I recently met Tom in Bangkok; he is a travel/guidebook and adventure writer based in Thailand (check out his guides to Cambodia and Angkor Wat out on excellent MOON Publishing), and also former guitarist of Bangkok garage punkers Pussy and the Learjets. In brief, the kind of person I consider a hero. Check more Learjets here:

www.youtube.com/watch?v=SQCRufJnPlM

Tom is also the author of Sacred Skin, a very interesting photo book on sak yant, Thailand’s sacred tattoos, and the first on the subject in English. Expect to see a review cum interview up here soon if I won’t be able to place the article elsewhere… meanwhile, I have started my trip and I am in India. All is in a state of blur at the moment as many things are boiling and will be coming up extremely soon… some very good things for this poor little Monkey!!

I am happy to announce the digital release of BRUTAL POKHARA’s first installment of extreme Asian music’s compilation… this collective based in the beautiful land of NEPAL has had the great idea of trying to collect a snapshot of what today’s extreme music scene has to offer in the greater Asian region… such a challenging task, I’d say, ended up with some non-Asian bands thrown into the blender for a balance.

Anyhow, if you are as curious as me to listen, and especially listen for FREE, to some unknown and hideous spew of Asian hostility, this is a great opportunity to start with. The beauty of this compilation lies in its (obvious) abundance of bands from the almost oblivious South Asian scenes;  countries such as Nepal, India, Pakistan (oh yeah) and Bangladesh are all represented, giving (at least to me) a first ever glance of extreme music crafted in such odd destinations for the average Western listener.

Yours truly participated getting a slot for WEOT SKAM, the only Malaysian band represented, although I am not actually playing on the recording.

The following is a comprehensive list of the bands and the respective countries, with download links included:

OCCULT SCIENCE OF METAL- SET-1       DOWNLOAD

• Cyborg Cataclysm-GOTHICA, Nepal
• God Wants My Blood-NARSAMHAAR, Nepal
• In Glorificus Luctus(The Mourning After)-KALODIN, Nepal
• Skyggegast- COMBATH ft. Svartalv( ex-SATYRICON, GEHENNA), Norway
• Gloomy Sunday-NÅE, Norway
• Mass of Materia- JAHILIYYAHA, Bangladesh
• Grim Shutdown-EVIL CONSCIENCE, INDIA
• Present Chaos- PLAGUE THROAT, India
• Maid of the Mist- WEIRD ANXIETY, India
• Unison of Beast- ISOLATION IN INFAMY, USA
• Reek of the Rotten- VILE IMPALEMENT, India
• Man Whore meets Women Whore- XAITAN KAUN?, India
• Perang Suci- LOST ANOTHER, Indonesia
• Soul Destruction- ALIEN GODS, India
• Infernal Torment- SATANIZE, Turkey
• Blasphemy ov a  Diabolic- INSANE PROPHECY, India
• Medical Malpractice- PAEDIATRICIAN, Hungary
• Malapetaka Dunia Fana- EXALEIPS, Indonesia
• Acrimony of Terrorism- DARK CARNAGE, India
• Insurrection-CENOBITE, Hungary
• Viper’s Den- DEI TETRA, Thailand
• The Uncaring Strokes of the Master- MYOSIS, Pakistan
• Revolution Has Begun-ANALGESIA, Morocco
• Bacterial in Flesh-AUTHORITY, Indonesia
• Riot of Blood-CHROMATIC MASSACCRE, Bangladesh
• Burial Ground- DIONYSUS, Pakistan
• Sabbatical Repugnant-HYDRO, Indonesia
• Dherai Laajj(Tribute to the Legend)-THE GRUNGY MORPHINS ”The Gorkha Metal Warriors”, India
• The Silent Scream-MEYNOM TURR, India
• Lord of Kaos- KRAZY ELECTRONS, India
• Futile Dogma: DARK DESOLATION, India
• Retribution-CROW BLACK SKY, South Africa

