Pakistani Culture is very unique in terms of its social and ethical values. These values are something which are given due importance. This culture revolves around the religion of Islam which teaches equality among every human being that exists on this planet. Pakistan’s culture is very diverse. It has been invaded by many different people belonging to different races. These people include the white Huns, Persian Arabs, Turks, Mongols, and various Eurasian groups. These groups differ in there way of dressing, food, religion. Pakistani culture consists of different cultures starting from the Punjabis and sindhis to the tribal cultures of the easternmost Pakistani provinces. Now these cultures have strongly been influenced by surrounding cultures of India, Central Asia and the Middle East along with other places.

Pakistani society is largely multilingual and multicultural. There are some similarities than differences that can be found as most Pakistanis belong to Aryan heritage. Like sindhis and Punjabis obviously have a language difference. Traditional family values are known every where in this multicultural environment. The rural areas of Pakistan are still dominated by their own tribal customs dating back hundreds of years.

Today due to globalization, Pakistani culture is largely influenced by the western society. Our traditional dress is shalwar kamiz which is mostly turned in to shirt and trousers. This main influence is due to the fact that many Pakistani are living abroad and they come back with this change. Many restaurants from other countries have started business in Pakistan and are making a lot business here. Media has played a wide role in bringing this change. There are many channels of different countries that we can see these days. This is something that is to some extent positive and negative also. Positively the new generation gains knowledge while negatively they are attracted to it and want to bring it in to practice. Indian movies can be seen here in Pakistani cinemas and Pakistani movies can be seen in India. This is positive in terms of Indu Muslim Relations but Indian culture can not be accepted here. Some major differences occur. Like they worship Gods consider them as statue stone. We believe in one God and it’s a belief within our souls. We do not make statues. Like movies our industry is not well known but we still do make movies.

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Small, ridged dumplings packed with a rich, ground pork filling – they were designed to resemble the silver and gold ingots of ancient China. And because they symbolized prosperity, they were traditionally consumed for good luck by Chinese families at their annual Spring Festival, an event formerly known as the Chinese New Year and celebrated today throughout China.

Their creation was part of the Mandarin students’ appreciation of Chinese culture last week at New Prairie Middle School. “I want to go to China so bad,” said eighth grader Caitlyn Young after sampling one of the traditional Chinese eats in class.

Mandarin Teacher May Tang, who’s been teaching some of the Mandarin courses in the district, said this is the most popular holiday in China, and is comparable in importance to Christmas in America. “It’s the turning point,” she said. “You wrap up the old year and welcome the new one. It’s also the time of family reunions. A lot of family members are busy and work in different cities, but for Spring Festival they all try to come back home.”

She said the name of the celebration was changed to the Spring Festival in the early 20th Century after China adopted the Gregorian Calendar in place of the lunar one it previously used. The festival’s held on the date of the traditional Chinese New Year. All last week she took students through a series of traditional Chinese projects as part of the cultural aspect of the Mandarin course.

This included the construction of window paper-cuts, dumplings, symbolic Hongbao (gift money wrapped in red envelopes) and even a symbolic cleaning of the classroom “I remember when I was little,” she said, “like a week before Spring Festival, my mother and the whole family would clean the house, dust, clean everything thoroughly, so the home is ready for the new year. Then you start purchasing all the food and the decorations, like the Chinese red lanterns and window paper cuts, and we’ll also buy and make new clothes. Everything has to be new for the coming year for a new start.”

New Prairie’s Mandarin program – which began last year with Intro to Mandarin and Mandarin 1 in the middle school, and since expanded to programs in the high school and elementary – offers New Prairie children a chance to learn the language and culture of China.

Eighth grader Hunter Dunivon said he’s become fascinated by the culture and plans to visit the country this summer with his mother. “I think it will be a great experience just to see the way they do things,” he said.

Dunivon said he took the course because he thought knowing Chinese would be beneficial if he pursued a career in law. “I really like it and I plan on continuing it,” he said. “I want to be a lawyer when I’m older. So if you speak it (Mandarin), it really helps out in communicating with other people.”

He said he went to a Chinese restaurant once with his family and was able to converse with the waiter in Mandarin. He was told his pronunciation wasn’t the best, but it was definitely intelligable. This encouraged him to go.

