Category: East Asia & Pacific

Chinese Islamic cultural pageant kicks off in Turkey

Chinese dancers perform a Muslim dance during the opening ceremony of “2012 China-Turkey Islamic Cultural Exhibition and Performances” in Istanbul, Turkey, on Aug. 31, 2012. (Xinhua/Ma Yan)

ISTANBUL, Aug. 31 (Xinhua) — Over 500 Chinese and Turkish government officials and Muslim representatives on Friday attended here the opening ceremony of the Chinese Islamic cultural pageant, which will last eight days.

The event, part of the celebrations to mark the China-Turkey Cultural Year, is held to introduce China’s Islamic history and unique Muslim culture to Turkey.

Wang Zuoan, Director of Chinese State Administration of Religious Affairs, said at the opening ceremony that the exposition, the first of its kind between the two countries, will help deepen mutual understanding and enhance the cooperation between Chinese and Turkish Muslims.

Nowadays, Wang said, Islam is getting more and more popular in China as Muslims’ religion belief and custom are fully respected. The Islam also plays an active role in promoting economy and culture, he said.

For his part, Turkish Deputy Prime Minister Bekir Bozdag said that it is a very important opportunity for the two countries to enhance cooperation and introduce Chinese Muslims’ life, culture and belief to the Turkish people.

“The relations between Turkey and China showed many positive developments throughout history,” he said.

“On one hand, we wish to convey the Islamic civilization in China to our public and, on the other hand, we wish to jointly work for the religious education and religious affairs of Muslims in China. When you look at the bilateral relations from a cultural perspective, you can see that there is high hope to develop our relations,” Bozdag said, adding that Turkey will carry out a series of Islamic cultural programs in China next year to enhance its relations with China.

During the exposition, Chinese Muslims will exhibit Chinese Islamic culture, Quran chanting, a symposium on China-Turkey Islamic exchanges, as well as Islamic singing and dancing shows.

via Chinese Islamic cultural pageant kicks off in Turkey – People’s Daily Online.

September 2, 2012
Chinese Muslims to shine in Turkey expo

Chinese Muslims will bring their unique culture to Turkey in an Islamic cultural pageant to be held in Istanbul, Turkey’s largest city, on August 31, according to the Islamic Association of China (IAC).

The China-Turkey Islamic Cultural Expo and Performances 2012, jointly organized by China’s State Administration for Religious Affairs and Turkey’s Presidency of Religious Affairs to mark the China-Turkey Cultural Year, will include an exhibition of Chinese Islamic culture, Quran chanting, a symposium on China-Turkey Islamic exchanges, and Islamic singing and dancing shows, according to Zhang Guanglin, deputy secretary-general of IAC.

According to Zhang, the highlight of the show will be Chinese variants of Islamic culture, including a combination of Chinese calligraphy with Arabic and Uyghur handwriting, ancient Chinese Muslims’ articles of religious and daily use which date back to the 14th century, artistic shows presented by Chinese Muslims, and most importantly Chinese transcripts of the Quran.

This will be the first time that foreign countries will host Chinese ancient transcripts of the Quran, some of which are valuable cultural relics with a history of around 300 years. The event will also showcase Quran copies made by modern Chinese Muslims, including a 208-meter-long paper-cut Quran, and copies engraved in jade and printed on silk.

Quran transcripts have played an important role in China’s Islamic history, according to Zhang. Quran transcripts in Chinese language allowed Islamic preaching to reach the masses in China 300 years ago and facilitated the development of the then repressed religion. Today, China encourages the development of Islamism. Zhang said China has translated and published the Quran in languages including Chinese, Uyghur, Kazak and Kirgiz, and such translations will also be showcased in Istanbul.

“Our Quran transcripts will give the world a glimpse of China’s Islamic history and Chinese Muslims’ devotion to Quran teachings,” said Zhang.

During the symposium on China-Turkey Islamic exchanges, Chinese speakers will introduce Islamic history in China, the reality of Islamism in China today, the unique culture of Chinese Muslims, as well as the life of modern Chinese Muslims.

