Danwei Picks is a daily digest of the “From the Web” links found on the Danwei homepage. A feed for the links as they are posted throughout the day is available at Feedsky (in China) or Feedburner (outside China).
Hack into Freedom City: A blogger infiltrates the residential complex where Zeng Jinyan is under house arrest to deliver milk powder for her baby. John Kennedy translates the gripping tale of "A Professionally Executed Milk Powder Delivery".
Star athlete skips out on political duties: Richard Spencer of The Daily Telegraph has a post on his blog about China’s star hurdler Liu Xiang.
Along with actress Gong Li and director Zhang Yimou, Liu is a member of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference or CPPCC, the government body often compared to the House of Lords. Liu is missing this year’s CPPCC meetings because of an athletic meet in Spain, and some people are displeased.
Nigeria should copy, not beg from China: Issa Aremu of the Nigerian newspaper Daily Trust has published an opinion piece about Sino-Nigerian relations and what Nigeria can learn from China. He has an interesting perspective but also a few illusions about China.
News agency restrictions: US and EU file suit: From The Times:
Concerns about Chinese restrictions on foreign financial news providers escalated into a trade dispute yesterday when the European Union and the United States filed a joint formal complaint at the World Trade Organisation (WTO).
The row centres on Beijing’s decision two years ago to require companies such as Reuters, Dow Jones and Bloomberg to distribute their information through a branch of Xinhua, the state news agency, rather than deal directly with their clients, such as banks.
“He is unsatisfied with China”: Josh at Cup of Cha gets appraised by the PSB.
Rob Gifford on The Daily Show: A video: Long time China correspondent and author of The China Road Rob Gifford faces Jon Stewart on The Daily Show.
Next stop on Line 10: Guanghua Lu…I mean Jintaixizhao: The tbjblog investigates a strangely-named subway stop:
Let’s say you’re opening a subway station smack dab in the middle of the CBD, within the shadow of the iconic CCTV Tower and the soon-to-be-tallest building in Beijing. Next door is the well-known Kerry Centre and the nearest intersection is Guanghua Road and the Third Ring Road.
What would you name it?
How about Jintaixizhao, rehashing a reference to a centuries-old scenic vista long lost to the sands of time that few modern day residents have any clue about?