Google`s decision to pull out of China has dominated news pages all this week, inciting discussion, protests and debate. In a blog entry, US-China Today`s Peter Winter discusses the issue. He says: "Is Google bold? By refusing to kowtow to the Chinese censors, the tech company that built its fortunes on the free flow of information stood up for its business model, not to mention the ideals of its home country. Or is Google dumb? The Chinese powers that be have already hit back, charging Google with breaking its written promise to the country and acting as a White House pawn."
March 22 was World Water Day. In keeping with the spirit of the occasion, more than 100 universities in 23 Chinese cities joined in an annual water saving campaign called "saving a barrel of water". During the campaign, college students conducted surveys on water use in communities and designed plans to save water. At the same time, southwest China`s drought conditions continued. The severe drought has sent prices of flowers, tea, herbs, fruit and grain soaring. The total trading volume of flowers has decreased by 30 to 40% this spring, and the wholesale prices of flowers have jumped.
In an incident that threw light on mental health discussions in China, a mentally-ill former doctor killed eight children and wounded five others, early Tuesday morning at an elementary school in Nanping. He was arrested. In other health related news, a new study in the New England Journal of Medicine, showed that one in 10 Chinese adults have diabetes, and another 16% are on the verge of developing it.
On the international relations front, Chinese Vice President Xi Jinping arrived in Russia Saturday for an official visit. During his stay, Xi met Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, Putin, and State Duma Chairman Boris Gryzlov. They exchanged views on bilateral relations and other regional and international issues of common concern. In China, President Hu Jintao met with his Afghan counterpart Hamid Karzai, who`s visting the country. They witnessed the signing of three deals on Wednesday, which cover economic cooperation, technical training and the granting of preferential tariffs for some Afghan exports to China. Read more about China`s economy, politics and other current events in the Daily Updates section of our website.
In a past book review of Superfusion by Zachary Karabell, we discuss his argument that the U.S. and China share a common economy and the challenge now is to strengthen the relationship between the two countries. Find out about this and other news at our website.
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