【美国《华人》传媒编辑唐钊2022年4月3日】Russian President Vladimir Putin and Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu fishing in Tuva in 2017. (Getty Images)

The physical health and mental health of Russian President Vladimir Putin has recently drawn more attention due to the war against Ukraine. An investigative report by the Russian independent media Project pointed out that Putin, who will turn 70 in October, is indeed not as vigorous as the political propaganda presented, and he will soak in the deer antler essence bath for "enhancing his health".

The investigative report, conducted in collaboration with Project journalists in different countries, checked and matched a large amount of public information, high-level sources and insiders, and showed several symptoms of Vladimir Putin's health deterioration in recent years, as well as his interaction and complex interests with political and business elites and medical professionals.

Project Media, Inc., which has been declared an "undesirable organization", has been moving journalists out of Russia since last July and has maintained operations overseas due to Moscow's strong clampdown on freedom of speech.

According to the audio-visual photos and textual materials that are not difficult for the general public to access, Putin travels all over the places for personal and business purposes, with a strong physique image, his "close female companions" changed frequently, and his physical function is obviously better than that of Boris Yeltsin and other leaders of Russia and the Soviet Union who are at a similar age, and it is reasonable to expect that he will rule Russia until 2036 in accordance with the powers enshrined in the constitution.

However, since his first presidency at the age of 47 in 2000, Putin's health has been strictly kept secret by the Kremlin, and the outside world will only be told that Putin has a "cold". But according to reports, Putin suffers from at least lower back pain, and he is apparently worried about cancer.

Putin was a keen equestrian in the 2000s. He was injured when he fell off a horse and was unable to stand properly for a while. On November 4, 2012, during the official celebration of "National Unity Day", Putin was visibly lame, but the Kremlin strictly prohibited the media from reporting relevant details.

In fact, Putin was already lame at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit, which was hosted by Russia in September of that year, and the Kremlin subsequently cancelled many trips outside Moscow for Putin. In December of the same year, the Kremlin was forced to shorten Putin's single event time: due to health reasons, he could not sit for more than an hour. Officials said Putin needed surgery.

It was also from that time that the Kremlin took new measures to release pre-made news videos and photos to prevent blocking and countering the outside world's doubts about Putin's health. This method is used more and more frequently.

 As he got older, Putin became more and more fascinated by various remedies that could help "prolong life." Although his official propaganda image included a love of animals, he was willing to have the Siberian red deer (big-horned deer) brutally sawn off its antlers, which were not yet ossified, but still soft and full of blood, in order to obtain the antler essence.

According to reports, Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu first shared with Putin the magic of taking a "deer antler bath" during his tenure as Russia's emergency minister from 1994 to 2012. Sergei Shoigu, who was born in Tuva (in the area known as "Tannu Ulianghai" in history) and is keen to portray himself as a descendant of Mongolian heroes, claims that a bloody antler bath can strengthen the cardiovascular system and revitalize the skin.

The report pointed out that Putin tried to become a customer, which partly explains why he likes to travel with Sergei Shoigu in the Altai region so much.

The news that Putin "just loves it" spread quickly in the political and business elite circles. Like other Putin remedies for longevity, including Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin, state-run Gazprom chairman Alexei Miller, and others also have favorable feelings about deer antler and antler baths.

The report pointed out that Putin is keen on "non-traditional medicine", but many of his relatives and friends have medical-related professional backgrounds, and these people often use nepotism to expand their turf in politics and business. However, what is more noteworthy is that this phenomenon can also be seen in some medical staff who are close to Putin, and Putin's medical team continues to expand.

According to reports, Putin's medical team currently has at least 60 people, with an average of 9 medical staff accompanying each trip.

The most common co-occurrences with Putin are ENT and thyroid cancer surgeons. One reason is that ENT-related symptoms can help early diagnosis of thyroid cancer.

In addition, people familiar with the matter pointed out that Putin has been visiting the Central Clinical Hospital in Moscow, which is responsible for the health of high-level political leaders, more and more frequently in recent years. At the same time, more and more medical staff went to Putin's location to stand by, treat and accompany him.

Putin made several visits to the southern Russian resort of Sochi, where he fell and was injured while playing hockey. The investigative reporting team compared Putin’s stay at the official residence and the time when medical staff from Moscow and other places went to Sochi to stay in hotels or recuperation facilities near the official residence, and found that between 2016 and 2020, when Putin was reclusive or visited Sochi, he often accompanied by a group of doctors and nurses, the professional fields cover ENT, surgery, neurosurgery, intensive care, anesthesia, skin, venereal diseases, oncology, infectious diseases, etc.

According to reports, Putin has undergone at least two major surgeries, in 2016 and 2019, possibly on the back.

