Blogs » Society » Chinese Embassy in Tokyo receives bullet from 'Yoshihiko Noda'

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• Chinese Embassy in Tokyo receives bullet from 'Yoshihiko Noda'
• Mainland female medical student shoots erotic film in Hong Kong to earn 4 million for opening clinic
• Novelist Murakami On Japan’s Territorial Disputes
• Friday Links: Doubt about Neil Heywood’s death, Diaoyu conflict set in the world of Azeroth, and a dead boy in a freezer… for six years
• Photos: Inside North Korea's never finished, 105-storey Ryugyong Hotel
• How To Give Gifts In China
• Bo Xilai sacked, accused of multiple crimes
• Xinhua Announces: Bo Xilai’s Criminal Charges, Leadership Transition Set For Nov. 8
• 30-year study of US ecosystems heralds age of "big data"
• Bo Xilai: Brought Down, And Now Out
• “Louie” Season 3 Finale Features Scenes Filmed In Beijing
• The Best Applications To Be Gigi Chao’s Husband, So Far
• Last Call: Our LGBT Columnist Bids Us Farewell
• Taiwan Ships Shoot Water That “Looks Like Urine,” Say Netizens
• Language partnership tragically ends in one-night stand
• Unico: Latino Cocktails by The Bund
• Top 10 Search List (September 28, 2012)
• Traffic Hell Week Yields 31-Vehicle Pileup On Tianjin-Beijing Highway

Chinese Embassy in Tokyo receives bullet from 'Yoshihiko Noda' Posted: 28 Sep 2012 08:09 PM PDT The Chinese Embassy in Tokyo has received a bullet in the mail from a sender named 'Yoshihiko Noda'. No letter was attached (which we find a bit rude) and a spokeswoman for Japanese Prime Minister Noda has already denied that he sent the bullet. After years of watching bad detective dramas and Scooby Doo, we feel our expertise could prove invaluable so we've compiled our own list of 5 possible suspects below. You're welcome, Tokyo Metropolitan Police. [ more › ]

Mainland female medical student shoots erotic film in Hong Kong to earn 4 million for opening clinic Posted: 27 Sep 2012 06:26 PM PDT Key | September 27th, 2012 From Netease: "Due West: Our Sex Journey", the Hong Kong's 3D erotic film (literally translated as 3rd grade film in Chinese, see Hong Kong motion picture rating system) was released to the public, and the bold performance of WangLi Danni, an actress from mainland China attracted huge attention. According to the reports of Hong Kong media, WangLi Danni claimed to be a medical student in Shanghai, and the reason for playing in an erotic film was to earn 4million RMB in order to fulfill her dream of opening a clinic after she graduates next year. The climax of Due West: Our Sex Journey was that the F-Cup WangLi Danni used her breasts to rub against the back of the leading actor, Zhang Jiansheng. She had bold performance in her first erotic movie, with complete nudity, but surprisingly she is a medical student behind camera. She recently said that, "To be honest, I took part in this movie to earn some quick money, and my goal is 4 million. I will not graduate till next October, but it will cost a fortune to get the license and open a clinic. I hope I could earn enough to open it." Given WangLi Danni's natural and smooth performance in Due West, Xiao Dingyi, the investor warmly invited her to join the cast of 3D Sex and Zen 2. But WangLi Danni had concerns that if she continues to perform nude scenes in movies, it would affect her dream of becoming a doctor. Was she worried that she would be blocked like Tang Wei, who had some nude scenes in Lust, Caution? She answered, "The situations are different. Tang Wei had some sensitive scenes in that movie." WangLi Danni stated that as long as it would not affect her study, she would continue to be an actress till she saves 4 million RMB . She said, "I will not give up on becoming a doctor, but I still worry that taking part in erotic movies would exert negative influence on my doctor career." WangLi Danni claimed to be a university student from mainland China, but her public information in mainland showed that she "graduated from Beijing Central & North Emperor Performing Arts School, a popular model, new actress, hostess and freelance writer", without mentioning being a medical student. Many netizens expressed suspicion on her "university student" identity. It was known that before WangLi Danni joined Due West: Our Sex Journey, she was shown on the stage of Only You, a job seeking show produced by Tianjin Satellite TV Station, in the name of "WangLi Dan". In her CV, she deliberately mentioned her measurements. And Zhang Shaogang, the "cold blooded" host who received a lot of criticisms later, behaved quite "gentle" when WangLi Danni showed up. And netizens laughed at him, saying that "it's hard to overcome a booby trap".

