Eric's Beijing Diary

Already the 29th, and I'm still in Beijing. Man, it's getting later every year! Fortunately, I'm at the airport, so I should be leaving pretty soon--except that I just heard that the flight has been delayed. Tomorrow, I will take a bus to the village where Jessica's summer school is located. Actually, I am not that far behind schedule, because last year when I went to Gansu Province, I didn't know a soul, so when I got to Lanzhou, I took a room at the guest house at Northwest Normal University, and hung around for a couple days, hoping to meet a school teacher from the countryside. That, of course, is how I met Jessica's cousin, who told me about her summer school. Anyway, I am only staying overnight this time, so I should be back on schedule by the time I get to the village.

After a couple days in the village, I will go to Langmusi in the mountains, where I was last year. I want to spend a few days on a "prayer journey," taking some time for prayer and reflection. More on that later. Then I will return to visit Jessica's summer school again. I was thinking about taking a side trip this year like I did last year, but I need to get back to Beijing a little early, because there will be a faculty retreat to Nanhaide a few days after I get back.

Click for larger image.
Got an email from Michelle (second from right) today. She arrived in Singapore safe and sound. Last week at our Thursday evening fellowship, we had a "going away" party for her. Michelle is a chess teacher, and she has been hired by the Chess Federation of Singapore to come there as a trainer.

I only played chess with Michelle once. It was a very short game. And every time I moved, she would say, "Eric, I don't think that move is good for you, why don't you try something else." She was so helpful, but she wasn't able to save me. She cleaned me off the board in short order.

My chess game has gotten pretty rusty, especially since I got involved with the field I am in now. When I was in the trucking industry, I carried a little Radio Shack chess computer in my truck, and I would play it when I was sitting around loading docks waiting for a load. Chess computers are good for helping you to develop your skill at opening, since computers don't waste moves, and they are not capable of making stupid mistakes. I always found that if I could hold the computer off for at least half the game, I could usually win, because chess endings require a measure of creativity, and computers are not capable of creativity. Bottom line: they don't think. I use chess computers as an example of why I do not believe in artificial intelligence.

Throughout my life as a systems trainer and professor, I have had students come to me with articles about artificial intelligence. They come to me because I am fond of saying that there is no such thing as artificial intelligence, there never has been, and there never will be. A chess computer is not an example of artificial intelligence. It is an example of virtual intelligence. I do believe in virtual intelligence. In other words, I do believe that computers can be created that perform functions generally associated with thinking people. They can "act" as if they are thinking. But computers do not think. Thinking is organic. Computer scientists can no more create a computer that thinks than a biologist can create life. Scientists know exactly what are the ingredients of a human cell, but they have never been able to create a living cell in a laboratory.

So when the subject of human beings being replaced by computers comes up, I always tell students that if their job requires them to think, they have nothing to worry about. There will always be a need for creative, thinking people in any company, any organization, any academic institution and any society. Computers can "play" chess, but there will never be able to replace the kind of creativity and abstract thinking required to coach young chess players. Michelle, you are irreplaceable, in more ways than one.

The past couple weeks I have taken Jordan to the English corner. Last week we discussed his impressions of Beijing after being here for just ten days. It was interesting for me to hear the observations of a young person from America. I came here from the States, too, but I was a few years older than Jordan when I arrived three-and-a-half years ago, and I grew up in Asia, so my basis for comparison was fundamentally different from his. Join us at the English corner for an interesting discussion.

Fixed the kickstand on my bike today. It's hard to explain if you don't know what an old style kickstand looks like, but the metal strap that comes down along the side and serves as support was sticking out on one side. The weld at the bottom had broken loose. I put off dealing with it, because it still sorta worked, and it looked terrible. In Beijing, a bike that looks like it's falling apart is very valuable. Anyway, last night the metal strap broke off. That meant I had to fix it, because it wouldn't stand up at all. If I had taken the time to fix it when I first saw the problem, a single coat hanger would have done the job. Because of my procrastination, I had to use three coat hangers. Disgusting. The only consolation is that it looks uglier this way. If I had managed to find someone who could spot weld it, it would have looked like new. Now it looks like it is barely being held together, when, in fact, it is quite functional. That's good. In Beijing, a bike that looks new is not going to last long. I know, bikes get stolen everywhere. But in Beijing, they are not just stolen one at a time for personal use or to make a few bucks. They are stolen in bunches for immediate resale. I have heard that the police have closed down some of these places where used bikes are sold, which is good news, because it will be less profitable to steal them. I have had this bike for a little more than a year, now, so that's almost a record. But the last one I had lasted three months, so I still have some catching up to do. Wish me luck.

