This week in Shanghaiist
Interview: Coco Zhao, from jazz to M. Butterfly
For those following the will they - won't they debacle regarding the United States pavilion at the 2010 Expo, the latest news is that the US will officially be attending. Not only are plans on track to sign a contract, but -what's this?- fundraising is right on target!
Never mind the fact that the original deadline to start construction passed last week, due to concerns that "if work on a pavilion starts after June 30 this year, it can't be completed before May 1 next year."
According to the Shanghai Daily, the US' participation contract will be signed once enough money has been raised to start building the pavilion. Last we checked, PepsiCo had pledged five million dollars towards the Expo, though any additional funds after that were unclear.
Now the figures suddenly stand at $20 million raised, thanks to General Electric, PepsiCo, 3M, Dell, Yum!, Cargill, Golden Eagle and the USA-China Education, Science and Culture Association. Another $40 million in contracts is supposedly still being negotiated; the total budget for the pavilion is estimated to land around $61 million.
Apparently, Hillary Clinton's recent backing of the US pavilion led to more companies to step up and pledge money. According to one organizer, the Expo is a golden opportunity "to launch the new face of America and show how we want to cooperate with the rest of the world."
The US pavilion is to be one of the largest at the Expo, so from here on, building and fundraising are going to continue simultaneously. The theme for the pavilion, by the way, is (ironically) "Rise to the Challenge".
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Way to Go America!
Is that Haibao's navel I'm staring at?
CCP Expo official: Now the way I see it, Mr Dell, Microsoft, GE, GM, HP, etc., if you plan to continue selling your products to wo men zhong guo ren, you'd better think long and hard about making sure we don't lose face and loosen the purse strings by sponsoring this great, glorious event.
Gov't Liaison Business Sycophant: Absolutely for sure, yes! We'd be more than happy to see this event that will dwarf all others, be an amazing success visited by billions the world over (if they can secure visas). Shanghai will once again attain the great glory that was hers 80 years ago! The Whore of the Orient shall wake up and claim her Johns again!!
CCP Expo official: Great! Excellent (rubbing hands together). We knew you'd come around to your senses. Wo men zhong guo ren are reasonable and pragmatic and only want your participation because of the prestige of this event. Now please leave that plain brown paper bag full of cash with my mi shu xiao jie on your way out...
This is really going to piss off Shanghai Scrap. It's one less excuse to lecture foreigners about how Chinese people value 'face.'