Novelist Murakami On Japan’s Territorial Disputes Posted: 28 Sep 2012 01:03 PM PDT Haruki Murakami on the front page of the Asahi Shimbun Wangfujing in Beijing was my home for many years. Before the area was transformed beyond all recognition, I knew it as a center for bookstores, including the Wangfujing Bookstore. I just learned that, on Chinese government orders, the Wangfujing Bookstore and all other bookstores in China have removed all titles by Japanese authors. Among these, of course, is one of my favorite writers, Haruki Murakami. (While researching this post, I was happy to learn the bookmaker Ladbrokes has Mr. Murakami once again the favorite to win the 2012 Nobel Prize in Literature by 5 t0 1.) On September 28, Mr. Murakami published an essay about Japan's territorial disputes with China and Korea that appeared on the front page of the Asahi Shimbun, Japan's second largest daily (unfortunately, I couldn't read the entire essay because the Asahi form required me to enter my name in hiragana script, something beyond me). By combining the Wall Street Journal's 'Novelist Murakami Weighs In On Japan Territorial Rows' and The Atlantic's 'Haruki Murakami Denounces Nationalism in Island Dispute,' I pieced this together: When a territorial issue ceases to be a practical matter and enters the realm of 'national emotions', it creates a dangerous situation with no exit. It's like getting drunk on cheap sake. Drinking just a small cup of this cheap sake sends blood rushing to the head. People's voices get louder and those actions become violent. But after making a noisy fuss about it, when the dawn breaks all that will be left is a bad headache We must be careful about politicians and polemicists who lavish us with this cheap liquor and fan this kind of rampage. These are not new ideas for Mr. Murakami. Another part of the WSJ article, which reminded me of my recent post, 'Disputed Territories: Hamlet And Diaoyoutai', highlights this: In his essay, Mr. Murakami mentioned his novel "The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle." The surreal plot focuses on a bloody battle between Japanese soldiers and Mongolian and Russian forces over a barren stretch of the Outer Mongolian desert. Mr. Murakami wrote that he went to visit the site of the former warzone after he finished the novel. "As I stood in the middle of that barren wasteland, with cartridges and other wartime artifacts still scattered about, I helplessly felt 'why was so much life senselessly lost over this piece of empty land?'" Why, indeed? I'm rooting for Mr. Murakami to win the Nobel Prize for Literature. And, I hope with this strong and probably unpopular stand, he that much closer. Mr. Murakami has used his prestige to tamp down nationalist emotions that have lead to the deaths of other cooler heads in other eras in Japanese history. And, I applaud his courage for this.

