Ridiculously excessive use of both fireworks and food have rung in the Tiger, and sent the Ox away. I have now lived two full cycles in observance of the Lunar Calendar. It s pretty hard to create full blown "renao" the explosion of human energy that marks a good Chinese style party - in upstate New York, but I try to invoke the spirit of the feasts of the past 24 years.
Having been around for a while, I sometimes lose sight of how oblique China can be for people newer to the landscape. Last week a friend asked if I might like to go to Radio City Music Hall to see Shen Yun. It s a Chinese music and dance extravaganza that plays in many major cities in America, especially around the New Year. I have seen the posters and nothing on them says profits from Shen Yun are funneled to Falun Gong, a religious group whose leader lives in exile New York and works openly to overthrow the Chinese government. The presence of the logos for Epoch Times and New Tang Dynasty TV on the poster are a clue only if you know that Falun Gong owns those media. And it is all lost if one has never heard of Falun Gong, or doesn't know what the big deal is. I mean, lots of organizations dedicated to overthrowing governments operate all over the world, and raise money from unsuspecting people looking for a cute night out, right?
The point is, whatever and whoever you associate with in dealing with China, you need to get the map. Great partners who have guanxi are sometimes notorious for real estate fraud. Government agencies that can approve a business license are sometimes based in a district that will ruin your chances of getting business outside the district. How do we navigate? First: mindset. Know that an open mind and a lot of due diligence are a prerequisite. Also: you need people you can ask - a lot of them. skilled and knowledgeable about a lot of different things. Going to see Shen Yun, or not, isn t going to matter much to anyone. But getting into a deal with someone who you haven't really checked out will.
(Beyondthegreatwall.net, February 15, 2010)
Original text from: http://www.beyondthegreatwall.net/search?q=falun+gong
