Hi all, only a few days left to pitch ideas for the upcoming issues of Made in China Journal (on Hong Kong) and Global China Pulse (on the new geopolitics of knowledge production). Short pitches are due September 30. 1/

If Chinese auto companies want to produce in the US and they'll use union labor, pay taxes, and maybe even help to improve the EV ecosystem, then there is no justification for excluding them. This is not a security threat.

US lawmakers urge Trump to maintain ban on Chinese automakers

More than two dozen Democratic ​lawmakers on Friday urged ‌President Donald Trump to keep in place a ban ​on Chinese automakers out ​of the US market, ⁠ahead of his meeting ​with China's President Xi ...

reuters.com

Expressive Activity Area update. Those wishing to express themselves will have to crouch in between the shrubbery

Eli Friedman@elifriedman.bsky.social · 6d ago

Apparently not intended a joke, Cornell University has set up an Expressive Activity Area just in front of the police station

The policy was quickly revoked and waved off as a draft that got published before revision, but as someone who studied this for a decade, even I find this one bizarre since it banned Cantonese but not English?

Hong Kong Free Press HKFP@hongkongfp.com · 2d ago

A prestigious Hong Kong girls’ school has issued a full withdrawal of a guideline banning Cantonese from being spoken in a graduation video after the move sparked controversy over the weekend. In full: hongkongfp.com/2026/09/22/p... Photo: Good Hope School.

I love how we continue to write articles as if the president knows or cares what words mean

The Associated Press@apnews.com · 3d ago

U.S. President Donald Trump is making communism a midterm attack line against Democrats. But this week, he's rolling out the red carpet for Chinese President Xi Jinping, the leader of the world's most powerful communist country.

“If you want to organise a public event, anything explicitly related to feminism or LGBT issues is basically not possible, at least in Beijing." Great news that she's out, but this article highlights how much worse things are now than in 2018... which in turn was more restrictive than 2010.

‘People had naive expectations’: How MeToo has changed in China

On Friday, MeToo journalist Sophia Huang Xueqin was released from prison. She returns to a landscape changed by censorship, and a new generation of feminists

theguardian.com

Apparently not intended a joke, Cornell University has set up an Expressive Activity Area just in front of the police station

Cleaners at Henan hospital on strike, haven't been paid in five months

昨天@yesterdaynews.bsky.social · 6d ago

「河南平顶山医院保洁集体罢工讨要工资（2026.09.16」9月16日，因工资被拖欠长达五个月，河南平顶山市第一人民医院未来路院区保洁工人集体罢工。

Putting this in my "Economists excited to discover knowledge that has been taught in intro to sociology literally for generations" folder

"Last week, more than 20 mainland scholars reached a 12-point consensus on a plan for Taiwan during a seminar in Beijing. These included maintaining a People’s Liberation Army presence in Taiwan and implementing patriotic education." Problem solved!

Beijing, Taipei need peace deal before reunification, Taiwanese scholar says

An agreement ending hostilities could allow the two sides to discuss the future on an equal footing, Chang Ya-chung.

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Possible that youth unemployment is at 25% if using the old methodology

Like @jeremywallace.bsky.social said in the intro to this panel, a rare but very welcome opportunity to have some attention on labor amid US-China tech competition

Shared Precarity and Prosperity—Labor and Society [Getting Tech Right, Session 3]

YouTube video by ACF @ Johns Hopkins SAIS

youtube.com

What a bummer. I wish the US required education in a second language, any language

In the Age of A.I., Some in China Wonder if Learning English Is Worth the Trouble

A math teacher’s viral post prompted a debate over the language, which some see as an optional skill — and a symbol of Western dominance.

nytimes.com

Union keeping the strike threat alive, demanding profit sharing. Hope they can lift the floor for semiconductor workers everywhere

Micron Stock Moves Past AI Fears With Launch of New Memory Module

Micron stock has stabilized following an AI slowdown panic but it still has to deal with union demands in Taiwan.

barrons.com

Tide is turning

We asked Dig senior advisor @yesnomabie.bsky.social about seven things that shaped his politics. Listen to Ben on our most recent episode, Mailbag! pod.fo/e/5ebd27

Tung was a disaster for Hong Kong's working class. One of the first things he did after assuming office in 1997 was to cancel collective bargaining rights. He should be remembered as a tycoon who ran the city in the interests of the tycoons (and their allies in Beijing).

