Hao Hao ReportThe best China news and blog posts

John, of Sinosplice/Chinesepod/ChinaBlogList fame, has hit the big time. Watch out Da Shan, John's more likable and (according to his limited female readership-and mom) much more handsome.

On his own blog John hits on a point about profiles like this and how Chinese English-language media are always gunning to get us laowai "in a corner" and interview us. I applaud John for getting in a good quote or two that don't just "sell up" China and Chinese culture.

John over at Sinosplice hasn't found the solution to the YouTube block, but he's got a pretty darn good alternative - Stage6. According to John, though it doesn't have the numbers, Stage6 does have higher quality and faster download times.

Check out the post for a few links to some Stage6 videos about China.

A creatively edited post over at the 88s makes a good point about the quick-to-rage Chinese netizens. Though the post uses a prank of a site to draw its conclusions, it's still a good read.

John at Sinosplice sums up the excitement of living in China by sharing a story about visiting New York City for Millennium New Year's.

"The main lobby was magnificent, and it was swarming with commuters. It was at this point that Dave told us about his game.

?This is how you play,? he told us. ?Just run, and don?t stop. Keep changing directions so that you don?t hit anyone. It?s a blast!?

?Wait, what?? I started. But Dave had already shot off straight into the crowd. Alex and I quickly followed suit."

This New York Times report shows how the demographics in China's most prosperous and populous city are quickly changing ... leaving a lot of retirees and not enough people to fill the gap in the cheap-labour workplace that's been the city's, and the country's, rise to glory.

TPD discusses China sharing more than their holiday spirit with the US. With ever-increasing need for coal, massive toxic clouds are on the fast winds across the Pacific - and unlike the Great Wall, can be seen from space.

The Duck brings up an interesting point about how environmental problems are quickly reaching the breaking point when people are going to stand up and say "I'm mad as hell and I ain't going to take it anymore!"

An old Chinese saying goes: "People regard food as their prime want." The greeting words of Chinese people are so distinctive and well-known around the world: “have you eaten?” People often greet their friends or acquaintances in this way in China. Though this custom has changed among young people and is most prevalent in rural areas, it shows how Chinese people attached great importance to their food.

This well-done post from Sinosplice should have you salivating before you can say ??????! John does well at explaining his well-coined "windows of deliciousness" concept, whereby every food has a window of time in which it is best consumed. He also makes a bold statement that this might be the final blow in the Western vs. Chinese cuisine.

The overall subject was how democracy was faring in the region and how that related (or not) to the lack of democracy. Larry Diamond from the Hoover Institution favored the more Modernization Theory approach and Big Bang aspect of turning around a country’s economy by quickly embracing democracy whereas Kishore Mahbubani noted that in fact what matters more is the role of good governance.