was day-trading Enron when it was going down and was a penny stock. Yeah, she's super bullish on anything China, almost beyond reason. The Chinese media worm has definitely infected her brain.

[dualstow]

Did they go to Taiwan in ‘49?

[ochotona]

Did they go to Taiwan in ‘49?

They were there by 1948 I think, going to Taiwan University.

[Kriegsspiel]

I remember reading about how Chinese investment in foreign real estate (Aussie and Vancouver, mostly?) was both a way to launder their money and a way to get it out of China into trustworthy assets. Reading a bit on the Wolf Street blog that ocho linked to, it looks like the Chinese are cracking down on capital flight.

The former chief investment officer of that Chinese agency is now CIO at CalPERS