Tung Chee-hwa, Hong Kong's first leader under Chinese rule, dies at 89

"For the first time in history, we, the people of Hong Kong, will be master of our own destiny." On July 1, 1997, Tung Chee-hwa delivered his first speech as chief executive of the territory, followin...

reuters.com

TIL we in the United States have something called National Boss's Day. Hottest country in the world

National Boss's Day — October 16, 2026 | National Today

National Boss's Day, observed every October 16, is a dedicated time to acknowledge and appreciate the leaders who guide and inspire their teams. Discover ways to show gratitude.

nationaltoday.com

1030 update: we've got the (current) CE's Belt and Road Summit speech but nothing yet on the death of former CE Tung Chee-hwa

Joel Chan@kjoules.org · 2w ago

Here is today’s news from the Hong Kong government, as of 10am

Thailand wants to expand its border fence with Malaysia too

Eli Friedman@elifriedman.bsky.social · 2w ago

China did its border wall with Myanmar during the pandemic, India trying to catch up. A somewhat different dynamic than US/EU, but militarization of the border is happening in the South too

China did its border wall with Myanmar during the pandemic, India trying to catch up. A somewhat different dynamic than US/EU, but militarization of the border is happening in the South too

India's Manipur vows to complete Myanmar border fence by 2028

New Delhi's plan criticized as impractical, harmful to frontier communities

asia.nikkei.com

"Harvard University’s endowment held about $2.2bn worth of SpaceX shares as of June 30, its largest ever single public equity holding" I'm glad they didn't immediately cave to Trump, but worth considering the limits of their ability to #resist

Big US university endowments outperform S&P 500 index

Substantial weightings in tech groups such as SpaceX help lift returns after several years of lagging behind market

giftarticle.ft.com

From 2014 Guangzhou strike: Unity is strength, Unity is strength. This strength is iron, This strength is steel. Harder than iron, Stronger than steel. Open fire on fascism, Let every undemocratic system perish. Toward the sun, toward freedom, Toward a new China, Let forth boundless rays of light!

"Dongguan sanitation workers support sanitation workers in Guangzhou University City Unite and defend your rights till the end" 2014 photo expressing support for a major strike event in GZ. Can't do this anymore.

I hope they win. But regardless the outcome, the state has to divert more of this wealth to people not directly employed in the industry

Micron's Taiwan unions threaten strike over bonus dispute

Micron Technology's ‌labour unions in Taiwan said on Tuesday they were moving towards possible strike action unless the U.S. memory-chip maker overhauls its bonus system and shares more of its profits...

reuters.com

"I want to thank the Chinese investors for investing in Cambodia," she said. "It has created many jobs and made life much better for Cambodian people." Very normal thing for a banana plantation worker to say, thank you Xinhua for the journalism

My new book is out this month! “Troop Movements: Labor, Race, and Global Freedom Struggles in America’s World War II” — by Tejasvi Nagaraja Buy it! Get in touch with me — if you have any ideas?: * book review * book-tour event * assigning it to teach * interview or podcast Thanks — Stay tuned!

Nothing makes me feel young again like checking out a book that's been on the shelves since before my parents met

New article, "Beyond State Narratives: Chinese Muslim Solidarities with Palestine in Post-Mao China"

Terrible news for academics in China who are already under immense work pressure. Let's hope this doesn't expand

‘An earthquake in Chinese academia’: Tongji abolishes tenure

Shanghai’s leading research university has overhauled its faculty appointment system. Will other institutions in China follow suit?

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