“We will show the world the unique and splendid culture of Chinese Muslims,” said Zhang, adding that the event is also a move to boost religious exchanges between China and Turkey.

“It will be a good opportunity to display the splendid Islamic cultures of the two countries, promote the Islamic spirits of peace, tolerance, moderation and cooperation, enhance friendly relations between the two countries, and promote the diversity of human culture,” according to the IAC deputy secretary-general.

Zhang also mentioned that discussion is under way between China and Turkey covering cooperation in areas such as Quran printing and student exchange programs, as part of efforts to implement the Memorandum of Understanding signed by the two countries in 2011.

China has 23 million Muslims, living mainly in its northwestern Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, Gansu Province, Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, and Qinghai Province.

via Chinese Muslims to shine in Turkey expo – Globaltimes.cn.

August 23, 2012
It Can not happen to Me Chapter 18

IT CAN NOT HAPPEN TO ME. GUESS WHAT? IT WILL!!!

Chapter 18

The SHADY SIDE OF SILVER

While everyone seems to ignore the casino atmosphere of the securities markets worldwide, there is a time bomb about to explode.

The volatility of the silver futures market is like bungee jumper without a rope.

It seems a complex game, but when you break it down, we all going to pay the devil. We all know it is wrong, but few speak up.

For starters , The Federal Reserve Board of the United States and other central bankers around the world are keeping their funds which they transact business with other member banks artificially low. This was done during the banking crisis, but they have failed investigate the abuses.

One glaring abuse is a major bank can “borrow” a million dollars and with high frequency trades [i]and short the silver contracts on the COMEX .[ii] They are selling contracts that they do not own. Another scheme is to place factious orders to sell to scare the buyers away. This drops the bids temporarily low. In an nano second the computers cancels the sells and instead buy at the depressed prices. These trades place an artificial cap on the price. Now the computers , some instances are trading among themselves with no human benefit.

AS is the case of silver, the industrial demand far outstrips the world’s supply. The total amount used is 755.7 million ounces. Here is the breakdown for industrial uses. One can quickly observe that over half is for industrial use.

Silver has unlimited applications in science, industry and art plus investments. Total demand in 2010 was 487.4 million ounces for industrial use only. 167 million ounces were used for jewelry and 101.3 million ounces were used in medals and coins which were probably increased in 2012 because of the Olympics. Silver is used 1000 ounce bars for industrial use. There is about 1.25 billion ounces of silver in the entire world in 1000 bars. These bars are not just floating to be plucked out of thin air. They are often broken down for use in computers and solar panels and mirrors just to name a few.

J P Morgan Chase was reported to be short 95 million ounces as of August 18, 2012. The 8 largest silver traders are short 40.9% of the entire COMEX future trading on a net basis. These contracts are in 1000 ounce bars. This will take over 100 trading days for them to cover(buy back) their shorts sales. This could be the straw that broke the camel’s back as far as inflation is concerned.

When industrial users discover they might have a delivery problem they more than likely double order. This in itself will put added pressure on the shorts and send silver on a par with gold. There is three times more gold around than silver. If silver ever reached the price of gold, forget the Euro and everything else. Heaven Forbid!!!

What one can do. Own silver for cash only. NOW

What the authorities must do worldwide.

Raise Interest rates NOW.

Abolish margin rates NOW.

Bring back the uptick rule NOW.

Reinstate the usury laws NOW.

Hire outside Law firms that will sue or try violators ona contingency basis. There only fee will be a fee based upon a predetimined percentage of the judgement. If they loose – no fee. This will give would be violators second thoughts of breaking laws.

Finally go back to chapter one and review every chapter that I have written so far

Cheerio !!!

COMEX(Commodity and metal exchange) offers gold, silver, copper and aluminum contracts as well as FTSE Eurotop 100 and 300 stock indices.

[ii] High frequency trades (HFT) are done by computing an allogrintem into a computer program that will trade silver contracts in nano seconds. This can also be done by posting factious offerings to scare away would be buyers causing the security to drop in value quickly. Then in a nano second it will buy back the security. The difference in sale price and buy price is the profit. Using a million dollars on margin; fractional change in price can be a tidy sum. It is estimated that 80 to 90% of all trades are now HFT’s.

