8 ms·

China promotes education drive to make boys more 'manly'

53 points by jnord 6y ago

Firebrand 6y ago
It’s oddly comforting to know Chinese social media and the influencers it creates seem to be just as insufferable as they are in the U.S.
- mensetmanusman 6y ago
  People are people.
LargoLasskhyfv 6y ago
Yäss! Gung Ho! https://youtu.be/xhdcnlphz10?t=97 https://youtu.be/xhdcnlphz10?t=97
inglor_cz 6y ago
Whatever China does lately seems to be tailored to inch its society toward more expansive mode and military values. A lot of nationalism in the curriculum, the "wolf warriors" ideas etc. I do not think they are doing this for shits and giggles. They invest a lot overseas and must be aware that one day, one of their client countries will rebel and will need to be subdued militarily to protect the investments and dissuade others from going down the same road. The question is what is the rest of the world going to do. So far we seem to be mostly ignoring this yet-soft development, maybe because the idea of having a Cold War 2.0 with a major industrial power is really uncomfortable.
- the-dude 6y ago
  Whatever the BBC publicizes about China lately seems to be tailored to inch its society toward more expansive and military values. A lot of nationalism in the curriculum, China must be stopped!
- enriquto 6y ago
  > The question is what is the rest of the world going to do. Most of the world probably dislikes China as much as they dislike the USA. If anything, they will be indifferent to the conflict, unless they happen to be in a "proxy-conflict" zone.
  - everdrive 6y ago
    Even if what you say is true (it isn't) the world does NOT want major armed conflict between the two major powers. There would be a spillover of conflict, and major economic impacts.
  - arethuza 6y ago
    The UK is siding strongly with the US on this - including sending a carrier group to the South China Sea: https://ukdefencejournal.org.uk/british-carrier-strike-group-heading-to-pacific-this-year/ https://ukdefencejournal.org.uk/british-carrier-strike-group... I can't imagine, given the history between the two countries, that the Chinese are that delighted to have the Royal Navy active in their part of the world again.
    - mytailorisrich 6y ago
      When they are ready to do so I'm pretty sure that the Chinese Navy will send an aircraft carrier visit Russia (Murmansk, St Petersburg, or Kaliningrad) and they will make sure to sail through the Channel. Or maybe they will just 'patrol' the North Atlantic. Two can play that game. A Chinese destroyer already sailed through the Channel in 2019 on its way to an event in St Petersburg. At the end of the day the UK of the 21st century cannot keep up with the China of the 21st century. The Chinese economy is already 6x times larger than the UK's, with a population 20x larger. At some point the Chinese Navy will be able to align 10 aircraft carriers for every British Navy one if they want to.
      - arethuza 6y ago
        Quite - I wasn't meaning to imply that I thought it was a good idea!
- dvfjsdhgfv 6y ago
  > So far we seem to be mostly ignoring this yet-soft development, maybe because the idea of having a Cold War 2.0 with a major industrial power is really uncomfortable. The big question is: what can we do, really? The media in the West are quite frank about what is going on: China is a totalitarian state with all consequences. The politicians, though, seem terrified and bend over backwards in order not to offend the red dragon. There are small exceptions but in general China freaks out whenever anyone significant meets the Dalai Lama, for example. A good example is Prague. Czechia is a tiny country in Central Europe with pro-China central government. However, the local government of its capital has a more free attitude and Beijing is getting furious each time the major of Prague meets the dissidents and so on. But most politicians in most countries are far less brave. Also they may realize the stakes are higher and higher.
  - Lopiolis 6y ago
    There are a lot of things we can do, but that requires the EU, the US and China's neighbors to work together. It requires US to have a vision for countering China's growing sphere of influence. Unfortunately, the US is content to let China grow into the void that the US has left as it abdicates its role as superpower. The EU isn't fit to function as a counterweight to China. I say all this as an EU citizen. For all its faults, the US is the one ally we have that could possibly coordinate an appropriate response (no, not military - financial, political and social, but also military if need be) and it's a tragedy that the US is just ... giving up.
    - teorema 6y ago
      It's a complex topic, and I sympathize with what you're saying but I think it's less a case of giving up and more of the US trying to benefit off of China's increasing dominance, combined with genuine laissez faire philosophy. I think that's changing now a bit but it's hard to say where it's going, especially in going from Trump to Biden.
- mytailorisrich 6y ago
  Or more simply and less conspiracist, this is a mix of conservative values, public health (people are less active and fatter), and historical memory of what happened to them in the last 200 years (i.e. they should be able not to take any sh*t and to defend themselves).
  - ginko 6y ago
    Constantly bringing up how your country was wronged 200 years ago is the dictionary definition of nationalism.
    - mytailorisrich 6y ago
