Current Events

[Randy W]

Nothing profound - Just one of those Only in China stories from the SCMP

 

A chicken/duck-fueled BMW - how many miles to the quack?

 

Chinese farmer suspected of stealing chickens and ducks to keep his US$290,000 luxury BMW on the road

• Police say suspect is a wealthy farmer who struck at night on a motorbike
• Officers detained the man after checks on surveillance cameras from rural roads

 

 

 

The 50-year-old, who was not named in the report, is a wealthy farmer who lives in a multistorey villa, the officers were reported as saying.

Police said the suspect thought of stealing chickens and ducks when he ran into financial trouble and needed to “subsidise” his spending on petrol. The BMW was a thirsty car, the suspect was quoted as saying.

 

 

Edited June 5, 2019 by Randy W (see edit history)

[Randy W]

from the SCMP

 

 

Round two: CGTN anchor Liu Xin and Fox’s Trish Regan prepare for next live TV debate

• Chinese host says she will ‘next week’ propose a date to continue their discussion of the US-China trade war
• Their first debate on May 30 disappointed those who were hoping for a fiery showdown

 

“Hi Trish, thank you for your kind offer. We r going to spend the weekend celebrating the Dragon Boat Festival. How about I get back to you next week ASAP?” Liu tweeted on Friday, after Regan asked if she wanted to continue the “thoughtful, respectful discussion”.

Regan replied: “Excellent. Enjoy the Dragon festival and we’ll talk soon.”

 

 

[Randy W]

from the SCMP

 

 

Round two: CGTN anchor Liu Xin and Fox’s Trish Regan prepare for next live TV debate

• Chinese host says she will ‘next week’ propose a date to continue their discussion of the US-China trade war
• Their first debate on May 30 disappointed those who were hoping for a fiery showdown

 

“Hi Trish, thank you for your kind offer. We r going to spend the weekend celebrating the Dragon Boat Festival. How about I get back to you next week ASAP?” Liu tweeted on Friday, after Regan asked if she wanted to continue the “thoughtful, respectful discussion”.

Regan replied: “Excellent. Enjoy the Dragon festival and we’ll talk soon.”

 

 

[Randy W]

from Xinhua on Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/XH.NewsAgency/posts/2647490798654947

 

China Xinhua News

5 hrs ·

Quote

痛心！四川宜宾地震已造成11人死亡，122人受伤。

Sad! The earthquake in sichuan has killed 11 people and injured 122 people.

 

Edited January 13, 2021 by Randy W (see edit history)

[Randy W]

from the People's Daily on Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/PeoplesDaily/posts/2534743646577437

People's Daily, China

1 hr ·

Quote

In pics: the aftermath of SW China earthquake. 13 people died and nearly 200 were injured as of 4 p.m. Tuesday after a 6.0-magnitude earthquake hit Changning, Sichuan Province Monday night

 

Edited January 13, 2021 by Randy W (see edit history)

[Allon]

I talked with a friend in Chengdu last night. She says everyone is traumatized. She had that PTSD look about her. Shaky. Eyes darting. The pararescue in me is having quite an internal battle talking to her and seeing the pictures. That area has had such tragedy.

[Randy W]

There's this from the Shanghaiist

 

Early warning system credited with saving lives following Sichuan earthquake

 

The system was developed by a Sichuan-native who never wants to see a repeat of the horrendous casualty figures of 2008

 

 

Through TV sets, radios, mobile phones, and emergency sirens, people in Sichuan province received notifications about the quake before it struck at 10:55 pm. At the epicenter in the city of Yibin, they were notified 10 seconds ahead of time. In the provincial capital of Chengdu, 61 seconds.

 

[Allon]

My friend was saying that there are still homeless people from the quake in 2008. Of course, it's China and there have always been homeless, these were displaced by the quake and have yet to recover. Just that possibility, affects everyone. It's the nature of PTSD. Heightened awareness. Calculating contingency. Fluctuating mood. And so many lost their family members, in a country where one child, one family was then in effect.

[amberjack1234]

I expect some will never recover especially the older ones.

[Randy W]

image not available - tinypic kicked the bucket

 

22 hours

Suning.com To Buy 80% of Carrefour’s Retail Business in China

French supermarket chain Carrefour has announced plans to sell 80% of its China business to domestic retailer Suning.com.

The deal, which values Carrefour China at 1.4 billion euros ($1.59 billion), is expected to be completed by the end of this year, according to Sunday’s announcement. Entering the country’s market in 1995, Carrefour China currently runs 210 hypermarkets and 24 convenience stores nationwide.

In October, Carrefour had partnered with a delivery service partly owned by e-commerce giant JD.com in a bid to stay afloat in China. But despite the difficultiesthat Carrefour and other foreign brands have faced, German supermarket chain Aldi has signaled its intent to expand in the country, opening its first two physical locations in China just weeks ago. (Image: VCG)

 

 

 

 

[Randy W]

from Abacus -

 

Spirited Away

BEATS

Toy Story 4

 

 

 

 

 

 

Why Toy Story 4 was trounced by an 18-year-old film at China’s box office

Iconic Studio Ghibli film Spirited Away takes China by storm in first theatrical release

 

 

Chinese posters of Spirited Away created by artists Zao Dao (left) and Huang Hai (right).

