If you've not been living under a rock recently, you've heard the story of the 18-year-old mother in Oklahoma who, armed with a shotgun and handgun, shot and killed an intruder after 911 said she should "do what you have to do to protect your [3-month-old] baby." The story is currently the #1 story on Weibo with over 11,000 forwards and, no surprises here, netizens totally would've shot the intruder too (if they had guns). more ›

It appears that feeling guilty about ignoring your parents isn't good enough for Chinese lawmakers. The Law Enforcement Inspection Committee, a group associated with the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress, is in the process of revising the Elderly Rights and Interests Protection Law. more ›

Sina reports that the city is going to hold a hearing in early July on subway regulations in Shanghai, specifically on issues of whether or not you can bring on food and drink, skateboads, or folding bicycles into the station. There is still too much confusion about what the rules are and how to implement them. The article mentions that if found in violation you could be charged 50-500 RMB fines. We don't know of anyone that has been fined, though one person did get off with a warning after being caught with some kind of drink. Food is prohibited on the Guangzhou and Beijing subway lines. Any readers know of anyone that's been fined? Would you supoort a ban on food? What about skateboards?　How would you feel if you were a hungry skate rat? If you want to speak for skate rats, starved white-collar workers and other oppressed groups, you can do so by being applying to become one of the eight citizens that will be allowed to speak their minds at the hearing. The instructions are here. more ›

China has completed the first draft of a long-discussed movie rating system, according to Xinhua. The draft has been submitted to the State Council, though whether the law will be reviewed or approved this year is still up for grabs. more ›

Someone once said 'an unjust law is no law at all,' but perhaps a more accurate rephrasing would read 'an unenforced law is no law at all.' This has largely been our experience, at least, when it comes to navigating our way through the complicated legal terrain of the PRC. No approved foreign media outlets, but a hundred (illegal) satellite dishes on every apartment complex (and hotel for that matter). Only a handful of state-sanctioned (and censored) foreign films released in theaters each year, but literally thousands more (pirated and uncut) are available on almost every urban street corner. And it is also technically undocumented migrants to reside and work in Shanghai, never mind that they've literally built the place. You get the picture. more ›

So we know that scientists get paid peanuts in China, but there's hope yet: China Daily ran article about an amended national law which allows scientists to report failures.:

The law, for the first time, allows scientists to report failures during the process of innovation without harming their records in future funding applications. more ›

For those of you wondering what Shanghaiist's founding editor Dan Washburn has been up to for the past half year or so (other than not posting very much on Shanghaiist) there was some evidence last week that he is alive and well and doing more than sitting on his couch counting his Shanghaiist money (really, that would only take around five minutes). Go to ESPN.com (here, here and here) for stories related to his book... more ›

Last weekend, we told you that Yahoo! is now apologizing for not telling the full truth to Congress at the February 2006 hearing where Yahoo! was taken to task for its role in the conviction of Chinese journalist Shi Tao. Now both Republicans and Democrats have launched scathing attacks on Yahoo. San Mateo Democrat Tom Lantos has called Yahoo "moral pygmies", and New Jersey Republican Chris Smith compared Yahoo’s cooperation with the Chinese government to companies that cooperated with Nazi Germany during World War II. more ›

Li Heping, an outspoken Chinese lawyer said Wednesday he was abducted and beaten for hours, and accused of causing unrest by representing clients with complaints of official corruption and police abuse. more ›

The word is out. Shanghai's first nature reserve in Nanhui District's Dongtan area has officially been established. The 40.3 km long beach area will be a haven for birds such as white cranes and little stints. Many migratory birds also nest there each year. more ›

With the dust now settled on last week's APEC summit in Australia, we came on a juicy tidbit of news that either didn't get much mileage in the Chinese press or escaped the news that we read. Shanghaiist reader Fergus Ryan filled us in: more ›

Gosh. With the third allegation of hacking by the Chinese military into government computers in Germany, the United States and the United Kingdom surfacing within two weeks, the guys at the Foreign Ministry have been kept busy! Fons Tuinstra points to past cases of bored teenagers who have successfully hacked into other governments and surmised that the German government could not have said that they had an issue with millions of bored Chinese teenagers! Richard Spencer made the erudite argument that if the "US and other western governments are busy infiltrating the computer systems of foreign governments... it is disingenuous to complain too vigorously when those same foreign governments become good at doing it back". Hmm... more ›

