News Stories

[ganbaru]

NC lawmakers approve GOP-backed election changes
http://bigstory.ap.org/article/nc-la...ection-changes
So the GOP is still trying to supress the votes ...

[aohige]

Originally Posted by LeoXiao

Innocent people getting put in re-education camps, or getting their organs harvested isn't a "real problem". Gotcha.

In case you haven't noticed, Tom will defend any and all actions of the PRC on this forum.

[monir]

Originally Posted by Dhomochevsky

That leaves speed control, but there is a rated speed for each track segment, so not much to do here either.

According to couple of sources, it was reported that the train was going twice the posted speed limit. Then again, this shouldn't the first instances of these high speed training moving at such speed. This accident was long due and now this driver may end up being the scapegoat for not enforcing whatever speed limit these trains were supposed to follow.

[kuroishinigami]

Originally Posted by aohige

In case you haven't noticed, Tom will defend any and all actions of the PRC on this forum.

Well, to be fair, this matter is far less "real" to most of the people here than problems such as China's slowing economic growth. Doesn't mean PRC should ignore it though

[KiraYamatoFan]

Originally Posted by kuroishinigami

Well, to be fair, this matter is far less "real" to most of the people here than problems such as China's slowing economic growth. Doesn't mean PRC should ignore it though

What's an even bigger problem right now is how the PRC keeps on spoiling for a fight against all of their neighbors in all kinds of disputes and believing that all they do is a God-given right above everyone else. Someday, holding such mindset will bite them back in the arse at the hands of enemies, foreign and domestic, who are fed up with that rotten government.

[sa547]

Originally Posted by monir

According to couple of sources, it was reported that the train was going twice the posted speed limit. Then again, this shouldn't the first instances of these high speed training moving at such speed. This accident was long due and now this driver may end up being the scapegoat for not enforcing whatever speed limit these trains were supposed to follow.

Either that or there could be a possibility of a software glitch, sensor or mechanical error where the driver could have lost control of the speed controller or brakes (as I remembered that a Swiss Air jetliner crashed off Newfoundland due to a system bug).

[KiraYamatoFan]

Originally Posted by sa547

Either that or there could be a possibility of a software glitch, sensor or mechanical error where the driver could have lost control of the speed controller or brakes (as I remembered that a Swiss Air jetliner crashed off Newfoundland due to a system bug).

I dunno what the black box will reveal. But until then, I'm more enclined to believe the driver had something to do with it because he was already known with past history of going way off a speed limit with a train. Either way, Bombardier already have people on the field helping the official inquiry.

Considering how many people were monitoring the speed of that train (be it the drivers and the train traffic controllers), someone must have told the drivers by radio that they were going way over.

[sa547]

Originally Posted by Bri

It's a very complicated situation. HG licenses the international merchandising and distribution rights of the original Macross series from Tasunoko (who shares the copyrights with Big West and Studio Nue) and this deal has to be renewed every 10 years, which affects toys like Hasbro's.

The hold on Macross is based on a US trademark of the name, which can be renewed indefinitely as long as HG keeps it in use.

Basically no Macross in the west, until HG goes out of business.

No thanks to some unknown Californian judge who ruled that HG be the exclusive owner of the trademark owing on the basis of Macek's claims (even before his demise) that he created the show and dismissing the Japanese creators as mere "work hands".

Having been denied the chance to cash on later Macross IPs (which BW had imposed an embargo from any official exportation because of that ruling, which I see it as a case of a land grab), HG has to be damn hungry that they're willing to fight a giant toy company.

[Tom Bombadil]

@aohige,

No, I defend China because I found people are biased, hypocritical and very often employ double standard when it comes to issues related to China. A lot of times not intentionally because they don't have a complete picture about the issues they are talking about.

A parallel case I found interesting is the following. In the west, US for example, Michael Jackson's image is very mixed, child star, pop star, bizarre personality, lavish lifestyle, child molester(?), etc.. However, if you say something bad about M.J． on Chinese forums, you'll get swarmed by fans and bashed to the pulp. They get his albums, but they don't get much about the bad side of the story. They don't get the 24 hour news coverage about his law suits, and whatever appears on the Chinese news is quick forgotten. I roll my eyes each time someone mention M.J. as an idol, but I have learned not to argue with them.