      First, "the last 200 years" is not the same as "200 years ago". Second, history is what shapes cultures and people's views of the world. You cannot discuss and hope to make sense of what's going on in a country without understanding its history. The BLM movement, arguments about links to slavery, China's international policy, just to name a few, are all stemming directly from events that occurred in the past and continue to have an impact to this day. And lastly, there is nothing wrong with nationalism when it means defending your own people and sovereignty of your own country. That's what all countries do and in fact is the basis of the existence of countries.
      - ginko 6y ago
        >And third, there is nothing wrong with nationalism Welp, I'm out.
        AnimalMuppet 6y ago
        You might finish reading the sentence...
- actuator 6y ago
  Eh, I would count this just as some people not being comfortable with the social changes happening. If you look at most of the pop culture that comes out from East Asia, the typical male archetype seems to be gentle, boyish looking men who are chivalrous and act cute at the same time. Typical masculine features like beards are generally considered unattractive on males. I guess, some people might not like it.
  - User23 6y ago
    I'm no expert on anime, but the two big examples I'm familiar with, Sword Art Online and Demon Slayer both feature many masculine adult characters[1], but usually in a mentor or antagonist role. The protagonists are literally boys, who by definition are less masculine than grown men. [1] The Legendary Hero Bercouli in SAO and Sakonji Urokodaki in Demon Slayer are two that immediately spring to mind.
- toyg 6y ago
  > Whatever China does lately seems to be ... doing what countries run by a dictator tend to do. I don't think we fully understand how much Xi Jinping has changed the PRC. The Chinese system was already autocratic, but Xi turned it into full-blown dictatorship. There are no balances to his power, there is no limit to his rule, there is no incentive for anyone in China to oppose anything he does or to develop alternative political lines. This situation requires an increasing amount of chest-thumping to justify itself. > must be aware that one day, one of their client countries will rebel A lot of these client countries are not even in Asia, and the Chinese have never been "expeditionary". Their force projection is typically limited to their close interests. The PRC leadership has traditionally played the long game, but justifying a dictatorship has costs that must be paid for; Xi needs to show gains in a much more overt way than his predecessors. That's basically what it is. From what I can see, their only major objective is still to get the South-East off American control, and that will be it. > The question is what is the rest of the world going to do. You're already seeing it: periodic waves of anti-Chinese action in civilian fields. Full-on cold-war seems fundamentally impossible in a world where most "Western" money effectively runs on items manufactured almost-exclusively in China - which is not just "a major industrial power", it's effectively unique in whole sectors and dominant in others. "We" will continue with the tit-for-tat and occasional offensive like on 5G.
  - AnimalMuppet 6y ago
    > From what I can see, their only major objective is still to get the South-East off American control, and that will be it. If you go by what they say, it seems that their major objective is Taiwan.
    - toyg 6y ago
      Taiwan is the propaganda target, but their creeping occupation of the South China Sea shows what the larger overall objective is. PRC leadership (i.e. Xi and friends) really see their future as the sole owners of South-East Asia; Taiwan will “naturally” come as part of that. The problem is that three decades of US adventurism in the Middle East have left “us” without the moral high ground to oppose them.
- EdwinLarkin 6y ago
  I dont see this going anywhere.Most of China can be pushed to dark ages by a confident and experienced black ops (Mossad?). Most of China's power is in its coastal densely populated cities that are not possible to defend in any meaningful way.
xiphias2 6y ago
It's quite easy to achieve: have women to be manly for. One child policy ruined the life of hundreds of millions of men.
- lmz 6y ago
  Ah, but if you convince them that the women are in other countries they might be more inclined to join the army.
  - fakedang 6y ago
    Or the labour export. Iirc, it was a thing in Pakistan a few years back that the Pakistani govt had to clamp down on because it led to domestic abuse and abandonment in many cases.
- TheAdamAndChe 6y ago
  Average testosterone levels have been dropping significantly all around the world, so this policy likely wouldn't be the cause of the feminization of men.
  - bitlevel 6y ago
    Too much Oestrogen in the water supplies perhaps? https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/12/101208125813.htm https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/12/101208125813.h...
    - fakedang 6y ago
      That paper reminds me of Connections by James Burke. High incomes leads to better spending on food leading to more cattle production leading to more soy use and more dairy consumption, which leads to more intake of oestrogen in water, leading to lower testosterone counts in consumers, leading to lower fertility rates.
    - amelius 6y ago
      That would only lead to higher oestrogen levels, I suppose.
jacknews 6y ago
I think Xi Jinping has to go. Where he is leading to, no-one truly wants to go.
- akudha 6y ago
  And then what happens? Someone like him will replace him and the show will go on
  - coldcode 6y ago
    Chinese history repeats itself endlessly. Dominance is followed by weakness is followed by revolution. Chinese leadership is very aware of their history, yet is ultimately powerless to change it, but each generation thinks this time is different. Modern China is only 70 years old.
