Comments on: Mid-Week Links: Censorship taken too far is just douchebaggery, a proposed tricameral legislature for China (utopia!), and a Fang Binxing story

By: Liuzhou Laowai

Liuzhou Laowai — Wed, 11 Jul 2012 16:50:15 +0000

well, you might find that your “amusing comments” might not result in “amusing responses” if no one has any idea of what you are referring to.

I do not spend my time studying your back history of hilarious back posts. Nor do I feel inferior for not doing so.

I am happy you enjoy some of my scribbling.

By: The Tao

The Tao — Wed, 11 Jul 2012 16:39:23 +0000

All right, because you asked so nicely: by “here” I meant this site, which I surmised because you didn’t get the dolphin/manatee joke, which was weird to be me but in an amusing sort of way, so I replied with an innocuous remark to bait an amusing response. But I see you’re not one for amusing comments, which is fine. To each his own. Thanks for swinging by. I do look forward to reading more about Liuzhou on your site, which I follow.

By: Liuzhou Laowai

Liuzhou Laowai — Wed, 11 Jul 2012 16:25:13 +0000

What do you mean by “here”?

This site? Everyone is new.

China? Not by a long shot.

Do you have a point to make? Get to it.

By: The Tao

The Tao — Wed, 11 Jul 2012 16:20:05 +0000

>> “WTF?”

You’re new around here, aren’t you?

By: Liuzhou Laowai

Liuzhou Laowai — Wed, 11 Jul 2012 16:06:02 +0000

“killing all the dolphins and manatees”

WTF? Have you seen the 柳江？

Hire some professionals? Yeah! Great idea! China is full of professional underemployed piranha exterminators!

By: A

Wed, 11 Jul 2012 16:06:02 +0000

Monetary incentive to prevent people from otherwise eating the piranhas they’ve caught? 贵州酸鱼汤 is a tasty dish!

By: The Tao

The Tao — Wed, 11 Jul 2012 15:09:16 +0000

Is a monetary incentive really necessary? Like, someone would otherwise go, Oh, I just caught a piranha, what a cute guy, let’s throw him back in? And yeah, it does seem the money is just going to go into the pockets of some really clever chaps. I’m imagining (unfairly, I know) someone dynamiting a part of the river and killing all the dolphins and manatees. I mean, wouldn’t a better investment have been to hire some professionals to do the job?

By: Jess

Jess — Wed, 11 Jul 2012 13:34:21 +0000

(minus the extra “1″)

By: Jess

Jess — Wed, 11 Jul 2012 13:33:39 +0000

If only there were a far-reaching black market one could access to source Amazonian fish…
Or you could just buy piranhas on Taobao for ¥20 each for a ¥1980 profit.

And you’re right. The local fisheries bureau probably does have experts that could identify a Taobao’d fish from a feral one. Then what would you, as a sneaky fishmonger of sorts, do with all your rejected piranhas? Probably dispose of them in some way, I’d assume…

By: Liuzhou Laowai

Liuzhou Laowai — Wed, 11 Jul 2012 12:42:47 +0000

So, if I buy a piranha and hand it over dead to the government, somehow there are more piranhas in the river? I think you need to think this through a bit more.

Anyway, the government aren’t so naive as not to be aware of the possibility of people acquiring fish elsewhere and claiming to have caught them locally. They will have checks in place.

Also, tracking down and illegally buying piranhas would probably be a hell of a lot more trouble and expense than it was worth for the reward. There are many more scams which take much less effort.

By: Jess

Jess — Wed, 11 Jul 2012 12:27:58 +0000

Because arbitrageurs can then buy piranhas from elsewhere and sell them to the government for a profit, increasing the number of piranhas.

By: Liuzhou Laowai

Liuzhou Laowai — Wed, 11 Jul 2012 12:04:45 +0000

I’m intrigued as to why you think offering a reward for catching the piranha is “fucking insane”. It seems very sensible to me.

Millions of Yuan of investment and a huge part of the city’s economy is at stake if human access to the river is taken away. ¥1000 per fish seems cheap.