What's in the News

nothing worse than a bad storm effect.

Fingers crossed! 

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/08/11/business/economy/11expats.html?_r=1

The land of opportunity. 

http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,25197,25963297-2703,00.html

Environmental stuff is improving here - even in the last 6 months I have noticed more 'blue-sky' days (not Australian blue, but blue close enough to major cities in the west) to see that the environment is being taken somewhat seriously.  Even Lanzhou - which is on my 'most polluted/most awful place' list is trying to grow trees, clean up streets etc.  More people are aware, and more people are protesting about environmental concerns.  When you hear how bad things are, always check to see how old the information is - because it is changing!

 
BUT... as we see - not quite fast enough!!

A couple get their wedding portraits taken military style in Nanjing

http://www.china.org.cn/china/photos/2009-07/31/content_18243664.htm

Those are awesome.  Raises the bar for wedding photos.

http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=103891&sectionid=351020202  This is terrible.  If its true. People being kidnapped for their organs.

This is a lot like the rumors the were going around Romania in the 1980's that said Americans that are adopting Romanian babies are doing so because they eat them...

This is a lot like the rumors the were going around Romania in the 1980's that said Americans that are adopting Romanian babies are doing so because they eat them...

Who said those were rumors?   

Quote from: ccvortex on August 24, 2009, 05:44:50 AM

This is a lot like the rumors the were going around Romania in the 1980's that said Americans that are adopting Romanian babies are doing so because they eat them...

Who said those were rumors?   

yeah, these things have been going on for decades. im sure china is no exception too. i worked for a child care agency in the UK where we would take children from unsafe environments - paedophile rings and put them in secure housing. In my 4 years working in this post we discovered 2 organ selling organisations, if people breed kids for sex then it figures they will for organs, a lot of this stuff doesnt appear in the news. anyone that believes all news we hear about is as is, is living in a bubble. 

The Death of Internet Addict Youth Deng Senshan

 http://bit.ly/X62eW

I read about this in the Danish newspapers. These poor children are being sent to quacks who do stuff to them which would have turned the stomach of even the most hard-boiled warden in Nineteenth Century Bedlam...poor children and poor parents.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/worldnews/article-1208987/Man-bursts-flames-Ohio-police-use-taser-guns-time.html

Homeless man bursts into flames after being Tasered by U.S. police

Were the police well prepared for such an occurrence?  Did they have an adequate supply of marshmallows?
 

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/worldnews/article-1208987/Man-bursts-flames-Ohio-police-use-taser-guns-time.html

Homeless man bursts into flames after being Tasered by U.S. police

Beijing police
anti-terror patrols for anniversary (August 19, 2009, AFP) Beijing police will step up their anti-terror efforts ahead of the 60th anniversary on October 1 of the founding of communist China, with more street patrols and checkpoints, state media said Wednesday. The massive police mobilisation will likely surpass the security clampdown seen for last year's Olympic Games in the capital, the China Daily reported. The report said the new security measures were also prompted by last month's unrest in China's far western Xinjiang region, which the government said was orchestrated by Muslim Uighur separatists and left nearly 200 people dead.
Police will target residents from ethnic groups and expatriates who have only resided in the capital for a short time, the China Daily said. Security forces have been engaged in a two-month-long anti-terrorism campaign aimed at maintaining social stability ahead of the sensitive anniversary, it added.

So - newbies in Beijing - expect the external security police to pop in on you. 

http://shanghaiist.com/2009/08/26/look_what_the_drunk_driving_crackdo.php

Take care on the roads!

"The Ministry of Public Security released the nine provinces and regions with the worst drunk driving records yesterday: Inner Mongolia, Yunnan, Henan, Gansu, Heilongjiang, T, Xinjiang, Guangxi and Sichuan."

And be careful when you are driving - one offender was sentenced to death for causing an accident while drink driving. 

The United Nations is recommending that children as young as five receive mandatory sexual education that would teach even pre-kindergarteners about masturbation and topics like gender violence