August 19, 2012
It Can Happen to Me. Guess what? It Will ! Chapter 17 Breaking Up the Banks

IT CAN NOT HAPPEN TO ME. GUESS WHAT? IT WILL !!
Chapter 17 Breaking Up the Banks.

“A GREEDY MAN BRINGS TROUBLE TO HIS FAMILY, BUT HE WHO HATES BRIBES WILL LIVE.” PROVERBS 15:27 When an industry is at the top or number one it has no place to go but down. This has been my observation for over 55 years. In the US Army it is called OJT (On the Job Training). WE as citizens going into our local bank should be warned WATCH OUT- THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS FREE LUNCH.

Albert Einstein said man’s greatest invention is compound interest. Banks love it when they can put it to use to an unsuspecting public. Any funds one gets to work down the principal will find that it has expanded. At some point one will not be able to pay that principal or off.

A funny thing happen on the way to the bank. They did it to themselves. Easy credit will kill the goose every time. You see in order to gain more wealth , banks had to issue more debt in order to lend more. GREED – it is a killer. Once one starts making and spending money; one needs more. It is at the very top that one takes chances in order to gain more. Usually these chances are at the detriment of us the average citizen trying to provide for a family.

The names of Corzine, LIBOR, JP Morgan-Chase; Dimon and Weill mean little to the average citizen-until they want to pay off debt. This is when the “Rule of 72” comes into play. It is very simple. Just divide the interest rate you are paying into 72. Your answer is how many years the bank is doubling its money on you. So if you are paying an 8% mortgage for 30 years divided by 72 is every 9 years. To me that seems fair because you are using the banks money. Credit cards can work on a monthly basis and now one is “going where no man has gone before”-STAR TREK. Once a debt is in outer space it is up to the courts (and the courts have to follow the law) the debtor is a pawn to spineless attorneys who seek a quick reward for returning a pittance to the lender. This is legal larceny and a USURY law supported by all nations would halt this practice and create more jobs and distribute more wealth over a wider area.

Once a bank has you in their indebtedness you lose your freedom. The more debt you take on; the deeper the hole you are in. If you are a lawmaker, one should open their safe deposit boxes. IN the days of yesteryear, politicians would accept tax free municipal bonds, but today they have to be registered. Now one finds cash that has been unreported?

So Nothing big can happen until elections are held, because it is more likely that the legislators involved with any kind of finances are on the take. So our votes are very important. We must elect enough new members that a group can control any committee. This has to be done in a bipartisan spirit.

So to break up the banks in a meaningful term we must have a majority turnover in world wide elections. WE must enforce a strong Usury Law for the protection of us all.

When JP Morgan has outrageous short positions in Gold and Silver futures on the COMEX and the CFTC is powerless to enforce them against this giant bank. The CFTC entire budget is around $200-$300 million while JP Morgan could spend $5 billion defending their illegal position. When a giant bank can out maneuver their government of laws – the bank should be broken up rather quickly.

My next chapters will have to do with the brokerage and financial management part of the break up.

August 9, 2012
What Goes Around Must Come Around Chapter16

WHAT GOES AROUND MUST COME AROUND

IT CAN NOT HAPPEN TO ME. GUESS WHAT? It will !!!

Chapter 16

On February 10, 1941 then Senator Harry S Truman made a speech telling the [1]Senate what he had found on his investigations of government waste in the war effort. The Senate passed his resolution and authorized $15,000 and made him Chairman.

That was the beginning of the “Truman Commission.” It saved the taxpayers over $15 BILLION dollars and saved thousands of soldiers lives. FDR even encouraged Truman to look into certain areas. Every report made by the committee was unanimous. During the course of the war the committee’s budget was increased from the initial $15,000 to $300,000. That is amazing considering how today this congress is so divided.

Because of his positive efforts as a fine senator FDR chose him to become his vice President when he ran for a fourth term.

Truman felt that people dealing with government funds , whether they are local, state or national have very little respect for those funds.

