"OK, OK," says China. "Forget that air pollution business you were just writing about. We're on board with that greenhouse gas thing you all keep talking about after all!"

Yep,... more

So, in addition to seeking out songs by Kou Chou Ching, I've been thinking I need to get a record or two by Cui Jian, the Elvis/Beatles/Bob Dylan/Johnny Rotten of China. He's the guy who took... more

Here's a twist on American urban music -- a style bouncing back to us after a trip 'round the globe. It's hip-hop. And it's traditional Chinese music. (OK, Taiwanese, but culturally speaking, it's Chinese -- one of 'em plays the suona, after all.)

Kou Chou... more

The BBC has nothing new to report about China's growing gender inequity.

But that doesn't stop 'em from reporting it anyway.

Pictures of a kindergarten with few girls and of young men loitering on the sidewalks as callow teens tend to do.

Sigh.

Sure, they've got a great economy, but look what it's doing to the rest of us.

(This reminds me of the vibe I'd get from German relatives through the 90s, only about the US. And, no surprise, the article here was originally printed in Der Spiegel.)

Anyway, yeah. Lots of industrialization, limited amount of air on the planet, so all that booming is, well, having echoes.

This Salon article starts by taking a few deep breaths in San Francisco:

Back in a lab at the University of California at Davis, Cliff and his colleagues analyze... more

Mazu Temple, Pescadores Islands, Taiwan

BBC reports on China's 300 million faithful:

The number of religious believers in China could be three times higher than official estimates, according to a survey reported by state media.

A poll of 4,500 people by Shanghai university professors found 31.4% of people above the age of 16 considered themselves... more

Xinhua News Agency reports on a new tightening of One-Child Policy enforcement, in the form of a campaign to publicly shame people who pay extra to have more children.

"The public is very much aware that some celebrities simply pay money to have two or more children. This kind of behavior must be stopped," said Zhang Wenbiao, head of the provincial family planning commission, at a press conference.

As public figures, these people should be an example of compliance with the law, instead of circumventing the one-child family policy by simply paying fines, Zhang said.

Zhang... more

There's an interesting discussion going on at Brian Stuy's Research-China.org blog about the fairly recent Beth Russell New York Times piece about the "missing orphans" of China.

Stuy thinks her math is all messed up.

Her essay is filled with intellectual "leaps". One of the most... more

What was I saying about pigs & babies?

Apparently, officials in Taiwan are hoping for an especially provident union this year -- between a very special husband and sow.

The People's Daily reports:

With the Year of the Pig around the corner, a pair of pet pigs -- Shui Fu-ko, the bridegroom, and Huang Pu-pu, the bride -- got marital blessings from their owners, local folks, county leaders and even a priest who presided over their nuptials on Monday.

Every guest invited... more

"Wǎng jì" means "internet" in Mandarin.

The kids are alright? eBay and Google take a backseat to internet kidstuff in, well, what could be the largest market in the world.

And people keep saying the internet is different in China.

No other Internet company in the world — not even Google — has achieved the kind of dominance in its home market... more