Mega Fail: How A Bestselling American Futurist Lost His Way In China

The Naisbitts with Ken and Tenniel Chu at the world's largest golf resort, where the seminar took place
Kneeling over the toilet at the clubhouse of the “largest golf course in the world,” I’m furiously vomiting gray liquid. It is, most likely, the result of dodgy alcohol from the previous night; then again, it might be the 90-minute speech I just heard from the husband-and-wife American “futurists” as they remorselessly praised China again and again and again. Hard to tell.

Ursula Gauthier Wrote A Bad Article, And In China That’s A Crime

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Ursula Gauthier, erstwhile Beijing correspondent for the French newsweekly L’Obs, left China for good in the early hours of January 1. It was not, as they say, of her own volition. When the clock struck midnight on 2015, Gauthier’s press visa expired and was not up for renewal. According to official organs, she had offended the Chinese people with her November 18 article written in the aftermath of the November 13 terrorist attacks on Paris. Gauthier’s refusal to publicly apologize for remarks concerning China’s attempts to link Paris with its own problems in Xinjiang was taken as the final straw.

Sorry, We’re Closed: The Den Shuts It Down

A Russian man expresses his love of The Den
Since 1997 in Beijing, it’s been possible to answer “Where can I get a really nasty Old Fashioned and a 900-gram burger at 5am?” “Who’s showing the goat-wrestling qualifiers?” and “What happened to your phone?” with the same words: The Den. Last weekend, that all changed. According to the Beijinger magazine, quoting someone’s WeChat, the city’s only 24-hour all-in-one sports bar, restaurant, short-time hotel, crisis-counseling centre, divorced men’s networking club, Pattaya tribute venue and dipsomaniacal dog whistle is closing.

Dispatches From Xinjiang: Uyghurs And “Terrorism”

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In a recent article James Leibold, a scholar at La Trobe University in Australia, discussed the way ethnic minority struggles against police and structural violence has often been officially mislabeled "terrorism." At the same time, in China, as in the United States, violent acts carried out by non-Muslims are read as acts of the deranged and mentally ill, but not as "terrorism." In China, as in the United States, the lives of Muslims which are lost as a result of “terrorist” or “counter-terrorism” efforts go unnoticed and unmourned. All losses of life leave gaping holes in our human social fabric, but why are some more grievable than others? What happens when a population is terrified by the discourse of terrorism?

Captain Beijing, File015: Toxic Emissions Have Already Dropped To Safe Levels

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Captain Beijing is a "comical strip" produced by the People's Committee of Panel-Based Cartoon Cultural Enrichment for the purposes of modest entertainment. It is famous and popular at home and abroad, and was solemnly declared "Most Charming and Splendid China Cartoon Art." It will appear on this website every Monday, or the cartoonist will be punished.

Beijing Blend: Jackie Chan, Jackie Chan, Jackie Chan

Beijing Blend - Jackie Chan
Everyone! Please meet Beijing Blend, a social media news digest / e-magazine doing very cool things both IRL (creative events, talks, etc.) and on the intranet (WeChat, namely). For the past couple of months, they've been uploading short videos on their YouTube page in which a rotating cast of genial hosts discuss a series* of current events. We'll be posting them here every Tuesday. It'll be fun. Oh, and go follow them on Twitter.

Captain Beijing, File013: Little Bean Island Is Rich In Vital And Strategic Resources

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Captain Beijing is a "comical strip" produced by the People's Committee of Panel-Based Cartoon Cultural Enrichment for the purposes of modest entertainment. It is famous and popular at home and abroad, and was solemnly declared "Most Charming and Splendid China Cartoon Art." It will appear on this website every Monday, or the cartoonist will be punished.

The Creamcast, Ep.20: Scotch And Stories

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May 27 saw the gathering of several writers in The Bookworm for an event called Scotch and Stories, presented by the Anthill in collaboration with Whisky Wednesday and with support from Ai Whisky. We're reliving that event in today's podcast, timed with the last of those stories going online on the Anthill and The Bookworm's launch of its new whisky menu.