When adopting a child from China, you enter a relationship with the Chinese government. Not just the country and the culture, but the whole system - at least temporarily, but if you're planning on returning in the future to show your child from where she (or he!) came, then for however long it takes. This makes some prospective parents uneasy.

Perhaps you'll rest easier knowing that video games are the opiates of the people - no, wait, sorry, I mean they're a message that the people won't put up with corrupt local government. The Chinese state has just created and released a video game that allows - no, encourages ordinary citizens to clean up city hall.

By killing and torturing corrupt officials, of course.

In its first week, "Incorruptible Fighter", was downloaded around 100,000 times. So there's one way to voice dissent against government excess.

In the same week, massive protests in support of the Dalai Lama led to massive arrests in Tibet and western Sichuan, so there are limits to dissent, I suppose.

And if you're already in the planning-and-packing phase of a trip to China, you should probably know that it's snowing in Beijing. In August. In a week with record high temperatures - around 102 degrees Fahrenheit/39 Celsius. So if you're heading to Beijing, pack appropriately. I no longer know exactly what that means - jogging shorts and ski jackets?

Well, it sounds funny, but elsewhere in the country, the weird weather is no laughing matter. In several provinces where lots of adoptions take place - Jiangxi, Guangxi, Hunan, Heilongjiang and Jilin - there's been catastrophic flooding. Or droughts. Or both, one after the other. Right now, in those provinces, there's an acute drinking water shortage.

If you happen to be heading there, I guess, bring extra bottles. Or at least be prepared to pay more for bottled water. It seems like the water-charity A Child's Right got started in China not a moment too soon - and will likely have their philanthropic hands full, and their new filtration systems put to the test!