The Useless Tree

Confucius/Confucianism

  • Kissinger is wrong on Confucius

    So there I am, waiting for the lady in the bookstore to calculate my savings on my purchase of several volumes, and I notice Henry Kissinger's new book, On Chna, which is not one that I am buying just now,… Continue reading

  • The Erosion of Asian-American Confucianism

    A strong piece in New York Magazine – "Paper Tigers: What happens to all the Asian-American overachievers when the test-taking ends?" – caught my eye.  Author Wesley Yang puts out some sharp observations of social and cultural difference and bias. … Continue reading

  • How not to do Confucianism

    On May 4th (which in the PRC is called "Youth Day," but which might better be called "remembering how we broke with tradition" day) a middle school in Guangdong organized an event where students kneeled before their parents in an… Continue reading

  • Confucius in the Schools… Taiwan Schools

    It seems that Taiwan's Ministry of Education, pushed no doubt by Guomindang party leaders trying to maintain cultural links to the mainland, have come up with a singularly ineffective educational and social policy: In February Taiwan’s Ministry of Education said… Continue reading

  • The China-is-not-Confucian Watch, Episode 5489

    From ChinaSMACK; not much else needs to be said: Beijing Normal University professor “warns” students: If you don’t have 40 million by the time you are 40-years-old, don’t come see me Dong Fan: When you are 40-years-old, if you don’t… Continue reading

  • Confucianism and the Differences between Cambodia and Vietnam

     Back from my trip to Cambodia and Vietnam, jet-lag still lingering in my head, I want to jot down some rather rough observations… One of the first things you will notice when comparing the two places is the relative prosperity… Continue reading

  • Crying for Confucianism Lost: “Heaven’s Lunch”

    Chinasmack reports on a sweet little video making the rounds of the Chinese intertubes.  “Heaven’s Lunch” is a reflection on filial piety, on children taking care of their parents before it’s too late.  It is visually well designed and has… Continue reading

  • Confucius is not in Times Square

    A giant, multiple screen video ad went up in Times Square last night, the latest attempt by the PRC government to build up its soft power in the US.  The reviews are in… and they're not good.   The basic… Continue reading

  • Sociality

    Reading David Brooks is irritating.  And his essay in The New Yorker is no exception.  He makes some great points about the weakness of our assumptions of individuality, but then he goes and embeds them in a silly pop-sociology discourse… Continue reading

  • Confucius in Beijing

    Manyul posted this first, but let me add my own thoughts to the news that a new statue of Confucius just went up on Tiananmen Square: A bronze statue of Confucius has been unveiled near the Tian'anmen Square in central… Continue reading