This is Tang’s first year teaching middle school Mandarin in the U.S. Before this, she taught Mandarin to international students at the University of Electronic Science and Technology in China, which catered to people from Africa and South Asia. She said there was some difficulty in transitioning to the American style of teaching, although she was given a lot of help by her fellow teachers.

“We do a lot of drills in China,” she said, “but here, I learned gradually, I need to teach the kids through a combination of games and instruction. This is the way that kids learn here. And they don’t do a lot of homework after school compared to Chinese students. So I’ll give them some guided work in class so they won’t spend a lot of time after.”

On her first day, she said one of her students thought China was located somewhere in Japan, an island off the continent of Asia. So she’s had to deal with a few misunderstandings about her country.

“But I love the kids in New Prairie,” she said. “They are curious and interested about a different culture. And I’m really moved and inspired by them. One of the students told me yesterday ‘When I go to high school, I’m going to take Mandarin 2 so you’d better be there!’ Now that’s the best thing I’ve ever heard.”

May Tang is one of two Mandarin instructors in the district. Wei Han began the program last year in New Prairie. Now the corporation plans to expand its Mandarin program with a Mandarin 3 course offering next year.

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Union Minister of State for Human Resources, D Purandeswari has called upon the young generation to be torchbearers of Indian culture and feel proud in the great heritage of Indian civilization when they go out into the world.

Speaking at the Bhagavatha Hamsa Jaynathi Sammelan organized by Malliyoor Mahaganapthy Temple in memory of Bhagavatha Hamsom Malliyoor Sankaran Namboodiri, Ms Purandeswari said that the saintly soul had through his examples given a message against divisiveness. The installation of Vaishnava Ganapathy as deity at the temple showed that he had integrated the Vaishva and Saiva traditions. The sublte message of ‘let us not fight, but work together for the prosperity of Indian philosophy was given in a subtle way by Sankaran Namboodiri, she said.

It was this message handed over down the generations which helped the nation to withstand the invasions against Indian civilization by other cultures and helped to keep our identity, she pointed out.

The saintly soul had restricted himself to the service of god. But his insistence on ‘anna daan’ for the poor showed another facet of his life in which he served the mankind. By serving the poor souls, he was in fact serving god, she said. The right way to pay obeisance to great souls was by showing the whole world that we followed in letter and spirit what they actually stood for.

Malliyoor Ganesha Puraskaram was presented to Metropolitan emeritus Philipose Mar Chrysostum of mar Thoma Church by K C Venugopal, Union Minister of State for Energy, on the occasion. K Baby, Minister for Excise presented the ‘aasthana Gaayakan Puraskaram’ to noted musician Jayan.

VKVM NSS HSS, Manjoor and Vivekandna Educational Society, Ettumanur were presented with Malliyoor Vijana Puraskaram by P J Kurian MP. Jose K Mani MP presided. Mons Joseph MLA, O M Mathew, Kummanam Rajsekharan and others spoke on the occasion.

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PARIS — The winter season of Vienna balls is at its glittering height but there were red faces in the Austrian capital this weekend over a bid to have them officially designated as an international cultural treasure.

The Austrian committee that reports to UNESCO, the United Nations cultural agency, has decided to withdraw its application after critics expressed outrage that it would include the Wiener Korporations-Ball, an annual event associated with the country’s far right.

There might still be time to get tickets for the WKR ball next Friday but it threatens to be a noisy affair. Anti-fascist groups plan to disrupt the event, a magnet for right-wing student dueling fraternities with nostalgic for Austria’s wartime union with Adolf Hitler. The protestors say the event draws in far-rightists from all over Europe.

The WKR ball is among scores that recall the heyday of the Hapsburg Empire when the aristocracy would waltz the night away to the music of Johan Strauss and Franz Lehar. The season became more democratic in the declining years of the Empire, with commoners allowed to stage their annual revelries at Vienna’s Hofburg Palace. The WKR event, first held in 1952, will be the last to be staged at the Hofburg.

The Austrian UNESCO bid involved having the Vienna balls listed as an Intangible Cultural Heritage, a designation that more typically includes Hopi basket-weaving or Chinese calligraphy. Recent additions included the Mediterranean diet and falconry.

Austria struggled to come to terms with its post-war legacy. In the impoverished post-war years, Austrians saw themselves as the victims rather than the former partners of Nazi Germany. An unkind wit once suggested that the Austrians had succeeded in persuading the world that Beethoven was an Austrian and Hitler a German, rather than the reverse.

