CABC: Chinese Acronyms Broadcasting Corporation

There are some very common acronyms that describe the chinese who are not Chinese. Lemme explain.

The same country that created the biggest fence in the world a long time ago, introduced a long time ago a policy of world-domination/being a world-superpower. With the Chinese comprising of about 1/4 to 1/3 of the world's population strategically placed in important population centers all across the world and beyond (that's the subect of another blog entry), you can understand that there can be some confusion when the Chinese move around the world. So the Chinese have created a system using Acronyms (DYLT - Don't You Love Them?) introduced into the vernacular (the common parlance (popular"lingo" (the way people talk to each other))).

ABC: American-Born Chinese
BBC: British-Born Chinese
CBC: Canadian-Born Chinese

These acronyms have been so popular and common that Broadcasting corporations opted to copy these acronyms to capitalize on the notoriety (popularity) of these terms to describe their country. It is no mystery that ABC is the American Broadcasting Corp. that no one trusts, BBC is the popular British Broadcasting Corp. that no one likes and CBC is the Canadian Broadcasting Corp. that no one watches. There is an ABC in Australia, but like with the rest of Australia, no one cares. Just kidding. We like Paul Hogan and liked Kylie Minogue for a bit, but that's it.

The acronyms have crossed the language barrier. It makes it easier for a Chinese abroad, when reporting for duty from the Chinese central command to describe themselves using one of these acronyms and resort to the associated stereotypes and prejudices. Let me tell you, knowing some ABCs, BBCs and CBCs, it's so much easier. The whole "I was born in Europe from Chinese parents who... and there's are a lot of Chinese there, and the Chinese there are working in restaurants and (for real, they are)..." just say "I'm a BBC" and the Chinese connection is made. The Chinese get the world briefings, they know enough.


Case Study: BBC
I was at Language Center getting info on Mandarin courses for a friend. So I'm at the front desk, and they're asking me about her in order to find the right class that she should take.
They ask: "Does she speak Cantonese? Can she write? Where is she from?"
I reply: "She's speaks English very well, she can speak Cantonese, but she can't write, but she's from England-"
The two women at the front desk said out loud "BBC? BBC!" and then a buzzer went off. Sort of like that buzzer from Jeopardy, but with a slight "gong" sound. I think it was the phone...and I swear, one lifted up the phone and said "BBC! BBC!" followed by unintelligible Chinese words, nodding with the intelligence data she received back.
They took out special papers to give me and circled the course they suggested my "BBC" friend take.

Mental note: study my acronyms and listen for the buzzer and gong sound.