Putin's mental state has also sparked discussions in the medical community in recent years, especially after the global epidemic broke out in early 2020 and Putin gradually moved towards normal "self-isolation". He is also extremely afraid of being infected. In addition to maintaining a social distance of more than 2 meters from others, according to public information, including French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz before the outbreak of the Russian-Ukrainian war. When Marcon met with Putin, he was asked by the Kremlin to hand in a stool sample in advance. After the request failed, the Kremlin asked Macron and others to talk with Putin at a 6-meter long table.

(Source: Central News Agency)

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DINING WITH ASIAN FOOD AND WINE

Thailand’s Songkram (The Water Festival)

By

Ronald Jan, M. D.

April 15^th may be Tax Day in the U.S.A. but in Thailand it is the 3^rd day of a 3-day holiday—The Water Festival (April 13, 14, and 15). It is the day when the Thai people pay homage to ancestors and to elders and a day when they pour water upon each other and upon statues of Buddha to represent cleansing the house, the body, and the mind of bad thoughts thereby purifying to begin a fresh start in the New Year. The holiday is a religious holiday but also a playful one during which it is customary for people to be dowsed with water. (Thai Water Festival Image from Rhea Nath www.holidify.com › pages › festivals-in-thailand-873)

Of course, every festival is accompanied by wonderful food and Thai food has become increasingly popular worldwide. Here in Sacramento, we can enjoy wonderful Thai cuisine at Tee and Ann Devahasdin’s THAI (The House of Authentic Ingredients) Restaurant in Sacramento. Tee, a descendent of Thai Royalty met Ann at U.C. Davis as she was studying for her Ph.D. To present the best Thai cuisine, Tee recruited from Thailand Wong Jankheun, a rising star in culinary arts in Thailand.

[Thai dish Mu Krob Tod – Photo Courtesy of Ronald Jan, M.D.]

One of my two favorite dishes is Mu Krob Tod, Pork Belly boiled then marinated with salt and vinegar then pressed to flatten the skin and baked to make the skin crispy.  The Pork Belly is then presented with a choice of 2 dipping sauces—one a sweet soy sauce and the other a seafood sauce with salt, lime juice, Thai chili, garlic, sugar, and cilantro.  The result is a wonderfully flavored pork belly with a crispy skin and the flavors of the fat blending with the pork that is enhanced by dipping into either of the two sauces.  My favorite is the seafood sauce with its multiplicity of flavors and a gentle spiciness.  

[Thai dish Muu Tod – Photo Courtesy of Ronald Jan, M. D.]

The other favorite dish is Muu Tod, deep fried Pork Shoulder that was marinated in special spices.  The dish is not spicy hot and has wonderful aromas / flavors of umami with enough fat to keep the meat moist and flavorful.  Then sprinkled with finely ground parched rice.  The dipping sauce is Nam Jim Jaew, a spicy tamarind sauce with herbs. The flavors of the sauce and spices complement the fat of the pork shoulder and the pork’s gentle umami flavors.  

[2016 Yao Ming’s Cabernet Sauvignon Howell Mountain Reserve in Napa Valley’s AVA - Photo Courtesy of Ronald Jan, M. D.]

The ingredients of both of dishes work well with a wine with full body and rich tannins such as a Cabernet Sauvignon, one of the principal grapes of Bordeaux, France described on the two preceding wine articles in wechineseus.com. For this balance, complementary to the fat and umami flavors of the pork the 2016 Yao (Ming) Family Wine Howell Mountain Reserve from Napa Valley, AVA works well. Howell Mountain presents with excellent drainage favoring the growth of the Cabernet Sauvignon grape with excellent exposure to the sun while avoiding any morning fog from the San Pablo Bay that could seep onto the valley floor. The Cabernet Sauvignon’s tannin will blend well and soften with the fat associated with the meat’s umami flavors allowing the blackberry / black cherry fruit of the grape to express itself with the flavors of the Pork Belly and sauces leaving a long, pleasant finish.

Pairing a red wine with bold flavors and bold tannins with Asian food can be a challenge but with THAI Restaurant’s pork belly and deep-fried pork shoulder one does not need a Water Festival to enjoy this fine Thai cuisine paired with a California Cabernet Sauvignon with body, structure, and enough fruit like the 2016 Yao (Ming) Family Wine’s Howell Mountain Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon from Napa Valley AVA. More comments about flavors and aromas of foods and matching wines will be discussed in the next month’s Dining with Asian Food and Wine in wechineseus.com.

About the Author: Dr. Ronald G. Jan who specializes in Vascular Surgery is a Clinical Professor of Surgery at the University of California at Davis School of Medicine. As a hobby, he holds WSET level 3 certification in wines and has been writing and publishing wine commentaries.

(We Chinese in America Media Editor Tang Zhao, April 2, 2022) Even the employees don't know that the gaps in the McDonald's carton are magical, no longer afraid of knocking over drinks (McDonald image from Dreamline.com)

Netizens found that the gap in the McDonald's chicken nugget carton actually has a special function.

