Really grim news.
Authorities in southwest China are investigating a mysterious disease that has killed 17 farm workers and left 41 others ill after they handled sick or dead livestock, state media said on Monday.
The government of Sichuan province has dismissed speculation that the deaths were caused by bird flu or Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS), an assessment affirmed by the World Health Organization.
“From the information we have it doesn’t seem to be related to bird flu. We made that distinction based on the symptoms described to us by the government,” Bob Dietz, a WHO spokesman in Manila, told Reuters by telephone.
“This (disease) doesn’t seem to have a large pneumonia content or a large respiratory problem,” Dietz said.
The deaths were probably caused by a bacteria that spreads among pigs, the state-run China Daily quoted Zeng Huajin, a senior official with the Sichuan provincial health department, as saying.
“Streptococcus suis (a pig pathogen) would fit the symptoms described to us, but we will wait for an analysis from the Ministry of Health,” Dietz said.
SARS emerged in south China in 2002 and spread across 30 countries, infecting nearly 8,500 people and killing about 800.
It re-appeared in China last year but there were only a few isolated cases. The Chinese government was accused of initially covering up the disease.
Global health officials also have been on high alert over a bird flu virus that has killed over 50 people in Asia since late 2003.
Initially, 20 farm workers suffered fever, nausea and haemorrhaging after handling sick or dead pigs and sheep in 12 towns and 15 villages in Jianyang city and Ziyang city’s Yanjiang district, the China Daily said.
But more cases were reported as health workers combed villages, the newspaper said. By noon on Saturday, 58 people suspected of contracting the strange disease had been reported in Ziyang and neighboring Neijiang.
The victims were sent to local hospitals, where two had recovered, 12 were in critical condition and 27 were stable, the official Xinhua news agency said
South China once again wins the world’s attention as the breadbasket for new sickness. Let’s hope they solve it soon with as little covering up as possible.
Thanks to commenters for bringing this up in the open thread.
1
By Conrad
So, if officially 17 are dead and 41 ill, would anyone care to start a pool on the actual numbers?
July 24, 2005 @ 10:33 pm | Comment
2
By MeiZhongTai
New Mystery Illness
The death toll is rising. Over at Peking Duck, Conrad is wondering how high the real death toll is. To paraphrase him: If 17 are acknowledged; how many are unacknowledged? Based on previous experience, that is certainly a legitimate concern.
July 24, 2005 @ 11:18 pm | Comment
3
By kevin
rather than dividing by ten, which is how you calculate actual GDP growth, multiplying by ten, or at times 100, usually gets the actual number of people dead from any illness or accident.
July 24, 2005 @ 11:27 pm | Comment
4
By Gordon
Kevin, you’re not including the government hush factor into this equation.
That really changes the outcome of things, but of course that is an unknown variable.
July 24, 2005 @ 11:44 pm | Comment
5
By Conrad
What’s with all these diseases jumping the species barrier in China? I’m starting to wonder just exactly what these Chinese farmers are doing with their animals.
Could this have anything to do with the sex ratio imbalance?
Animal “husbandry” indeed. . . .
July 24, 2005 @ 11:57 pm | Comment
6
By Conrad
It’s official. I’m evil. China Daily says so:
To which, I couldn’t resist the following:
July 25, 2005 @ 12:01 am | Comment
7
By incognito
Close call…. Maybe too close.
What lasted over two weeks and symptoms such as fever of 104, fatigue, severe headache and shortness of breath; I should consider myself lucky that I only got 2 out of 5 reported symptoms. It still put me in the hospital for 4 days of IV’s and the translated reply that I got was, “your body is broken” as my diagnosis.
Even though it’s very unlikely that whatever I had was connected in any way, but its pretty close. I live in Sichuan and I started getting sick over two weeks ago. All is well now, but I am worried about is the blood clot from 4 different IV’s, of which the last one is causing me some pain up my left arm to my shoulder.
Ahh, what’s an arm anyways.
July 25, 2005 @ 12:12 am | Comment
8
By Gordon
Bwahahaha!!
Priceless. Of course they will fail to see any humor in that.