 

Some speculated that it’s related to trade war tension between the US and China, but there could be other factors at play. For one, China’s taste for foreign movies doesn’t always follow Western trends. While Marvel’s Avengers series took the Chinese box office by storm, Star Wars never quite achieved the same star status in China that it holds elsewhere.

Pixar seems to have suffered the same fate as Star Wars. Finding Dory, the second highest-earning movie in North America in 2016, achieved an unremarkable 53rd in China that same year. The Incredibles 2, which came third in the US last year, was nearly 40 places behind in China.

Much like Star Wars, whose original trilogy was never theatrically released in China, Toy Story also arrived late in the country. Toy Story 3, which came out in 2010, was the first in the series to hit Chinese cinemas. In contrast, China was largely influenced by Japanese anime during the 1980s and 90s.

Online, Chinse netizens seem to be gravitating towards Spirited Away over Toy Story as well. The hashtag “The affection between Haku and Chihiro” was trending on Weibo Tuesday, thanks to emotional viewers bawling their eyes out over the two main characters.

“I cried,” wrote one Weibo user. “I want Chihiro and Haku to stay together. I understand more now that I’m older.”

“My first time watching this in the theater (tears) (tears) (tears),” wrote another user. “Still incredibly moved. (ಥ_ಥ)”

“The first time I watched this as a kid, I thought Haku was a girl,” this user said. “Didn’t have the courage to cry out loud in the theater. I was sniffing and tearing up the moment Chihiro and Haku met each other.”

 

Others are looking forward to more showings of Studio Ghibli movies. The franchise has been making a recent comeback in China, starting with My Neighbor Totoro in December last year.

 

 

[Randy W]

from the SCMP on Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/scmp/videos/742276392856954/

We've seen a little rain, but not anywhere near this much

South China Morning Post

2 hrs ·

Quote

Torrential rain has triggered severe flash flooding in China, washing away vehicles and damaging homes

.

Edited January 13, 2021 by Randy W (see edit history)

[Allon]

If it is any consolation, Colorado has a number of swollen rivers caused by record snowfall. The usual washed out dams and roads are a result and slower traffic. But the good side is a many year drought has been declared over. So Arizona, which gets its water from northern snowfall in Flagstaff and southern Colorado, will be relieved of some of its water shortfall. So will New Mexico which has really been clobbered by drought.

 

But don't say there is any climate change going on. Heresy,

[Randy W]

Police stops are very rare, but they DO happen - from the SCMP on Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/scmp/posts/10157321506829820

South China Morning Post

June 29 at 10:30 PM ·

Quote

The Houston Rockets player was pulled over while he was riding a battery-powered scooter in Shanghai.

 

Edited January 13, 2021 by Randy W (see edit history)

[Randy W]

from the SCMP

 

China struggling with slow progress on high-speed rail network expansion due to local financing problems

• Construction of new high-speed link between Zhengzhou in Henan province and Jinan in Shandong delayed due to funding issue
• Beijing’s policy moves to reduce debt and cut taxes are hampering local governments’ ability to fund new projects

 

 

 

In the past, infrastructure projects that enjoyed full government support would mean that the work was conducted around the clock, backed by a steady flow of funding. The government would draw up a blueprint and then all necessary resources would be mobilised to make it happen. But in the case of Puyang, however, the local government’s enthusiasm has not translated into a construction frenzy on the ground.

 

. . .

 

But construction activity on the rail line running the 39km north to the provincial border, as well as the 170km that extends through Shandong province, is quiet because budget constraints mean work on the Shandong section of the Zhengzhou-Jinan rail line has not yet started. According to a statement posted on the website of Henan’s provincial development and reform commission, the Zhengzhou-Jinan rail link will cost around 50.4 billion yuan (US$7.3 billion), including 30.5 billion yuan for the Henan section.

Local newspaper the Dahe Daily said that the project will be handled by a joint venture between the China Railway Corporation and the Henan provincial government with registered starting capital of 15 billion yuan, with the remainder to be financed by bank loans.

Shandong is believed to have delayed its portion of the project because the provincial government prioritised the development of its export-oriented coastal areas, while continuing its campaign to reduce debt and financially risky projects, leaving insufficient capital to build the new section of the railway line.

. . .

The problems facing the Zhengzhou-Jinan rail line mirror the dilemmas faced by Beijing policymakers. On one hand, the central government believes that many less developed central and western regions of the country still need additional infrastructure, which justifies the need to finance the projects with extra fiscal stimulus amid the trade war with the United States.

But Beijing is also nervously watching rising local government debt and wants to prevent it from weighing down the world’s second largest economy. According to the Bank for International Settlements, the country’s total debt reached US$33.2 trillion by the end of 2018, the world’s second largest after the US, while the debt-to-GDP ratio rose to 254 per cent, one of the highest in the world.