NOISEDOOM-SET-2    DOWNLOAD

• License to Kill-BIDROHA, Nepal
• Charsi Malang Moola Saray-MARG, Pakistan
• Knock Out- WEOT SKAM, Malaysia
• Fragmented to Live-CATW, India
• Primal Wants of a Divine Creation-DARK MURDER SCHEME, India
• Aakash Chayatiyo- FUL’STOP, Nepal
• Vendetta-VENDETTA, India
• You May Call Me a Dreamer  But I am Not- ESCALON, USA
• Break Down-TAKATAK, Pakistan
• The Malice-PROJECT BERKLEE, Pakistan
• The Rising-ZERO TRANSITION, Nepal
• Walking Alone- HOURGLASS PRISIONER, India
• Pseudo Showcase- WHAT ESCAPES ME, India
• IntraNervous- HEISENBERG, India
• Cradle to Grave-REVOLT, Pakistan
• Blood Tears-PISAKAS, India
• Slave of a Broken Fate-DARK GUREE A MORT, Nepal
• We, Happily Everafter-NOIZY AKADEMI, India
• Coup De Grace- ARCANE DECEPTION, India
• Dream Slayer-ODYSSEY, Pakistan
• We Can’t- IF HOPE DIES, India
• Lost in Thoughts-RAJIV KHADKA, Nepal
• Misery in You-EXILED SANITY, India
• Ammunition- AGE OF CHAOS, India
• Yes, tODAY is Doomsday-BURN THE WATER, India
• Sworn Annihilation- DEMENTIA, Pakistan
• A Lullaby for the Souls-ELVISH MIRAGE, India

Un aggiornamento per chi aveva seguito le avventure di Matteo Tricarico, che da poco ha attraversato la Birmania via terra (si esatto, nessun aereo preso, complimenti) e mi ha contattato da Calcutta, in India:

Il progetto sportivo-umanitario “Dal Vietnam all’Italia in bicicletta per i  diversabili”, partito il 9 ottobre 2009  da Saigon (Ho Chi Minh city) in Vietnam, sta portando Matteo Tricarico a percorrere in bicicletta in solitaria la distanza di 20.000 chilometri dal Vietnam all’Italia snodandosi attraverso Cambogia (ott. 2009), Laos (nov. 2009), Thailandia (dic. 2009), Myanmar (gen. 2010), Bangladesh, India, Nepal, Pakistan, Iran, Turchia e Grecia. Negli scorsi quattro mesi, sono stati percorsi circa 6000 chilometri sino alla città indiana di Calcutta e l’itinerario procederà attraverso il Bangladesh e l’India del nord.

Il progetto ha toccato i seguenti istituti:

1. 9 ottobre Saigon (Vietnam) – Orfanotrofio per bambini ciechi gestito dalla Fondazione di Cristiana Noble. Il centro raccoglie infanti abbandonati dalle madri alla nascita in ospedali cittadini per le loro disabilità e offre istruzione gratuita a studenti provenienti da famiglie che non possono provvedere al loro sostentamento.
2. 21 e 22 ottobre Phnom Penh (Cambogia) – Orfanotrofio e scuola per bambini diversabili gestito dal CIAI. Il centro è il più grande della Cambogia e ospita infanti disabili abbandonati alla nascita o nei primi mesi di vita.
3. 30 ottobre Battambong  (Cambogia) – Centro di accoglienza per bambini ed adolescenti vittime di incidenti con mine antiuomo o ammalati di Poliomielite gestito dalla locale Chiesa cattolica. La maggior parte dei ragazzi vengono da villaggi remoti e gli viene data la possibilità di frequentare i licei e le università cittadine.
4. 27 e 28 novembre Siem Reap  (Cambogia) – Scuola d’arte e formazione professionale per ragazzi di strada finanziato dal CIAI. Gli studenti non soffrono di disabilità fisiche ma vengono da famiglie particolarmente non abbienti che non possono offrire loro neanche l’istruzione di base. Nella scuola vengono impartite lezioni di danza, musica, ricamo e altre arti tradizionali Khmer, cosi da fungere anche da centro di trasmissione  di cultura alle nuove generazioni.
5. 8 dicembre Khiet Ngong (Laos) – Scuola elementare del villaggio finanziato dal WWF che opera nell’area naturalistica protetta dove il villaggio si trova.
6. 30 dicembre Vientiane (Laos) – Centro di formazione professionale per donne diversabili. La scuola è un grande laboratorio artigianale dove ragazze con disabilità imparano a confezionare abiti, produrre la carta di riso e tessere su telai tradizionali a mano.
7. 11 febbraio Pathein (Myanmar) – Scuola per l’istruzione di base e per la riabilitazione psico-motoria dei bambini delle aree rurali gestito da The Leprocy Mission International. Il centro fornisce anche corsi di fisioterapia per i genitori dei disabili mettendoli così in grado di proseguire le terapie a casa.
8. 18  febbraio Yangon (Myanmar) – L’istituto si occupa dell’apprendimento elementare di studenti con lievi disabilità mentali e fisiche, includendo anche l’insegnamento della lingua inglese.

