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Chinese businessman sells canned air to smog-choked citizens Recently, we told you about the horrendous air pollution problems in Beijing that have forced the Chinese government to advise citizens to stay indoors and has residents wearing facemasks in an attempt to protect their lungs from the smog. In the true spirit of Chinese entrepreneurialism, a Chinese businessman has decided to cash in on the "airpocalypse" by selling his own brand of canned air. Chen Guangbiao, a local entrepreneur known for his publicity stunts, claims he's selling the cans of air in part as a way to bring attention to the...

BEIJING is frequently shrouded in dense, yellowish smog so thick that the other side of the road is obscured. But the deadly smog that enveloped the city over the past weekend was so bad that air-quality readings from a monitor on the roof of the American Embassy said simply: "Beyond Index". The embassy uses the US Environmental Protection Agency's air-quality index (AQI), which measures the concentration of PM 2.5 (total mass of particulate matter of 2.5-micron diameter or smaller per cubic metre). Such particles are small enough to be inhaled and can damage lungs. The AQI range ends at 500;...

Measurement 'literally beyond index' Despite glowing words of praise from admirers in the neo-commie Obama Administration, by any measure -social security, health care, unemployment benefits, whatever- the booming China of today hasn't got much to do with socialism. Indeed, government handouts are far more prevalent in the US, and modern Chinese 'communist' leadership -who run a tight ship and enjoy a budget surplus- have come right out and said that American entitlement culture (with Obama as it's primary cheerleader) is precisely what's destroying us. So tell me who's the capitalists now: the Chinese may live under an oppressive dictatorship, but they learned not to restrain...

Hong Kong - In a city that prides itself on being the most free-thinking outpost of China, a new, pro-Beijing education policy has people worried that their identity is coming under threat. Last month, nearly 90,000 teachers, parents, and students flooded the streets to oppose a policy that will require all public-school students to take classes that promote “building national harmony” with mainland China. (Snip) The government also sent more than 400 students this summer to visit the birthplace of Mao Zedong, where they received brochures extolling Mao’s “glorious life” as one who “sought the truth to save the country

The China Daily is reporting that a giant mushroom cloud resembling an atomic explosion is being seen all over the capital city of Beijing on Sunday. The video of the cloud has already appeared all over YouTube (see below). There are multiple videos of the haze that have been filmed from skyscrapers and from the ground, some going back as far as June 14th. The Chinese government, in reacting to the red and green haze, is warning residents that they should stay inside according to the French Press on the scene. Due to the sheer size of the Chinese population,...

BEIJING (AP) — China told foreign embassies Tuesday to stop publishing their own reports on air quality in the country, escalating its objections to a popular U.S. Embassy Twitter feed that tracks pollution in smoggy Beijing. Only the Chinese government is authorized to monitor and publish air quality information and data from other sources may not be standardized or rigorous, Wu Xiaoqing, a vice environmental minister, told reporters. China has long taken issue with the U.S. Embassy's postings of hourly readings of Beijing's air quality on a Twitter feed with more than 19,000 followers since 2008. But its past objections...

UPDATE 1-India tests long-range missile; capable of reaching China (Reuters) - India test-fired a long range missile capable of reaching deep into China and Europe on Thursday, thrusting the emerging Asian power into an elite club of nations with intercontinental nuclear weapons capabilities. A scientist at the launch site said the launch was successful, minutes after television images showed the rocket with a range of more than 5,000 km (3,100 miles) blasting through clouds from an island off India's east coast. "It has met all the mission objectives," S.P.Dash, director of the test range, told Reuters. "It hit the target...

BEIJING: Japanese Premier Yoshihiko Noda's ongoing India visit aimed at boosting bilateral strategic ties was part of Tokyo's attempt to strengthen its alliances with Asia-Pacific nations to "contain" China, the official media here claimed today. Boosting ties with India is part of Japan's strategy of strengthening alliances with Asia-Pacific nations with an eye on China, state-run China Daily quoted security analysts as saying. The India-Japan summit is a continuance of Japan's "Arc of Freedom and Prosperity" strategy, which has been widely interpreted as an effort to contain China, Lu Yaodong, director of the department of Japanese diplomacy at the Institute...

Beijing city authorities on Friday issued new rules requiring microbloggers to register their real names before posting online, as the Chinese government tightens its grip on the Internet. The city government now requires users of weibos -- the Chinese version of Twitter -- to give their real names to website administrators, its official news portal said. The new rules will apply to weibo operators based in Beijing, which include Sina -- owner of China's most popular microblogging service which has more than 200 million users. "Websites with weibo operations must establish and improve a system of content censorship," according to...

Home schools emerged in many places of China today due to the parents' concern about the public education, the China Youth Daily reported Monday.A growing number of parents in Beijing, Shanghai, Guangdong and Zhejiang provinces are choosing to let their children receive an education at home rather than attend public kindergartens, primary, junior or senior middle schools.Some parents think their children cannot realize the happiness of learning, acquire useful knowledge effectively and master learning for a modern society through the current methods taught in schools. A recent seminar about launching home school projects was held by 21st Century Education Research...

