Asian Christmas Stockings

SabahGirl has a number of Asian-related items for sale, including Christmas stockings.

(Thanks KH from APC!)

News

China to crown first Miss Artificial Beauty: China will soon host the finals of the country's first beauty contest in which every contestant has gone under the knife. Twenty "man-made" beauties will parade their surgical nips and tucks Saturday in the hopes of taking home the country's first Miss Artificial Beauty crown. [Also here.]

China Criticizes U.S. on Sanctions: China criticized the United States on Monday after a U.S. panel upheld a ruling that will allow higher tariffs on Chinese-made furniture to reduce its impact on American producers.

China Briefly Detains 3 in Intellectuals Crackdown: Chinese authorities briefly detained at least three liberal intellectuals, sources close to the three said on Tuesday, as part of an intensified crackdown on government critics. [free reg. req.]

Local Stories

A new life for little Eve: The arrival of a new baby is a joyful occasion for any family, but it's made poignant when the baby's first few months were spent abandoned in a Chinese orphanage and foster care.

Found treasure: Gene and Cindy Williams fell in love four years ago with a boy they only knew from the pages of an adoption agency magazine. [free reg. req.]

China Related TV

China Sprout posts a much-appreciated weekly guide for China Related TV listings.

Taiwan

From the BBC News:

Country profile—Taiwan: Taiwan is the island which has for all practical purposes been independent for half a century but which China regards as a renegade province that must be re-united with the mainland.

Timeline—Taiwan: A chronology of key events.

News

Nanjing Massacre commemorated: A ceremony commemorating the 67th anniversary of the Nanjing Massacre was held in East China's Nanjing City.

China 'no longer needs food aid': The UN World Food Program is urging China to become a bigger donor instead of a recipient of its aid.

China's deadly fix for modern pressures: Drug use is high among young men from rural villages in this area, fuelled by poverty, a lack of opportunity and easy access to narcotics.

China Detains Leader of Church: China has detained a prominent minister of an unofficial Protestant church in a crackdown on Christian groups that defy Communist Party control.

Beautiful China

Salad Bowl Hacking

This is something I encountered while in China, but hadn't realized it was a standard practice! From BoingBoing:

This is a photo from a Chinese PDF manual. The manual explains, via text and a lot of fun photos, how to cram as much food as possible on one of those tiny Pizza Hut bowls at the salad bar. They're only allowed one trip.

(Thanks Kirby!)

Local Story

Adoption to fulfill couple's lifelong dream: Since she was 3 years old, Theresa Gilman has wanted nothing more than to be a mother. When her doctors told her pregnancy wasn't in the cards for her and her husband, Theresa didn't lose hope.

News

Nike apologises to China for ad: Sportswear giant Nike has apologised for a TV advert that was banned by China for being "blasphemous". The ad shows US basketball player LeBron James battling and defeating a cartoon kung-fu master and a pair of dragons.

Microsoft outprogrammed by Chinese: Domestic software developers beat Microsoft to win a 2 million yuan (US$240,000) deal with the provincial government of Shanxi, North China. It is another setback for the US software giant after a US$3.5 million deal with the Beijing municipal government was cancelled late last month amid complaints that local governments are not buying enough domestically developed software.

Breakthrough made in China's chicken genome research: The world-famous scientific magazine The Nature issued three thematic scientific papers on Dec. 9, illustrating the major achievements the Beijing Genome Institute under the Chinese Academy of Sciences has made in polymorphous research on jungle fowl and chicken genomes.

Gov't Aims to Fatten Wallets of Farmers: The central government will redouble its efforts to replicate this year's favourable results in China's grain production and farmers' incomes for next year.