La relazione completa dei primi 130 giorni del progetto, oltre alle gallerie video e fotografiche, al Diario di bordo e alle news sull’andamento del viaggio è disponibile all’indirizzo www.travelforaid.com – Relazione ott 09 feb 10 .

Alcune domande a Matteo:

Qual’è il tuo bilancio di questi primi quattro mesi di viaggio?

“Tutto sta eccedendo le mie più rosee aspettative, a cominciare dai patrocini morali concessi dalle varie istituzioni, alle organizzazioni umanitarie che sono diventate partner del progetto, sino all’entusiasmo nei messaggi di supporto inviatemi da tante persone che virtualmente mi seguono in quest’avventura. Fortunatamente, non ho avuto nessun incidente di percorso, anche se sono circa un mese in ritardo rispetto al programma a causa della lunga attesa per ricevere il permesso di transito della Birmania.”

Ci sono state delle situazioni difficili in cui avresti abbandonato tutto?

“Per ora, non sono mai arrivato alla disperazione totale di gettare la spugna, anche se procedendo faticosamente a passo d’uomo sui ripidi pendii tailandesi e birmani mi sono pentito di aver scelto quel tragitto. Talvolta mi sono sentito veramente solo, specialmente nelle aree scarsamente popolate del nord Cambogia e Laos e mi sarebbe veramente piaciuto avere qualcuno con me, ma reggo ancora bene l’aspetto psicologico della relativa solitudine.”

Quali sono stati i momenti più significativi.
“Credo che uno dei vantaggi di viaggiare in bicicletta, rispetto alla macchina o la motocicletta, sia di essere a contatto diretto con la popolazione locale in aree rurali dove raramente passano dei viaggiatori occidentali. La sorpresa e la curiosità della gente del posto è grande a vedermi e sono continuamente testimone di esempi di persone che vogliono aiutarmi offrendosi di darmi passaggi sui loro carretti o di ospitarmi nelle loro case per la notte, come è accaduto in Laos e Thailandia.

Comunque, i momenti più toccanti sono le visite ai centri per i bambini diversabili. Qui ho scoperto che buona parte degli assistiti hanno contratto disabilità a causa di malattie derivate da malnutrizione e scarsa igiene, soprattutto in Vietnam e Cambogia dove vanno aggiunte anche le vittime di incidenti con le mine antiuomo. Quest’aspetto umanitario del progetto sta assumendo un’importanza personale molto superiore rispetto al viaggio di scoperta e visita delle attrazioni locali. Mi sta portando un arricchimento spirituale interiore ed un nuovo, più profondo senso della compassione.”

Ti sei mai trovato in situazioni di pericolo?
“Non saprei dirlo! Forse inconsapevolmente mi sono trovato in circostanze pericolose, ma non ho mai avuto veramente paura per la vita o la borsa.  Mi sono preoccupato trovandomi in piena notte e senza vedere luci per chilometri mentre percorrevo le montagne thailandesi; oppure mi sono un po’ spaventato quando la polizia birmana mi ha costretto a levare le tende e mi ha caricato su un camioncino carico di contadini che brandivano grossi maceti. Comunque, sono sempre sul chi va là e freno quando serve!”

Here at Monkeyrockworld we have an eye for adventure. If said adventure is Italian made, and also has an humanitarian backbone, we like it even more. Before closing up a long, exciting year 2009, it’s my duty to present an incredible adventure that is being overtaken as we speak.

Matteo Tricarico is an Italian with balls of steel who decided to pedal his way from Saigon, Vietnam to his city of origin, Manfredonia, Puglia, Italy. In the footsteps of a Bettinellian reversed Odyssey, and this time, by bicycle and not motorbike, the aim of this trip is not just the sheer adventure of it, but also a fund raising for disabled children centers located all over the route.

The final itinerary will be dictated by the meetings in schools for disabled children along the way and it will culminate with the visit of the institute for disabled students’ rehabilitation, “Cesarani”, in Manfredonia, Italy.