The Vienna ball affair will not leave the Austrians without internationally recognized heritage. Viennese coffee house culture made it to the list last year and the Viennese coffee house owners will be holding their own ball on February 10.

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Betty Makoni is an activist who set up Girl Child Network Worldwide to help girls who have been abused in Zimbabwe and other African countries. She experienced hardship and abuse in her own life, but rather than give up she fought even harder for her rights and those of others. "I was raped at just six years old by a man who had heard taking a young girl's virginity would bring him wealth and power," she said.

He reportedly also raped 10 other girls but was never arrested or prosecuted, because he was well known in the village and the girls' parents told them to "keep quiet", she explained in recounting her background. "A rape victim often hears that it is better to conceal her ordeal. As a result, I and the other victims became increasingly withdrawn.

"Of the 10 girls, six of them contracted HIV and died after developing AIDS," she said. "This is what originally motivated me to create my own organisation. My friends suffered and died in silence. I did not want this to continue. I wanted to be able to provide an outlet and source of support for girls who are brutalised in this way."

Makoni acquired a public profile in Zimbabwe in 2008, when an increasing number of women became victims of political violence. They were punished for supporting the opposition party, the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC), led by Morgan Tsvangirai during the parliamentary and presidential elections.
Tension between supporters of the MDC and the Zimbabwe African National Union - Patriotic Front, led by President Robert Mugabe, peaked when Tsvangirai emerged as the winner of the presidential elections. After Mugabe refused to relinquish power, the two agreed to form a unity government, with Mugabe remaining president and Tsvangirai becoming prime minister. Out of an estimated 5,000 women who were raped during the unrest of the elections, only five ever received justice, Makoni said.

As the violence spiralled out of control, Makoni set up a safe route for women to escape from Zimbabwe into Botswana, where she worked with six different international lawyers and organisations, such as Aids Free World, to take statements from the women about their ordeals and to provide some measure of comfort and support.

"Some of the women had been brutally attacked, sometimes in front of their families. Others had fallen pregnant but were rejected by their husbands. Rape continues to be used as a weapon in Zimbabwe" she noted.

As a consequence of her activism, Makoni was arrested by Mugabe's security forces and kept in a dark cell for 10 days before she was released. A smear campaign was launched against her and she received several death threats. After continued persecution by the regime, she sought refuge in the UK. From this base she has continued her work as an activist and campaigner against the sexual abuse of women and young girls in Africa.

In addition to rape, women in Zimbabwe are subjected to other forms of abuse, including abduction and the forced marriage of young girls, some of which are sanctioned by religion. "A man can rape an under-age girl, confess his action during a church assembly and receive forgiveness on the condition that he agrees to marry her," Makoni said. "Sometimes a man justifies committing rape by saying the Holy Spirit gave him the girl in a dream," she added.

Makoni cited the example of Tendei, an 18-year-old girl who was forced into marriage three times, first at the age of 12 and then at 14. After she escaped her second husband, she was forced to enter a third marriage at the age of 16. "She heard me speak on Zimbabwean radio and contacted me" Makoni said. " I managed to bring her to one of my centres for girls and she is now about to go to college, but her family still refuses to see or talk to he because she ran away."

Dire poverty also leads women to marry. "I once rescued an 11-year-old girl who was married off to a 72-year-old man for just $10 (£6.50). Her HIV-positive father needed the money to buy medicine."Other forms of abuse that women experience in Zimbabwe stem from traditional cultural practises. These include virginity testing and female genital mutilation, including labia stretching. "We use the law to protect boys and violate girls in the name of tradition," Makoni said. "Unfortunately, this will continue until the government and local chiefs, along with members of the civil society, take a united stance."

Such practises are often performed in unhygienic conditions, increasing the risks of infection and the transmission of disease. One of the problems that Makoni has endeavoured to highlight throughout her work is the pressure women are placed under to satisfy their husbands sexually. "Some girls are taken away from schools and taught how to be good housewives, instead of continuing their education. The female initiation to sex, known as chinamwali, sometimes entails forcing girls to move straight from the classroom to the bedroom."Virginity tests, another area of abuse, are often conducted en masse.

