Think YOU have trouble with online dating?  Try being a Chinese soldier.  According to The Guardian, military personnel in China have to stick to dating the “old fashioned” way:

China‘s military officers have added matchmaking to their duties, after the government banned troops from online dating over fears that lonely hearts might let sensitive information slip, state media said today.

Commanders of the 2.3 million-strong People’s Liberation Army (PLA) are studying how to help single service members find love, the official China Daily said in a report on new rules governing what troops can and can’t do online.

Blogs are out, along with internet dating, online job hunts and even making friends in the virtual world under the internal affairs regulation, which came into effect on 15 June, the report said, citing a military newspaper.

“People with ulterior motives may make use of the soldiers’ personal information and pose a threat to the safety of the army,” Yang Jigui, an officer in Tibet, told the PLA Daily.

His team in the town of Shigatse is seeking matchmaking help from local government offices and the Communist party’s women’s federation, the report said.

The China Daily said an internet search had turned up personal sites with information about single soldiers and articles containing sensitive military information.”

Poor suckers.

 

This is news, but not to us at HKH.  According to Channelnewsasia, the Chinese, especially the men, need to get over their fear of online dating:

“With about 50% of China’s Internet users between 24 and 40 years old, online dating services are taking off in a market estimated to be worth US$800 million, as more Chinese turn to the Internet to find potential marriage partners.

With the Internet as a main tool used for social networking among the younger generation, the online dating market is expected to grow even further.

Online dating portal ‘Shiji Jiayuan’ was established by Ms Gong Haiyan, who set up the dating portal after she experienced trouble finding a marriage partner on other online sites.

“Members of those sites signed up for different purposes. Some only wanted to make friends; others wanted one night stands; some wanted to make business contacts”

The website eventually took off, now boasting a database of 30 million singles, and sponsors dating shows on television.

“Chinese are brought up being told not to speak to strangers. So it is hard for many to approach an attractive stranger since they are timid and shy. The Internet is a good tool for meeting people as it is much easier to start a conversation with a stranger online.”

Despite the boost the Internet provides for partner-seeking Chinese, many more may have to stay single for a long time.

According to a recent study, more than 24 million Chinese men could find themselves without a partner by 2020 – due to a skewed gender balance caused by China’s One-Child Policy and a cultural preference for boys over girls.

In 2005, there were 119 men for every 100 women.

Some areas had as many as 130 men for every 100 women, according to the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.

Male migrant workers are more likely to remain single, because low wage levels makes it even harder to find a wife.

“Most single women would have found a husband faster if only they lowered their standards. The issue of ‘left-over ladies’ is really an individual problem but the issue of ‘left-over men’ is a social problem,” said Ms Gong.”

Yeah, so, time to jump in the dating pool…

 

Aapparently in my 13 years living in New York I missed the whole part where the city’s women were desperately seeking Brit men to date.  Needless to say, if you have ever even set foot in NYC and met it’s women, this is a bit of a surprise.  Let’s look into this phenomenon shall we?

A new site called DateBritishGuys.com held a party in the hopes of getting American women to date British men.  Well, first, perhaps it could sponsored by Crest?   Sorry, too easy.

Well, apparently, it was a hit because:

“But judging from the scores of New York women who turned up last Saturday at an East Village pub called Central Bar to watch the United States play England in the World Cup tournament , the reputation of British men remains unsullied.”

The writer has obviously not been to Hong Kong.  Or watched TV.  Or met a British guy.  But one Brit did display keen sense of observation that would do his countrymen proud as he said he was “a little blown away by how many people are wearing the DateBritishGuys T-shirts. I’m not sure if it’s for the free beer they’re getting, or if they actually do want to meet British men.”

Do we have anyone to solve this mystery?  We do.

“Inessa Danilova, 27, standing with her friend Talia Chung, 31, bore out Mr. Dietz’s impression. “We just love the T-shirts, and we get free beers,” she said.”

So, really, this is just like any other day at a bar.  Guys getting drunk and girls offered free/cheap drinks to attract more guys to get drunk.  Smell that?  That’s romance.  And stale beer.

I wouldn’t bet on the success of DateBritishGuys.com.  Except in Asia.  They are gonna make a killing in Asia.

Here’s the whole ridiculous thing from the NY Times.

Get Adobe Flash playerPlugin by wpburn.com wordpress themes
© 2011 Hong Kong Hitch Suffusion theme by Sayontan Sinha