Chinese Magazine Shut Down After This 'Sexy' Quake Spread:
A Chinese magazine has been closed for showing pictures of scantily clad women posing in the remains of buildings destroyed in that 7.8 magnitude Earthquake.
Chinese officials shutdown the magazine which hit the stands Monday.
The press and publication department of the southwestern city of Chongqing, where the magazine was based, said it decided to close the magazine down for "rectification."
The company that manages The New Travel Weekly said it had sacked the magazine's managing editor, editor and deputy editor, state-run Xinhua news agency reported.
It's out of line for sure. But let's not find ourselves supporting the Chinese government forcing a publication to shut it's doors.
7.8 Mag Quake Rocks China - More Than 8,500 Reported Dead:
A massive earthquake struck central China on Monday, killing more than 8,500 people, trapping nearly 900 students under the rubble of their school and spilling ammonia from a chemical plant, state media reported.
The 7.8-magnitude earthquake was among the worst to strike China in decades, devastating a hilly region of small cities and towns in Sichuan and nearby provinces. The official Xinhua News Agency said 8,533 people died in Sichuan and dozens of other deaths were reported elsewhere.
Xinhua said 80 percent of the buildings had collapsed in Beichuan county in Sichuan province after the quake, raising fears the overall death toll could increase sharply.
A chemical plant collapsed in Shifang city, to the northeast of the quake's epicenter, burying hundreds of people and sending more than 80 tons of toxic liquid ammonia leaking from the site, state media reported.
Expect that death toll to rise, dramatically. People are panicking en mass as powerful aftershocks hit continuously. How long until Al Gore finds a way to blame this on global warming? The clock is ticking...
More Than 8,000 Chinese Protesters Take Aim At Cafferty:
CNN appears to be standing behind Jack Cafferty and his 'goons and thugs' line for the time being. But if the Chinese government continues to put pressure on the network, trust me, they will eventually cave. Can Jack Cafferty outlast this whole mess?
China Demands CNN Offer Sincere Apology After These Comments:
BEIJING (Reuters) - China lodged a formal complaint against U.S. television network CNN and said it should make a sincere apology for what it called a vicious attack by one of its commentators who labeled Chinese as "goons" and its products "junk".
CNN responded to China's initial criticism by saying there had been no intent to cause offence and that it "would apologize to anyone who has interpreted the comments in this way". It said commentator Jack Cafferty was offering a "strongly held" opinion of the Chinese government, not the people.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Jiang Yu said on Thursday that was not enough.
"Their statement not only did not make a sincere apology, but also took aim at the Chinese government, attempting to sow discord in the relationship between the Chinese people and the Chinese government," Jiang said.
I'm no fan of Jack Cafferty but I have to stand with him here. The man has the right to say whatever he wants about China and the fact that they are bullying CNN into yet another apology is out of line. This all started with a photo posted on CNN.com that showed Chinese police beating Tibetans. The photo didn't show the pro-Tibet protesters throwing stones in the distance because CNN cropped them out. But does China have editorial control over CNN or their website? No. Apparently, they would like to as they have summoned CNN's Beijing Chief to talk about the matter.
In the wake of all this nonsense, Cafferty is receiving death threats on a daily basis. I'm hearing reports of CNN.com being unaccessible in several cities in China. There is even some talk that the satellite feed for the network is now being blocked. The question is, will CNN bow down to the mighty red China or will they stand by free speech and risk being blocked, both on the web and the air, in the country?
Protesters Scale The Golden Gate Bridge In San Francisco:
The Olympic torch doesn't reach the bay area until Wednesday but the protesters seem to have a head-start. Several demonstrators are scaling the Golden Gate Bridge as I type this entry. I've been to San Francisco recently and the size of the bridge is hard to capture on camera. Needless to say, it takes either raw guts or inherent stupidity to attempt a feat like this. Hang on tight...
