Danwei reports on a truly bizarre-sounding cartoon.

Rainbow Cat and Blue Rabbit.

It's about brightly colored, sweet-looking talking animals. And their large, lightning-fast swords.

In the first episode (shown below), we are treated to a delightful music video of frolicking woodland creatures before the backstory is dropped in our laps - half a century ago, seven swordsmen defeated the evil Tiger, head of the Demon sect. Tiger has returned in search of the Jade Qilin, who preserves harmony when alive but apparently offers immense power to anyone who drinks his... more

From the sage at Useless Tree comes word of China's invasion of the NFL.

That's right. They're trying out Chinese athletes on the gridiron -- hoping to grab some of that 1 billion-strong market share.

The... more

Here, in case you missed this in the latest round of comments on the missing girls of China:

An interactive map of gender imbalance.

The magnifying glass makes for some interesting functionality, and the little gray bars are decoded in the upper right corner.

It's based on data from the 2000 Census, so it wouldn't count anyone who, for... more

The AIDS virus in cross-section.

I haven't seen this film yet, but I think I'd like to.

It's a short documentary about AIDS orphans in China (remember them?), and it won an... more

If you happened to be one of the American families lucky enough to have referral paperwork hit right during the 2 weeks of Chinese New Year, you should be in for a fun ride next week.

After Dick Cheney practiced his version of diplomacy, China tells America to butt out.

A spokesman for the foreign ministry in Beijing accused the US of acting like a nosy neighbour.

China's policies were aimed only at defence, said Qin Gang, rejecting claims of opaque spending policies.

"What's your response if your neighbour keeps peeking into your house through a crack in the door... more

A boy and his globe, Topaz, Utah, 1943

I still don't understand what just happened in China with the markets and Alan Greenspan (?!) and all, but it looks like gas is going to get a little bit cheaper.

Which is something, I suppose.

... more

There seems to be more emotive language flying around the world of Chinese adoption lately.

Like this Asia Times article on China's Lost Girls:

Whether the new rules for foreign adoptions are truly intended to safeguard the adopted children or, rather, to change what Beijing perceives as the demeaning image of China as America's favorite orphanage, many would-be mothers... more

Hong Kong at Night

Time magazine has a big piece on protests in Hong Kong. Thousands of women with white-painted faces and black robes are filling the streets.

They're not marching about human rights or freedom of religion -- they're... more

The February 2007 Geotimes has a fascinating piece on one of the world's most amazing railroads -- the Qinghai-Tibet Railway.

It's the highest railway in the world, and had to cross four mountain ranges and... more

I've been listening to NPR lately (as I do), and they've been all over China. Not just listening to classical music, either. They just had a big report on an AIDS activist getting some recognition despite the "AIDS? What AIDS?" official line.

Until Friday, the 80-year-old retired Dr. Gao Yaojie was under house arrest.

Gao says that since Feb. 2, she has been confined to her apartment, by as many as 50 policemen.

Their apparent aim was to keep her from... more