July 25, 2005 @ 12:26 am | Comment
9
By Martyn
I’m interested in how the story actually first broke. I could have sworn that I first read about it in the SCMP online. I know the HK press were the bane of the Chinese government during SARS and that they’ve built up some excellent mainland contacts since SARS. Hmmm, I wouldn’t be surprised.
I’d still bet my bottom dollar that, given the choice, the government would prefer that this story not make it to the national and overseas press. Therefore, if the govt did “allow” this story to leak out then what the hell are their motives? Hell, for all we know, people are dropping like flies in Sichuan and the govt are preparing everyone for the worst.
Paranoid? Certainly. But I’d put nothing past them after SARS.
July 25, 2005 @ 1:57 am | Comment
10
By Conrad
Gordon:
Not only did they not see any humor in it, China Daily deleted it (twice).
July 25, 2005 @ 1:58 am | Comment
11
By GWBH
Just becasue you’re paranoid doesn’t mean they aren’t out to get you
July 25, 2005 @ 2:00 am | Comment
12
By shulan
Conrad:
Just consider for a moment that it might not be funny.
July 25, 2005 @ 2:35 am | Comment
13
By Other Lisa
And not well-timed.
July 25, 2005 @ 2:44 am | Comment
14
By bingfeng
sincere question: is this the worst time TPD experienced so far?
July 25, 2005 @ 2:55 am | Comment
15
By kevin
whew i have been looking for more news on this all day. not very much. even overseas chinese websites known to have quite an imagination are providing about just as much info as xinhua.
my first reaction on reading this news at 8 o’clock this morning was “oh gosh, i wonder how widespread this could be for them to come out and report this like this?” it was on the front of most newspapers today.
July 25, 2005 @ 3:02 am | Comment
16
By Will
I reckon unless you’re actually slaughtering pigs yourelf, don’t worry about it.
But, then, I’ve been wrong before.
July 25, 2005 @ 3:32 am | Comment
17
By kevin
must be quite a few pig-slaughterers in that town, much more than i’ve ever met in my life
July 25, 2005 @ 3:39 am | Comment
18
By Martyn
That’s the rule I also tend to use Will. Still, China has been spewing out diseases/pandemics for centuries so I think it’s very much a question of “when” not “if”.
July 25, 2005 @ 3:40 am | Comment
19
By GWBH
A friend of mine from Tianjin is quite proud of the Black Death… I guess it was the major achievment of that dynasty.
July 25, 2005 @ 3:44 am | Comment
20
By Gordon
Yeah, we all know that the rivers are sparkling clean here and nobody ever dumps anything in them 🙂
July 25, 2005 @ 4:05 am | Comment
21
By Gordon
Conrad,
I thought your statement was in perfect timing.
There’s no better time to reply than right after a statement has been made.
It keeps things fresh!
July 25, 2005 @ 4:09 am | Comment
22
By Dinah Cancer
NOW the Chinese care about the farmers. Golly gee beav’
July 25, 2005 @ 4:18 am | Comment
23
By shulan
Yeah Gordon,
I understood by now that for you chauvinist remarks are of timeless aesthetics and allways accurate.
July 25, 2005 @ 4:20 am | Comment
24
By bingfeng
hehe, a wei-kong-tian-xia-bu-luan guy, WWIII would be good news for you, gordon 🙂
uhhhmmmmm, things at CD are gettting really nasty
July 25, 2005 @ 4:21 am | Comment
25
By Gordon
Just think Bingfeng, you helped contribute to it by providing the platform to encourage him.
So, I don’t even wanna hear your piehole barking.
July 25, 2005 @ 4:24 am | Comment
26
By Gordon
Shulan,
Did you just fall off the turnip truck this morning?
In case you didn’t notice, 99% of those comments from the Chinese posters are racist and anti-western.
Take a good look in the mirror.
July 25, 2005 @ 4:26 am | Comment
27
By Martyn
I echo Gordon’s above comment.
July 25, 2005 @ 4:29 am | Comment
28
By Gordon
Bingfeng, Shulan,
Just for the record, I haven’t contributed anything to that biased, piece of shit, nationalistic, racist promoting fuckrag called the China Daily…just sitting back, watching as the Chinese commenters continue to prove their ignorance.
July 25, 2005 @ 4:30 am | Comment
29
By shulan
Gordon:
Mirror says I’ fine. That there are stupid chauvinist all around the world does justifie to be one yourself.