The trip started from Saigon on October 9^th 2009. The itinerary follows the mighty Mekong River from its vast delta to the point where it splits in three different branches and where Phom Penh, the capital of Cambodia, lays. From here, the journey skirts the Tonle Sap Lake to Angkor, the ancient capital of the Khmer empire, today Siem Reap and it continues northwards to enter hilly southern Laos in late November. The last city visited in this country is its capital Vientiane, 20 kilometres far away from the “Friendship Bridge” linking Laos to Thailand. Crossing to the Siam Kingdom, the trip continues departing from the Mekong River which has been a travel-companion for more than 1500 kilometres.

Then, the itinerary proceeds westwards through the mountain area leading to Chang Rai, before transiting the Burmese borderline around Christmas day. A small detour southwards allows leaving the steep mountain slopes of central Myanmar to reach the flat wetlands of the Irrawaddy delta flowing into the Bengali gulf. Passing Rangoon, the magnificent Andaman sea coastline ends in the mythical Mouths of the River Ganges in Bangladesh. The crossing of these wetlands is as quick as possible to dedicate at least two full months to the exploration of the Indian subcontinent. In India, are also scheduled most of the visits to schools, therefore the itinerary is a zigzagging throughout the north of the country via New Delhi and the Rajasthan desert nearby the Pakistani borderline.

Whether to traverse the dangerous Pakistan by land or not, it is finally decided after having asked the advice of the Italian and Pakistani embassies. Anyhow, by the end of March 2010  Iran follows with the Persian desert to get across direction northwest and keeping as far away as possible from the Iraqi borderline. Passing the border with Turkey is next, through the slim strip of land between Iraq and Azerbaijan, to point directly westwards through the Anatolian rocky desert.

In early June, the itinerary officially quits the Asian continent in Istanbul, through the Bosporus strait, moving westwards to Greece along the Aegean Sea, so arriving at the Mediterranean shore in mid-July. From here, the trip continues by ferry to the south Italy and finally to the city of Manfredonia known as the gate of the Gargano promontory.

You can follow Matteo on the Travel For Aid website and make a donation, if you like. We promise to get back to you with a mighty interview in the very near future, when Matteo will sit down between one ride and the next, answering to my lousy questions.

MM- You spent several years in SE Asia, can you briefly tell me, according to your perspective and experience, the best and the worst side every of the ones you lived in and visited has to offer.

The places that are the biggest adventures are those that have the least modern conveniences and comforts. So this is always the conundrum. Do you want to live like a human being or do you want the big adventure? You often can’t have both. Taiwan and Korea are extremely developed, so less adventure. Cambodia and Vietnam are still raw, so it’s exciting, but you have to deal with bad internet service, higher crime rates, dirty food…a lot of potentially uncomfortable situations and conditions. In Cambodia in particular, you want a local experience but local things are often so undeveloped or ill-equipped that you wind up going to foreigner things which cost as much as they do back home but with half the quality. People think living in a poor country is cheap. It’s not necessarily. For one thing, most products are imported, so they cost more than they do back home.

Thailand is by far the best place to train. There are 90,000 professional boxers in Thailand and probably 1,000 gyms with professional training and international fighting experience. The cost of living is also very low in Thailand. BUT bring your own money. There is nearly no way to earn money in Thailand. as a fighter you will some times get as little as $90 for a fight. As a teacher, most jobs only pay about $700 USD a month.

Cambodia is an experience. It’s interesting and exciting. The fighters are good. But training is pretty basic, almost no equipment and really only one gym where foreigners can train. Learning Khmer Bokator is a good experience, though. It’s the ancient martial art of Cambodia and by learning it, you are helping to preserve the Khmer heritage.

Taiwan is good to live in. very comfortable and developed. You can earn a good living as teacher, if you have legitimate degrees and qualifications. You can train fairly well in Kaohsiung or Taipei but you can’t get many fights.

Korea is horrible. They hate you. You hate them. Everything sucks. Buildings aren’t heated. It’s lonely and awful but you can earn good money and get a free apartment. There is only fighting in Seoul. Training in Busan is less exciting.

Philippines is great for stick fighting. People are great. Crime is off the charts in Manila. There are some excellent fighting teams doing Yaw Yan, Filipino MMA. But again, bring your own money. You can get work as an English teacher, teaching Koreans, for about $700 a month. At which point you think, why not just go back to Korea? You can also get a job in a call center but you work all night, when America is working.

