User Comments - bodawei

Posted on: Possible, Possibly, Possibility

The expression you have probably heard is 多半 duōbàn. (Not dou ban). 多半 translates as 'most of', 'for the most part', as well as 'probably', 'in all likelihood'.

Posted on: This Needs to be Dry Cleaned

I realise now that I have been at cross purposes with a few people in this thread. When I said I hadn't seen any laundromats 'here' I meant in China, where I live. When I said I don't think we have a word for it out 'west' I meant in the west of China. Sorry if I confused anyone. I have of course noticed many laundromats in the 'West' (eg. US, Canada, UK and Australia.) And many years ago I enjoyed the film 'My Beautiful Laundrette'. :)

Posted on: How to Protect the Environment

We can't agree in English, I wouldn't be too hard on the Chinese. What Americans call an 'elevator' is a lift elsewhere as far as I know (certainly Australia and Britain.) I don't think it's an option - never heard 'elevator' for the vertical design. But I can see that it 'elevates'. I think we agree on escalator, as long as it is operating at a slant. I think the horizontal ones are called moving walkways.

Posted on: Can't Get a Taxi

Hi tingyun

Thanks mate, your posts are always appreciated. First let me say that my post was more a poor attempt at humour than a serious model for abelle, I wasn't striving for accuracy. When having a dig at a ruling American president I should definitely flag my my somewhat ironic tone more clearly in future. So you did misread the meaning of my sentences. Hope I didn't mislead abelle as well. She should get something helpful from your comments in any case.

1. ' 不至于 has some tendency to be followed by negative results,' My 不至于 sentence (if it could be deemed a sentence being an unfortunate mix of English and Chinese - I obviously failed to communicate properly) does indeed have a negative result, namely 'poor people being unhappy'. Poor people being unhappy is not a good outcome (cf. French Revolution.) What the sentence says is this: Obama cut taxes, with the result of making poor people even unhappier than they were before. It is not predicting policy outcomes in any shape or form, just saying what happened.

2. ' should be followed with the result - not a motive or cause (I was a bit unsure what role your 'to cut taxes for the rich' was playing)'

It is that the level of 'forgetting' deepened to the point (result) that he is cutting taxes for the rich. Not a motive or cause. 'forgot his supports, and even therefore cut taxes (for the rich, not his supports)' is indeed my meaning.

I went to 现代汉语词典 for my sentence constructions in Chinese and did some creative substitutions in English.

Posted on: Can't Get a Taxi

Hmmm, challenging...

听说 President Obama has cut taxes, 不至于 make the poor people any happier.

President Obama has forgotten his supporters, 至于 to cut taxes for the rich.

Don't be upset - I love your President. :)

Posted on: A Member of the 'Moonlight Clan'

Hi zhenlijiang

Yes it is amazing how the wheel turns isn't it? You have to be quick with economics; the questions stay the same but the answers keep on changing. I am old enough to remember the excitement when we Australians started buying Japanese goods, eg. my Panasonic transistor radio when I was about 13 (won't tell how long ago that was but definitely in the 1960s) - it was all so cool. Actually there is practically nothing made in Australia now - our manufacturing is a very small part of the economy. (Maybe bank notes - China seems to use Australian technology in its bank notes. And we sell them our traffic light technology.) But we're doing okay thanks. Some Australians worry that not only do we not make anything any more to speak of, we even buy our fruit and vegetables from China.

But the US is hurting now and it is human nature to blame everyone else when things go wrong. I think I do that too.

I find this phrase particularly intriguing: 'enable the Americans to live in structural debt'. :) I'm cool with all that - just wish that their cars were about one third the size they are.

Posted on: A Member of the 'Moonlight Clan'

Hi huibert

You seem like a nice guy and I see you have spent some time in China. I hope you don't mind me asking some questions about this post of yours:

'the Chinese save so much and consume little and, in combination with the low rate of the Renminbi enable the Americans to live in structural debt. And in combination they ruin the world economy..'

That's quite a mouthful - I'm not sure though that ChinesePod could follow your argument and make a podcast out of it!

What do you mean by - 'in combination they ruin the world economy'? I didn't realise that the world economy was ruined.

If it is ruined, how did China ruin it exactly?

Finally, why would China want to ruin the world economy? I'm not sure how this would play out to their advantage.

Posted on: Hanukkah

Hi light, we were posting over each other - yes, reform sounds like a good way to look at it.

Posted on: Hanukkah

革命 gémìng (revolution). 革 is also a verb meaning 改变 gǎibiàn to 'change'. Also see 革新 géxīn (innovate, to break new ground.) 命 means 'life'. ‘Change’ your 'life'.

Posted on: Can't Get a Taxi

卑鄙的我 (Despicable Me)

This DVD finally made it to Kunming and we watched it last night - enjoyed it a lot. It reminded me a bit of the Lemony Snicket book/film about three kids 'adopted' by unsavoury characters.