Do you have a mirror?
July 25, 2005 @ 4:30 am | Comment
30
By Dinah Cancer
Actually, mirror says I gettin’ old.
July 25, 2005 @ 4:37 am | Comment
31
By Martyn
bingfeng has zero credability in my book. He’s enjoying all this.
July 25, 2005 @ 4:39 am | Comment
32
By Dinah Cancer
Who’s Bingfeng?
July 25, 2005 @ 4:40 am | Comment
33
By Gordon
That’s good to hear Shulan. NOw look the workd up in a dictionary because that term doesn’t fit me.
July 25, 2005 @ 4:41 am | Comment
34
By kevin
yeah, the china daily really is a grand piece of shit. they delete anything that doesn’t fit into their idiotic fascist world view.
i would have to say that mark and his friends are finally “in their intellectual element” there.
July 25, 2005 @ 4:46 am | Comment
35
By Dinah Cancer
Kev ,be nice now.
July 25, 2005 @ 4:49 am | Comment
36
By shulan
should read “doesn’t jusitfie”
Gordon:
OK you’r not a chauvinist, releived to hear that.
Conrads remarks about the Chinese farmers are and you seem to appreciate that kind of humor.
Besides, Conrad’s reply to that Chinese commentator is quite funny, but his initial comment here on TPD wasn’t and that’s what I’m reffering to.
July 25, 2005 @ 4:52 am | Comment
37
By Dinah Cancer
It’s time for prayer…….
July 25, 2005 @ 4:53 am | Comment
38
By Tom - Daai Tou Laam
they delete anything that doesn’t fit into their idiotic fascist world view.
Posted by: kevin
Sounds a lot like the way Squeaky Johnson runs Little Green Snotballs.
And for Conrad, the apparent pathogen, streptococcus suis, is found in pigs around the world and well known to jump the human/pig barrier even in the USofA.
And for the record, the story appeared in Xinhua before the appearance at RTHK or SCMP.
July 25, 2005 @ 4:54 am | Comment
39
By Dinah Cancer
What is funny anyway? To me Mel Brooks.To you? It is ALL a bit childish, but what the hey.
July 25, 2005 @ 4:56 am | Comment
40
By Dinah Cancer
BTW,What is Lil’ green Snotballs? Sounds ineresing.
July 25, 2005 @ 5:00 am | Comment
41
By Dinah Cancer
“Even” in the USofA.?My daddy used to get that ALL da ti’m.Momma sais it was cuz daddy didnurt wear no condoms.Huh?
July 25, 2005 @ 5:03 am | Comment
42
By Dinah Cancer
Conrad is one facist MoFo. I likes Heeem!
July 25, 2005 @ 5:04 am | Comment
43
By shulan
Dinah:
Is it possible that you have family ties with American man?
July 25, 2005 @ 5:09 am | Comment
44
By Gordon
Hey Shulan, I tell you what, I’ll help you out on this one.
July 25, 2005 @ 5:10 am | Comment
45
By bingfeng
“Who’s Bingfeng?
Posted by Dinah Cancer at July 25, 2005 04:40 AM”
who is American Man?
July 25, 2005 @ 5:11 am | Comment
46
By d
Cleeeever!
July 25, 2005 @ 5:11 am | Comment
47
By Gordon
Hey Shulan, I tell you what, I’ll help you out on this one.
That is definitely not a term that could be used to describe me because I don’t consider myself to be any better than the next person.
I don’t think the same thing could be said about your fellow countrymen. It makes me sick to see so many Chinese look down upon their own kind because they are poor.
I was sitting at a restaurant the other night and after a group of people got up to leave their table on the sidewalk, an old homeless man ran over in hopes of eating what was left behind, but one of the couples turned around and dumped the food on the ground.
Thats exactly how chinese people treat each other. They have no respect for anyone and once they get a little money and power, all too many of them think their shit don’t stink.
I felt sorry for the old guy because I know what its like to live on the street without a place to stay. So I bought several dishes for the old man and made sure that one of the waitresses took it over to him.
how many times have you done something like that for one of your own countrymen?
