On the Chinese Workers' Problems

In response to a posting found on Google+.  Here is what was found there (cleansed of names):


"...it’s not OK to brutalize people so that people in my timezone can pay less for electronic lifestyle baubles."

I couldn't have put it better.

ongoing by ######## · Chinese Workers’ Problems

This New York Times story, telling ugly stories of human suffering at Chinese outsourcers, isn't about Apple. It's pure politics and economics. It's Simple · The management of well-connect...

########  -  If a worker is putting in 12 hours a day in a terrible Chinese factory for $0.80 an hour, it's only because it's a better alternative than putting in 16 hours a day on a Chinese farm making $0.50 an hour. Outlawing the $0.80/hour job is not a guarantor of a better job for the Chinese. It's only a guarantor of more Chinese unemployment.

10:21 AM    

+6

   

######## -  Completely agree with you Reto! But Tim's views contradicts what Apple officials had to say about the situation! - http://allthingsd.com/20120126/most-people-would-be-disturbed-if-they-saw-where-their-iphone-comes-from/

10:38 AM (edited)   

########  -  No, +########, it's not OK to treat people like crap just because other people have even lousier lives. And if some particular electronic product can't be made at its current price without the kind of abuses described in the article, then it's current price is neither reasonable nor sustainable. I understand that this might be inconvenient for inhabitants of the developed world like you and me.

10:33 AM    

+6

   

########  -  +######## Cultural relativism like that belies an underlying racism and a lack of respect for universal human rights. Would you stand for it if it were in Toronto or London, or Paris or NYC ?

If you were unemployed - would you take a job working 12 hours a day for $0.80 an hour and living completely under the boot of your employer ?

10:46 AM   

########  -  TAL did a show about this recently --http://www.thisamericanlife.org/radio-archives/episode/454/mr-daisey-and-the-apple-factory, there's interesting links there.

10:59 AM   

########  -  I don't believe in some of the stuff Apple believes in, so I am yet to own a single piece of hardware/software from them. But is it hypocritical to oppose the values adopted by Apple while at the same time owning the "i"Products or Macs?

11:17 AM   

########  -  So which brand of phone CAN we buy in good conscience? Probably not HTC. Possibly not Samsung. Where are Nokia's Lumias made?

11:19 AM   

########  -  +######## that's a true dilemma but sometimes it takes an industry leader to "Think Different" and do what is good for humanity. You will be surprised by the impact it can have on the followers!

11:21 AM   

########  -  +######## Nokia has slowly moved production out of Europe and is intending to ‘concentrate production in China, India, South Korea and Brazil’. So hardly any better :/

11:35 AM   

########  -  +######## wow, sure didn't take long for someone to play the racism card. Ciao, I'm done with this convo.

3:06 PM   

########  -  +######## I guess we're helping those poor Chinese then ?

Just some of my thoughts...

I feel that this is not a racism issue.  "Racism" and "the race card" are simply distractions.  I think it is an issue that doesn't differentiate by skin color but instead by what border a person is born into.  Until the globe is fully politically/financially integrated, nations of people will continue to face these issues and issues like them.  We started integrating nearly a century a go, and have had great success in many regions. 

The rest of the world will eventually catch up. Sadly, it may take decades more time.  Also, I don't think even large corporations can have a significant impact on these issues directly.  Change needs to be brought through the value systems of modern peoples which in turn causes changes in government regulations.  Maybe some day soon, fear-mongering about "communists", "socialism", and "regulation" will subside enough in the US to where we can actually grow in these ways as a society and help usher in these changes globally as we've done in the past. 

As far as China is concerned, I think the change is coming but its a big ship and it turns slowly.  Castigating will only force Chinese leaders to stand strong against the change so as not to appear weak to the populous.  The best we can do is hope for great leaders to emerge in the east to catalyze this change.  Signs of this are already appearing.  The Chinese people already show signs of being ready for such a leader and smaller test cases, if you will, are rising from out of the masses.

