Raise the army banner, And laugh still more, gazing at the red cosmos, Spare no effort to move forward. Commendations to New York Times senior writer Edward Wong, Shanghai bureau chief David Barboza, and researchers Mia Li, Xu Yan and Amy Qin, who have produced the Bo Xilai story of the week, titled “Former Wife of... Read more »
“A fair few were drunks, philanderers and frauds and more than one was a spy,” writes Paul French in Through the Looking Glass, a book about China’s foreign correspondents from the Opium Wars to Mao. “They changed sides, they lost their impartiality, they displayed bias and a few were downright scoundrels and lairs of the... Read more »
Two huge announcements from Xinhua this evening — concerning two men who are more or less intricately tied – impeccably timed for just the moment when everyone’s preparing to start their holiday and stop caring about news. First: Bo Xilai has been expelled from the Communist Party of China (CPC) and his public office, according to a decision made at... Read more »
Via John Saeki Wang Lijun, who will forevermore be known as “flamboyant” in Western media, was sentenced to 15 years in prison today on four counts, “defection” probably being the gravest. That he did not get a more severe sentence is interesting, and bodes unwell for his one-time comrade Bo Xilai, with whom he will... Read more »
The “open trial” of Wang Lijun, on charges of bribe-taking and “bending the law for selfish ends,” according to Xinhua, began this morning. It is now over, having taken place “under tight security before a carefully selected audience,” according to the Guardian, from which the above picture is taken. “Foreign journalists were not permitted to... Read more »
In the most non-suspenseful verdict ever, a court in Hefei, Anhui province (read: the Party) has officially sentenced Gu Kailai to “death with a two-year reprieve” for murdering Neil Heywood, as expected. What this means is that Gu will not be put to death, assuming she doesn’t commit another crime in the next two years.... Read more »
If you were counting, the “trial” lasted all of a few hours, ending just now with Gu Kailai not contesting the charge that she murdered British businessman Neil Heywood. So much for transparency of law. Did we learn anything from this process? Gu was never going to win their game, so she didn’t play. A date... Read more »
Just look at her. That face. In a snap it could transform into a teeth-baring devil or a demurring tigress. Few people in the world could command attention like so — indeed, demand it by simply biting down so that her cheeks — much like her glare — lock into place. She is the type... Read more »
I was disgustingly smashed on a recent Tuesday when the name came up. It's all anybody's been talking about nowadays, so I shouldn’t have been surprised, even though everything being reported is the same, vague crap. No one knows what's going on, so everyone repeats everyone else, with splashy headlines. The only guy with any balls to really stir up the pot is me… plus this other asshole, RFH, who published some fantabulous junk on this very blog. [Ed’s note: Goddamnit, Drake.] Well, if it’s okay with you, I’d like to get serious for a moment. That’s right, I’d like to talk about Bo and his hot wife, who I’ll refer to by the James Bond villain-like initials G.K.K., and WLJ, otherwise known as Bo’s “right-hander” (that’s what I call him: that trusty right hand).
Via Malcolm Moore, the Telegraph The Lament of Neil Heywood: Well, since Gu Kailai left me, I’ve found a new place to dwell. It’s down at the end of Lonely Street at Lucky Holiday Hotel. Now, links.