Friday Links: Doubt about Neil Heywood’s death, Diaoyu conflict set in the world of Azeroth, and a dead boy in a freezer… for six years Posted: 28 Sep 2012 08:00 AM PDT Via Christina Larson Xinhua's evening announcement has pushed back our blogging schedule, so this post will be your Outro into the weekend. If you must have music, hum music to these links. Diaoyu Islands/World of Warcraft parody. "Yesterday, Horde Warchief Garrosh Hellscream successfully occupied Theramore Isle and its surrounding islets, thereby completing the 'Hordification' of the archipelago, and setting off waves of protest in the Alliance capital of Stormwind. Yason Bloodbreaker, a dwarven political specialist warned, 'this senseless act will bring Horde-Alliance relations to their lowest point since the conflicts experienced during the Burning Crusade', and that this will likely destroy the 'delicate framework for cooperation' that had been established." [Xiyo Media (trans.)] Not an open and shut case, eh? "In a long blog post published last night, Wang Xuemei, one of China's top forensic doctors with the Supreme People's Procuratorate, thoroughly dismisses the official cause of Neil Heywood's death late last year. // …Wang starts by expressing 'deep regret' over nearly every stage in Heywood's murder trial, from the investigation to the charges brought against Gu Kailai and Zhang Xiaojun as well as their ultimate guilty verdict, including the evidence relied upon to build the case against them. // 'A serious lack of evidence exists,' Wang writes, 'to conclude that Neil Heywood died of cyanide poisoning, as well as any supporting scientific basis.'" [John Kennedy (trans.), SCMP] Weird day for Xinhua to run a Zhang Ziyi photo gallery: news.xinhuanet.com/english/photo/… #boknows? — Mark MacKinnon/马凯 (@markmackinnon) September 28, 2012 Millions in China use Facebook, Twitter and Google+, eh? "GlobalWebIndex published a new report on Internet usage around the world this week, and it contained some great news for China. Twitter, Facebook and Google+ have increased their user numbers dramatically in China, as seen below. There's just one problem. They are all blocked in China, and we believe that GlobalWebIndex has got it's data wrong." [Great Fire] With all the relevant disclaimers because of the source (though it vets). "A man in Chongqing ran over a female motorcyclist in his sedan recently, and then proceeded to slap her while boasting about his wealth, according to an account of the incident online and in interviews with witnesses. // An angry crowd gathered and flipped over his car." [Epoch Times] Little emperor strikes again. "A college student in east China has been thrust into the media spotlight after she sent her dirty clothes home to be washed. // Her 74-year-old grandmother in the northeastern city of Dalian was asked to return the clothes once they'd been washed, according to a local newspaper." [Shanghai Daily] Censorship again. "'No film is safe, no film investment is safe, no director's creation is safe [under China's film censorship framework],' said director Lou Ye (@导演娄烨) in a recent interview with Sina… // On September 25, Lou reported that SARFT and the filmmakers had reached a compromise on the murder scene, allowing the film to be released on time. However, Lou also announced a highly defiant gesture: He would remove his name as the director of the film in the public release version. // Lou's exposure of the inner workings of China's film censorship process and bold gesture attracted support from other filmmakers, artists, and average netizens in China." [Tea Leaf Nation] That's quite the interesting picture choice, City Lady. "The front of the City Lady (都市女报), a national newspaper focused on women's issues, today makes the startling claim that most Chinese women don't really know how to use contraception. Based on what it describes as the findings of a new investigation (the details of which are sadly lacking), the 1.3 million annual abortions in China could be substantially reduced if women had better knowledge of contraceptives and used them consistently.  Just underneath this headline, the City Lady has placed a provocative picture of a beauty contest for buttocks that was held in Brazil recently – and there they are all in a row for your watching pleasure." [Danwei] Storing a dead boy in the freezer. "In 2006, the son of Chongqing City Kai County Fengle Street HUangling Village resident Tian Xueming passed away from leukemia. Tian Xueming stored his son's body in the freezer, and 6 years have passed. Every time he misses [his son], Tian Xueming and his wife will quietly go, with their arms around each other, stand beside the freezer, look blankly for a moment, and then leave. Tian Xueming says his son 'in the freezer looks exactly as he did when he was alive. My son is still with me, and has never left.'" [chinaSMACK] Mitt Romney's China bashing. "For Romney, the political calculation is more difficult. He began the China bashing during the primaries as a way to distinguish his candidacy from his Republican rivals. Whether that message helped him with the base of the Republican party in securing the nomination is unclear, particularly since GOP constituencies are split about China. // You can slice and dice GOP voters in a number of ways and still not be sure which issues are truly motivating them — I tend to be skeptical about data like exit polling that oversimplify voting choices. One thing is clear, though, when it comes to Republicans: they have mixed feelings about doing business with China." [China Hearsay] Belated, but here's a very good interview by Adrian Chen with China labor scholar Eli Friedman about Foxconn. "I mean the way you interact with your own consumerism is up to you. Sometimes when I say this stuff, liberals get upset at me and are like, Oh, you're letting Apple off the hook. I'm not, I think that Apple is very consciously moving to places where labor is really cheap and where workers are highly politically repressed. So I think that pressure should be brought to bear on major corporations, absolutely. But resolving the labor conflict is a collective problem. And when you shift it to individual consumers, there's no more power. I just don't think that individuals have that much capacity to change things. Keeping pressure on big companies is a fine thing, but ultimately the thing that's gonna change it is worker's own self-activity." [Gawker] Corollary: Friedman's essay in Jacobin. Remember those July rainstorms? interlude: Finally… Basketball in China and India. [Karan Madhok, NiuBBall] Doctor not the "dream job" it used to be in China. [Worldcrunch] On Jenny An, Clarissa Wei, Asian Americans, sex, and gender. [Disgrasian] Finally, finally… The next generation of tablet computers, via China News 24.