    - read_if_gay_ 6y ago
      Not sure if this is specific to China.
      - fakedang 6y ago
        Not GP, but it is. Chinese believe that the govt has to have a heavenly mandate to rule over them, and that when they lose favour with the heavens, they end up in decline. And Chinese govts know fully well about the cyclical nature of government in the country. If you see recently, most of the moves by the CCP recently have been to advance the image of Xi as the modern equivalent of an emperor.
    - actuator 6y ago
      Has any country remained strong for all its history in the last millenium? Look at Britain or the Dutch. They aren't weak as such but their influence is very less now.
  - jacknews 6y ago
    This suggests he is representative of the people, or that the people are allowing themselves to be dominated by a strongman. I don't believe that, any more than I believed that America would just get another Trump, after Trump.
Hitton 6y ago
I wonder what their male to female teacher ratio is.
yorwba 6y ago
> last week, the education ministry issued a notice with a title that left no doubt about its ultimate goal. The linked notice is titled 关于政协十三届全国委员会第三次会议第4404号（教育类410号）提案答复的函教师提案〔2020〕475号 http://www.moe.gov.cn/jyb_xxgk/xxgk_jyta/jyta_jiaoshisi/202101/t20210128_511584.html http://www.moe.gov.cn/jyb_xxgk/xxgk_jyta/jyta_jiaoshisi/2021... About the Political Consultative Conference's 13th National Committee's third session, answer to the 4404th proposal (410th on education). Teaching proposal no. 475 (2020) Yes, no doubts about its ultimate goal indeed. The answer begins: 您提出的《关于防止男性青少年女性化的提案》收悉，现将涉及教育部业务部分答复如下： Having received and read your "Proposal on the prevention of the feminization of male youth", the answers to the parts concerning the Ministry of Education are as follows: (Then there's a bunch of blabla about improving school sports and whatnot, without any references to gender.) So someone (who?) was concerned about feminization and asked the Ministry of Education to do something about that and they responded. The BBC seems to have mistaken the title mentioned in the response for a statement of the Ministry of Education's official policy. Maybe I should submit a "Proposal to replace Google Translate by fluent Chinese speakers" to the BBC so they can publish a headline "BBC to improve its reporting on China" but I'm not holding my breath.
- EastToWest 6y ago
  That someone is perhaps a member of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference. I think a close equivalence is an MP in the UK or a congressman / congresswoman / senate in the US. They make proposals on various aspects of life in China. Those proposals aren't official policies. BBC should really have done a better job here. It is also funny to see the top thread a few minutes ago quickly developed into something like military might and "China must be stopped".
  - mytailorisrich 6y ago
    The BBC is very quick on jumping to anything that can portray China in a negative light at the moment. Now, there are many things that do, but a more prudent and balanced approach with more research would serve the BBC well.
  - dr-detroit 6y ago
deleted 6y ago
[deleted]
2Gkashmiri 6y ago
so.... no to tiktok should do it
deleted 6y ago
[deleted]
williesleg 6y ago
Uh oh. Shits about to get real.
FooBarWidget 6y ago
The BBC article's intro implies that the Chinese government wants to draft more men into the military. But the actual issue has got nothing to do with the military or militarism at all. At the heart of the issue is the perception that young men lack physical exercise. This government suggestion is receiving a lot of criticism inside China. Chinese netizens don't have anything against encouraging kids to exercise, but they are incensed that it's sold as a way to make boys more manly. https://radiichina.com/masculine-feminization-teenagers/ https://radiichina.com/masculine-feminization-teenagers/
jariel 6y ago
Superficially, it seems crazy. That said, testosterone rates actually have been falling for a while now [1][2], and 'that's a thing'. Scientifically. Also, we spend way too much time indoors as a species and there may possibly be a gendered aspect to it. If we can talk all day about special needs, issues and accommodation for women, there's not reason we can't do so for men. Never an athlete myself, and loathing the American focus on Collegiate sports - I've actually come to admire it. Maybe not to the 'they call get full ride' kind of admiration, but rather, a respect for the fact that physical vitality is part of our essential being. 1 hour of PT/sports per day should be standard literally all the way through life: Elementary, HS, College, integrated into the Workplace. Just getting people moving would fundamentally change so many things. Probably ever aspect of life would improve, and if we want to make it a 'men's issue' I'll bet that rates of ADD, attention span etc. improve, as an unscientific hunch. Edit: It's not a 'hunch' - physical activity will improve ADD [3], attention span [4]. [1] https://www.icenews.is/2010/05/17/testosterone-levels-decreasing-in-danish-men/#axzz4f1HF2xrr https://www.icenews.is/2010/05/17/testosterone-levels-decrea... [2] https://www.reuters.com/article/health-testosterone-levels-dc-idUKKIM16976320061101?edition-redirect=uk https://www.reuters.com/article/health-testosterone-levels-d... [3] https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/0193945916649954 https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/019394591664995... [4] https://www.unh.edu/healthyunh/blog/2013/07/recent-study-ties-physical-activity-longer-attention-span https://www.unh.edu/healthyunh/blog/2013/07/recent-study-tie...

