Quotable

"I believe government spending on receptions needs to be reined in, but the move to list the names of dishes and alcohol brands not allowed on tables is not practical, and is more for show."

Liu HongBo, a commentator with Yangtze Daily, commenting on measures announced by local government officials in Wenzhou, Zhejiang province, to check overspending on government-funded banquets. The regulation limits local officials' bills to 60 yuan ($9; 7 euros) for each person per meal and lists dishes and brands of liquor that cannot be bought. The feasibility and effectiveness of the new requirement has been criticized.

"When a good game is developed and put on to the market, hundreds of copycats mushroom within a month."

You Yunting, a partner at the DeBund Law Offices in Shanghai, which specializes in intellectual property rights, commenting on a recent report that Chinese Apple users favor free programs. He said piracy has made many Chinese consumers assume that software and programs should be free.

"It's hard to verify if a donor is gay or not, as people can lie on forms."

Zhang Beichuan, a homosexual studies expert, saying that more tolerance toward homosexuals is necessary to improve blood safety in China. Zhang says that though the blood donation ban has been lifted for lesbians, it remains in place for gay men. He said many of them go to donate blood clandestinely just to make use of the free HIV screening facility provided by the blood banks, thereby putting blood safety at risk. More social tolerance will prompt them to use the government-run HIV testing clinics.

(China Daily 07/13/2012 page2)