Photos: Inside North Korea's never finished, 105-storey Ryugyong Hotel Posted: 28 Sep 2012 07:45 AM PDT          Beijing-based Koryo Tours, which describes itself as the "only true specialist in travel to the Democratic People's Republic of North Korea", has posted photos from inside the forever unfinished, 105-storey monument-to-nothing that is the Ryugyong Hotel. [ more › ]

How To Give Gifts In China Posted: 28 Sep 2012 07:50 AM PDT Okay, I admit it.  I'm a sucker for infographics. They take the complicated and deep and make it overly simple and I like that.  And I just saw one I really like on gift giving in China.  The infographic is the most recent installment of  Illuminant's "Chinese Takeout" series of quick bursts on Chinese culture and it is called "Gifts in China: What to Give, What to Avoid." The inforgraphic briefly talks of the whys of China gift giving and then, just as its title states, it graphically shows good gifts and bad gifts. In other words, it tells you how to give gifts in China for the most/best impact. I was comforted to see that my two gift stand-bys — both in China and everywhere else in the world — get extremely high marks.  I always give a local wine I like or locally smoked salmon from a very long-time firm client.  I give these gifts because I know them to be excellent, because just about everyone likes wine and salmon, and because they have some meaning to me.  Didn't need an inforgraphic for any of that, but the infographic says that wine and food are good gifts as our items from your own region.  So combining the two must be best of all. Which leads me back to something we have often said on here about how to deal with Chinese culture. It is good to know Chinese culture but there is no need to get obsessed about it.  Respect and sincerity can go a long way.  Know enough to avoid the big mistakes and you ought to be fine. In other words, do not give anyone in China a clock, but seriously, have any of you ever given or received a clock as a gift anywhere in the world? Way back in 2006, in a post entitled, To Succeed In China Know The Now, we had this to say and it bears repeating again now: Knowledge of Chinese history and culture is an asset for doing business in China.  However, because circumstances in China change so quickly, staying abreast of China's current situation is far more important than knowing its past.  Successful businesses in China usually emphasize knowing their own businesses inside and out first, understanding China today second, and China's history and culture third. Bottom Line:  Do for your business what makes sense in China today, not what might have made sense for some other company years ago. Chinese gift-giving.  Let's hear it. What do you think?

Bo Xilai sacked, accused of multiple crimes Posted: 28 Sep 2012 05:12 AM PDT The other shoe has finally dropped. Disgraced politician and the former next leader of the Communist Party, Bo Xilai, has today been expelled from the Communist Party and accused of multiple crimes including culpability for the death of Neil Heywood. [ more › ]

Xinhua Announces: Bo Xilai’s Criminal Charges, Leadership Transition Set For Nov. 8 Posted: 28 Sep 2012 04:51 AM PDT Two huge announcements from Xinhua this evening — concerning two men who are more or less intricately tied – impeccably timed for just the moment when everyone's preparing to start their holiday and stop caring about news. First: Bo Xilai has been expelled from the Communist Party of China (CPC) and his public office, according to a decision made at a meeting of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee on Friday. He faces multiple criminal charges, including violation of "Party disciplines" as mayor of Dalian and taking "advantage of his office to seek profits for others and received huge bribes personally and through his family." Xinhua also notes that he had "improper sexual relations with a number of women," and, "The investigation also found clues to his suspected involvement in other crimes." Ominously, it adds: "Bo's behaviors have brought serious consequences, badly undermined the reputation of the Party and the country, created very negative impact at home and abroad and significantly damaged the cause of the Party and people." The second major announcement: The 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC) is proposed to convene on Nov. 8 in Beijing. The Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee decided at a meeting on Friday to submit the proposal to the seventh plenary meeting of the 17th CPC Central Committee, which will be held on Nov. 1. Xi Jinping is expected to be announced as the next leader of China. Anything short of that, and you won't be able to invent a holiday important enough to keep people from paying attention. Of course, we'll keep you updated here at BJC. Let's just say we have some plans falling into place for National Congress coverage. Stay tuned. Or don't. Go enjoy Golden Week, folks. We'll be around when you return.