53 points by jnord 6y ago

It’s oddly comforting to know Chinese social media and the influencers it creates seem to be just as insufferable as they are in the U.S.

mensetmanusman 6y ago
People are people.

LargoLasskhyfv 6y ago

Yäss! Gung Ho! https://youtu.be/xhdcnlphz10?t=97 https://youtu.be/xhdcnlphz10?t=97

inglor_cz 6y ago

Whatever China does lately seems to be tailored to inch its society toward more expansive mode and military values. A lot of nationalism in the curriculum, the "wolf warriors" ideas etc. I do not think they are doing this for shits and giggles. They invest a lot overseas and must be aware that one day, one of their client countries will rebel and will need to be subdued militarily to protect the investments and dissuade others from going down the same road. The question is what is the rest of the world going to do. So far we seem to be mostly ignoring this yet-soft development, maybe because the idea of having a Cold War 2.0 with a major industrial power is really uncomfortable.

the-dude 6y ago
Whatever the BBC publicizes about China lately seems to be tailored to inch its society toward more expansive and military values. A lot of nationalism in the curriculum, China must be stopped!
enriquto 6y ago
> The question is what is the rest of the world going to do. Most of the world probably dislikes China as much as they dislike the USA. If anything, they will be indifferent to the conflict, unless they happen to be in a "proxy-conflict" zone.
- everdrive 6y ago
  Even if what you say is true (it isn't) the world does NOT want major armed conflict between the two major powers. There would be a spillover of conflict, and major economic impacts.
- arethuza 6y ago
  The UK is siding strongly with the US on this - including sending a carrier group to the South China Sea: https://ukdefencejournal.org.uk/british-carrier-strike-group-heading-to-pacific-this-year/ https://ukdefencejournal.org.uk/british-carrier-strike-group... I can't imagine, given the history between the two countries, that the Chinese are that delighted to have the Royal Navy active in their part of the world again.
  - mytailorisrich 6y ago
    When they are ready to do so I'm pretty sure that the Chinese Navy will send an aircraft carrier visit Russia (Murmansk, St Petersburg, or Kaliningrad) and they will make sure to sail through the Channel. Or maybe they will just 'patrol' the North Atlantic. Two can play that game. A Chinese destroyer already sailed through the Channel in 2019 on its way to an event in St Petersburg. At the end of the day the UK of the 21st century cannot keep up with the China of the 21st century. The Chinese economy is already 6x times larger than the UK's, with a population 20x larger. At some point the Chinese Navy will be able to align 10 aircraft carriers for every British Navy one if they want to.
    - arethuza 6y ago
      Quite - I wasn't meaning to imply that I thought it was a good idea!
dvfjsdhgfv 6y ago
> So far we seem to be mostly ignoring this yet-soft development, maybe because the idea of having a Cold War 2.0 with a major industrial power is really uncomfortable. The big question is: what can we do, really? The media in the West are quite frank about what is going on: China is a totalitarian state with all consequences. The politicians, though, seem terrified and bend over backwards in order not to offend the red dragon. There are small exceptions but in general China freaks out whenever anyone significant meets the Dalai Lama, for example. A good example is Prague. Czechia is a tiny country in Central Europe with pro-China central government. However, the local government of its capital has a more free attitude and Beijing is getting furious each time the major of Prague meets the dissidents and so on. But most politicians in most countries are far less brave. Also they may realize the stakes are higher and higher.
- Lopiolis 6y ago
  There are a lot of things we can do, but that requires the EU, the US and China's neighbors to work together. It requires US to have a vision for countering China's growing sphere of influence. Unfortunately, the US is content to let China grow into the void that the US has left as it abdicates its role as superpower. The EU isn't fit to function as a counterweight to China. I say all this as an EU citizen. For all its faults, the US is the one ally we have that could possibly coordinate an appropriate response (no, not military - financial, political and social, but also military if need be) and it's a tragedy that the US is just ... giving up.
  - teorema 6y ago
    It's a complex topic, and I sympathize with what you're saying but I think it's less a case of giving up and more of the US trying to benefit off of China's increasing dominance, combined with genuine laissez faire philosophy. I think that's changing now a bit but it's hard to say where it's going, especially in going from Trump to Biden.
