Apr 14 2009
Fireflies in a Bottle
Sometimes, I think of sparks of thoughts while reading like fireflies in midsummer evenings. In a remote place, say, Hefei.
While in college. Zhao Feng and I used to capture fireflies, put them in a bottle and watch them sparkle. Those are quiet, dark and muggy Hefei summer nights. Especially out there in the West Campus. I can still smell the muddy pounds till this day.
But there is something about watching fireflies in a glass bottle. They fly as if they are free. You watch them as if they are free. But they are not. They are trapped. Still they make beautiful displays.
So are my sparks, in that vortex of thought, they shine, dim, fly away. Then come back occasionally, and shine again. I hate to see them fly away. So I put them in a bottle, called Blog.
Have been behind on taking notes on things read recently. Just spoke with DS yesterday. The Grandpa Fool built a notes and excerpts repository close to 12 gigs. If that is ever an inspiration, here it is my reaction. However feeble.
Notes:
Jeff sent me this article: how Chinese social marketing money.
Keywords: opening payment API, application market place, pay for advertise your own, Facebook’s inadequate “credit system”, 51.com “开心农场”, etc.
Chinese Social Networks ‘Virtually’ Out-Earn Facebook And MySpace: A Market Analysis
此文可编入《新新世说》：
我和负责扫黄的领导一起看色情录像 言作者在出差时，陪着一个从未看过黄色录像的共党的老公安，在旅馆里无意中翻到黄色频道。老公安的姿态和反应，虽可以想象，但仍然值得玩味。
《世说新语》大部分没劲，但有些实在好笑，像“胡为乎泥中？”之类的对话，写出一种憨傻的姿态。总之，《世说新语》（好的内容）有它的niche：非文非史，无甚大事，却又不是天天得见。
秦晖：从大共同体本位到公民社会——传统中国及其现代化再认识
Talking about the lack of public space, community, buffer between the State and the immediate individual in Chinese history.
What strikes me is his revisionist read of Chinese history, even his own views before.
很多人都喜欢讲1949年以前，中国的国家权力只达到县一级，县以下是自治的乡村，乡绅代表了自治利益，用宗族治理进行没有丝毫政权意味的乡绅自治。如果针对1949年以后的情况而言，这是可以说得过去的，但如果把它作为文化特征，与其他民族对比，恐怕就不能这样说了。
Obvious revisionist, but not surprising. Others: 儒表法里， 儒家性善论，【但】在幼学诗之类中表现出来的“画龙画虎难画骨，知人知面不知心”，etc.