July 2 – July 8
Ai Weiwei tweeted “wow” to RFH’s story about a high-profile, censor-attracting playground blogger fight in Chaoyang Park on Friday. That would be this week’s most-read post, except it’s topped by a silly (read: hilarious) Olympics Countdown post about the best hurdles race ever, from a 2010 Chinese University Games.
People in Guiyang mourned the death of two security guards who bravely fought off a knife-wielding assailant at Guizhou Normal University. Meanwhile in Chengdu, a repairman died after a lengthy rescue operation to extract him from the teeth of an escalator.
On Monday, we caught wind of protests in Shifang, Sichuan over a proposed copper plant, and devoted five posts to the incident. The most widely read of the bunch was our first update, featuring videos and the now-infamous picture of a riot cop flipping off the camera. Also Monday, Alicia helped subtitle a video from NOW TV showing a Hu Jintao heckler in Hong Kong being forcibly removed. And saying in Hong Kong: video of a young man cursing a mainland mother and her young child on the subway attracted ire.
A China-made parody of the British royal family, with a sly plug for Chengdu’s panda cabs, apparently didn’t play well with the British. A family of six apparently (apocryphally) all contracted genital warts after staying in a Shanghai hotel. A 50-something Kiwi paid a hefty bill to the family of a young girl he tossed into the swimming pool. Roads that swallow vehicles (and kill people) continue to suck, and chengguan continue making asses of themselves.
Finally, RFH read the tea leaves on the 18th National Congress, specifically from the National Center for Performing Arts. The verdict: prepare to fornicate with your mother.