mytailorisrich 6y ago
Or more simply and less conspiracist, this is a mix of conservative values, public health (people are less active and fatter), and historical memory of what happened to them in the last 200 years (i.e. they should be able not to take any sh*t and to defend themselves).
- ginko 6y ago
  Constantly bringing up how your country was wronged 200 years ago is the dictionary definition of nationalism.
  - mytailorisrich 6y ago
    First, "the last 200 years" is not the same as "200 years ago". Second, history is what shapes cultures and people's views of the world. You cannot discuss and hope to make sense of what's going on in a country without understanding its history. The BLM movement, arguments about links to slavery, China's international policy, just to name a few, are all stemming directly from events that occurred in the past and continue to have an impact to this day. And lastly, there is nothing wrong with nationalism when it means defending your own people and sovereignty of your own country. That's what all countries do and in fact is the basis of the existence of countries.
    - ginko 6y ago
      >And third, there is nothing wrong with nationalism Welp, I'm out.
      - AnimalMuppet 6y ago
        You might finish reading the sentence...
actuator 6y ago
Eh, I would count this just as some people not being comfortable with the social changes happening. If you look at most of the pop culture that comes out from East Asia, the typical male archetype seems to be gentle, boyish looking men who are chivalrous and act cute at the same time. Typical masculine features like beards are generally considered unattractive on males. I guess, some people might not like it.
- User23 6y ago
  I'm no expert on anime, but the two big examples I'm familiar with, Sword Art Online and Demon Slayer both feature many masculine adult characters[1], but usually in a mentor or antagonist role. The protagonists are literally boys, who by definition are less masculine than grown men. [1] The Legendary Hero Bercouli in SAO and Sakonji Urokodaki in Demon Slayer are two that immediately spring to mind.
toyg 6y ago
> Whatever China does lately seems to be ... doing what countries run by a dictator tend to do. I don't think we fully understand how much Xi Jinping has changed the PRC. The Chinese system was already autocratic, but Xi turned it into full-blown dictatorship. There are no balances to his power, there is no limit to his rule, there is no incentive for anyone in China to oppose anything he does or to develop alternative political lines. This situation requires an increasing amount of chest-thumping to justify itself. > must be aware that one day, one of their client countries will rebel A lot of these client countries are not even in Asia, and the Chinese have never been "expeditionary". Their force projection is typically limited to their close interests. The PRC leadership has traditionally played the long game, but justifying a dictatorship has costs that must be paid for; Xi needs to show gains in a much more overt way than his predecessors. That's basically what it is. From what I can see, their only major objective is still to get the South-East off American control, and that will be it. > The question is what is the rest of the world going to do. You're already seeing it: periodic waves of anti-Chinese action in civilian fields. Full-on cold-war seems fundamentally impossible in a world where most "Western" money effectively runs on items manufactured almost-exclusively in China - which is not just "a major industrial power", it's effectively unique in whole sectors and dominant in others. "We" will continue with the tit-for-tat and occasional offensive like on 5G.
- AnimalMuppet 6y ago
  > From what I can see, their only major objective is still to get the South-East off American control, and that will be it. If you go by what they say, it seems that their major objective is Taiwan.
  - toyg 6y ago
    Taiwan is the propaganda target, but their creeping occupation of the South China Sea shows what the larger overall objective is. PRC leadership (i.e. Xi and friends) really see their future as the sole owners of South-East Asia; Taiwan will “naturally” come as part of that. The problem is that three decades of US adventurism in the Middle East have left “us” without the moral high ground to oppose them.
EdwinLarkin 6y ago
I dont see this going anywhere.Most of China can be pushed to dark ages by a confident and experienced black ops (Mossad?). Most of China's power is in its coastal densely populated cities that are not possible to defend in any meaningful way.