A Thought About Realism

Realism, as taken from a professor's post on the Washington State University's website, is defined as "the faithful representation of reality."  The concept of realism is one that has been laid squarely (in American Literature) upon a specific time period when American authors were - simply put - being real.  It was the late 1800's.  The literary universe is still used to the romantics: authors that placed humans into a category of superhero's that hand strong moral standing.  These authors delved deep into the philosophical world.  They used long words and expressed big ideas.  They were on a "quest for beauty".

Unfortunately for the authors who were just beginning to express realism in their writing, the world wasn't ready for that reality.  The grim and mundane realities of life just are not good subjects for a piece of literature.  Literature should be enjoyed.  Literature should enforce good moral standings.  Literature shouldn't remind you of the kinds of things you have to live with day in and day out.  Who wants to read about the daily toil of a steel worker?  Who wants to read a passage that discusses two ladies discussing the weather?  Who want's to read about babies that cry?

The sad truth is, such dramatic transitions in culture just do not happen that immediately.  It was a sad truth indeed for Kate Chopin.  Her revolutionary style of writing, as penned in The Awakening, surprised and disappointed the literary world.  Critics could not handle such a drastic change - especially from a single author who was well equipped at writing good, clean fluff.  The Awakening was nearly pulled from the shelves.  Kate Chopin was derided as an author and her next work(s) in progress were scrapped by her publisher.  Kate Chopin, devastated by the reaction, simply puts...down...her...pen.

Years later, we find The Awakening heralded as a great piece of American Literature that helped usher in a new age - years later, when Kate Chopin is no longer around to hear people sing the praise.

Thoughts on Letters from Iwo Jima

What is the Best Way to Die for One's Leader

Letters from Iwo Jima is a Clint Eastwood (director) film about the fateful battle of Iwo Jima which focuses on the Japanese who gave their lives in service of their emperor.  This film paints a picture of the stuggles within the minds and souls of these soldiers as they fight for a cause that appears less and less tangible the closer they come to death.  Probably one of the most telling moments of the movie is when the general speaks to his troops and gives the command "no [soldier] is allowed to die without first killing ten Americans."  The general already knew the fate he was to face with his men; yet, the story twists and turns about the how and why of this grim fate.  These twists and turns were largely focused on the commanders.

The Island of Iwo Jima

Here are some of the commanders as they were portrayed in the movie along with what they represented.

Lieutenant Ito  Lieutenant Ito put honor before all else.  He thought it the utmost in dishonor for men to leave the battlefield when all was lost.  He would rather a soldier die then to retreat and fight another day.  The movie possibly dealt most with the two sides of this concept.  Eventually, he grew to understand the futility of charging headlong into the battlefield against such a numerous adversary and allowed his men to reinforce a dug in unit.  Still, his honor was such that he could not back down himself and went to face the enemy alone.

Baron Nishi  He understood the sacrifice of the soldiers.  Men idolized Baron Nishi instantly.  His noble stature and wise demeanor raised allowed his men served as a flagship for the men under his command.  He treated his subordinates with respect and they returned that respect in kind.  The circumstances of his death represented a respect for the sacrifice that the soldier of Iwo Jima were making.

Baron Nishi 

Lieutenant Okubo  This Lieutenant represented duty.  He was given an order, and he followed it.  He expected the same from his men who he regularly abused to enforce their subordination.  The movie most certainly painted blind duty as dangerous.  The men who followed his order, as well as Lieutenant Okubo, died at their own hands rather than making a last stand.

General Kuribayashi  General Kuribayashi had a good balance of convictions.  He sacraficed himself by accepting a mission he knew he would not survice.  He honored his men and treated them with respect.  He also felt that the soldiers should not die in a futile manner.  In this way, they should die for a noble cause rather than simply dying for an aimless conviction.

General Kuribayashi

What is the best way to die for one's leader?  Pride? Honor? Nobility?  It is a question that probably seems completely foreign to a modern society.  Yet, in this world riddled with small wars, many of us face it still.