[chadh]

I read the OP as a quirky little tongue in cheek story. It sounded to me like he was poking some fun at the rumors and innuendo he had heard and I don't think the ton of bricks that were dropped on him by some of the respondents was justified. Some of people just need to lighten up a little.

Thanks Dan.

I wonder whether people would suggest that the works of Fitzgerald, Faulkner and (this really would be a riot!) Umberto Eco should be revised with emoticons to remove any chance of misunderstanding in their writings?  Give me a break people.  The day that words are insufficient to express one's self is the day I stop bothering to read books.

The title of the thread referred to a "funny/disturbing" story.  And at the conclusion of the post I even spelled out that people should feel at liberty to take the story in either of two ways:  as a humorous story or a dire warning.    Perhaps it was foolish of me to expect that people could read the story and make up their own minds.  Perhaps I should be less humble, and realise the people need me to tell them explicitly how I reacted to the story and subsequently what they should think about it.  I'll think about changing my attitude.  Regardless, I can't for the life of me see how an emoticon could help me make it any clearer that I may not have been totally serious.

Hmmm...I just thought about things.  And I decided that I didn't want to change.  As far as I'm concerned the story is a story and you individually can judge for yourself whether to place any credence in it.  If it makes you laugh, then I'm glad.  If it makes you nervous, then you're probably either the type who is constantly searching for conspiracy theories, or the type searching for ways to rationalise your xenophobia.  And I'm glad I had a chance to satisfy your neurotic cravings.

As for the notion that one could boycott a firm like Cayin as a stand against the threat that Chinese government policy poses to the American way of life, think about this.  Every day the US Treasury, Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and other quasi-government agencies sell securities to the Chinese government.  Lots of securities.  Should the Chinese government ever wish to liquidate this stock of securities, without a doubt this would destroy the US mortgage market, the US financial markets in general would be destabilised and the whole US economy would likely be undermined.  If you're worried about a threat from China, it's pure melodrama to imagine that the threat comes from a nuclear attack, and foolishness to imagine that your personal audio purchasing decisions (or even the collective decisions of all audiophiles) will have any impact on anything.

Again, I'll let you make up your own minds as to whether this financial issue is a threat about which you should care.  And again, I'll eschew the opportunity to litter my words with the Walmart mascot and his crazy shenanigans.  I make no apologies for the ambiguity this leaves regarding what you should think.

Chad

[PhilNYC]

I wonder whether people would suggest that the works of Fitzgerald, Faulkner and (this really would be a riot!) Umberto Eco should be revised with emoticons to remove any chance of misunderstanding in their writings?  Give me a break people.  The day that words are insufficient to express one's self is the day I stop bothering to read books.
.

Chad, I have read numerous works by F. Scott Fitzgerald, and you sir are no F. Scott Fitzgerald...

 

(I'm not, either...so I need the emoticons...)  

[skrivis]

foolishness to imagine that your personal audio purchasing decisions (or even the collective decisions of all audiophiles) will have any impact on anything.

I suppose I shouldn't bother voting either. One vote can't possibly make any difference...

I'm hoping that trade with China will change their form of government over time. If given a choice, I will purchase a product from another country that seems to be more committed to human rights.

No country is perfect, but China has significant problems with human rights abuses.

So why shouldn't I protest that?

[skrivis]

I don't like Walmart either.


So there! hehe

[randytsuch]

Thanks Dan.

I wonder whether people would suggest that the works of Fitzgerald, Faulkner and (this really would be a riot!) Umberto Eco should be revised with emoticons to remove any chance of misunderstanding in their writings?  Give me a break people.  The day that words are insufficient to express one's self is the day I stop bothering to read books.

...

What about context?  When you read a novel, you know you are reading a novel.  It is a completely different frame of mind from reading a post on a forum.

Here, people had a couple of paragraphs to try to decide what you were trying to say, and why you brought up the subject.

And, I was not trying to give you a hard time, hell I thought I was being helpful.  Guess that didn't work, so this is my last post on this subject.

I don't really care if you use emoticons or not, but my kids love them.

Does bring up an interesting point though, I wonder when we will start seeing emoticons in books?

Randy

[ooheadsoo]

Stereos are used to play music too.

That's why it's amusing for those who care.

[Bemopti123]

I'm still avoiding Toshiba products when possible.

If I knew that a particular brand of gasoline was from Libya, I wouldn't buy it. I don't buy gas from Citgo because I don't approve of what Chavez does with the money. (I have family in Venezuela, and Chavez is just plain bad news.)

I have mixed emotions about Chinese products. I have nothing against the Chinese, but I'm certainly not thrilled with the Chinese government.

I'm not thrilled with the current US government either.

There is nothing wrong to stand on our grounds when it comes to conscience and what we use everyday...

Companies I deliberately avoid:


Royal Dutch Company=Shell gas, for being in bed with the government of was it Nigeria, one of these African countries.  A famous writer fought for the rights of a people whose rainforest territory had oil...they were offered profits by the government, later to have it squandered for their own benefit, with Shell leaving a devasted eco system and when the writer began to make noise, the government simply put a rap on him, accusing him of murdering of people(who most likely were murdered by that government.)  And I love Shell's commercials talking about corporate responsability and the environment

Exxon for the Exxon Valdez incident which they have not contributed much effort to clean up.

Texaco for their executives making comments about black workers, and be dumb enough to have it captured on tape.  

Going back to the argument, there is soooo many companies with dirty secrets that I guess, if one were with conscience to boycott everything, we would have to live in STONE AGES

[Thump553]

Actually I still boycott Toshiba products to this day for the very reason Bemophtil123 alluded to.  It was back in the mid-80s, when the Cold War was still raging.  Toshiba sold to the Russians top secret information about how the US silenced its submarine propellers.  Silence, not speed, is the essential quality of our nuclear launch subs.  Toshiba's actions cost the US billions in additional research and put a huge crimp in the US defenses.

The Cold War may be over, but there is no sense in supporting a company that sold out its allies to boost its bottom line.

Here's a NY Times link I found in a few seconds google:
http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9B0DE3DE1131F936A35754C0A961948260

----

On a related matter, please don't confuse anti-China sentiment with anti-chinese prejudice.  They are two completely different things.  Personally I also do my best to stay away from Made In China goods due to their abysmal records on forced labor and environmental degradation.