A new trend in Chinese is to turn an active verb into a passive verb–usually with a sinister context–by prefixing the character “bei” (pronounced “bay”). For example, bloggers who have been censored will say they’ve been bei huh-shyeh, or “harmonized”–a reference to the Chinese government’s efforts to create a “harmonious society.” This new, and formerly ungrammatical, usage of bei has become so popular that Chinese education ministry declared bei to be the “character of the year” for 209.
One frequent use of this character is to combine it with Gao Tie, which means high-speed train (literally, “fast iron”). Bei GaoTie means high-speed railroaded, or “being forced to take expensive high-speed trains” because conventional (and affordable) service is not available. High-speed train fares are typically three times as much as conventional fares, but with high-speed trains taking some of the business of conventional trains, conventional train service is often reduced.