30-year study of US ecosystems heralds age of "big data" Posted: 27 Sep 2012 08:54 AM PDT By 2016, some 15,000 sensors will be collecting myriad statistics on the health of US ecosystems.  One question people with inquisitive minds have sometimes asked through the ages is: how can we learn to see the movement of things that move incredibly slowly, like stars or glaciers? One answer is to use time-lapse photography, with multiple images taken over an extended time period and then stitched together into a much shorter film. That's how we can now see plants growing on our TV or computer screens, their shoots exploring and stretching as if they were octopi extending their tentacles. Or, if you're lucky enough to live for a long time, you may begin to spot the underlying patterns in the wider world – and the way things so often go in circles or, over time, in spirals. The world of computing and information technology often seems to move at nearly the speed of light, so bewilderingly fast that some part of us wants to slam on the brakes, to find ways to slow down the process for long enough to understand what is going on. But there are often bigger trends at work here, too. One that has long interested me is the evolution of IT-based solutions to the challenges of managing our small planet as the size of the human population (and our environmental footprints) explodes. Some 25 years ago, I did a project on ways in which the computing tools of the time were being used in such applications as interpreting satellite remote-sensing data. I visited pioneering firms in places like California that were using computers to build multi-dimensional maps of land slated for development, or of underground oil reservoirs. I also worked with IBM around the same time, when the company was using the challenges of modelling air-quality problems in places like Mexico City to accelerate the evolution of its big hardware systems. It was exciting research, but before too long IBM had switched its focus to medical imaging as an even more data-intensive area. But now the wheel is turning again. And it's fascinating to watch the pace of evolution accelerating, this time in relation to the challenge of monitoring our small planet's biosphere. A few weeks back, for example, I came across a new US$434 million, 30-year plan to study the ecology of the United States. Called NEON, for the National Ecological Observatory Network, this will involve producing and analysing huge volumes of what is increasingly called Big Data. When I did that work 25 years ago, scientists were talking of the problems of "drinking at the firehose" when it came to analysing the data produced by satellites – and now the volumes of data are set to increase yet further. By 2016, some 15,000 sensors installed in 60 sites across the US will be collecting more than 500 forms of data linked to ecosystem health. When fully operational, NEON will generate about 200 terabytes of information a year, which the business magazine The Economist notes is as much as the Hubble telescope – a massively powerful piece of scientific equipment – churned out in its first two decades orbiting Earth.   NEON is designed to allow the scientific community to bridge major gaps in the environmental sciences, known as the "Grand Challenges". These come in two types. First are those forces that are major causes of change in biological systems, including climate change, land-use change and invasive species. And second are those areas that respond to change, including biodiversity, biogeochemistry, ecohydrology and infectious diseases. Clearly, these effects are not mutually exclusive: for example, changes to vegetation structure can affect climate, or emerging diseases can dramatically change ecosystem processes. The questions scientists want to answer include: how do changes in the intensity, spatial distribution and frequency of storms affect ecosystems? How will storm damage in inland forests impact coastal systems? How does climate change affect mean temperature and drought severity, and what influences are predicted on species interactions, snowmelt dynamics and dust emissions? And how does climate change affect the ability of invasive species to spread? One key strength of NEON is that the same instruments will take the same measurements in the same way in every place. As The Economist explains, "By gathering data in this standardised way, and doing so in many places and over long periods of time," the scientists hope "to achieve the statistical power needed to turn ecology from a craft into an industrial-scale enterprise."  Aerial and satellite imagery will be collected for all key sites. Once it is clear how ecosystems respond to changes in climate and land use, and to the arrival of new species, the NEON team will develop models to forecast the future of particular ecosystems, allowing policymakers to assess the likely consequences of different courses of action. The vast amounts of information produced will require immense amounts of number crunching. Indeed, The Economist concludes, "it might be argued that what truly distinguishes Big Science from the small stuff – as astronomers and physicists have known for decades and biologists discovered in the aftermath of the Human Genome Project – is not the amount of money involved but the volume of data that needs to be processed." NEON is seen as a significant shift, leading ecologists towards the worlds of Big Science and Big Data. The consequences for their science will be profound and somewhat unpredictable, but we can be sure of one thing: when we are able to routinely tap the evidence not just of butterfly nets and microscopes but also of satellites and NEON-like networks around the world, opening up the results to ordinary citizens to play with, as the NEON team plans to do, ecology will have become a truly twenty-first century science.  The next challenges will be to wire not just America but the world, to ask not just questions but the right questions, and to both pay attention to the answers, however difficult they may be, and to act quickly and sensibly on the information. John Elkington is executive chairman at Volans and non-executive director atSustainAbility. His latest book is The Power of Unreasonable People. He blogs at www.johnelkington.com and tweets at @volansjohn.   Homepage image by University of Maryland Press Releases

Bo Xilai: Brought Down, And Now Out Posted: 28 Sep 2012 04:16 AM PDT Bo Xilai, brought down in the most serious political corruption case to hit the Party in years, is now finally out. The disgraced former rising star has been expelled from the Party for taking bribes and his "grave responsibility" in … Continue reading →