You know, when I was in the States, I made it point to introduce myself to new Chinese students at my university, helping them find their way around and driving them to the supermarkets every week. Not once did I ever point , laugh and ridicule them.
Even though people try to cheat me at every chance in this country, I still maintain my principles and practice something called honesty. I know it’s a new term here for Chinese, but work with me a little..you can even look it up in the dictionary if you like.
I’ve had multiple chances to cheat Chinese people due to their own negligence, but I guess maybe you’re right – I’m a chauvinist because I’m better than that.
Not only do I treat people in this country (especially the poor) better than they treat me, I treat them better than their own people do.
Suck on that one!
July 25, 2005 @ 5:12 am | Comment
48
By bingfeng
“Dinah:
Is it possible that you have family ties with American man?
Posted by shulan at July 25, 2005 05:09 AM ”
————
haha, wondebar, seems both of us are smart enough to find out the lossing American Man
Amerikanish Mann!!!
July 25, 2005 @ 5:14 am | Comment
49
By Tom - Daai Tou Laam
BTW,What is Lil’ green Snotballs? Sounds ineresing.
Posted by Dinah Cancer
The homebase for the cult of the Little Green Raelians. At least the ones that haven’t been purged over time.
{With the most recent round of purges coming to try and make the comments section more marketable to venture capitalists of the Pajamas Media kind.}
July 25, 2005 @ 5:17 am | Comment
50
By bingfeng
ich liebe dich, Amerika Mann!
(by hitler’s sister channeled through bingfeng)
July 25, 2005 @ 5:18 am | Comment
51
By Gordon
Tom,
There’s no need to be jealous of his traffic. 😛
July 25, 2005 @ 5:21 am | Comment
52
By Dinah Cancer
BF, I love you because I must.It is so written.
July 25, 2005 @ 5:27 am | Comment
53
By Tom - Daai Tou Laam
There’s no need to be jealous of his traffic. 😛
Posted by Gordon
If I got Squeaky’s traffic, I’d be bleaching the harddrives on my server. ICK!
And thankfully you aren’t the Gordon of Little Green Raelian fame and purveyor of the Dog Snot Diaries. Typical Little Green Raelian claiming to be an Iraq War veteran, while never having served a day in the army.
July 25, 2005 @ 5:30 am | Comment
54
By shulan
Gordon:
Too kind of you to help me out.
Perhaps I misread your recent comments about all muslims beeing evil and your occasional satisfaction if someone you label as communist is killed.
Apart from that you seem to be a nice guy and I won’t call you a chauvinist anymore.
What Conrad said about the farmers is bad humor and has a dose of chauvinism at least from my point of view but perhaps I am little to sensitive on such issues.
Besides, I am German.
July 25, 2005 @ 5:31 am | Comment
55
By Gordon
Bingfeng, didn’t realize you spoke German. Is that where they started calling you “Hosenscheisser, der”?
July 25, 2005 @ 5:31 am | Comment
56
By Gordon
Um, perhaps you could point me to that exact comment?
July 25, 2005 @ 5:33 am | Comment
57
By Dinah Cancer
Hey! my mom’s German .We gots sumptin in commin like. Good fer d ol’ guan shi.
July 25, 2005 @ 5:33 am | Comment
58
By Dinah Cancer
Somewhere’s , Richard’s havin’ a bad dream……………..
July 25, 2005 @ 5:35 am | Comment
59
By Dinah Cancer
Funny dat Juuurmans are tutourin ‘Mericans about facism.Huh?
July 25, 2005 @ 5:37 am | Comment
60
By Gordon
Bingfung,
Actually after giving it some more thought, I think “Hinterlader, der” would probably be more appropriate.
July 25, 2005 @ 5:40 am | Comment
61
By Dinah Cancer
Ol’ your- ups like a afterthout to me n my kinfolk.Im from Ar Kansas gadnummit.
July 25, 2005 @ 5:42 am | Comment
62
By Dinah Cancer
Shulan yer one o dem abspritsenz’s arent’chas?
July 25, 2005 @ 5:45 am | Comment
63
By shulan
Gordon:
I won’t browse the whole PD archives for these comments, but I can recall that you said recently that the GIs in Bagdad did a good job of trying to kill that Italian (communist) journalist. But perhaps that once again was humor of a kind that I just don’t understand. Your reaction after the first London bombings also weren’t that balanced, I think you said something like: if “they” bomb us we’ll have to bomb them too, not differenciating between the fanatics and ordanary muslims.
