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14 Sep 2011 00:15

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World: China’s Wen Jiabao: Developed countries need to show fiscal responsibility

  • Countries must first put their own houses in order. Developed countries must take responsible fiscal and monetary policies. What is most important now is to prevent the further spread of the sovereign debt crisis in Europe.
  • Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao • Telling all the deadbeat European nations to bump up their national credit scores before looking for a bailout from China. Wen previously said the country would lend a helping hand to Europe, which is suffering a crippling debt crisis. So, in case you were thinking of going to China for a little cash, you’re out of luck … unless you’ve proven yourself fiscally responsible (or China has a huge vested interest in seeing you succeed). Then China would be happy to let you into its deep coffers. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

13 Jul 2011 22:18

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World: How heavily does the Chinese government censor the Internet?

  • 1.3 million websites shut down by the Chinese gov’t last year source
  • » This means there were 41% fewer websites accessible to China’s residents at the end of last year, compared to a year earlier. And the statistic comes directly from the Chinese government itself (well, a government-run think tank, at least), so it’s probably not an overstatement.
Posted by Seth Millstein • 0 Comments • Permalink

27 Jun 2011 14:27

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Tech, World: Fun fact: Chinese Twitter clone nearly as big as Twitter itself

  • 57% the share of China’s microbloggers that use Sina Weibo — a Chinese Twitter clone; that’s roughly 140 million users (compared to Twitter’s roughly 200 million worldwide)
  • 87% the share of China’s total microblogging activity that goes through Sina Weibo; not bad for a former Yahoo-like portal site that’s stretching its wings source
  • » This is pretty huge. China has more internet users than any other country, and Sina is dominating their microblogging market. They’re trying to make themselves more than just China’s Twitter, though; they want to add more Facebook-like features as well. But that won’t be easy. Competition is fierce, because no single social media site dominates and the company faces strong competition from RenRen and Tencent. On top of that, though, Sina has to police its users and censor them if they’re talking against the government — something Twitter doesn’t have to do. Regardless, this sort of outside-in social media cloning is pretty fascinating to us.
Posted by Justin Jones • 0 Comments • Permalink

26 Jun 2011 10:57

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World: Chinese dissident Hu Jia freed after three-year jail term

The Chinese dissident, shown with his wife Zeng Jinyan, has remained quiet since his release … much like fellow freed dissident Ai Weiwei, who refuses to answer questions. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

22 Jun 2011 15:30

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World: Chinese artist Ai Weiwei earns rare reprieve from prison

  • Receiving bail for any reason is a rarity in China, so he’s lucky. In Weiwei’s case, he confessed to committing tax evasion, which many activists claim is untrue. The world-famous artist, noted for his criticism of the country’s Communist Party, is out of jail as a result, but on a form of probation that doesn’t allow him to leave or talk to anyone. “I’m sorry I can’t (talk), I am on probation, please understand,” Ai told the Associated Press. Experts have said that international pressure is the only reason authorities released him (well, along with some health problems). Meanwhile, Weiwei, who says officials treated him well in prison, isn’t the only dissident forced to keep quiet after coming out of jail — hundreds of other outspoken opponents of the Chinese government have kept quiet after their arrests. source
Posted by Justin Jones • 0 Comments • Permalink

15 Jun 2011 16:49

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Politics: Chinese government covering up lead poisonings, report says

  • Parents, journalists, and community activists who dare to speak out about lead are detained, harassed, and ultimately silenced.
  • Joe Amon, a director for Human Rights Watch • Voicing charges of large-scale deception by the Chinese government in informing its citizens about (and keeping them safe from) lead poisoning. The report comes on the heels of a major lead poisoning incident near a tinfoil factory that struck 103 children; it finds that the Chinese government would tell parents, among other things, that eating eggs and drinking milk was a sufficient treatment for lead poisoning. One parent describes being told his child wasn’t poisoned but not being allowed to actually examine his tests. This sounds like a case of putting an industrial economy above the health and safety of citizens — the level of safety regulation for factories in China is generally very poor. source
Posted by Chris Tognotti • 0 Comments • Permalink

02 Jun 2011 14:59

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U.S.: FBI investigating China for hacking job

  • cause Hackers went after Gmail, but didn’t compromise many accounts. However, some of the hacked accounts belong to some pretty high-ranking officials here in the U.S. Google claims that the hack originated in China, and the accounts have since been secured.
  • effect The FBI is investigating the hacking, which the Chinese government is saying that they had nothing to do with. However, Google believes the attack originated from the same city as one that targeted U.S. companies last year, including Google. source
Posted by Justin Jones • 0 Comments • Permalink
 

26 May 2011 15:18

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World: Chinese labor camps: Where MMO games stop being fun?

  • World of Warcraft meets the world of forced labor: The Guardian has an interview up today with a 54-year-old prisoner at the Jixi labor camp in China, who makes an extremely bizarre and terrible claim; that prison bosses forced some inmates to play World of Warcraft after finishing the day’s grueling physical labor. The idea is that they’re being forced to grind out high-level characters with choice equipment and lots of gold, which are then sold by the guards to cash-rich, lazy gamers who want all the gain with none of the pain. It’s sort of like the anti-drug argument that your money might be financing terrorism or violence — don’t take the shortcut to World of Warcraft glory, or you might do it on the back of a Chinese prisoner. Bizarre story. source
Posted by Chris Tognotti • 0 Comments • Permalink

21 May 2011 18:29

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World: Apple, Foxconn pick up pieces after iPad factory explosion

  • We are deeply saddened by the tragedy at Foxconn’s plant in Chengdu, and our hearts go out to the victims and their families. We are working closely with Foxconn to understand what caused this terrible event.
  • A statement from Apple • Expressing remorse for yesterday’s explosion at a Foxconn factory in China. The explosion, which took place in Chengdu, China, killed at least two and injured 16. The factory, which produces iPads, suspended production after the accident, according to Foxconn. “The safety of our employees is our highest priority and we will do whatever is required to determine and address the cause of this tragic accident,” they wrote in a statement to The Wall Street Journal’s All Things D. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

10 May 2011 16:44

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World: Pakistan, China eyeing stealth chopper used in Bin Laden raid

  • The perils of leaving footprints: During the U.S. raid on Osama bin Laden’s compound in Pakistan, one of their top secret new stealth helicopters clipped a rotor against the wall surrounding the hideout and was left apparently inoperable. The SEALS tried to burn and destroy it on their way out, but what was left were still large portions of a secret, cutting-edge aircraft downed on foreign soil without permission. As such, Pakistan would like a peek — their officials have already said that they’re “very interested” in examining the remains, and added that they might let the Chinese check it out, too. source
Posted by Chris Tognotti • 0 Comments • Permalink
 
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