Vietnam: salaries for teachers are quite high but rents are much higher than in other places I have worked. In Taiwan my one bedroom apartment with kitchen and living room and garden was $220 per month. In Hanoi that would probably run about $500. There are a lot of martial arts in Vietnam. And it is an interesting, dynamic place, but there isn’t a lot of fighting.

So far, Vietnamese and Korean are the hardest languages I have ever tried to learn.

China is a good experience. You can live in a full time training school for anywhere from $300 to $2,000 a month, depending if you are a professional victim or not. I even had an invitation from a full time San Da school in shanghai for only $300 a month for room and training. That is even cheaper than what most foreigners pay for their rent. So you can find deals in China. But some people are stupid enough to pay $1,500 a week to stay at Shaolin Temple. I paid $200 a month. Again in China you need to bring your own money. There is unlimited work as a teacher, but the salary is seriously low, often $500 a month.

Malaysia is super for training. There are a few good Muay Thai and Tomoi schools in KL and Selangore. I heard there are Muay Thai camps in the north and there is silat everywhere. If you are a qualified school teacher, a licensed school teacher in your home country, you can get a job at an international school. They pay really well but it is a regular 45 hour per week job.

MM- Have you ever gone back stateside during these expatriate years? How do you feel when you go back there?

I have been back once for a book release after four years in Asia. I was useless in America. I had no function. Here in Asia I train, write and study most of the day and then work when I need to, at most three or five hours per day. In America, you have to work full time and you still can’t afford anything.

MM – Any thoughts about the switch to the Obama administration?

In Taiwan, my friends and I stayed up and watched the entire inauguration. I cried. I was so happy to be rid of Bush and I was very optimistic for president Obama. I still am. And, if called, I would drop everything and serve his administration in a second, with not a single glance backward.

MM- Seen the recent struggles of the Uyghur people culminating with violence in Urumqi and the Chinese renovation plans to bulldoze most of the historical part of Kashgar, how do you feel? I know you have travelled in the Taklamakan desert by bike and met this population long before it was lit by these ridiculous “media dimlights”?

My second book, “The Desert of Death on Three Wheels” was written about that region. I rode from Aksu to Kashgar on a Chinese tricycle. The Uyghur are a sad people. They don’t belong in China. They should be an independent country, as they were prior to 1949, when they lived in East Turkistan. Or, they should be part of Turkmenistan. I hate what is happening to them. I saw a very violent police action when I was there and it frightened me.

MM- You are Italian American and you told me you?d like to go back to Italy and study and live there for a while. What do you expect from our country? Are you aware of the frightening Berlusconi’s era, and the drastic conditions in which our ancient artistic heritage has been flushed down the toilet?

I plan to go back to Italy, teach English and study Italian and martial arts. I have been planning for years to write a book about the experience, and the title would be “Among My Own People.” Berlusconi is my hero. He is like the Donald Trump of Italy. He is a quirky, funny character who I think is a perfect politician for a country which has had 39 governments since World War II. I am extremely close to wanting to move to Italy after Christmas.

THANK YOU VERY MUCH ANTONIO, IT WAS A LONG, INTERESTING TALK THAT I WISH WILL CLEAR SOME ISSUES OR MISCONCEPTIONS PEOPLE MIGHT HAVE ABOUT LIVING IN ASIA. I HOPE THE MONKEYROCKWORLD WILL TREAT YOU AS WELL AS THE MARTIAL ARTS ONE, AND REMEMBER, YOU ARE ALWAYS WELCOME ON THESE PAGES.

Antonio Graceffo is an Italian American adventure writer and martial arts enthusiast who left a Wall Street finance background to literally dive into Asian adventures and languages.

I discovered him by chance while surfing the internet in Australia, and I decided that such an interesting character needed some space in the Monkeyrockworld. Adventure writer, martial art fighter and TV host, Antonio spent the best part of this decade living and studying Asian cultures and languages, abandoning a pretty well-heeled New York background. The myths and mysteries about him are all unveiled in this exclusive interview.

