china: earthquakes, economics, dark side

Three things:

Death toll in China up to 9,000
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080512/ap_on_re_as/china_earthquake

One of the worst earthquakes in decades struck central China on Monday, killing nearly 9,000 people, trapping about 900 students under the rubble of their school and causing a toxic chemical leak, state media reported.

The 7.8-magnitude earthquake devastated 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 alone and dozens of other deaths were reported in surrounding areas.

Xinhua said 80 percent of the buildings had collapsed in Sichuan province's Beichuan county after the quake, raising fears the overall death toll could increase sharply.

State media said a chemical plant in Shifang city had cratered, burying hundreds of people and spilling more than 80 tons of toxic liquid ammonia from the site.

etc etc check out the link



A fairly long, but very well written, article about China; also includes a "China by the numbers" thing at the end:

The Dragon Awakens: China, how did it happen?
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/asia/the-dragon-awakens-china-how-did-it-happen-823627.html

China's growth over the past few years has been nothing short of miraculous, and it is predicted that the economy will overtake America's within a generation. But how did it all happen? And what are the implications for the rest of the world?

What is happening in China is the greatest economic story on the planet. It is the world's biggest boom - and not just the biggest boom right now, but the biggest boom that has ever occurred in history. It is having profound effects on our daily lives, from cheaper goods in the electronics shops to more expensive petrol at the pumps. It is also having a profound effect on global power. This year China will in all probability pass Germany to become the world's third largest economy, after the United States and Japan. It seems likely to pass Japan within a decade and it is possible, though this is much less certain, that it will pass the US within a generation.


So we are seeing a reordering of the world. It is inexorable and probably inevitable, but where might it run and what could that mean for the rest of us?

etc etc check out the link for full article



China, the dark side
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/asia/china-the-dark-side-823593.html

The economy is booming but behind the successes lurk some uncomfortable questions - about poverty, pollution, censorship and a catalogue of human rights abuses. How the government answers them may define China’s image for decades to come.

China's rise in the early 21st century is the headiest tale of development the world has ever seen. A drive through Beijing or Shanghai or Shenzhen or Guangdong gives you all the evidence that you could ever want of the 66 per cent expansion of the Chinese economy in the past five years. But it doesn't take long in China to see the problems that the country faces as it enters this new stage of development - and how managing these issues is the Communist Party's main challenge.

pollution, the internet, tibet, dissidents, execution, gender imbalance, censorship, etc etc check out the link

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