NCPA Sez: The 18th National Congress Of The CPC Is On Like Donkey Kong

Original picture from Global Times
By RFH Reuters’s anonymous sources (reliable, surely) may tell us that the upcoming 18th Party Congress – aka Xi Jingping’s coronation – will be delayed, but our reading of the tea leaves yields a different conclusion. If you can’t afford to visit North Korea this summer (where a long weekend with a tour group can cost a couple-thousand... Read more » Read more »

Movie Preview: China Heavyweights [UPDATE]

China Heavyweights featured image
Today (by which I mean Friday) marks the official premiere of director Yung Chang's documentary China Heavyweight in New York. Far be it from me to tell you New Yorkers how to spend your Friday evening, but this movie looks like it's worth your time. (There are two more showings today at IFC Center, at 7:25 pm and 9:40 pm.) It's by the same company that made Last Train Home (though not the same director), a film that I've seen no fewer than four times while writing a 40-page amanuensis Read more »

Zuma With Cars: Only In China

Zuma!
This picture appeared on the forum tt.mop on Wednesday without much information other than “maybe” the setting is Chongqing. Bravo to whoever did this though — identify yourself and collect your praise. For you young’uns who don’t know, this is Zuma. I’m sure you’re able to use your Interneting prowess to find a free version of... Read more » Read more »

Friday Night Musical Outro: Mohanik – Budagchin

Mohanik - Budagchin featured image
Mongolian garage rockers Mohanik are in Beijing tomorrow, specifically Temple Bar on Gulou East Street, for a fundraising show called Rock Naadam to promote cultural exchange between China and Outer Mongolia through music. Mohanik will be joined by Shanghai bands Banana Monkey and Scary Magic, and DJ Bo, also from Shanghai. The show is free, but organizers kindly suggest a 50 yuan donation. Expect it to start around 10 pm. Read more »

US Transportation Secretary On Why America Doesn’t Have China’s High-Speed Rails: Republicans

Drawing by Timothy Lyster, 5th grader, Sam Houston Elementary
This lead by Foreign Policy’s Josh Rogin is pretty much the perfect example of an online magazine lead: Echoing the laments of pundits like Thomas Friedman of the New York Times, U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood argued Saturday that China outpaces the United States in building major transportation infrastructure like high-speed rail because of its authoritarian system and... Read more » Read more »

“Most Dutiful Security Guards” Sacrifice Themselves To Fight Off Knife-Wielding Assailant [UPDATE]

Guiyang memorial service
Your incredible story of the day comes from Guiyang, Guizhou province, where on Monday a mentally ill man surnamed Xu, brandishing a long knife, tried to enter Guizhou Normal University. The guard on duty — unarmed, as all security guards and almost all cops here are — picked up the nearest weapon-like thing he could... Read more » Read more »

Olympics Countdown: Run, Liu Xiang, Run

Liu Xiang
This is an Olympics Countdown post. Sporadically, we’ll post Olympics- and/or England-related content ahead of this summer’s London Games. The above picture (photoshopped, obviously) is making the rounds on Weibo, and why shouldn’t it be? Sports is an outlet for people here to release their pent-up emotions and express their frustrations (sometimes this is bad). In... Read more » Read more »