MM- Hi Antonio, please briefly introduce yourself to our readers unaware of the fact you are an unstoppable adventure machine…

My parents are Sicilian. I was born in New York. I grew up speaking English, Spanish and Italian. I started martial arts and boxing when I was 12. my first martial arts teacher was a returning Vietnam war veteran named H. David Collins who ran the American school of empty hand fighting in Tennessee. It was 1979. He was way ahead of his time. He taught us boxing and kickboxing as part of martial art and set me on my career as a fighter,. At that time, nearly no one in the martial arts community was doing real fighting. There were always stories of black belts getting beat by street fighters and boxers. Today, things are much different. But at that time, even guys like Chuck Norris, never had any real fights, just point fighting.David taught us a lot of military discipline and he is probably one of the big reasons why I joined the military when I was 17. I graduated infantry school and also graduated non-commissioned officers school. The next few years were blurry. I flunked out of college a couple of times, changed from the army to the navy to get a scholarship, which I screwed. I got my first pro boxing trainer somewhere around age 20 and started fighting and working construction jobs and in out of military and school for the next several years. When I was 24 I joined the merchant marines. I graduated their school in piney point and I went to sea as a wheelman on the SS Independence, out of Hawaii. That was probably my first big adventure.

In all of the branches of military I fought in the Friday night fights or fights on the base. I won 41 out of 42 fights. I ate like a fiend and went up to heavyweight division because in the military it is really the least competitive weight because a lot of the guys are blown up middle weights who stopped dieting or training. A lot of them were just tough marines with no skills. It was mostly pretty easy.

Eventually I made it back to college in Tennessee and majored in Foreign Language and English. I went to Germany and studied applied linguistics for four years and worked as a translator for some huge European companies. I spent a year in Costa Rica working as a freelance translator and then finally went back to New York and started a financial career, working as a Financial planner at Prudential. I put my fighting on hold during those years.

MM- You have been in different countries in Asia for the past 8 years now, what made you take this decision, and now, after 8 years, what do you think you’ve learned, and what changed inside of you since your Wall Street days?

The first two years in New York, working in finance were like a long slow nightmare, working 80 and 90 hour weeks with little no pay. But I completed a three year training program in about seven months and sold those skills to ABN Amro for 45,000 pay increase. I stayed with them for a while and moved to one of the largest private banks in America for a 60,000 pay increase. Things were good. Working in private banking I had a lot of free time and money so I started training and fighting again. I just kept dreaming of going to Asia and doing what I am doing now, but I thought I wouldn’t ever get here.

I was ion New York on 911. I decided I didn’t want to work in finance anymore and I also thought that my dream of going to Asia was never going to happen. So, I left. I went to Taiwan first, to learn Chinese and kung fu. Then I went to Shaolin temple in china. Then a Muay Thai temple in Thailand, and then Cambodia….I have spent significant time in about ten countries during the eight years.

I learned to live with almost no money. And I learned that the principle thing people want from money is freedom and freedom is something you can’t buy. You are only free if you can let go of everything.

So, now I am free, but poor. The first six years I thought “a lot of people back home have more money than me but I have freedom, so it is a trade off.” But after the world financial crisis happened I thought “They all lost all their money. So, now neither of us has any money, but I have freedom.” So, I win.

MM- You wrote a book, The Monk from Brooklyn, documenting your martial art training at the famous Shaolin temple in Hunan, China in a time when the country was still ?scary matter? for the West, and you were there during the SARS outbreak too. In light of such perspective, how do you relate to modern day China, and which differences can you draw?

Five of my books have been published. Number Six, “Warrior Odyssey” will be published next year. It documents my first six years in Asia. The Monk from Brooklyn was my first book and it is where I got my nickname. The book means a lot to me.

When I wrote that book, I thought there was no hope for China. Henan, where the Shaolin temple is located is so backward and undeveloped. But after writing the book I lived in Hong Kong, then back in Taiwan, and more Chinese studies and then living in various Chinese communities throughout Southeast Asia, and I decided China is a Dragon Rising. It is a huge country with a command economy and a massive population. There is a tremendous Chinese Diaspora network throughout the world which is possibly China’s greatest asset. The Chinese outside of China are linking up. communities in Malaysia coordinate with communities in Cambodia and they sell products to China. Or buy products from China. The Diaspora are like massive tentacles of the Chinese economic machine. They are passive tentacles in the sense that they aren’t actively working for the Chinese government in any way. But they have found a good way of making money for themselves and their local communities. The ancillary benefit to China is that they get richer and more important in the world.

TO BE CONTINUED