The arrest of lawyer Xu Zhiyong on July 16 has prompted a "protest letter" with more than 400 signees. Hong Kong-based China Media Project has published a copy of the letter and translated its five demands:
Sometimes it's not cool to see how many people can squeeze onto the same motorbike or vehicle. Sometimes it's dangerous, as nine young riders in Yubei, a district in Chongqing, learned recently.
Two are dead and three injured after the third knife attack in the past week in China, this time in Guangxi province. Unlike the previous two incidents, both indiscriminate attacks in Beijing, the suspect on Tuesday had a target: family planning officials in Dongxing city.
They don't really do it small for the annual Arirang Festival in Pyongyang, so the "small twist" in the headline is somewhat of a misnomer. Nonetheless, this year's Arirang -- a.k.a. the Mass Games -- that opened on Monday featured something new -- a slight, possibly noteworthy change for the tea leaf readers out there -- as one attendee told NK News.
Baijia Single Noble Black Bone Chicken Flavor Instant Sweet Potato Noodles, produced and sold in China, has been selected the world’s worst instant noodle brand in the world, according to American Hans Lienesch, a.k.a. The Ramen Rater, who apparently rates Ramen noodles professionally, having written more than 1,100 noodle reviews.
Beijing Times reports via SCMP that supermarkets in Beijing have been instructed to stop selling knives. This comes on the heels of a city-wide crackdown on "illegal weapons," SCMP reports, which led to 1,123 knives and 327 guns being seized. We do wonder what exactly would make a knife illegal.
Twin earthquakes of 5.9 and 5.6 magnitude struck near Dingxi in Gansu province on Monday morning, leaving at least 89 dead and hundreds more injured. (The magnitude numbers are via the US Geological Survey; the China Earthquake Networks Center measured it at 6.6). The latest from AFP states, "China's official Xinhua news agency said initial investigations showed at least 5,785 houses had collapsed and another 73,000 were severely damaged."
If you're going to throw a hissy fit during a delay at a Chinese airport, do it like this woman: without violence, in front of an audience, with just the right dash of the dramatics. The Nanfang has a transcript of this young lady's soliloquy:
Boarding an airplane can put you through the rawest five minutes of judgement you'll ever face, especially if you're a foreigner. Like a slow, awkward fashion show, you amble down the aisle in fits and starts while everyone already seated simply stare.
On my recent Guilin-bound Chengdu plane, I was generally spared of any finger-pointing or comments before I slid into my middle seat, wedged between A and C.
But then the 20-year-old boys came.
