标题: Long Wait for US Visa [打印本页] 作者: choi 时间: 10-14-2011 12:46 标题: Long Wait for US Visa 本文通过一路BBS站telnet客户端发布
(1) David Pierson, Visiting the US From China Means a Long Visa Wait. Los Angeles Times, Oct 14, 2011.
http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-china-visas-20111013,0,6102782.story
Quote:
"The Chinese put up with a lot living in the world's most populous country: standing on over-crowded trains for 40 hours; sleeping outside hospitals to secure a doctor's appointment; waiting more than a year to earn a driver's license. Add getting a U.S. entry visa to the list.
"Though Brazilian demand for U.S. visas is growing at a faster rate, China's sheer size poses a unique set of challenges for America's consular corps. The embassy and consulates in China are processing twice as many non-immigrant visas than they were only three years ago — recently hitting the 1-million yearly mark for the first time, a number that had previously been reached only in Mexico. Yet there are only about 100 visa adjudicators in China * * * the increase in Chinese students coming to the U.S. grew 485% from 2005 to 2010.
"For one thing, only 15% of applicants are denied, not half, as some have suggested, Bennett said. There is also no quota for rejections. The embassy's visa section answers questions and offers tips in Chinese using a microblog on the popular service Sina Weibo
(2) William Kazer, Local Government Borrowing — And A Debt of Gratitude. China Real Time Report, China Real Time, Oct 15, 2011 (availble now)
http://blogs.wsj.com/chinarealtime/2011/10/15/in-chinalocal-government-borrowing-and-a-debt-of-gratitude/
("While China was still in a holiday mood last week, Beijing gave local governments something to really cheer about, announcing through state media that they will soon be able to raise money by selling bonds directly. For more than 17 years, this was a closely guarded privilege of Beijing, which sometimes issued debt on behalf of local governments but never let them charge ahead on their own")
My comment: There is no need to read the rest.
(3) Rose Yu, Village’s Knock-Off Landmarks: What Would Steve Jobs Think? China Real Time Report, China Real Time, Oct 14, 2011.
http://blogs.wsj.com/chinarealtime/2011/10/14/china-villages-knock-off-landmarks-what-would-steve-jobs-think/
(4) 英媒：中国游客黄金周到海外疯狂购物. BBC Chinese, Oct 14, 2011
http://www.bbc.co.uk/zhongwen/simp/business/2011/10/111014_china_tourist.shtml
("对经济硬着陆一点也不担心")
Note:
(a) Selfridges
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Selfridges
(a chain of high end department stores in the United Kingdom; founded by Harry Gordon Selfridge in 1909)
(b) The report is a summary of
Leo Lewis, Chinese tourists give shops a Golden Week. The Times, Oct 14, 2011.
However, the British newspaper has not allowed non-sunscribers to read free online.
(5) David Pierson, Shaky Underground Banking System Raises Fears in China. Los Angeles Times, Oct 14, 2011.
http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-china-wenzhou-debts-20111014,0,5701731.story
Quote:
"Wenzhou, a city of 9 million, is the largest source of private capital in China by some estimates.
"Wenzhou reportedly asked the central bank for a $9.3-billion loan, a request that has been met with criticism reminiscent of the U.S. financial bailout. 'Saving Wenzhou is like saving a gambler,' Han Zhiguo, an economist at a private securities firm, wrote on his blog. 'Using the taxpayers' money to save Wenzhou has a huge moral risk.'