"If a girl passes the test, she receives a certificate, sometimes also a T-shirt and even a scholarship for her to return to school. If she fails the test, however, she is further abused by being humiliated, cursed and treated as an outcast.  I have known of cases where a girl's virginity was taken during the examination," Makoni said. "Girls who are not virgins are often at greater risk of being raped.  Some are even pushed into prostitution after being rejected by their families."

The rape of women is rarely prosecuted in Zimbabwe, according to Makoni. Hence, the reason for her work. So far she has received 26 awards from rights groups and international organisations, including the United Nations Red Ribbon Award in 2006, the Amnesty International Ginetta Sagan Award for Women's and Children's Rights in 2008 and the CNN Heroes Award for Protecting the Powerless in 2009. Last year, she was named by Newsweek magazine as one of 150 women who shake the world.

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The crowded outlets of McDonald’s and growing customer base of multinational banks will vouch for that. Undoubtedly, various organisations are seeking to expand their presence globally and are always on the lookout for new territories to grow; here’s an interesting dilemma they face: How can an organisation having a global presence maintain its individuality, while also assimilating various local cultures, traditions and practices? What are the factors that can help instantly bond people, no matter the location?

These are some of the soft factors in global integration. These soft factors are not governed by policies, or framework, these are not the hardwares but the softwares which facilitate writing codes of bonding, acceptance and mutual trust.

Typically, the HR department is entrusted with the implementation of corporate policies and plays a significant role in instilling a homogenous culture throughout its branches. However, the HR group faces multiple challenges during the globalisation process. When a company sets up office on foreign soil, there are ethnic and cultural differences, while in the case of acquisition and mergers, there are differences in corporate culture that would need to be addressed.

The first step towards achieving integration is to create a global mindset within the HR group itself. It is followed by understanding and studying the practices, policy systems, service terms and conditions prevalent in the two organisations, the mapping of these practices recognising the similarities and the gaps to fill. The other element, when designing a policy framework, is to understand the respective country’s culture and the local law of the land. While there is always an easy route like applying universal policies throughout the organisation, but such a step carries the risk of detaching people emotionally from the company, and may lead to employees considering the organisation as ‘just a corporate entity’, and not the ‘family’ they belong to. On the other hand, allowing too lenient a policy and accommodating local customs can compromise on the professionalism and work culture associated with an organisation. It is said that 70 per cent of time the merger efforts fail, the reasons are the absence of the emotional, soft factors.

It is imperative to patiently evaluate the existing processes and practices of local business units, before considering a universal policy. More often than not, it could turn out that the local customs actually complement the corporate organisational policies.

Moreover, the integration process should be looked at from a human and humane perspective to achieve a long-term connect with the employees globally. Some of the specific issues faced by the HR department during the globalisation process and possible initiatives to counter that:

1. Different ethnic cultures
It is of utmost importance to realise the inherent cross cultural boundaries and remain flexible. A strong corporate culture should not be imposed, and there should be a leeway for customising it in accordance with the local traditions. For example, in some countries, it is perfectly fine to ask about age and marital status of a person, while in other countries, it may be considered rude or even illegal! Similarly, in some regions, team management and collective work is emphasised more, while in another, individual performance is considered superior. Hence, the HR group needs to be emotionally intelligent and geographically aware, when it comes to acquisition and retention of talent.

2. Varied corporate cultures
The HR department should design corporate working environments keeping in mind the comfort level of employees in different geographies. In essence, everyone should be on the same platform when it comes to the ‘what’ of achieving, however, the ‘how’ of it can be left to the discretion of the concerned location. The corporate culture varies from continent to continent. The challenge for the HR team is first to understand the difference, absorb it and then adapt it. The bigger challenge is in sensitising the internal folks to build acceptance towards different cultures.  

3. Different time-zones
The other element is cementing differences and creating a cohesive and global workforce by means of effective coordination and inculcating a global mindset. In this day and age of video conferencing, virtual gatherings do not pose a problem and the HR group can play a significant role in connecting the employees using these means. However, varying time zones and location separated from the mainland with limited telephone access may still need to be addressed in a different way. For effective collaboration between offices working in different time zones, employees need to be empathetic about other’s comfort levels. If a person sitting in India shows sensitivity towards work and personal timings of a person in the USA, and vice-versa; it builds a much healthier environment. For example, if someone in India needs to call someone in Chicago, USA, the best time to do so is in the evening before the end of working day and not after coming in to work in the morning, since it would correspondingly be late night in Chicago.