*57-year-old accused of 'creating a public disturbance' *Show caused 'public disorder and chaos' *Artist wished to beautify love-making, lawyer claims A Chinese artist has been ordered to serve a year's re-education after he performed live sex as part of an exhibition, Chinese sources report. Cheng Li was detained and sentenced after his lewd public show in Songzhuang in eastern Beijing - and will now endure 11 months labour for his prurient act. The 57-year-old's actions - which are akin to those you might see in an Amsterdam peep show - apparently led to 'public disorder and chaos' in the capital...

Beijing to Track People's Movements via Their Mobile Phones By Michael Kan Mar 4, 2011 12:50 AM China plans on tracking the movements of people in Beijing using their mobile phones, a measure that while aimed at relieving traffic congestion, could set off concerns over misuse. China announced the plans in an article posted on a government website earlier this week. The system would work by tracking the movements of the 17 million users in Beijing currently signed on with the telecommunications carrier China Mobile. Once the users turned on their phone, the system could pinpoint their location and what...

Aircraft, cargo ships and fishing boats are moving towards Libya to evacuate Chinese nationals living in the North African country. Tunisian, Turkish and other workers are fleeing the country as well. Tripoli – China will send a jet, ships and fishing vessels from nearby waters to evacuate some 33,000 Chinese nationals working in violence-torn Libya. The government has set up an emergency unit headed by Vice Premier Zhang Dejiang to coordinate the repatriation of mainlanders, as well as people from Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan, the Foreign Ministry said in a statement. The State Council (cabinet) “decided to immediately deploy...

Chinese authorities moved quickly and with force to quash a pro-democracy 'Jasmine Revolution', believed to have been inspired by the recent uprisings in the Middle East and North Africa. More police than usual were scrambled to line the streets today, and there were a number of activists detained after online sites had organised staged protests in Beijing, Shanghai and 11 other major cities. Citizens were urged to shout: 'We want food, we want work, we want housing, we want fairness' - a slogan that highlights common complaints among ordinary Chinese.

As Beijing's real estate prices rise, those who cannot afford the rent go underground -- literally. Hundreds of cellars and air-raid shelters are rented as living spaces. For 27-year-old Dong Ying, Beijing is a city of dreams. Two years ago, the sports teacher relocated to the Chinese metropolis. Here, she hoped, her wishes for a more interesting life would be fulfilled. She goes from fitness club to fitness club every day, working as a trainer. She pedals, she bends and straightens and ensures that the affluent city residents stay in shape. To reach her students, she spends four hours each...

Watch this video. You won't regret it.

The air forces of China and Turkey have carried out a joint exercise, the U.S. Defense Department said on Friday, in what appeared to be the first such drill involving Beijing and a NATO member country. Turkey assured the United States it would take the "utmost care" to protect sensitive U.S. and NATO technologies, said U.S. Army Lieutenant Colonel Tamara Parker, a department spokeswoman. She described Turkey's government as committed to the NATO alliance and the continuation of strong ties to the United States. "To the best of our knowledge, U.S.-made F-16s were not involved in the exercise," Parker said....

China recently conducted a long-range missile flight test that remains shrouded in secrecy. The Sept. 25 test highlights what China military specialists say is the growing threat posed by Beijing's development of long- and short-range ballistic and cruise missiles, and its new missile defense interceptors. A U.S. official confirmed that China's military fired a missile from the Taiyuan missile center, about 320 miles southwest of Beijing, to Korla, a city in western China some 1,800 miles away. Officials declined to provide details, saying the test data are classified. China watchers in Asia and the United States were alerted to the...

HUAIAN COUNTY, CHINA—So you think struggling home from Ontario’s cottage country was tough? Think again. And consider, if you will, the case of Chinese trucker Pang Laisuo. On Sunday his coal-laden transport truck was caught in a traffic jam near here, about 240 kilometres north of Beijing. Pang knew he’d have something of a wait. What he didn’t know was that it would last 18 hours. “Everyone who pulled up at 4 o’clock Sunday afternoon ended up being stuck there until 10 o’clock Monday morning,” says Pang, a lean and grizzled man in his 50s speaking at a roadside stop...

A nine-day traffic jam outside Beijing has drivers fuming, street vendors turning a quick profit and Chinese traffic authorities struggling for answers. Traffic has been slowed to a crawl since August 14 on a 100-kilometer stretch of National Expressway 110 that runs between Beijing and Heibei province. Officials say the jam is caused by an increase in trucks carrying goods to Beijing and by highway maintenance work along the route. Highways have become numerous and complicated in and around Beijing in recent years as the Chinese public has made a large shift to motorized travel over the past 30 years....