“Louie” Season 3 Finale Features Scenes Filmed In Beijing Posted: 28 Sep 2012 03:01 AM PDT Photo via the Beijinger Remember when Louie CK visited Beijing? Certainly you do, especially if you were one of lucky hundred or so who got to attend his exclusive show. Well, the scenes he filmed here have finally been aired, in the finale of Season 3, "New Year's Eve." We don't have footage of it yet, but you can read a recap on The Faster Times. Writes Craig McQuinn: He is eventually persuaded and goes to the airport but spontaneously decides to go to China and look for the river that was mentioned in the book he bought for his daughter for Christmas. Louie eventually finds the river and, again, much like everything else in this season, it's not what expected. He's lost again. He went to China for this? It's great to see that Louis CK saved bits from his Beijing trip for last. Judging by an interview he did with Bill Simmons in late-June, it seems he was proud (justifiably) and still a bit wide-eyed about coming here. Via Uproxx: LOUIS C.K.: [Season 3] was the most difficult season we've done so far. We did more logistical … we traveled, I did an episode in Miami, we did an episode in Boston, I went to China… SIMMONS: You went to China?! LOUIS C.K.: Yeah we shot in Beijing. I hate to give it away, but I can't keep it inside that I went to China. It was a crazy thing. SIMMONS: Holy mackerel. How long were you in China? LOUIS C.K.: Just two days. We shot it and got the hell out of there. It's crazy. Yeah, we did a lot. We wreck some cars, we do a lot of fun action in this season. We'll keep an eye out for video, of course. FX has a preview of the episode, but sadly, Beijing doesn't make an appearance. If you stumble upon the scenes we want, please let us know. (H/T Reddit)

The Best Applications To Be Gigi Chao’s Husband, So Far Posted: 28 Sep 2012 02:38 AM PDT Picture via the Guardian, caption: "Gigi Chao (right) is already taken, having apparently married her partner of seven years, Sean Eav (left), in France recently. Photograph: Apple Daily/AFP/Getty Images." Gigi Chao says she's "really quite touched" by her dad's HK$500 million bounty for her hand in marriage, and with applicants like this, we can see why! hi Gigi Chao I desire to marry you if I married you I was in vendiin your will find happiness by ndimuar people in the world on this team with you, and there you can find your happiness friend Sazan Gusha from albania. That's from Ticher Fotografi on this Knows Hong Kong story, which we linked to in our original post about Chao. There are more. From Knows Hong Kong: There's a bit of confusion as to exactly how many applications have been received though. Gigi's dad, tycoon Cecil Chao Sze-tsung, told South China Morning Post "about 100," while Daily Telegraph says "thousands of men." Gigi herself, in the above SCMP story, claims, "In addition to more than 1,500 Facebook friend requests, Twitter, YouTube and Google+ followers, I am also getting so many e-mail marriage proposals it's seriously distracting." Reuters reports these two: One suitor from the United States wrote: "I'm interested in your offer to wed your daughter, who also happens to be gay. I am a male person, who also happens to be gay." Another put up his brother, a body double to George Clooney in the 2008 sports flick "Leatherheads" as a potential mate: "He could be the picture perfect date that your father craves." And desperate bachelors have resorted to emailing newspapers directly, hoping they'll be messengers. These two went to SCMP: The Post has also fielded e-mail requests. A Frenchman, 38, wrote: "I'm really serious and [despite the fact] I am a man I think I can make this woman happy, I'm as soft as a woman." Another internet user, going by the name Robin Hood 702, wrote: "I will win his daughter's heart and marry her, and my Maid Marian, a gorgeous Brazilian model, will help accomplish that with me." We've even fielded proposals in our comments section. (Disclaimer: probably farcical.) This guy links to AOL.com in his comment, and later calls it a "great web site for all" (or does he mean BJC!!!): burl phillips says: September 27, 2012 at 3:16 am my son would marry her if she move to usa and start up a business my wife is bed ridding and we could use sum of your money to buy a house and take care of my wife . if you want to help me and my wife . we dont need a loy of money about 200 000 us money hope you have the heart to help us god bless you and your family. my son is 39 never be marry But the hands-down winner? The guy who sent this to Gawker: Dear Mr. Zimmerman, I read you article regarding the daughter who is lesbian and i decided i want to go to hk to check her out. My name is Gui [Redacted] and I am from Brazil. I am currently traveling around the world while learning about Algae and climbing mountains. I think this girl is gorgeous and as I love women I am willing to fly to hk to meet with her. Can you please let me know how to arrange a meeting with them? thanks in advance, Gui What a lucky gal, that Gigi. Who knew all that was necessary to attract the doting attention of so many men was a father's love? A very, very, very rich father. Want to submit a marriage proposal of your own? We're listening.