4. Global learning platform
Implementing learning and training practices across locations could prove another big hurdle for the Learning and Development department. Some organisations now employ a ‘chief learning officer’, who takes care of global trainings to bring out the best in employees. Some firms even conduct special training programs, wherein the goal is to spread awareness about a specific culture and language of a country. They cover topics such as language, food and cultural understanding, international protocol and more, on a macro level. The need of the hour is to think innovatively, in conduct training and introduce learning initiatives globally, through webinars, videos, etc. At Geometric, we also conduct various knowledge sharing sessions, webinars and seminars covering a plethora of technical subjects, which not only helps train but brings people together based on their common passion for technology.

5.Connecting with employees
No matter where employees are located, the thing that makes them human remains the same- emotions.  There is a need to create communication forums, and platforms for the employees so that there are channels open to communicate, be it then the company information and directions, or grievances or issues of the employees. The other means to connect are at ‘soft factor’ level. This includes fun contests and exhibitions wherein family members of employees can partake. Many companies have  organised various competitions celebrating employee’s bonds with their family members and share their experiences with colleagues.

Whilst the above are the soft factors, there are other hardwares that are being implemented, like aligning with the business goals of the organisation, common driving factor for the performance management system, rewarding good performance, recognition practices and a few more.

This is possible only on a strong foundation of values of the organisation, which include policies on religious tolerance, business confidentiality, non tolerance to gender discrimination, among other things.

The initiatives listed are by no means exhaustive. A progressive thinking, creative and emotionally intelligent HR group can come up with more ways of connecting with employees worldwide helping retain a global identity without overly compromising on local customs. Global integration is an ongoing process, one that should be always evaluated and evolved accordingly. To that effect, the human resource management systems must be adaptive, tolerant and should have a flexible attitude towards creating strategic human resource practices.

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PARIS A centre of Omani Cultural Days at Unesco was opened in Paris on Monday.  Activities of the Omani Cultural Days is organised by the Sultan Qaboos Centre for Islamic Culture in co-operation with the Unesco and with the participation of ministries and cultural institutions in the Sultanate.

The opening ceremony was held under the auspices of HE Ahmed Bin Nasser Al Mahrazi, the Sultanate’s Ambassador to France, and in the presence of HE Dr Abdullah Bin Nasser Al Harasi, Chairman of the Public Authority for Radio and Television, HE Habib Bin Mohammed Al Riyami, Secretary-General of the Sultan Qaboos Centre for Islamic Culture, Her Excellency Dr Samira Bint Mohammed Bin Moussa, Permanent Delegate of the Sultanate at the Unesco, HE Dr Moussa Bin Ja’far Bin Hassan, Adviser of the Sultanate’s Delegation at the Unesco, ambassadors, and permanent delegates of the GCC states, Arab and foreign countries at the Unesco along with several French and Unesco officials.

Al Riyami said mutual communication, openness and engagement with the events serve to build bridges of cooperation. He said Omani Days showcase Sultanate’s vision during various eras and ages. Ahmed Al Mahrazi said the new centre plays a significant role in spreading information on the Sultanate’s history.

The opening ceremony included two movies about Omani daily lifestyles and the Omani sites registered with the Unesco. An exhibition titled ‘Omani History and Civilisation’ was held on the sidelines of the event. It includes Omani documentations, samples of craft industries, traditional industries and printings.

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It was pomp and colour when the Bamasaaba in Kenya welcomed their leader, Omukuka Wilson Weyasa Wamimbi on December 30, 2011 at the Bungoma Cultural Centre. Leaders from the Bukusu community led by the minister for Foreign Affairs, Moses Wetangula, were at hand to welcome him on his arrival from Uganda.

Accompanying the Omukuka we inzu ye bamasaaba, head of the house of bamasaaba), who reigns over six million subjects in Kenya and Uganda were several cabinet ministers, cultural leaders and traditional dancers from Uganda.