Perhaps you meant “Hinterwäldler”.
July 25, 2005 @ 5:50 am | Comment
64
By bingfeng
“Bingfung,
Actually after giving it some more thought, I think “Hinterlader, der” would probably be more appropriate.
Posted by Gordon at July 25, 2005 05:40 AM”
————-
name-calling is real fun, isn’t it?
i will apply an ID for you in ppls daily forum
July 25, 2005 @ 5:51 am | Comment
65
By shulan
What’s “abspritsenz’s arent’chas” ?
July 25, 2005 @ 5:52 am | Comment
66
By Dinah Cancer
Perhaps its that “world famous” German sense of humor!
July 25, 2005 @ 5:52 am | Comment
67
By Dinah Cancer
Shulan,I’m ignit in at leats two languages.Now,It’s time for the daily march.
July 25, 2005 @ 5:55 am | Comment
68
By shulan
Yeah I know. Germans are not well prepared for the lightness of beeing, just take things allways too serious. Sorry for that and please don’t mention the war.
July 25, 2005 @ 6:16 am | Comment
69
By Gordon
Shulan, I suggest you go back and find that comment. That way you can educate yourself a little better. Unless of course your main goal is simply to twist and turn other peoples comments – in that case, you’re doing a fine job.
I said that US soldiers in Iraq were clearly justified for the actions they took in regards to that communist journalist.
That’s a whole different story than saying that “I’m satisfied if someone I’ve labled as a communist gets killed. Oh and for the record, she WAS a communist. (no labeling there).”
Also, I never said all muslims were evil. SO I suggest you go find those comments and quote me from them or shut your pie hole.
Or are you just pulling another Madge on us?
July 25, 2005 @ 6:36 am | Comment
70
By shulan
Gordon:
Sorry for misreading the comment, though the question if those soldiers realy did the best they could is unanswered from my point of view. The storys of the Italians sounds different then the one of the Soldiers. Anyway.
Here is what you wrote a while ago:
(http://pekingduck.org/archives/002642.php)
“The violence being inflicted upon the Muslim world is by their own doing.”
What did you want to say with that then? As I see it you said: All muslims are responsible for what Al Quaida does? You said “their doings” and “the muslim world”.
Waiting for clarification if I also misread that.
July 25, 2005 @ 7:02 am | Comment
71
By Gordon
“The violence being inflicted upon the Muslim world is by their own doing.”
Simply put, what are they doing to stop it?
In many and most cases, it’s muslim on muslim attacks.
They have been opressed by their clerics for hundreds of years.
It’s not something the US brought to them.
Of course, the Middle-East is clearly a shining ground of freedom, right?
As for your comment about the “Journalist”, um, soldiers ordered her to stop time and time again and they fired warning shots. If you were a US soldier with a potential car bomber coming at you, what would you do…give them directions?
July 25, 2005 @ 7:08 am | Comment
72
By Gordon
Furthermore, Shulan,
I dated a Muslim girl from Malaysia several years ago..until her father told me that I had to convert to Islam if I wanted to maintain ties with his daughter.
Sorry.
I don’t believe in any religion and I’m sure as hell not going to pretend to be something I’m not for someone else.
July 25, 2005 @ 7:09 am | Comment
73
By shulan
You are right, religions didn’t invent the word tollerance and many muslims as “true believers” of other religions are intolerant. But this is not a phenomenon of the “muslim world” only, though it’s virulent there.
You ask what they are doing to stop it.
I ask you what chance the average Aegyptian or Syrien has to change it?
It’s no surprise that more and more people sypathise with religios groups when they are the only real opposition to a suppressve regime. Regims like the one in Aegypt or Saudi-Arabi that are backed by the West while giving nice speaches about freedom and democracy.
I see your point about religious tolerance which is underdeveloped in many muslim communities.
But I think the West has it’s share in the spread of religious fanatism and just to say they didn’t do anything against it is a little siplistic.
July 25, 2005 @ 7:42 am | Comment
74
By Gordon
Shulan,
back to your comments about me?