What's the point anyway? The point is that many people here know very little about China. How many have been to China anyway? Whatever they get is spoon feed by western media, which goes either as alarmist about China taking over the world or the other extreme about poverty, environmental protection, human rights, etc, etc.. People don't have the whole picture. Very few intent to learn about it since it doesn't fit their purpose, which is bashing China. Ignorance is a bliss.

Of course, much to my amusement, there are a couple of people who bashes China because they try to deny their Chinese identity, so that (in their mind intentionally or unintentionally) they get better accepted by the other people. That, is a completely different beast.

[ganbaru]

Tunisia faces street protests after opposition politician slain
http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/...96O0M320130726

[Tom Bombadil]

Let me say a few words more in case people accuse me of circumventing the question at hand.

So back in the good old days when I was still in high school, one day we wake up and find a big billboard about how good this certain Qigong (pratice of Qi, or whatever you want to translate it) is for you. I don't remember what it said, but I only remember it is completely lunacy, and that's why I remember the existence of such a thing to this day. We were shocked at that time, because it shouldn't be in a place for education. That's my first contact with this cult.

Later I learned this thing is quite in fashion. If you went to some public places like train station in the cities, you would see people with banners claiming that their practice can cure incurable diseases, etc.

Then some mob stormed the local news station because it criticized them for misleading their followers, etc.

Some time later the government cracked down on it. We heard that one of our teachers' wife broke her leg. Apparently she was one practitioner (she might have something to do with the billboard, I don't know). her family tried to stop her from joining other protesters, so she (an old lady in her 60s or more) climbed over a wall to escape. It didn't go so smoothly.

Other stuff you hear from the news, like a female college student burning herself to death in Tiananmen square, their leader giving an interview (after his escape to the US) that he came from 2 million light years ago and that he is neither human or alien, etc..

The stuff mostly died down not long after the government action. They are still active overseas. For example, they protests outside the Chinese embassies in the US, but those people actually gets a regular salary, so it is actually their job. They run TV stations and news papers (nicknamed as "big brothel" by the Chinese students since the name is kind of alike). Most of their content is bogus. For example, they claim the first Chinese space walk is staged under water because one of the commanders said something related to water in an unclear fashion. I don't know where they get their money, but they are partially NED funded, clearly.

I don't actually know where the organ harvest claim comes from. I doubt it originated from China, and I believe I saw it only appear quite a few years after the crack down.

Anyway, that is pretty much that. I hope nobody here is involved with the cult. Nothing good will come out it.

[TinyRedLeaf]

^ I don't have the facts on hand to share at the moment, but I'd vouch for most of what Tom Bombadil says above about the Falungong movement. It is pretty much a cult comparable to Korea's Moonies and America's Scientism. This is not often known in the West, because it is as Tom says: Western media typically portray the story as yet another example of Big Bad China crushing people's desire to "worship" freely.

I'm all for freedom of worship but, at the same time, I'd also advocate action against cultists that take their religious claims too far. How to strike the balance, that is the sticking point that is up to each society to decide. It shouldn't be a matter for foreigners to butt in and impose their values on others.

As for the claims of forced labour and organ harvests... Well, when you're already a villain in the eyes of the public, it's not a hard stretch to make them believe that things like that are happening, is it?

[ganbaru]

Chris Christie: Rand Paul ‘dangerous’
http://www.politico.com/story/2013/0...ion-94789.html
A 2016 contender attacking another one ... ?

[AnimeFan188]

Kickstarter Project Canceled After Dude Spends All the Money:

"If you were thinking about donating some money to help Spike Lee get back on his feet, maybe
think twice: this guy just raised over $120,000 to make a game, and then just walked away with
all the money. Contrary to what The Crowd Economy preaches, strangers can still screw you."

See:

http://valleywag.gawker.com/kickstar...-the-912176282

[ArchmageXin]

Originally Posted by aohige

In case you haven't noticed, Tom will defend any and all actions of the PRC on this forum.

And some people on this board will believe the most absurd accusation about China without meeting anything resemble proof.