In attendance were politicians, Bifwoli Wakoli, an assistant minister, and MP for Bumula, Musikari Kombo, a nominated MP, and Alfred Khang’ati, MP for Kanduyi. Wilson Wamimbi, a former Uganda High Commissioner to Canada, was installed as “Muyinga” (an equivalent of king) of the Bamasaaba in December 2010. He took over from Omukuka Yonasa Mungoma who had been at the helm of inzu ya Masaaba ( house of Masaaba) from 1962. Before then, each of the 26 Bamasaaba clans in Uganda and over 200 in Kenya had its own leader. Wamimbi was elected by the clan elders to serve a non-renewable term of five years.

The now annual Bukusu Cultural Festival held at the newly commissioned Bungoma Cultural Centre was the second, the first one was held at Kanduyi stadium in December 2010.

The aim of these festivities, says Florence Nabwala, the Bungoma District cultural officer, is to preserve the rich Bukusu culture which has significantly been permeated by foreign cultural imperialism. She thanked the Bungoma County Council for donating more than seven acres of land for the construction of the cultural centre and Nzoia sugar factory for partly funding its construction. The centre cost Kshs5m(about Shs137.9b) to build.

Speaking at the same function, Dominic Wetangula, the chairman of Bukusu Council of Elders, said the unity among Bagisu of Uganda and Babukusu of Kenya would help to solidify socio-economic and political relations between the two communities ahead of the proposed East African Community federation.

In his book, An outline history of the Babukusu, F. Makila says, Mubukusu, the forefather of Babukusu, and Mugisu, the patriarch of bagisu, were both sons of Masaaba. Disagreements between the two sons resulted in Mubukusu leading the proto-bukusu across river Malaba (Lwakhakha) into Kenya.

Wetangula’s side of the Bamasaaba history
However, Wetangula argues that Mubukusu and Masaaba were both sons of Mundu and that babukusu are therefore not bamasaaba. John Osogo in his book, A History of the Baluhya , tresses Bukusu and Bagisu genealogy to Wele, a god or first ancestor and father of Sela and Mwambu her brother. Sela and Mwambu bore two children, Malaba and her brother Mugonma, ancestors of present-day Bukusu and Ugandan Bagisu respectively.

Dr Vincent Simiyu of the History department, University of Nairobi, says estimates using various chronological methods show that the separation of the Bukusu and Bagisu occurred in the 12th and 13th centuries. Some Bukusu populations are today still found in Yembe and Cheptui divisions of Mbale district and also in Bugisu and Sabiny (Sebei) districts in Uganda.

Bagisu and Babukusu speak dialects of Lumasaaba and live astride Mt Masaaba which European colonialists renamed Mt Elgon after the local inhabitants of the area, the El-kony. Bifwoli Wakoli’s clan, Bayemba like many other Bukusu clans is found in Uganda. Interestingly, one of his brothers is named Mugisu, after the Bagisu ancestor, Mugisu.

During the festival held at Sang’alo village, the visitors from Uganda spoke in Lugisu which their hosts, Babukusu understand very well. Omukuka Weyasa urged closer ties between the Bamasaaba through sports and joint cultural events. He invited babukusu to attend the Bamasaaba cultural day to be held in August which will mark the beginning of the circumcision ceremony, imbalu among the Bagisu.

The crowd was entertained by Kadodi dancers from Uganda and Tindikiti and Namatete bands from Bungoma. Unlike their counterparts from Uganda, Bukusu musicians regrettably wore modern European suits instead of traditional attire. The dress code was not consistent with the music.

The Dini ya Msambwa adherents mesmerised the crowd with their singing and drumming. However, none of the speakers at Sang`alo explained to the crowd the origins and philosophy of this religious outfit. Conspicuously absent during the function were professional historians and anthropologists from Bungoma County.

In an attempt to explain the ancestral ties between Babukusu and Bagisu, Kombo amused many when he called the host community the Kitosh a derogatory term used by colonialists to refer to Babukusu. “It is significant that professionals are involved in the planning and execution of cultural events so as to enable participants to benefit from their key note speeches,” avers Prof Simiyu Wandibba, a seasoned anthropologist who has published widely on Bukusu culture.

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Much of the initial fallout from “several key Jets players and members of the organization” airing doubts about quarterback Mark Sanchez to the New York Daily News has centered on trashing their insistence on anonymity. “If ‘unnamed sources’ want to attack Mark, man up and put your name to it,” Jets center Nick Mangold said via Twitter.