McDonald's French fries, chicken nuggets, and Coke are popular all over the world. Among them, the carton boxes often used to hold chicken nuggets or hamburgers actually have a layer of cracks in the middle after opening, but few people pay special attention. But recently, a Japanese netizen accidentally discovered the magical effect of this layer of cracks, and after sharing it, many people responded.

According to the Japanese media "grape", the Japanese Twitter user "Akaaokiiro_" shared that if the straw inserted on the drink is inserted into the gap in the middle of the chicken nugget carton, and the fries are placed on the other end of the carton, it will be perfect to give a whole happy children's meal to his son without worrying his son op overturn the drink.

Akaaokiiro also shared a photo. You can see his son wearing a seat belt. The carton is just flat on his left and right thighs, and is supported by a straw, which is not easy to overturn even when eating and drinking in the car. After discovering this, he couldn't help but think that the layer of small slits designed in the carton was made for this function.

Akaaokiiro's son wearing a seat belt and a MacDonald Happy Meal (Image from Twitter)

Netizens also expressed that "there is actually such a trick", "it's a genius", "I have worked at McDonald's for ten years and this is the first time I see this idea", "I have friends who have done this kind of thing”, “I don't even know that hole exists." "I'll try it next time."

(Source: United News Network)

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(We Chinese in America Media Editor Tang Zhao, April 1, 2022) China's Huawei, (Image from Facebook) which has been boycotted by Western countries such as the United States and Europe, recently released an annual report saying that its revenue in 2021 will drop by 28.6%, but its profit will increase by 75.9%. Meng Wanzhou said Huawei may have "passed through the dark zone of this catastrophe". How could Huawei, which has been deeply resisted by Western countries and faced many obstacles to 5G development, reverse the adversity in a short period of time? It is reflected in business and financial operations on the report, and behind it there is a hidden political force that is unfathomable.

Meng Wanzhou was finally allowed to return to China in the US-China secret judicial transaction in September last year after experiencing political wrangling and legal battles between the US and China. After returning to China, she made her first appearance at Huawei's 2021 annual results presentation, continuing her anti-US campaign. The heroic victory gesture announced that Huawei has overcome international adversity in the past year. Although its revenue decreased by 28.6% to 636.8 billion yuan (RMB, the same below), its profit increased by 75.9% to 113.7 billion yuan. The full-year operating margin was 19.1%, doubling the 8.1% operating margin in 2020.

Meng Wanzhou pointed out that Huawei's net profit has increased significantly despite the sharp decline in revenue, which is partly due to the proceeds from business disposal. She did not mention the details of the business disposal (sale) income in the report, but Huawei's annual report listed a net income of "disposal of subsidiary business" of 57.431 billion yuan, in addition to government subsidies of 2.571 billion yuan. These two revenues account for 52.8% of Huawei's 2021 net profit.

According to mainland financial circles, the revenue from Huawei's disposal of subsidiaries mainly refers to the Honor mobile phone sold in November 2020. The reason for the sale is that "the key technologies in the industry are difficult to obtain, and the consumer business is under tremendous pressure." To continue, it was decided to sell the business.” In order to avoid jeopardizing the survival of suppliers due to the closure of Honor, the Honor mobile phone was taken over by Shenzhen Zhixin New Information Technology Company.

Shenzhen Zhixinxin was only established two months before the sale of Honor. It was jointly invested by Shenzhen Smart City Technology Development Group and more than 30 Honor's agents and distributors. The company's equity is 98.6% held by Shenzhen Smart City Technology and 1.4% held by Shenzhen State-owned Assets Collaborative Development Private Equity Partnership.

According to the analysis of financial circles, Shenzhen Smart City Technology, which took the lead in taking over the Honor mobile phone, belongs to the Shenzhen State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission. It is equivalent to the state-owned enterprise management department working with some distributors and suppliers under the name of "State-owned Assets Collaborative Development Private Equity Fund Partnership" to take over the loss-making Honor mobile phones. The shareholding ratio of dealers and suppliers is 1.4%, and the rest are arranged by Shenzhen State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission. In essence, the state’s money is used to pay for the Honor mobile phone that is on the verge of bankruptcy.

Huawei sold low-end mobile phones that lost money and server units that couldn't buy chips. Its main business, 5G communications equipment, still relies on the support of the government and mainland telecommunications operators. Mainland financial circles believe that the large-scale launch of 5G has not only failed to improve the quality of the network but has actually declined. Even some operators have forced slowdowns on existing 4G users or abolished 4G base stations in order to promote 5G solutions. These practices have attracted widespread criticism. It is obvious that the existing Huawei 5G network faces the same problem as other countries' 5G networks: insufficient user upgrade experience. In addition, the capabilities of the 5G network and the development of the industry chain have not yet reached expectations. There is no clear progress in the business of virtual reality, holographic projection, and the Internet of Vehicles, and the expansion of network applications is extremely limited. If the prospect of 5G in the future is clouded again, many people are concerned about whether Huawei will find the SASAC to take over the 5G business.

(Source: China Times News Network)

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