When beating, bullying, and plundering doesn’t work, resort to mass intimidation. Urban enforcement officers in Wuhan, Hubei province are turning to the group silent treatment to smoke out “illegal” street vendors. As Caijing reports, “A new policing method is to appear in a straight line and approach illegal business operators wordlessly for maximum intimidation.” How... Read more »
Prepare your horrified face. Yesterday at 2 pm in Nanning, Guangxi Zhuang AutonomousRegion, a man wielding a wood chopper burst into a residence and slashed 16 children in noon care, according to Xinhua. Three died in the hospital. The suspect, surnamed Wu, is in police custody. More details as they become available. Photos below (slightly graphic) via Xinhua link... Read more »
Our favorite talk show host, Gao Xiaosong, is at it again, this time talking about gun use and laws in the US in Episode 28: America Under Gunpoint. (Short synopsis: there are a lot of guns in America.) This one's not nearly as jaw-dropping as the first two episodes of Saturday Morning Cartoon. Enjoy it for the animation quality, I guess.
The Gar exploded onto the Beijing music scene in 2007 and entrenched its reputation as indie heavyweights with the release of its self-titled album two years later. The members went on a three-year hiatus with the departure of bassist and founding member Wen Jie, but it appears they're now back, with a new bassist in Zhu Boxuan (formerly of Hedgehog).
What does it mean to live in a guanxi society, where so much depends on interpersonal relationships? Part of it is honing an ability to talk your way into or out of a wide range of situations. It could mean getting an official to accept a hongbao -- a bribe, as the more righteous among us call it -- but it can also be simpler, like getting a vegetable seller to round down, or (here's a common one) a parking attendant to knock a few kuai off the parking price in exchange for keeping the receipt (in which case, he could pocket the money instead of reporting it to his bosses).
In Spain, people watch bullfights for the pageantry and the matador’s distinctive flair, and, perhaps for some, the climactic coup de grace. In Guizhou, on this August 11 day, at least, people watch for the comedy of poor rural handlers scampering at and away from a charging beast. (Kind of like this, actually.) How many... Read more »
Sent in by an anonymous tipster, a restaurant on Jintai Street near Chaoyangmen offered this sweet deal on Saturday: Japanese customers who recognize the Diaoyu Islands are Chinese territory may enter Japanese customers must pay full price on hotpot, rinsed vegetables at this location Chinese people without exception receive 40% discount Drinks, desserts, and fruit... Read more »
Our Wudaokou correspondent Jacob, who runs the site Beijing Wiki, spotted this advertisement in front of a Century 21 office yesterday. We’d like to bring your attention to two things: the blood dripping from the Japanese flag (someone has an overactive imagination), and the Japanese on the ads. But interestingly, the special offer is only... Read more »
This episode's old, but it's still relevant, isn't it? "Lu Kim, the owner of City Sushi invited City sushi owner, Junichi Takayama to a school meeting claiming it to be about the diversity of Asian people," reads the YouTube description. "Little does Takayama know is that the meeting would be a trap to embarrass him."