Last Call: Our LGBT Columnist Bids Us Farewell Posted: 28 Sep 2012 12:20 AM PDT Date: Sep 28th 2012 3:05p.m. Contributed by: adamfrost

Taiwan Ships Shoot Water That “Looks Like Urine,” Say Netizens Posted: 28 Sep 2012 12:40 AM PDT While Japanese and Taiwanese ships continue playing with their super soakers in the South Pacific, netizens have commented that the Taiwanese ships don't shoot very straight or with force. Indeed, in the video above, you'll see that it does look like they're just pissing — which completely makes sense, since Japan and China are just having a pissing contest at this point. Meanwhile, Time Magazine blares in its headline, "History Threatens Repeat in Renewed Pacific War." Renewed Pacific war? The good news is that there won't be a new war in Asia. The bad news is that the old one never really ended. And with Japanese and foreign patrol boats firing water cannons at each other this week… Yes, war — bring out the water balloons! …it may not be long before the real shooting resumes. Real shooting??? "The dispute over the Senkaku Islands is a direct legacy of the Pacific War. For many people, particularly in China, that war is still going on," says Liu Jie, professor of history and international relations at Tokyo's Waseda University. That's overstating it, obviously. There has always been anti-Japanese sentiment ever since Japan marched into Manchuria and landed in south China, terrorized the populace, killing about 10 million Chinese, many of them civilians, and many under horrific circumstances. But renewed war? Let's not get ahead of ourselves. For one thing, the Taiwan ships aren't even equipped with real water cannons. As the newscaster tells us, "A coast guard employee said helplessly, The water is used for cleaning naval vessels, not for waging 'water wars.'" Time to invest in a Banzai Aqua Tech Transmorpher! (Wait, what's that? "Banzai" is Japanese? Well fuck.)

Language partnership tragically ends in one-night stand Posted: 27 Sep 2012 10:35 PM PDT By TIANTIAN XIANGSHENG Education Correspondent Xiao is very sorry for her behaviour and hopes Ethan can somehow forgive her BEIJING (China Daily Show) – An English student has spoken of her regret, after drunkenly sabotaging a burgeoning language partnership with an American filmmaker by sleeping with him. Xiao Lingling, who likes to be called  "Josephine" or "Happy," placed an advert with an English-language website seeking a native speaker for "language partners, so we can learn each other." The ad explained she was "funny, liked family, am easygoing and pretty." Within minutes, former Michigan resident Ethan Morgan replied offering assistance. The two met at a downtown coffee shop and quickly hit it off. "Ethan hadn't brought any of the study guides we talked about on the email and his Chinese was very poor at the time, but we still managed to learn things from each other," Xiao recalled. "I taught him to count to five in Chinese, and he showed me how to make the coffee 'Irish.'" Unfortunately, Xiao – who also goes by the name of "Sally" or "Dreamcatcher" –  felt dizzy soon afterwards and had to be taken home. It was here, she admitted, that the meeting went awry and the pair ended up in bed together. "I woke up much later, and Ethan had left a very kind note, saying how much he enjoyed our talk, but that he felt uncomfortable continuing our exchange under the circumstances," said a tearful Xiao. "I totally ruined our language partners!" Morgan didn't respond to emails but China Daily Show managed to catch up with him by replying to another advert he'd recently placed, seeking "a Chinese friend to swap culture, stories and language. Women only." Morgan agreed to discuss the aborted relationship after a few drinks. "I met Jennifer at Starbucks, where she immediately asked me to call her 'Fluffy.' We had a couple of drinks, flirted and went back to hers. That was it, really," shrugged Morgan, a former student who recently began working on an independent documentary project, which is as yet untitled. Meanwhile, Xiao says she is determined not to let the matter affect her further education. "I'm putting this mistake behind me," she said. "I have already met a very nice English man on the subway, called Bernard. He is eager to meet us at a place called the Vic's Club, next Friday at midnight." Follow this and other top China stories at @chinadailyshow on Twitter

Unico: Latino Cocktails by The Bund Posted: 27 Sep 2012 10:40 PM PDT Date: Sep 28th 2012 12:37p.m. Contributed by: geofferson

