Wo ai Zhong-guo ren

Let's be tongue-in-cheek at the dawn of Friday the 13th. Let's start with a classic Monty Python song, The Chinese Song:

The world today is absolutely cracked.
With nuclear bombs to blow us all sky high.
There's fools and idiots sitting on the trigger.
It's depressing, and it's senseless, and that's why...

(singing)
I like chinese,
I like chinese,
They only come up to you knees,
Yet they're always friendly and they're ready to to please.

I like chinese,
I like chinese,
There's nine hundred million of them in the world today,
You'd better learn to like them, that's what I say.

I like chinese,
I like chinese,
They come from a long way overseas,
But they're cute, and they're cuddly, and they're ready to please.

I like chinese food,
The waiters never are rude,
Think the many things they've done to impress,
There's maoism, taoism, eging and chess.

I like chinese,
I like chinese,
I like their tiny little trees,
Their zen, their ping-pong, their ying and yang-eze.

I like chinese thought,
The wisdom that Confusious taught,
If Darwin is anything to shout about,
The chinese will survive us all without any doubt.

So, I like chinese,
I like chinese,
They only come up to you knees,
Yet they're wise, and they're witty, and they're ready to please

Wo ai Zhong-guo ren [Wo, I chumba run]
Wo ai Zhong-guo ren
Wo ai Zhong-guo ren
Ni Hao Ma? Ni Hao Ma? Ni Hao Ma? Zai zhen [Ne hamma? ... Chi Chen]

I like chinese,
I like chinese,
They're food is guaranteed to please,
A fourteen, a seven, a nine and li-chese

I like chinese,
I like chinese,
I like their tiny little trees,
Their zen, their ping-pong, their yin and yang-eze

I like chinese,
I like chinese,
(fade out....)

And, more to the serious side of things, here's the Bloomberg write-up on President Hu's brief, but materially significant visit to Malaysia a few days ago. I'm too lazy to editorialise. It's Friday...

Nov. 11 (Bloomberg) -- China will help Malaysia build up its transport infrastructure as it seeks to tap more of the Southeast Asian nation’s natural resources.

The two countries will work on railway, bridge, water and energy projects as China imports more Malaysian palm oil and timber, according to memorandums of understanding signed on the final day of President Hu Jintao’s state visit to Malaysia.

“We are looking at advancing strategic cooperation in all fields,” Hu told reporters after meeting Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak today in the administrative capital of Putrajaya, about an hour’s drive from Kuala Lumpur.

China is the world’s largest edible oil importer. The resource-hungry nation bought 357,570 metric tons last month from Malaysia, the world’s No. 2 palm exporter of the crop. Beijing has been scouring the world for natural resources to feed an economy that has grown at least 6 percent annually since 1997. In return, it has pledged financing and help with construction of infrastructure.

“China’s appetite for commodities is almost unquenchable,” said Dorab Mistry, director of Godrej International Ltd. “We expect growth of consumption per capita of between 3 and 4 percent in China even now, they will continue to be a very good buyer of Malaysian palm oil.”

The Malaysian government is opening up to more business from China as data from the Statistics Department showed that from January to September this year, China is the second-largest market for Malaysia’s exports valued at 46.8 billion ringgit. Malaysian exports to China jumped 16 percent last month from a year earlier, figures released in Beijing today showed.

Dam Builders

Malaysia will work with Chinese companies to build a dam in Penang state, Najib said. The Mengkuang Dam will be the biggest in the area with a storage capacity of 23,639 million liters of water, supplying both Penang and surrounding areas.

A Chinese company will be awarded a contract by the Malaysian government to help develop a double-track railway that will run from Johor Bahru, bordering Singapore, to Gemas in the state of Negeri Sembilan, Najib added. Global Rail Sdn. is leading the construction of the 28 billion ringgit ($8.2 billion) project, Malaysia’s Business Times reported on Oct. 8.

Malaysia will also work with Chinese companies to build a pulp and paper mill and aluminum smelter in Sarawak state, Najib said, without naming of the China businesses that will be involved in these projects.

Second Bridge

Export-Import Bank of China, a state export credit agency, signed a credit agreement with Jambatan Kedua Sdn. for a second bridge linking Penang Island to the Malaysian peninsula. Jambatan Kedua is building the superstructure for the bridge for main developer UEM Builders Bhd.

Meanwhile, Beijing Enterprise Water Group Ltd. will work with the Malaysian government to improve the country’s sewerage services, according to one MoU signed today.

Hu last visited Malaysia in April 2002 when he was China’s vice president, Malaysia’s foreign affairs ministry said in a statement dated Nov. 6. Malaysia started diplomatic relations with China in 1974.