Daai Tou Laam


        Daai Tou Laam means "big tummy" in Cantonese. The blogger might be referring to his own physical appearance. This American expat has a passion for politics of all types and locales. In his blog, among other things, he mostly writes about Chinese politics and the goings-on at his neighbourhood of Peng Chau (a rural island).

        The blogger, Tom Legg, is a self-appointed reporter and commentator on politics in general, of China and Hong Kong in particular, his entries range from local rural politics to the ills of the Chinese central government; to the ineptness of HK politicians; to current issues on the front page. His comments on China and HK's political scenes are pretty much in line with the usual Western views --- no great refreshing insights there. He sees the glass as half-empty, not half-full.

        It seems to Mr. Legg that it's his duty to expose every wart and blemish of the political systems in China and Hong Kong along with their possible fundamental flaws for the world to see. To learn a less subjective view and a proper historical comparison, this blogger needs to read Charles Dickens.

        The reviewers say, it's too much of the same thing, this blog is rather trite and lifeless. They suggest that Mr. Legg try to make some Chinese friends (both male and female) and get some up-to-date, first-hand information and knowledge of China and Hong Kong directly from the people he writes about; for him, learning Chinese will help.

        Going through this blog, it's plain to the reviewers that the blogger misses many key elements of the issues he voices his opinions on, simply because he doesn't understand the language, and is over confident on his own interpretations, or relies on others (sometimes one-sided news sources in English) to translate the information from Chinese to English for him. It's difficult to understand a people's politics and culture beyond the superficial level when you do not understand their native tongue.

        By no means is Mr. Legg unique. In small variations, the HK expats' blogging world is littered with political blogs like this one.


Reviewed by TMG, TYG and edited by SSPB of hong-kong-blogs-review.com




© Copyright All Contents   -   All Rights Reserved



版權所有 ‧ 不得轉載