I just don’t see it.
Sorry, you lose.
July 25, 2005 @ 7:53 am | Comment
75
By shulan
No problem to aknowlege that after you expained your comment my accusation that you said all muslims are bad is not sustainable.
Nevertheless I think your comment is simplistic.
No offence.
July 25, 2005 @ 8:10 am | Comment
76
By KLS
naah, shulan’s dead right.
but Shulan, I think I was the first one to call G a chauvanist on TPD. you know how much these guys like name-calling, so perhaps you should make up your own description ,otherwise he’ll be disappointed haha!!
July 25, 2005 @ 8:14 am | Comment
77
By Tom - Daai Tou Laam
I just don’t see it.
Sorry, you lose.
Posted by Gordon
I like your Conrad-fu of admitting being willfully stupid enough to not understand your opponents argument, and then proclaiming yourself the winner of an argument based upon your lack of comprehension.
You have a future in Freeperville. Might start posting pics of naked women on your site too to drum up some traffic. Just be sure she isn’t Catholic or her dad might ask you to convert as well to keep up appearances.
And I love the fact that because YOU don’t see Muslims doing things to change the cycle of violence obviously means that it hasn’t happened. Check your blinders at the door.
July 25, 2005 @ 8:14 am | Comment
78
By Gordon
Tom,
Really, is that the best you can come up with?
July 25, 2005 @ 8:19 am | Comment
79
By Gordon
So define it KLS.
Why am I a chauvanist? I’m all ears.
July 25, 2005 @ 8:28 am | Comment
80
By shulan
Perhaps this name-calling thing is something you learn best in the military. I only did civil service thus never had the chance to fully develope these skills.
July 25, 2005 @ 8:32 am | Comment
81
By KLS
it appears I’ve been misspelling the word, which really pisses me off. of course, there are two i’s and only one a! anyway, Gordon:
Chauvinism is extreme and unreasoning partisanship on behalf of a group to which one belongs, especially when the partisanship includes malice and hatred towards a rival group.
although to give you the benefit of the doubt, I’m sure there’s no malice or hatred, it’s just the way your rhetorical invective can come across at times.
July 25, 2005 @ 8:35 am | Comment
82
By Dinah Cancer
Gordon, It looks like KLS now has a sense of humor. What a day! as the Kiwi’s says”its a Maaaaaaaajickic dey!”
July 25, 2005 @ 8:47 am | Comment
83
By Dinah Cancer
I love that KLS is actually kissing up to Gordon.It’s inspirational to all other Neo-Gordon’s.
July 25, 2005 @ 8:52 am | Comment
84
By Shanghai Slim
Congratulations to Conrad for playing right into MAJ’s mischievous hands over there at China Daily.
Just when it looks like the tide of that thread might be turning, Slugger Conrad slams a “porcine-sex” “spittle-covered” homer right out of the stadium. For MAJ’s team. :-\
July 25, 2005 @ 9:10 am | Comment
85
By richard
I’ve been urging everyone to let this die down on its own. Every comment continues the dialogue and gives wanker boy a neverending woodie.
July 25, 2005 @ 9:16 am | Comment
86
By KLS
richard please, can you tone down your imagery, figurative or otherwise? neverending woodie indeed .. then again, I suppose you’ve been sent the photos!
July 25, 2005 @ 9:24 am | Comment
87
By Tom - Daai Tou Laam
Really, is that the best you can come up with?
Posted by Gordon
I just don’t see it.
Gordon, sorry, you lose.
July 25, 2005 @ 9:25 am | Comment
88
By Dinah Cancer
Richard, This isn’t the point right now? Well, Let’s see? We have a China blog in China. So, What on earth do we talk about? China? From different perspectives? It smacks of basic free speech to me.
July 25, 2005 @ 9:30 am | Comment
89
By Dinah Cancer
Slim, Do as Ian Curtis did.Now, Poserboy.
July 25, 2005 @ 9:37 am | Comment
90
By richard
Gordon, don’t be pissed but I’ve got to go with KLS and Shulan and Tom on this one. It’s one thing how you mean something and another how it comes across.
July 25, 2005 @ 9:41 am | Comment
91
By Shanghai Slim
Okay, got it American Dinah.