BTW, the first time I heard what the mighty Da fa is about was when I was 15 and got yelled by some crazy old lady in Chinatown who claimed I am going to hell for holding hand with a blonde girl. Apparently she is worried I might preggo the girl and our offspring would be the devil, never minding we were both under 16 but tall for our age (I was 5'11 and she was 5'10)

And their publication booth for some reason had nazi holocaust pics, such as the infamous one with Nazi put 50 ultra thin men in bunker beds, cept they superimpose them with Chinese men...

So all I see are a bunch of cranks who get subsidized by U.S taxpayers to put up some silly propgranda no one believe in, since the evil Chinese gov did a better job hiding mass graves than Iraqs hid their WMDs...

[Dextro]

Originally Posted by KiraYamatoFan

I dunno what the black box will reveal. But until then, I'm more enclined to believe the driver had something to do with it because he was already known with past history of going way off a speed limit with a train. Either way, Bombardier already have people on the field helping the official inquiry.

Considering how many people were monitoring the speed of that train (be it the drivers and the train traffic controllers), someone must have told the drivers by radio that they were going way over.

According to a well reputed blog on trains here in Portugal this kind of accident in Spain isn't particularly uncommon and it has to do with a few failings of the Spanish railway system. Apparently on that particular line there was no system that would respond automatically to the speed limit of the line like there exists in Portugal and France for instance. Aparently the Spanish system only follows the limits imposed by the traffic lights but not the specific limits of that particular stretch of track (note: they do have this system in place for high-speed rated lines. Sadly this line wasn't one of them). It was completely up to the driver to notice the signage and follow his printed guide to reduce the speed of the train from the 190km/h he was travelling at to the 80km/h that the track was rated for.

The design of the carriages themselves also seems to be in question btw. Apparently a similar incident with the TGV some years ago at a higher speed resulted in far fewer casualties.

In case anyone wants to try and read the google translated version you can find it here: What really went wrong in Santiago de Compostela.

[AnimeFan188]

Mexico’s War Against the Cartels Just Exploded:

"Two months ago the Mexican military sent thousands of troops into a state torn apart
by warring cartels and a thriving militia movement. It’s a damned quagmire.

The west-central state of Michoacan has long been a haven for drug traffickers. It’s
where Mexico’s modern drug war began in 2006 when then-president Felipe Calderon
sent troops to quell the cartels.

But instead of quelling the violence, the Mexican government has been forced to launch
another offensive. More than six years after the initial push into Michoacan, new
president Enrique Pena Nieto has mobilized an impressive force of 6,000 troops backed
by armored vehicles and helicopters and led by a veteran special forces commander.

“We will go with the full force of the state to provide protection to employers and
families that have very serious security problems,” said Interior Minister Miguel Osorio.

The operation in Michoacan, which began in May, is the first major anti-drug campaign
of Pena’s term. And earlier this week, Michoacan exploded."

See:

https://medium.com/war-is-boring/bb99d128d18a

[Xellos-_^]

Mexico needs to treat this Drug War as a real War not a police action. Shoot to kill, forget the lawyers.

[Xellos-_^]

A police spokesman said that he was found dead on Thursday evening by "a loved one" at an apartment on Nob Hill and that foul play had been ruled out. The San Francisco Medical Examiner's Office said it was conducting an autopsy, though it could be a month before the cause of death was determined.
His sister Amberleigh Jack, who lives in New Zealand, told Reuters he was 35. She declined to comment further, saying she needed time to grieve.
Jack was due to appear at the Black Hat hacking convention in Las Vegas next week, demonstrating techniques for remotely attacking implanted heart devices. He said he could kill a man from 30 feet away


http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/...96P0K120130726

what a coincidence, one day away form costing medical device company billions and the man is found dead. of course the police found no evidence of foul play. 35 years old hacker drop dead naturally all the time.

[ganbaru]

JPMorgan to quit physical commodity trade amid scrutiny
http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/...96P10M20130726

JP Morgan Chase & Co is exiting physical commodities trading, the bank said in a surprise statement on Friday, as Wall Street's role in the trading of raw materials comes under intense political and regulatory pressure.