Top 10 Search List (September 28, 2012) Posted: 27 Sep 2012 10:08 PM PDT China's answer to the planking meme and other fun stuff on today's top-trending search terms on Baidu, recorded at 11:30am China Standard Time. 1. 夏普退市 (Xiàpǔ tuìshì, Sharp to delist) – Times are tough at Sharp and the 100-year-old company is desperate to turn things around. Massive layoffs are looming, and Sharp plans to relieve itself of several overseas ventures and manufacturing facilities. The company also plans to suspend trading its shares on three Japanese stock exchanges in an attempt to cut expenses. Read about it here in Chinese. 2. 南京号 驱逐舰 (Nánjīnghaò qūzhújiàn, Destroyer Nanjing) – The destroyer Nanjing has been retired recently from its diplomatic missions after serving for more than 30 years and receiving the visits of dignitaries from over 40 countries. It has been nicknamed the diplomatic star. Read about it here in Chinese. 3. 津蓟 高速车祸 (Jīnjì gaōsù chēhuò – Jin-Ji Highway accident) – Heavy fog on a highway near Tianjin has caused eight accidents and resulted in three deaths. Another two were critically injured. 31 automobiles were damaged due to the accidents. Read about it here in Chinese. 4. 吉克隽逸 质疑 (Jíkē Juànyì zhìyí, Skepticism over Jike Juanyi) – After taking part in a hit talent show, a girl of ethnic minority named Jike Juanyi attracted fans as well as critics. People posted old footage of her auditioning for another talent show a few years back, where she was not dressed in the ethnic minority style she sported most recently in The Voice of China, and called herself Wang Juanyi (Wang is a typical Han first name). Her fans defended her by saying it is normal for people going on stage to have certain degree of packaging done. Read about it here in Chinese. 5. 一字马 女生 (yīzìmǎ nv̌shēng, Split girls) – After a picture showing a college girl doing spilt went viral on the internet, many girls started posting pictures of themselves doing the split while eating instant noodles or doing other daily routine activities. Is this China's answer to the planking meme? Read about it here in Chinese. 6. 证监会新闻发布会 (Zhèngjiànhuì xīnwénfābùhuì, CSRC Press Conference) – After the Shanghai Composite Index closed below 2000 points on Wednesday, rumors that the China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC) was getting to announce a moratorium on approvals of new IPOs circulated Thursday and sent the Shanghai Composite Index up by 2.6 percent and the Shenzhen Component Index up by 3.57 percent. However, the press conference held after the bell on Thursday actually refuted the rumor, and new approval meetings for public offers will begin again today (Friday). See the story here in English from the Global Times. 7. 王学兵 15岁新欢 (Wáng Xuěbīng 15 suì xīnhuān, Wang Xuebing's 15-year-old new love interest) – Okay, this keyword is totally misleading. The 41-year-old TV actor Wang Xuebing is not actually dating a minor. Following his divorce from Sun Ning in April this year, he's admitted to dating a woman (gasp!) 15 years younger than him. Yes, she's 26. Nothing to see here, folks. Move along. Read the non-story here, in Chinese. 8. 冰柜藏子 (bīngguì Zàngzǐ, refrigerator Tibetan boy) – Ten years ago, a Kaixian, Chongqing father named Tian Xueming lost his then six-year-old son and chose a very strange way of preserving his memory: He put the boy's corpse in a refrigerator. Read about it here in Chinese. 9. 李玉刚打人 (Lǐ Yùgāng dǎrén, Li Yugang in assault) – The singer Shitou, who gained fame in a duet with Li Yugang, has told reporters that a friend of his was assaulted by associates of  Li's at a party for the 8th anniversary of the show Xingguang Dadao (Starlight Boulevard), the singing competition that made celebrities of both Li (in 2006) and Shitou (in 2010). So far no charges have been pressed against Li, who is best known for dressing in female Peking Opera outfits and singing female parts. Read about it here in Chinese. 10. 菲律宾拉拢日企 (Feīlv̀bīn lālóng Rìqí, Philippines poaches Japanese enterprises): Chinese netizens are alarmed that the Ministry of Trade and Industry of the Philippines has announced it has invited 15 Japanese firms to relocate factories from China to the Philippines. This move comes of course as Japanese firms have been forced to suspend production in China because of anti-Japanese protests in recent weeks over the disputed Diaoyu (Senkaku) Islands. Protests have at times turned violent, targeting Japanese businesses and even owners of Japanese cars. The Philippines is in its own territorial dispute with China, over the Scarborough Shoal (called the Huangyan Islands by China). Read the story here in Chinese. READ MORE

Traffic Hell Week Yields 31-Vehicle Pileup On Tianjin-Beijing Highway Posted: 27 Sep 2012 09:12 PM PDT Let it be known: fog is dangerous. Yesterday morning, due to "low visibility" on the Tianjin-Beijing Highway, 31 vehicles collided one after another. Three died and many more were injured. The traffic cop in the linked video warns drivers that 150 meters should be maintained between your car and the one ahead of you. How he kept a straight face, we have no idea. Traffic laws are expected to be obeyed in this country? Huh. It doesn't help that we're in the midst of Traffic Hell Week, either. Youku video for those in China after the jump.

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