The Useless Tree

Current Affairs

  • Haiti needs our Humanity

    Confucius knows what to do: …As for Humanity: if you want to make a stand, help others make a stand, and if you want to reach your goal, help others reach their goal.  Consider yourself and treat others accordingly: this… Continue reading

  • Can’t We All Just Get Along?

    This is a great talk, by Kaiser Kuo.  Much to be learned here: about the social context and political implications of the internet in China; about how the internet has influenced "people to people" relations between the US and China;… Continue reading

  • Another Sad Reminder: Bush Lost the War

    Massive, coordinated car bomb attacks in Baghdad. The loud right-wing Obama haters will no doubt jump on this to argue that Obama is losing the war in Iraq.  But that is not true.  Iraq was lost long ago and it… Continue reading

  • Fathers as Teachers

    In the WaPo today, Patrick Welsh, a teacher in Alexandria VA, pens an interesting op-ed: "Making the Grade Isn't about Race.  It's about Parents." He takes on the question of the racial gap in US high school test scores, but… Continue reading

  • Confucianism as Soft Power

    Can a global diffusion of Confucian ideas increase the world-wide political power and influence of the PRC?  I think a fair amount about this question, since I am rather actively involved in spreading Confucian and Taoist ideas to Americans ("ancient… Continue reading

  • Because nothing says “Humanity” like a cartoon series

    I missed the birthday of Confucius yesterday.  So, let me say it today: happy 2,560th!  The usual pageantry of invented traditions unfolded at Qufu.  Houston, Texas got into the act with the dedication of a Confucius statue in a city… Continue reading

  • Yes, A Black Woman Can Be Chinese

    I have blogged about race and Chinese identity before (most prominently here and here).  So, when I saw the stories about Lou Jing, a young Shanghai woman whose mother is Chinese and whose father is African-American, I took notice.  I… Continue reading

  • Han Han and Popular Cultural Confucianism

    No one would accuse writer/blogger/celebrity Han Han of being a Confucian.  That's why it was interesting to see some of the comments in this article from Xinhua.  For example, in discussing censorship in China, and the attention he has garnered… Continue reading

  • Sun Tzu on Afghanistan

    Saw this cartoon this morning and thought it nailed Sun Tzu on Afghanistan: Continue reading

  • Canadian Confucians

    This will come as no surprise to my Canadian friend Daniel A. Bell, but, according to Adam Gopnik's recent New Yorker profile of Michael Ignatieff (the full article can only be seen through subscription), folks north of the border have… Continue reading