Now you may move on to your next inane one-liner.
July 25, 2005 @ 9:46 am | Comment
92
By Dinah Cancer
Slim, Put on your fancy Robert Smith Dress.You know yo momma likes dat!
July 25, 2005 @ 9:58 am | Comment
93
By Gordon
So your a pussy boy Shulan, is that what you’re sayin?
July 25, 2005 @ 10:05 am | Comment
94
By Gordon
Oh shulan, you’re not a name caller?
I must have missed that episode.
Tom, really, grow a penis.
July 25, 2005 @ 10:08 am | Comment
95
By Other Lisa
The incredible lack of sensitivity of some of you folks just staggers me. Can’t you just drop the assh0le humor, pig jokes and rhetorical excesses for a couple of days? Exercise a little self-control? Is that just wayyy too much maturity to expect? Unfortunately we’ve reached a point where comments here (and on CD) reflect badly on Richard and his site. I’d think the least some of you could do to show your gratitude for providing this forum is to shut the ef’ up if you can’t play nice.
July 25, 2005 @ 10:08 am | Comment
96
By Gordon
Richard,
Really, I don’t care what people think. I’m not a lefty PC pussy.
Like Jack Nicholson said “You can’t handle the truth”.
I’m not about to tone down my thoughts just to protect someones ego.
Fuck that. I call ’em like I see ’em.
Grow a thick skin instead of a vulva.
July 25, 2005 @ 10:11 am | Comment
97
By richard
Gordon, that’s okay. I just think the other guys were correct this time. Deal with it.
July 25, 2005 @ 10:20 am | Comment
98
By richard
Lisa, I know just what you mean. I don’t want to impose rules (“oh no, he’s censoring us!”) but I wish people would realize this site is at risk and could close down if it doesn’t get a little more adult.
July 25, 2005 @ 10:22 am | Comment
99
By KLS
I like the italicised bit at the top richard, though I spotted a typo!!
July 25, 2005 @ 10:25 am | Comment
100
By Gordon
Tom,
Really, I think you would make a good aid for Ted Kennedy.
I hear he takes real good care of them. Just make sure you can swim.
July 25, 2005 @ 10:26 am | Comment
101
By Other Lisa
Wow, Gordon. I wasn’t talking about you, and I don’t know if you were talking about me, but “grow a thick skin instead of a vulva” is, how to put it, an incredibly insulting thing to say. There’s not a lot I can do about possessing the latter, you know?
July 25, 2005 @ 10:27 am | Comment
102
By richard
KLS, thanks – typo is fixed.
Really, if this keeps looking like kindergarten I’m going to get seriously upset.
I never want to tell people what they can and cannot say. I do, however, want to ask each of you to think about what I am going through and what this site is going through and to show just a bit of thought and consideration. Come on – cut the crap and the hatred. Do yo want this to be seen as a hate site? I’m going to start naming names real soon. Please help, okay?
July 25, 2005 @ 10:31 am | Comment
103
By Gordon
Lisa,
I wasn’t talking to you.
Richard, I didn’t start it, but if you don’t think I deserve to throw the same cheap shots…well, that’s so leftist of you.
July 25, 2005 @ 10:33 am | Comment
104
By KLS
Richard, hear hear (& no, I am not without sin).
July 25, 2005 @ 10:35 am | Comment
105
By richard
Gordon, it’s okay to argue. I don’t care who started it, but the way you replied is not in the spirit of what I want this site to be. Please respect that. I will call everyone to acount for this no matter what their politics. It has nothing to do with the argument, only the language being used and the tone.
July 25, 2005 @ 10:37 am | Comment
106
By Dinah Cancer
kid’s, Kid’s come on now.What are we all talking about…what ..does anyone remember? I don’t ..cause… I’m fuckin’ pissed on the lager…Right?so… just piss off o.K.?
July 25, 2005 @ 10:40 am | Comment
107
By shulan
Sorry Gordon, that polemic about the military was perhaps a little nonsensitive.
Is that the english term for a civilian, pussy boy?
What names did I recently call someone?
July 25, 2005 @ 11:07 am | Comment
108
By Laowai 19790204
CALM THE FUCK DOWN PEOPLE.