xiphias2 6y ago

It's quite easy to achieve: have women to be manly for. One child policy ruined the life of hundreds of millions of men.

lmz 6y ago
Ah, but if you convince them that the women are in other countries they might be more inclined to join the army.
- fakedang 6y ago
  Or the labour export. Iirc, it was a thing in Pakistan a few years back that the Pakistani govt had to clamp down on because it led to domestic abuse and abandonment in many cases.
TheAdamAndChe 6y ago
Average testosterone levels have been dropping significantly all around the world, so this policy likely wouldn't be the cause of the feminization of men.
- bitlevel 6y ago
  Too much Oestrogen in the water supplies perhaps? https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/12/101208125813.htm https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/12/101208125813.h...
  - fakedang 6y ago
    That paper reminds me of Connections by James Burke. High incomes leads to better spending on food leading to more cattle production leading to more soy use and more dairy consumption, which leads to more intake of oestrogen in water, leading to lower testosterone counts in consumers, leading to lower fertility rates.
  - amelius 6y ago
    That would only lead to higher oestrogen levels, I suppose.

jacknews 6y ago

I think Xi Jinping has to go. Where he is leading to, no-one truly wants to go.

akudha 6y ago
And then what happens? Someone like him will replace him and the show will go on
- coldcode 6y ago
  Chinese history repeats itself endlessly. Dominance is followed by weakness is followed by revolution. Chinese leadership is very aware of their history, yet is ultimately powerless to change it, but each generation thinks this time is different. Modern China is only 70 years old.
  - read_if_gay_ 6y ago
    Not sure if this is specific to China.
    - fakedang 6y ago
      Not GP, but it is. Chinese believe that the govt has to have a heavenly mandate to rule over them, and that when they lose favour with the heavens, they end up in decline. And Chinese govts know fully well about the cyclical nature of government in the country. If you see recently, most of the moves by the CCP recently have been to advance the image of Xi as the modern equivalent of an emperor.
  - actuator 6y ago
    Has any country remained strong for all its history in the last millenium? Look at Britain or the Dutch. They aren't weak as such but their influence is very less now.
- jacknews 6y ago
  This suggests he is representative of the people, or that the people are allowing themselves to be dominated by a strongman. I don't believe that, any more than I believed that America would just get another Trump, after Trump.

