Environmentally Conscious Chinese Rally For Arbor Day

Arbor Day in China
Did you know that Tuesday, March, 12, was Arbor Day in China? On Zhi Shu Jie (植树节), literally Plant-A-Tree Day, people celebrated by planting anything they could. As Sina Weibo user @粮仓一鼠 put it, “Although there is no land to plant a tree, we can grow a pea in a flower pot.” Like him, many... Read more »

Xi Jinping Anointed PRC President, Jorge Mario Bergoglio Elected As Pope Francis

Xi Jinping and Pope Francis
It’s been said before by many commentators — e.g., Eric Fish of Sinostand (“The Catholic church and CCP: estranged brothers?”) and Adam of Visions of Paradise (“Several times in the past I’ve read quotes stating that Communist governments learned how to manipulate their citizens by imitating the Catholic Church”) — that the Chinese Communist Party... Read more »

Very Funny Dubbing Of North Korean Propaganda Video Insists Americans Love Drinking Snow

North Korea dubbing
We thank Washington Post's Max Fisher for flagging a version of the above video, which has traveled from the YouTube account of British filmmaker and travel author Alun Hill (who created it) to Hong Kong's Phoenix TV, which broadcasts in China, before making its way back to YouTube... where Hill's name has been removed from the credits and some people have been, as they say, ensnared in the satire's net.

The Farmer Responsible For Dumping 6,601 (And Counting) Swine Carcasses Into Shanghai River Has Been Detained

Pig asks WTF
Seriously, now: forget the jokes, forget about water safety concerns, forget everything until this question is answered: what possibly could have gone through the mind of the homicidal pig farmer who dumped more than 6,000 pigs into the Huangpu River? Did a pig farm explode? Does circovirus cause pigs to go mad and jump in... Read more »

Mid-Week Links: Xi Jinping’s possible new VP, Manny Ramirez is playing in Taiwan, and Ai Weiwei wants to release a rock album

Preparing for China vs Japan Gongti Workers Stadium
I would not recommend driving around Workers Stadium this evening, where I took the above picture. Expect throngs of people as FC Guo’an, Beijing’s hometown team, takes on Japan’s Sanfrecce Hiroshima in the AFC Champions League (game is wrapping up as we speak). Meanwhile, also prepare for tomorrow’s Pi Day over links.

Bus Drives Off Bridge On The Yangtze River, Killing At Least 14

Bus crash Yangtze River Hubei
A sleeper coach carrying 22 people, most of them migrant workers, drove off the Jingzhou Yangtze River Bridge on Tuesday evening in Jingzhou, Hubei province, killing at least 14, according to Xinhua. Two passengers remain in critical condition, while the other six suffered a range of injuries but are expected to survive.