We’ve all had some decent conversations. Gordon’s been stressed out, obviously, given his rants at THM. We all kind of like to pick fights, but maybe we can just let this one drop before we start forming indestructible ideas about how fucking shitty the people are on the other side of the debate. Once we get in that mind-set it’s damn hard to get out of and we don’t do ourselves any justice by making enemies. Conversations are for: 1) reaching common understandings 2) debating to measure the strong and weak points in your arguments. I suggest if you want to willfully disagree and dislike each other you shut your pie-holes.
Look, this has been a *stressful* couple weeks what with Madge and London bombings and stuff. Let it calm down for a bit.
Or not, and you can all turn on me. :-0
July 25, 2005 @ 11:15 am | Comment
109
By Other Lisa
I agree with Laowai.
In my post I was trying to express that name calling reflects badly on this site and that this is really not a good time for that.
Can I take a moment and explain why insulting anyone by attributing to them female characteristics is, well, insulting to women? I know these kinds of invectives are hurled around without a lot of thought, that you insult a guy by basically calling him a woman, meaning that he’s weak, etc. But women in general aren’t any “weaker” than men. Except perhaps in our upper boddy strength…
July 25, 2005 @ 11:29 am | Comment
110
By Shanghai Slim
You guys are right. Richard’s site is under scrutiny at the moment. We should be circling the wagons right now, not playing demolition derby with them.
Madge would be squirming in ecstacy to see any hints of discord at Peking Duck.
The unsolicited publicity could be turned into an asset, we could pick up some new posters, especially Chinese contributors. Less likely if we are preoccupied insulting each other.
July 25, 2005 @ 11:50 am | Comment
111
By Ivan
What? What the hell happened in here?
I left last night, around ten hours ago, and now when I come back the place looks like a chicken coop after a pecking party. That’s when one chicken draws blood from another, and then the other chickens go crazy from the sight of blood and start pecking each other to death.
(There’s a chapter based on it in “One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest”, all the loonies start abusing each other as soon as they see one get hurt……)
Seems gruesomely appropriate for a thread which started out on the topic of bird flu……..
July 25, 2005 @ 3:07 pm | Comment
112
By Laowai 19790204
Ivan – go see the cross-cultural philosophy fest on the open thread for some balance…
also just to add to Lisa’s comment, women can take a belly-full more pain than men…
So if you want to call someone weak you could say “grow a uterus, dick-boy!”
😛
July 25, 2005 @ 3:45 pm | Comment
113
By Other Lisa
*SNORT*!
July 25, 2005 @ 4:20 pm | Comment
114
By geoff
hey funny I was cruising down the yangzi river on a tour to see the three gorges dams (which we didnt see) and I did se a dead pig in the water (along with 1000’s of shoes and other garbage). It was swollen and bloated and floated very well. God I wish I’d taken a picture of it! but I was aving memory for the dams (which you wont see on a three gorges tour).
July 25, 2005 @ 7:21 pm | Comment
115
By Gordon
A friend of mine told me that someone he knew took a photo of a dead pig floating in the river,but when she took it in to have the film developed (in China) they deleted the photo and harassed her.
This is something that bugs me. If the Chinese people are soooo conscientious about people seeing such filth, why not make a change?
Sometimes a little ridicule can have positive effects.
July 25, 2005 @ 7:46 pm | Comment
116
By pete
Gordon
What’s with the communist stuff. What if the Italian journalist was not a communist, then would it be bad to shoot at her car? Or if it had been an American journalist with a CIA guard, okay for the soldiers to shoot at them?
July 26, 2005 @ 1:53 am | Comment
117
By Gordon
Pete, I don’t care if it was the Pope or President Bush. Those soldiers had every right to take the course of action they did.
I mean seriously, if you are a soldier in Iraq where you have insurgents trying to kill you everyday in every possible way, including suicide car bombs and you have a car that is speeding towards you and your men and it fails to heed the warning shots, whare are you supposed to do?
I don’t know about you, but I’m going hold down that trigger until the car stops.
No if’s and’s or but’s. It’s just like the innocent guy that was shot in the London subway. It really sucks, but he was behaving erratically and given the situation the officers acted accordingly.
In situations like that you only get a split second to make a life saving decision.
July 26, 2005 @ 3:32 am | Comment