Hitton 6y ago

I wonder what their male to female teacher ratio is.

yorwba 6y ago

> last week, the education ministry issued a notice with a title that left no doubt about its ultimate goal. The linked notice is titled 关于政协十三届全国委员会第三次会议第4404号（教育类410号）提案答复的函教师提案〔2020〕475号 http://www.moe.gov.cn/jyb_xxgk/xxgk_jyta/jyta_jiaoshisi/202101/t20210128_511584.html http://www.moe.gov.cn/jyb_xxgk/xxgk_jyta/jyta_jiaoshisi/2021... About the Political Consultative Conference's 13th National Committee's third session, answer to the 4404th proposal (410th on education). Teaching proposal no. 475 (2020) Yes, no doubts about its ultimate goal indeed. The answer begins: 您提出的《关于防止男性青少年女性化的提案》收悉，现将涉及教育部业务部分答复如下： Having received and read your "Proposal on the prevention of the feminization of male youth", the answers to the parts concerning the Ministry of Education are as follows: (Then there's a bunch of blabla about improving school sports and whatnot, without any references to gender.) So someone (who?) was concerned about feminization and asked the Ministry of Education to do something about that and they responded. The BBC seems to have mistaken the title mentioned in the response for a statement of the Ministry of Education's official policy. Maybe I should submit a "Proposal to replace Google Translate by fluent Chinese speakers" to the BBC so they can publish a headline "BBC to improve its reporting on China" but I'm not holding my breath.

EastToWest 6y ago
That someone is perhaps a member of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference. I think a close equivalence is an MP in the UK or a congressman / congresswoman / senate in the US. They make proposals on various aspects of life in China. Those proposals aren't official policies. BBC should really have done a better job here. It is also funny to see the top thread a few minutes ago quickly developed into something like military might and "China must be stopped".
- mytailorisrich 6y ago
  The BBC is very quick on jumping to anything that can portray China in a negative light at the moment. Now, there are many things that do, but a more prudent and balanced approach with more research would serve the BBC well.
- dr-detroit 6y ago

deleted 6y ago

[deleted]

2Gkashmiri 6y ago

so.... no to tiktok should do it

deleted 6y ago

[deleted]

williesleg 6y ago

Uh oh. Shits about to get real.

FooBarWidget 6y ago

The BBC article's intro implies that the Chinese government wants to draft more men into the military. But the actual issue has got nothing to do with the military or militarism at all. At the heart of the issue is the perception that young men lack physical exercise. This government suggestion is receiving a lot of criticism inside China. Chinese netizens don't have anything against encouraging kids to exercise, but they are incensed that it's sold as a way to make boys more manly. https://radiichina.com/masculine-feminization-teenagers/ https://radiichina.com/masculine-feminization-teenagers/

jariel 6y ago

Superficially, it seems crazy. That said, testosterone rates actually have been falling for a while now [1][2], and 'that's a thing'. Scientifically. Also, we spend way too much time indoors as a species and there may possibly be a gendered aspect to it. If we can talk all day about special needs, issues and accommodation for women, there's not reason we can't do so for men. Never an athlete myself, and loathing the American focus on Collegiate sports - I've actually come to admire it. Maybe not to the 'they call get full ride' kind of admiration, but rather, a respect for the fact that physical vitality is part of our essential being. 1 hour of PT/sports per day should be standard literally all the way through life: Elementary, HS, College, integrated into the Workplace. Just getting people moving would fundamentally change so many things. Probably ever aspect of life would improve, and if we want to make it a 'men's issue' I'll bet that rates of ADD, attention span etc. improve, as an unscientific hunch. Edit: It's not a 'hunch' - physical activity will improve ADD [3], attention span [4]. [1] https://www.icenews.is/2010/05/17/testosterone-levels-decreasing-in-danish-men/#axzz4f1HF2xrr https://www.icenews.is/2010/05/17/testosterone-levels-decrea... [2] https://www.reuters.com/article/health-testosterone-levels-dc-idUKKIM16976320061101?edition-redirect=uk https://www.reuters.com/article/health-testosterone-levels-d... [3] https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/0193945916649954 https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/019394591664995... [4] https://www.unh.edu/healthyunh/blog/2013/07/recent-study-ties-physical-activity-longer-attention-span https://www.unh.edu/healthyunh/blog/2013/07/recent-study-tie...