Well, sure, of course. Any issue with Sanchez should have been raised in a team meeting, private conversation or, at the very least, in an on-the-record interview. Here’s the thing, though: What if those people didn’t believe an internal discussion would’ve done any good and saw Daily News reporter Manish Mehta as the most effective outlet?

When you get past the inflammatory quotes and the open pining for Peyton Manning, the core issue is how the New York Jets are being run, not necessarily how the quarterback is progressing.

The critics don’t believe coach Rex Ryan is properly pushing Sanchez to improve. While it’s simplistic to say Sanchez regressed in his third season (maybe he has, but so too did the running game), there is no question the results aren’t what everyone hoped. Even the Jets acknowledge that.

“His rate of growth isn’t where it needs to be, but I think the trajectory of his career after three years is,” general manager Mike Tannenbaum said on WFAN earlier this month. “I think he’s shown he can be a winning NFL quarterback and that’s what you need from the position.

“Do I think he’s going to be Peyton Manning or Tom Brady or Drew Brees? Obviously that would be hard to say as of today. But I do think we can win a lot of games with Mark as our quarterback.”

The Jets traded up in the 2009 draft to get Sanchez out of USC with the fifth pick overall. That’s a spot you’re expecting someone who, after three years, projects as one of the league’s best. You won’t hear Detroit essentially dismiss the possibility that quarterback Matthew Stafford, the No. 1 pick that year, can become an elite player.

Clearly there’s an issue, and the fact that multiple players and team employees voiced it anonymously could say as much about the culture of the Jets as the critics’ lack of courage. Yes, maybe they are all backstabbing cowards. Or maybe they don’t think Ryan will listen. “They don’t want to be truthful with [Sanchez],” one anonymous player said. “They treat him like a baby instead of a man.”

That will be open to debate inside the Jets’ facility. It’s worth noting a number of the players in the Daily News story defended Sanchez in certain instances. This is really about how he is being developed – not that he’s incapable of development.

The Jets do appear to have protected him. They haven’t signed a capable backup who can push him in practice and provide a viable alternative when he struggles – preferring to go with veterans who are little more than mentors and injury insurance.

Ryan has been steadfast in his public defense of Sanchez (not a bad thing, but worth noting). The coach routinely tries to engage with opposing quarterbacks (most notably Manning and Tom Brady) in an effort to turn the game-week hype into a battle between coach vs. QB, not QB vs. QB. And it’s not like they ask Sanchez to throw the ball all over the field – it’s been a lot of slants and screens.

If anything, some players seem to be screaming for the Jets to take a different tack to help Sanchez. Competition can prompt improvement, after all. Demands can be met. Apparently they can’t go to the coach with these suggestions and complaints.

It’s not that the Jets aren’t aware something needs to be done. Offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer was just dumped in favor of Tony Sparano, who, it appears, will focus on rebuilding the ground-and-pound running game that Ryan favors and should aid Sanchez.

As for the get Peyton Manning sentiment, well, who can blame them? A healthy Peyton Manning is something all but a half dozen or so teams should consider. He would still be an elite talent, a leader and a difference maker – the Colts calamitous fall without him proved his value perhaps more than even the Super Bowl title.

So of course the Jets would think about it. They’d instantly be a Super Bowl contender. It’s mostly a pipe dream, however. First, no one knows if Manning is going to be “healthy,” and if he isn’t this would be a terrible gamble. Sanchez hasn’t struggled that much. Second, Colts owner Jim Irsay has repeatedly expressed an interest in keeping Manning within the franchise no matter his playing status.

The overwhelming likelihood is that Sanchez is the Jets’ starter next season. Ryan and company’s best response to this latest flare-up is to not rage about anonymous quotes and the predictable tabloid firestorm. It’s to ask whether the players have a point. Is Sanchez coddled? Should he be challenged? Is there a better way?

And, most importantly, is the Jets’ culture, or the coach’s stubbornness, partly to blame for players going to a newspaper and not to their bosses in the first place?

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BEIJING – When Chinese leader Hu Jintao recently warned his nation's ruling Communist Party of an imminent risk from the West, he wasn't talking about the United States boosting its military capabilities in East Asia. He was alluding to things such as video games. "International hostile forces" use thought and culture "to Westernize and split" China, Hu stated in a speech publicized in January in the party magazine Seeking Truth..

