Taylormania hits Singapore this week, with the requisite scams, debates over government subsidies, a retired diplomat riling neighbouring nations, and Internet sleuths digging into Swift’s maternal family’s connection to Singapore (read: it was substantial, as most expat engineer packages were in the 1960s). Whoever created this headline on satirical news account The Pressing Times SG deserves a raise. TayTay over political diplomatic appointees any time.
Akan Datang (Coming Soon)
Something to watch out for this week is China’s 2024 National People’s Congress meeting, held from 5–11 March. A lot hinges on what will go on during those few days – the state of the economy, investor confidence, consumer sentiment and global effects. A substantial portion of next Monday’s briefing will be dedicated not only to a roundup but also my analysis of what will transpire, and depending on what insights my speed reading of Yan Xuetong’s Leadership and the Rise of Great Powers will yield, I’ll attempt to integrate them into my analysis. Once again, it is time for me to find the contrapuntal.
Everything Is Political…
… even TayTay’s Eras tour, Singapore leg, as Minister Edwin Tong’s mission to the US revealed. Many Chinese people have long understood, if not accepted, that everything about our existence is inherently political. How does that translate into our popular consciousness and culture, though? You could do worse than start with Jin Yong (Louis Cha) and his wuxia – martial arts – novels. His works are, as CJ puts it, mediations on Chinese culture and politics. If you’re after a good translation, I recommend this generation’s Anna Holmwoods, a contemporary update on Earnshaw’s.
That’s a lot to digest over the week, dear readers. Until the next.