Relax Bottle-O. You sure seem to know a lot about journalism for a guy that isn't a journalist.

I bet the Beijinger staff doesn't come to your work and slap the dicks out of your mouth, so why are you so bent on slamming them? You have no idea of the politics and sensitivities involved in stories like this so maybe you should keep your mouth shut, unless it’s being filled with dick of course, which it is often I am sure.

Instead of being a smarmy little (c)runt why don't you try being useful to society for a change and actually create something instead of just complaining about it.

You're an idiot. Go back to folding jeans in retail... If you didn't have business skills before you left the US, why would they hire you for any position in the "real world" because you've been singing ABC and Bingo dog for the last 5 years?

The situation in Beijing with Westerners is already volatile, we don't need this...

Iain, you guys at thebeijinger have your own logic as to why you ran that piece, but it eludes me. The net result of your action was the furtherance of negative opinions of foreigners in China. Some people get the satirical angle, others not at all, but the result of the piece is negative, and dangerously so.

Take a satirical swipe at migrant workers, women, the elderly, and the laughs stop. Caucasian males are generally fair game for ridicule elsewhere, but in a place where they reside as a visible minority, it only increases the chance that that small percentage of indignant racists will come out of the crowd fuming. And they don't wait to see who is immoral or moral, who is "a loser" or otherwise. You, the press, have a responsibility to dampen the fires of racism, not fan them.

The funny thing about both of his articles is the way he bends the kernels of truth. As a foreigner living in Beijing for eight years I can relate to what he says and it makes me laugh, it is funny. Like they say, The grass is always greener on the other side. That being said I do think that a lot of Chinese people need to lighten up a bit (or as George may say "a whole lot") and not take themself or a lot of things so so seriously. Way too sensitive in many ways I think. Attention all Chinese people WE LOVE YOU WE ARE YOUR FRIENDS it is just that there are so many different subtle and not so subtle social nuances and graces that make it hard for us to understand each other a lot of the time.(Please add some funny examples George)Instead of looking at how we are different let`s start looking at how we are the same. It would be a longer list for sure. We have a lot more in common than many may think. I have a 5000 year history too you know, otherwise I wouldn`t be here would I?

Closed since the middle of September.
You could have.. um.. i dunno, been journalists and done some research, or just talked to anyone around to confirm what was really going on with the location. Talking to the landlord would have been one simple way to get the story. I guess just sitting around and waiting for people to tell you what to write is one way to be a magazine though... I suppose.

@bottle-o Terra's been temporarily closed for a little over a month, yes, but until today it was entirely unconfirmed that they were closing for good. We could have pronounced them closed earlier, but it would have been unverified, and that to me seems like worse journalism. But thanks for your feedback.

LOL. Breaking news! The place has been shut down for 3 months and they have been taking proposals from other groups since then. You guys are the worst journalists ever. The only disagreement they had with the landlord is that they didn't want to rent the space any more and broke their contract.

Beijing Cream has also jumped to George's defence, while offering some suggestion of where the gap in understanding came from:

"Ding’s mistake is not that he was joking, but that he didn’t take the joke far enough ..."

http://beijingcream.com/2012/12/lost-in-translation-or-is-it-netizens-slam-tbj-george-ding/

The Cleaver Quarterly: A new print magazine taking a playful look at Chinese food as a global phenomenon. Issue 1 out May 2014

thecleaverquarterly.com

@Bambi508 There've been no official announcements on weibo or the subway website about a closure today. There's no guarantee that this means it won't be closing, but it seems unlikely. Good luck!

There is, however, mention on the website that Line 10 may be closed on Saturday, Dec 15, once again for testing purposes. For more (in Chinese), see their website: http://bjdtw.com/ditie/bencandy.php?fid=43&aid=855

ChinaSmack's report on the George Ding "misunderstanding" features English translations of some of the comments made by Weibo users. A few samples:

"Yep, Beijing is the most suitable place for classic good-for-nothing white trash to be ..."

"This too is a lazy American youth, shouldn’t be the mainstream ..."

"Does he want Chinese permanent residency? I can offer to exchange with him!"

"Is this person real?"

http://www.chinasmack.com/2012/stories/american-explains-why-hes-returning-to-china-after-leaving.html

The Cleaver Quarterly: A new print magazine taking a playful look at Chinese food as a global phenomenon. Issue 1 out May 2014

thecleaverquarterly.com

My Chinese colleague put up a small fight, saying that the influence of Christianity meant that other countries valued their weekends. I said, no, we value our xiuxi! Then she agreed it was indeed rubbish, but what can they do about it? I suggested being lazy during working weekends and moaning to your boss (haha well I am British) - but, as she said, no Chinese will do that. Alas, what can be done?

I will be in touch as soon as possible! Smile

Bonnie Course

So summarizing, you're an American egocentric spoiled kid who doesn't even give a shit to integrate in the country you're living in. You don't like China, you just like the easy life you can have here. No need to write a post to say how good is life in China for a selfish American who just cares about money, partying and an ayi who cleans your pukes the day after. You're a loser for many other reasons.