Went to a Sushi bar in Gongzhufen with Rachel and Eason last night. Pigged out on salmon sashimi. If you love sushi, the best place to be in the whole world is Beijing. You thought I was going to say, "Tokyo," didn't you. I guess I should give the Japanese some credit, since they invented the stuff, but the fact is that sushi is just too expensive in Tokyo. When I am in Tokyo, I eat at McDonald's. Here in Beijing, the standard "all you can eat" sushi dinner is 70 RMB, more or less (or as we say in China, "left or right"). That's a little less than $10 US, and I guess it could be considered expensive for a meal in China, but really it is not too bad once in awhile, especially since you can't find anyone who makes salmon sashimi at home. Except Naomi. Her salmon sashimi is to die for. But it will probably be a long time before she makes any for me again, because the last time she did, I was feeding some of it to Leah under the table. Felt guilty eating such delicious food in front of the dog. Anyway, if you have never had salmon sashimi, you don't know what living is.

Got the news about the China Development Brief. Their publication was shut down by the government, supposedly for making "unlawful surveys." In 2004, I went to the office of the China Development Brief to check on the process of setting up a nonprofit organization in China (see July 14, 2004). I decided, after that meeting, to put the matter of setting up an organization on the "back burner," so I have not had any contact with the China Development Brief since then, but I was impressed with the work they were doing in helping folks to understand the nonprofit sector in China.

In any society, there must be a mechanism for redistribution of wealth, because, as Jesus said, "The poor ye have always with you." There will always be a divide between the rich and the poor, and so there will always be a need to establish some means to transfer wealth for the purpose of more equal distribution. No society can survive without this mechanism. At the risk of over simplification, let me say that there are basically two ways to do this. The first, is to establish a system of taxes to confiscate the wealth of the rich and distribute it to the poor through a network of government agencies. The second is to keep taxes low to stimulate the development of wealth, and then transfer this wealth voluntarily through a network of nonprofit organizations. In the United States, these two approaches are represented roughly by the Democratic and Republican parties respectively. In China, on the other hand, there is a political need to pay lip service to socialism, which is often touted as support for the pour, while, in fact, government social programs are actually quite underdeveloped. There is no national "safety net," so to speak. At the same time, what has developed after the demise of traditional communism (although in China, the one-party system still carries the name, "Communist"), is a very "Republican" economic system, except that the nonprofit sector is also quite underdeveloped.

So in America, although there is heated debate about which of the two approaches mentioned is best for the country, in fact, both kinds of functions are quite well developed. There is a broad safety net called, "Social Security" that no serious politician, Democrat or Republican, would question. At the same time, there are many nonprofit organizations (such as the Salvation Army) that are dedicated to meeting the needs of the less fortunate through voluntary contributions. In China, on the other hand, neither are very well developed. Granted, China is a developing country, and this should be taken into consideration when judging these matters. Still, it is troubling to see the government cracking down on an organization which was doing a good job of maintaining awareness of the developing nonprofit sector in China.

So what was the government's problem? Supposedly, they were concerned about the China Development Brief making unlawful surveys in violation of the Statistics Law of 1983. I have read this law, and still cannot imagine what the China Development Brief could have done that violated it. But it must be stated that China is very sensitive about any information that could make China look bad. In America, espionage charges can be filed against anyone working in government (such as a CIA agent) who divulges secret information to another country, thus threatening national security. But in China, the definition of "state secrets" is broadened to include any information that could be embarrassing to the government.

I took Jordan with me to the graduation dinner today. Actually graduation lunch. This morning at 9 o'clock, I went to the picture taking session in front of the library. Hard to believe that these young people I first met three-and-a-half years ago are now leaving this institution. I was talking to one of them, a very bright young lady who is on her way to a graduate assistanceship in Boston. I first met her when she was a freshman in Langfang, just in from the countryside. I remember I asked her then what she wanted to be when she "grew up." She said, "a farmer." Four years changes a few things.

Been out of touch for awhile. This is the first year I have taught a class to graduating seniors--a class designed especially for them. But it turns out that seniors don't generally take classes in their last semester (or so I'm told). So I was not aware that they have a different schedule than the rest of the undergraduates. I ended up having to move my classes up by a week. So I have been frightfully busy the past couple of weeks.

Got a new cleaning lady today. My old cleaning lady (me) wasn't that great. But I think this one is going to work out alright. Man, she cleans this place up slick! The poor cockroaches are going to starve. Actually, this apartment is not that hard to clean. No carpets, just stone tile. Sweep it, mop it, and you're good to go. I have always felt that carpets were a dumb invention. In one of my past lives, I was a vacuum cleaner salesman. I remember one time, I was at a lady's house demonstrating my product. I swept the cleaner across her carpet a few times, opened it up, and showed her the filth and gravel I had just collected. She looked at me and shrugged, "It's the floor."