At least China's embattled youth can strike back at the West come May when Glorious Mission, a civilian version of the Chinese army's first training simulation game, goes on sale, according to the state-run China Daily newspaper. Co-developed by the People's Liberation Army, the online, first-person shooter game allows players to destroy enemies that resemble U.S. forces.

Glorious Mission and other "serious games" supported by Chinese authorities form one front in Beijing's multiheaded cultural offensive, launched last fall. There's been fighting talk from Hu's likely successor, Xi Jinping.

China's universities are "a key ideological front to equip our youth with the core values of socialism," he told the country's deans last week. Xi, 58, is likely to succeed Hu, 69, as party general secretary this year.
Through massive investment, and countless censors, the Communist Party aims to boost China's "soft power," or cultural influence, abroad and shore up "cultural security" at home by reinforcing state control of the sector and guiding audiences back to "socialist core values." Neither goal will come easily.
"The international culture of the West is strong while we are weak," Hu Jintao admitted.

China is the home of pandas and kung fu, yet it took Hollywood to make the smash-hit animated movie Kung Fu Panda, the sequel of which was China's most popular film in 2011. The fast-swelling ranks of young, urban consumers here have proved highly receptive to the pop culture of the USA and Asian neighbors South Korea and Japan. State censors launch regular crackdowns, sometimes with bizarre targets: Last year, authorities restricted time-travel TV dramas and banned downloading of certain foreign pop songs, including The Backstreet Boys' seemingly non-political 1999 hit I Want It That Way.

In recent weeks, the government has stripped two-thirds of entertainment programs, mostly talent, talk and dating shows, from the schedules of China's popular satellite stations. Citing "excessive entertainment and a trend toward low taste," regulators have forced satellite channels to switch to programs promoting "traditional virtues and socialist core values," the state-run Xinhua News Agency reported.

Some viewers reject the changes. "I can't understand why the government deprives us of the right to enjoy TV entertainment programs, as they are so mild and interesting," complains Zhu Qiansheng, 23, an unemployed graduate from Zhengzhou, central China. As authorities shrink his options, Zhu has gone online for U.S. shows such as House and Prison Break and Chinese websites' own shows that dare to air "more open" content, he says. "But I worry the Internet will also be more controlled this year," Zhu says.

The clamor of cultural rhetoric reflects the political atmosphere of this transition year for China's leadership, says Sheila Melvin, a U.S. writer working on a book exploring China's cultural rise. Some party analysts hope to buttress China's cultural strength against the Western culture they see spurring the "Arab Spring" revolutions and the collapse of another communist dictatorship, the Soviet Union. There's also a deeper, moral purpose, Melvin says.

"The Communist Party has inherited the ancient belief that culture transforms — exposure to high culture can make you a more moral person, exposure to low culture can cause you to behave immorally," she says. "The party sees the many problems in Chinese society and hopes to address them with culture; to some degree, it can be seen as a substitute for religion."

Grabbing the world's attention will remain a tough task unless the government relaxes its decades-long control of "cultural products," cautions Yin Hong, a professor of film and television studies at Beijing's Tsinghua University. "The restrictions on culture always make it hard for China to produce world-influencing literature and cinema," writes China's most popular blogger, novelist Han Han.

Despite stiff odds, Chinese video game creator Linus Xin hopes his "serious games" achieve some impact by enlivening the ideology and morality classes every Chinese college student must take.
Being tested in the capital's colleges, the Emotional Quotient Gas Station game teaches students, often nervous and naive, how to tackle the opposite sex in a respectful manner, says Xin, CEO of Intellect Valley Communications.

China's Ministry of Culture promotes the "serious game" category, characterized by strong educational and moral messages, although Xin and fellow game developer Zheng Yaqi say they have not received funding support.

"I hope the name 'serious game' won't scare off players," says Zheng, CEO of Pipilu Culture and Technology, who is transforming the popular children's stories of his father, Zheng Yuanjie, into educational games. "Games can also show a country's soft power," says Zheng, who hopes U.S. players and readers will develop a taste for his dad's creations.

Online game fanatic Liu Bowen, 23, has never played a "serious game" and dismisses EQ Gas Station for its "boring and silly" name. But he looks forward to the PLA's Glorious Mission "if it's violent and bloody." Otherwise, "I have no interest.""I don't think it's good for government to control or encourage which type of game we should play," Liu says.

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