Is it just us, or is this week's news crazier than usual? Today brings us shocking photos of a father driven by fear and desperation to threatening the lives of his own family with a 40cm blade. Unbelievably, his only reason appears to be that he feared retribution for a traffic accident he had just committed. more ›

We only learned of the murder in Xujiahui's Grand Gateway mall last night through a very short brief on Shanghai Daily. But we soon discovered some eyewitness accounts - not surprisingly, the Wagas there had quite a few English-speaking foreigners who know how to use the internet. more ›

Holy cow, this makes me think twice about enjoying beautiful weather outside. A Japanese-Canadian guy eating outside the Grand Gateway Wagas in Xujiahui was stabbed to death (seemingly randomly) at around 5pm yesterday. The victim, unnamed, had been enjoying his meal outside when a middle-aged man came up and stabbed him, according to witnesses. A suspect was arrested at the scene, but there are very few other details. Strangely enough, the story was pulled off Xinmin. Are foreigner deaths too sensitive for the Chinese public? more ›

Fast food workers everywhere are breathing a sigh of relief, now that the McDonalds stabber has allegedly been caught. The man, surnamed Yang, was found in Shanxi Province on Sunday and brought back to Shanghai to face judgment. Police said they found out where he went by going through CCTV (closed circuit, not the station) footage from anywhere they thought he might have gone. As Yang awaits trial, the Mcdonalds employee's - Li Feng - family awaits compensation since Li died on the job. more ›

• Copenhagen's iconic Little Mermaid statue is now bound for Shanghai, where she will grace the Danish pavilion at the World Expo for the entire six months. Most interestingly, when the statue leaves, it will be replaced by a video installation created by none other than... Ai Weiwei. [Shanghai Daily]
• Xing Zhao interviews one Shanghai designer who specializes in turning delicious vintage finds into new pieces of art. [CNNGo]
• Another one bites the dust: Des Lys, which was on Xinle Lu for a good five years, is now shutting down (future unknown). They'll be holding a closing party on Monday that'll feature sangria, punch, white and red wines and some snacks as well. [SmartShanghai]

With only a week and a half left before the 60th anniversary of the PRC, it seems the whole country has caught National Day fever. Capturing the excitement, Boston.com has a wonderful collection of photos from various sources depicting many different preparations around China. We particularly like the fashion military parade pictures: those outfits are fabulous! But amidst all the hoopla, it's a difficult time to be in Beijing. more ›

These days it seems like violence on TV should be the least of a parent's worries - rather the threat is allegedly much greater online. According to Shanghai Daily, Zun Long Ming She, translated as 'Dragon Society', is one of a growing number of online communities that are encouraging or inciting Chinese youths to commit crimes and dole out violence. Formed in June 2008, Dragon Society has recruited 169 members, consisting of “local natives who lacked a caring family and children of migrant workers.” Like any online social networking site, members of Dragon Society were able to share pictures and information, “showing off their tattoos and knives and organizing robberies and attacks” just as a group of Facebook friends would tag each others pics and drum up interest in club parties. The government began cracking down on them after a boy in Luwan District was beaten and stabbed by five other boys, allegedly ordered to do so by one of the site's leaders. Since then, the victim has helped the police to identify members of Dragon Society as well as provide more information on the functions of similar websites. Photo from aranarth@flickr.com more ›

Looks like the saga of syringe attacks in Xinjiang is far from over. Police detained another 75 people after a number of new syringe attacks, just days after three Uighers were sentenced for previous attacks. The recent attacks have spread out of Urumqi and around Xinjiang, with reports of stabbing from Kashgar to Turpan. Worse, the deputy head of police in Urumqi said that two detainees admitted their aim was to "undermine ethnic unity in Xinjiang and to create ethnic hatred". We worry about the ramifications this will have for racial tensions that are already boiling in Xinjiang. more ›

Rumors that the syringe attackers in Xinjiang were Uyghurs bent on giving AIDS to Hans sparked a thousands strong protest yesterday. Witnesses described chanting crowds marching with Chinese flags, shouts of "Wang Lequan (regional secretary of Xinjiang) step down!" and at least one Uyghur being beaten up by a crowd while paramilitary police officers watched, according to the New York Times. Officials were loath to discuss the protests, telling the Times "You guys should not be so eager competing for the news. Just wait one day until the official news comes out." Well, we guess that's what you get asking for a political opinion here. more ›

It amazes us that China can somehow manage to realize our worst fears, even the most illogical ones. Needless to say, we cringed for about five minutes after reading a report from China Daily stating that fifteen people in Xinjiang were seized after attacking people with syringes. AAH! Members of nine different ethnic groups reported stabbing incidents to the police, which is a good sign, as it doesn't seem related to the ethnic violence that raged through Xinjiang last month. But the article is interestingly silent on the ethnicity of the syringe attackers, which can only make us more curious and more worried about how they went about detaining people. Luckily, none of the victims have been infected or poisoned so far, but just the thought of such a horrid experience leaves us with chills. more ›

The latest from ESPN.com here and here. And the latest from Google News. more ›

Five people were injured yesterday evening when a man turned violent and started stabbing customers in a food store at Nanjing Road's Pedestrian Mall. The man has been identified as a local of Anhui province, surnamed Zhang. According to the Shanghai Daily, Zhang has a history of mental illness. Fortunately, none of the five who were stabbed received life threatening injuries. When the incident happened, Zhang had brought out his kitchen knife and tried to use it to open a package of food he had bought. He turned violent when the store's security guards tried to stop him. Pictures and report (in Chinese) more ›

A 19 year old woman who owed over 500RMB in a bill to a beauty salon in Minhang District stabbed one of the salon's worker 11 times with a kitchen knife before fleeing and committing suicide by jumping into a river. Fortunately, the beautician who was sent to follow the woman home to take payment, has survived to tell the story. The dead woman's siblings have since arrived in Shanghai from Shandong, and said their sister must have been lured to the salon with the promise of free treatments as she earned only 1,200RMB every month and would not have been able to afford such an expensive treatment. more ›

Another police officer who was attacked on July 1 was pronounced dead today, increasing the fatality count to six. The conditions of the three remaining injured officers and one security guard are still unclear. Yang Jia (杨佳), 28, is currently under police custody. Danwei offers further background on Yang. more ›