The Word of the Week comes from the Grass-Mud Horse Lexicon, a glossary of terms created by Chinese netizens and encountered in online political discussions. These are the words of China’s online “resistance discourse,” used to mock and subvert the official language around censorship and political correctness.
为国接盘 (wèi guó jiēpán): bear the burden for the country
A train station advises, “Fight to save A-shares. Join the battle if you can. If you don’t have bullets, yell.” (Source: Weibo/Chengzijizheshequ (@橙子记者社区))
Take on risk for the sake of China, especially in the stock market.
While the Shanghai Composite index was bullish in April 2015, Changjiang Securities analyst Tan Chuantao published the report “The Greatest of Warriors Bear the Burden for Their Country” (侠之大者 为国接盘), exhorting stockholders to continue buying even when the conditions do not seem ideal.
“The Shanghai Composite Index and CSI 300 Index have been performing too well recently and could be adjusted at any moment, but since the space left after adjustment could be big, [the report] recommends that we continue to buy, keeping in mind that ‘the greatest of warriors bear the burden for their country’ (上证50和沪深300因为前期走的太强随时有调整的可能，但调完之后向上的空间大，建议抱着一颗“侠之大者为国接盘”的心继续买), wallstreetcn.com’s Cheng Jun reported on April 21, 2015.
“Bearing the burden for the country” describes buying stock and securities as an act of patriotism, making it ripe for appropriation by disgruntled netizens. A May 15, 2015 Weibo post by cnfol.com carried the headline “National Strategy Behind Bull Market: Bear Burden for the Country, Don’t Ask for Repayment!” (大牛市背后是国家战略，为国接盘就别讲回报！) declared a May 15, 2015. Sina later deleted the post.
After the Shanghai stock exchange began to tumble in late June, the authorities called on citizens to continue buying to keep the market afloat. Individual investors make 80% of all Chinese stock trades, with limited capital and more to lose in a bear market. As explained on Baidu Zhidao:
Dongtele (@东特勒丶): Some say this stock market crash is a plot by foreign capitalists, so anyone who sells is a traitor. Bearing the burden for the country means shelling out money to buy and support the market no matter how far it falls. (July 7, 2015)
有人称这次股灾是外国资本一手策划的，所以谁卖股谁就是汉奸。为国接盘说的就是不管怎么跌都凑钱买涨，为国分忧。 [Chinese]
Want to learn more subversive netspeak? Check out Decoding the Chinese Internet: A Glossary of Political Slang. Available for $2.99 in the Kindle, Google Play, and iTunes stores. All proceeds from the sale of this eBook support China Digital Times.