It is my belief that when you have a boom period, people become very sloppy because IT IS NOT THEIR MONEY. Then when times are tough which is usually the case after a boom period- good times can not last forever-they get too dependant upon those loose funds and create clever schemes to cover up their begotten gains.

A perfect example of this is what went on with Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac the two giant government mortgage agencies that are now controlled by the Federal Housing Finance Agency at the cost of over $150billion. They (bureaucrats) are trying to figure out what to do with them. These entities should be closed down immediately. The mortgages, if found, should be returned to the originating bank and serviced there interest free. I believe this is one of the reasons Collateralized mortgages (CMO”s) and derivatives were created as another way to fleece the public. The firms that created these monster fraud vehicles should be the ones to pay and forced to leave the business. This is a process of power and corruption. What goes around comes around. Too big to Fail should mean too big to save. The public worked hard to save and invest for a home, it is the politicians and the bureaucrats that squandered their savings and ruined their dreams. They are trying to muddy the thought process by bringing up the fact that there are some folks who have been paying. If they can pay the principal then forgive the interest payments. Give them a second chance – not the politicians.

Some of these instruments have been traded into oblivion and should be trashed with the creator of these funny money obligations taking the loss. That is if they can be found. This will ultimately be a good savory bone for the beleaguered savings industry.

When a mortgage was submitted to the Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac those funds left the local community and fleeced the pockets of bureaucrats inWashingtonD.C…Simply put – more fingers tasting the pie.

IT BEHOOVES EVERY NEWLY ELECTED POLITICIAN IN EVERY DECOCRATIC FORM OF GOVERNMENT WORLDWIDE TO INVESTIGATE FOR WASTE AND CORRUPTION IN THEIR COUNTIRES. Some agencies should be dropped and other downsized and maybe some increased. The main purpose is to recover ill-gotten gains even if they were transferred to other entities. This will help bring down government deficits and reduce government debt. If Harry Truman’s committee saved billions of dollars in the early 1940’s; think of all the moneys that can be saved today. One of the wealthiest cities in the world today is WASHINGTON.DC.

Governments should not get into the people’s business, but they must set fair and honest rules so the participants are guaranteed an equal chance. Participants that break the rules should be severely punished.

[1] Plain Speaking An Oral biography of Harry S Truman, Chapter 13

Merle Miller

July 12, 2012
Burger King Plans Large Expansion in China

By Charlene Cooper

A Chinese customer eats a burger at a Burger King.

A Chinese customer eats a burger at a Burger King. (Photo: Reuters)

Burger King, One of the largest hamburger chains in the world, plans on expanding in China. With only 63 current restaurants in China, the company will be opening 1,000 locations in the country within five to seven years. This is the biggest development deal that Burger King has ever made.

Competitor McDonald’s Corp. currently has over 1,400 restaurant locations in China.

The company explained to Bloomberg BusinessWeek, that the expansion is a collaboration between the Kurdoglu family, which is responsible for Burger King restaurants in Turkey, and Cartesian Capital Group, a private equity firm.

Burger King has over 12,500 restaurants around the world. The company’s biggest international franchise is run by the Kurdoglu family.

Burger King revealed plans to additionally expand in Russia earlier this month. In 2011, the company also expanded its restaurants in Brazil.

Last year, 80 percent of Burger King’s expansion had occurred in the Middle East, Africa, and Europe.

With its past market share declining nationally, the company agreed to be taken by 3G Capital, a New York based investment firm, in 2010.

Rather than expanding in the United States, Burger King locations have seen more of a face lift to current restaurants. This past April, the company expanded its menu, including popular options such as snack wraps and fruit smoothies.

Competing companies such as McDonald’s Corp and Yum Brands Inc. which owns Taco Bell, KFC, and Pizza Hut, have also been looking into international expansion. McDonald’s has decided to open 900 new fast food locations in 2012, in Asia, Africa, and the Middle East. During its first quarter, Yum Brands Inc. expanded in China by opening 168 new restaurants in the country.

via Burger King Plans Large Expansion in China – Jobs&Hire :: News :: Jobs & Hire.

June 17, 2012