Experts in Mongolian studies who have spent the last year compiling Genghis Khan's code of laws, which is believed to be the world's first constitution say the legendary Mongolian conqueror banned homosexual acts. Under article 48 of the code, the experts say, men who "committed sodomy shall be put to death". Other acts punishable by death under Khan included "damaging grassland with unauthorized excavations or starting fires". more ›

Thou shalt not collude on pricing, the regulatory god said unto the Moses of industries in most countries, including China. But the instant noodle cabal either did not hear it or turned a deaf ear. In late July, noodle makers joined forces in raising prices by about 20 percent, and as much as 40 percent for some products.After less than three weeks of regulatory pressure, media assailing and public discontent, the industry backed down, apologized and initiated an across-the-board price cut. Is this a triumph of consumer rights and regulatory protection? Yes ... hmm maybe. more ›

I turned to several government departments, including the local police station and the Shanghai Civil Affairs Bureau Yangpu District branch, but no one would solve the problem. I know the residence problem will affect my daughter's whole life, so I still asked authorities for help, but I was shocked by the result. They suggested I send her to an orphanage.

The novel tells the story of a teenage boy who receives a special notebook. Whenever he writes the name of an enemy in the book, along with a description of how and when that person dies, the enemy dies exactly as described.

If we’re a day late picking up the buzz on Xu Haojia—the 16-year-old girl auctioning her breasts for charity—it's because the story was so baffling, it took us 24 hours to sort it out. more ›

Sichuan food addicts beware! China’s food safety inspectors have found some startling news (well, actually it’s not that startling at all, as you can see here, here, and here), 13% of recently tested chili products have been found to be unsafe. The reason for the health concern is too much preservatives and improper labeling. more ›

Is it us or have there been a lot of political news stories and incidents in recent weeks? A few weeks ago, the restive group of villagers in Guangxi rioted over fines relating to the one-child policy, a glimpse of which you can see in the video on the left. Then maybe on Thursday or Friday night of last week, hundreds of Zhengzhou students rioted in the streets, after a student vendor was beaten by some inspectors. Down in Shenzhen, thousands of workers protested outside a plastic Christmas tree factory, citing long working hours as the source of their discontent. (Note to self: get real tree and throw away plastic tree currently hidden in closet before December.) more ›

From the Scotsman:

SHANGHAI (Reuters) - Chinese quality watchdogs have seized 46 toy guns from a Wal-Mart store in Shanghai because they looked "too realistic", state media reported on Thursday. more ›

Summer is here and everything is heating up. Leading up to this weekend, this is what Shanghaiist thinks is going to be hot today and tomorrow. more ›

If you are familiar with drinking heavily or going to Chinese banquets (basically the same thing), you've probably been forced to chug try some Maotai. Deemed "China's national liquor" by Reuters, Maotai or máotáijiǔ (茅台酒) is one of the most famous brands of Chinese rice wine (or báijiǔ). Although dignitaries like Margaret Thatcher and Richard Nixon have put this put-hair-on-your-chest drink to their conservative lips, the popular liquor is now threatened. You see, Maotai is... more ›

Thanks to a tip from vadaga, Shanghaiist learned that now you only have one option to login to your existing MySpace 麦斯贝 account page in mainland China - use of an anonymising proxy. more ›

Pornography charges against a 36 year old woman arrested three years ago after taking off her clothes and chatting with other Internet users via webcam have been dropped in Beijing's Shijinshan district after prosecutors found that nude chat rooms were not defined in China's pornography laws. This case is understood to be the first of its kind in Beijing. more ›

Gay in the city and want to meet new people without A. Consuming unseemly amounts of alcohol, B. Making a Gaydar or Fridae account, C. Begging friends for introductions, D. Gyrating on the dance floor? more ›

For more del.icio.us links, visit the Shanghaiist Contribute page, which is updated throughout the day. more ›

A 23 year-old Henan woman named Qiu Zi (秋子) may become the center of China's first appearance-related work discrimination case after accusing a company of firing her because her head is too big. more ›