Latest Posts
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Liu Xiaobo and the weakness of political Confucianism in China
I am late to the party on the Liu Xiaobo Noble Peace Prize story. Let me first simply add my congratulations to a man who is certainly deserving of the recognition. And then let me point readers in the direction… Continue reading
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One More Time: North Korea is not Confucian!
A story this morning on the NPR radio program, Morning Edition, discussed the political leadership succession now underway in North Korea: "What has happened [in the] past two days is not the end of succession process," says Moon Chung-in, a… Continue reading
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A Confucian Critique of Celebrations of Confucius’s Birthday
Yesterday was celebrated as the 2,561st birthday of Confucius. Happy birthday to you… And that's just about as far as I think it should go. Of course, in China there are big shows of respect and deference to the Master… Continue reading
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Xie Chaoping and the Impossibility of State Confucianism in China
Can Confucianism serve as a basis for state ideology in the PRC today? Can it be a source of principles that might guide and justify the use of state power? No, it cannot. Long story short: given the nature of… Continue reading
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More on Confucian Soft Power
My friend, Daniel Bell, has an op-ed in today's International Herald Tribute in which he returns to the question of Confucianism and soft power (I written about this topic here and here and here). Daniel and I disagree on this:… Continue reading
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The Tao of Burning Man
I realize I am going a bit overboard with "Tao of…" posts. But, hey, I'm reading the DDJ in my tutorial and Daoism is very much on my mind… Jacob Davies at Obsidian Wings has a post about Burning Man,… Continue reading
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The Tao of Genki Sudo: Mind Shift lyrics
OK, this may seem a bit obsessive – and perhaps it is – but I really do enjoy Japanese MMA fighter-turned-J-pop-Star, Genki Sudo. I revealed this interest to one of my students and she (thanks Mai!) graciously translated the lyrics… Continue reading
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Not the Way, not the Way at all
Regular commentator Scott "Bao Pu," asks whether it is possible for humans to obstruct the natural unfolding of Way. His query came from my own suggestion in an earlier post that there are moral "oughts" in the DDJ and that… Continue reading
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Derek Jeter is a Sunzi Warrior, not a Confucian Gentleman
Captain of the New York Yankees, shortstop Derek Jeter, last week feigned that he had been hit by a pitch and was awarded first base. He hammed it up a bit but, as replays clearly demonstrated, he had not been… Continue reading
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Genki Sudo hits New York!!
I have blogged about, and embedded video of, Genki Sudo before. But I just found two new things. This one covers his visit to New York, I think in August. The music is "World Order," but the coreography is drawn… Continue reading
The Useless Tree 