The Ultimate Necessary Evil

I was watching the news today about President Obama's recent trip to China. I have been interested in American/Chinese relations ever since reading the Ted Fishman book China, Inc. If anybody think America is the only super-power, they are sadly mistaken. It is about time that we had a President who recognizes it and sees the need to engage in dialogue with the Chinese government. Don't get me wrong, Chinese human rights policy, their policy on the government, Tibet, and on and on has me absolutely disgusted. But, for the benefit of America, we need to encourage Obama to continue conversations. China will be key in how the world deals with North Korea. Can Obama convince the Chinese to stop making deals with corrupt middle eastern governments. Can Obama stress the importance of dealing with global climate change. I hope this is the first of many trips Obama makes to China.


1. I finished the book Life of Pi by Yann Martel yesterday. I started the book with outrageous expectations. It is one of the favorites of many of my friends. I liked it but did not necessarily love it. The beginning of the book was fascinating, and the end was terrific. But for a short book, the meat of the book seemed a bit drawn out and I was bored. I would still recommend it though.



2. While perusing the Tribune today, I was actually pretty shocked to hear that Playboy is in big financial trouble. In its past ten years, it has lost $256 million. Because of this, the Chicago company is currently being sold. According to the article, the magazine itself is a necessary evil. They know that the magazine is bleeding money, but they need to keep it around because the Playboy logo, around the world, is a huge money maker. Right now Heffner owns 70% of the company.