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Peter's avatar

If I were any of these companies, or possible Olympic sponsors -- please may the games be seriously boycotted -- I would be wiping the dust off my feet with respect to the Chinese market. I mean, why go through moral contortionist acts simply to placate the children of Zhongnanhai? It isn't as though they're going to go out of business.

From China Digital Times, a pleasant take on all this:

The post is a salient example of state media’s attempt to co-opt the language of fandom and the internet to support nationalist causes [i.e., Nike, etc.]. Commentators quickly took to poking “low-level red, high-level black” fun at the nearly nonsensical phrase. “YUEJIPENGCI” is a pinyin rendition of the slang term 越级碰瓷 yuèjí pèngcí—approximately “out of their league attention-seekers”—used to criticize celebrities in China’s fandom culture. (The term is derived from 碰瓷 pèngcí, literally “porcelain bumping,” which refers to fraud involving injury feigned or deliberately incurred by the supposed victim. China Law Translate’s Jeremy Daum has suggested “eggshell extortion” as an English translation in that context.) CDT Chinese editors collected tongue-in-cheek commentary from the internet. CDT English’s abbreviated translation:

@chalibulang: Word of the day: stop YUEJIPENGCI—if you study English with the CYL, a 5/5 on the TOEFL isn’t a dream!”

@yuanqisongshuzhuanshengban: I stared at YUEJIPENGCI for half the day before I realized it was supposed to be “越级碰瓷“

@Straw32berry: I’ve long known “pengci” to be when elderly people scam those who help them up after “falls.” This is a revealing look at our society’s terrible shortcomings in taking care of the elderly. Even if solely focused on the textual use of the word, meaning porcelain, it’s also a speciality word. Does the entire globe have a “pengci” mindset? Can foreigners understand this post?

@mrrabbitorz: Xi Jinping Thought on English with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era

@doushaxiaogou: A state media, I’ve got to say I’m speechless. [Chinese]

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Andrew's avatar

I used to live 2 street across from the new consulate in Adelaide. Apparently the other day a group of neighbours where talking to a journalist in front of the consulate and a CCP offical came out and asked them if the have permission to speak there.....

I am amazed at how the CCP is turning even quiet suburbs against them.

Bill I still think my acronym of MoMSV is better (minions of marvel super villain) is better than WW or a Xjdtw (Xi Jinping Diplomatic Thought Warriors).

It sounds better and in my view expresses the effect they have on the western public.

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