Asia Blog: China, Japan, Korea, Vietnam

Someone paid me to take a look at Japanese Friend Finder and write a review. I was initially going to reject the request, but after looking at the site, I feel writing a review is justified. For, as you will soon see, Japanese Friend Finder is not affiliated with the famous Various Inc. Adult Friend Finder brand, but rather is simply a copycat site with a similar name.

There are a few things which immediately spark warning bells:

• The title tag reads “Japanese Women for Chat Dating …”
• It’s powered by “WorldFriends Networks” not “FriendFinder Network, Inc.”
• It boasts a dithered 8-bit image in its header
• The “featured members” don’t change on refresh (just once a day)

However, I can’t find anything bad about it online. And, it features convincing personal endorsements that suggest that it’s legit, even if it’s a second-rate dating site. Looking at the CEO Dominic Penaloza’s LinkedIn profile adds either legitimacy or caution, depending on how you look at it. After graduating from the University of Ontario in 1992, he worked a brief 8-month smith for Smith Barney IBD in 1994, spent a year at Greenwich Street Capital Partners, then 4 years at Prudential Asset Management Asia. To me, this sounds like the quest of a relatively young man to find his passion–although my cynical side wonders about his two short stints on wall street. Now he’s been managing Meta4 Group for 8 years now, lending strength to the legitimacy of Japanese Friend Finder.

Technically, they boast “1 million members” and their profile asks you to register your racial preferences. Do you like Thai girls, or Vietnamese? Chinese or Korean? The question is appalling, but central to Japanese Friend Finder’s mission–hooking you up with the girl from the country of your fancy. I like the language preferences section better, as learning Urdu or Tagalog appeals to me.

But somehow, I think sites like this are more for casual hookups or the desperate. I’d rather meet women serendipitously. And introduction from a friend, a drink bought at a bar, or picking up something she dropped in the street are all more romantic, satisfying ways to get to know someone. Or a dating site that tried to align your interests with other members’ interests holistically, comparing preferences in body type, nationality, language, and interests.

The difference between America and Vietnam is summarized by the public reaction to Hoang Thuy Linh and Paris Hilton’s sex tapes. While Paris’s film shot the young American heiress to instant celebrity and cemented her hold on the American public, Hoang Thuy Linh’s television show was canceled. She gave an apology on national TV for violating her good-girl image:

“I made a mistake, a terrible mistake. I apologize to you, my parents, my teachers and my friends.”

An Associated Press article Vietnam Is Having Paris Hilton Moment quotes a few interesting Vietnamese on the issue:

• “A good girl must keep herself clean until she is married,” Khanh said. “Thuy Linh should be condemned.”
• charges of “spreading depraved cultural items”
• “People will forgive him, but not her”
• “it’s OK for a boy to have sex at that age, but not for a girl”
• the episode underscored the “dark side of globalization” and warned that a flood of foreign influences “threaten Vietnam’s cultural foundation.”

In the 21st century, like all previous centuries, the morality police and gender double-standards live on. How long is it going to be before global morality becomes fully modernized?

For some reason, Phizer decided to run this Viagra advertisement in China, emphasizing vitality:

I feel sorry for the child that’s produced by these Viagra-powered sperm, because the female-genome of that poor egg looks like it’s being completely pummeled. The ad is almost like Man of Steel, Woman of Kleenex, that hilarious thought-experiment of a Superman-Lana union.

According to Mainichi news, the reason Ayumi Hamasaki and Tomoya Nagase divorced was an abortion Ayu allegedly had:

“Ayu is a formal member of a top Tokyo hospital, which guarantees her absolute privacy, but apparently somebody happened to spot her bawling her eyes out while at the hospital in the spring,” the reporter says. “I have to admit that I don’t know whether the rumor is true.”

If she did become pregnant, her music career would be on hold, possibly forever. And with competition from Koda Kumi, she has to be on top of her “j-idol” game.

Li Ning, principal of Beijing Institute of Protocol, is heading the selection process for hostesses at next year’s Beijing Olympics, and has a few choice things to say:

We don’t want anyone who looks in any way sleazy because that could really put athletes off. Bone structure and height should be uniform. For example, we don’t want any wide bottoms.

Tattoos are also forbidden, which puts Missy Elliott out of the running under all counts, as she got an authentic tribal tattoo in New Zealand, is incredibly short, and definitely bootylicious.

That’s too bad, as she’d make a great opening event. However, since the ceremonies will probably try to have as Chinese a flavour as possible, someone like Faye Wong, Jay Chou, S.H.E, or any of the myriad and awesome Chinese singers would do!

(On an unrelated note, wouldn’t a 周杰伦 / Missy Elliott collaborating be TOTALLY AWESOME?)