Meeting the needs of special children

A friend told me recently: "When we got the diagnosis we felt like they had put a gun to our face." His daughter had been diagnosed with Asperger's Syndrome, a milder form of autism characterized by behavioral problems, including difficulties in social interaction. My friend's reaction to the diagnosis reminded me of similar reactions from other parents whose children have some type of physical or mental disability.

Letters

Japanese rightwingers a threat

From the Chinese press

Heated debate on public heating

Actions don't match words

The so-called purchase of the Diaoyu Islands by the Yoshihiko Noda government had a serious impact on the mutual trust between China and Japan. But after Japan's Liberal Democratic Party won a landslide victory in the House of Representatives election and Shinzo Abe became prime minister for the second time, China asked the new government to show sincerity and solve the dispute with China through negotiation.

Cartoon

Supporting failure no success at all

The collapse of a major lighter manufacturer and a shipbuilder in Wenzhou has sparked speculation that it signals the onslaught of another wave of closures in what was once a celebrated boom town on the coast of Zhejiang province.

Care for adopted children

Yuan Lihai was raising 17 abandoned children on her slender income as a market vendor and the subsistence allowance provided by the local authorities. But after seven of the children died in a fire at their home in Lankao county, Henan province, on the morning of Jan 4, she was questioned for illegally adopting the children. Since then many people have voiced their sympathy for her.

End accident cover-ups

The two recent incidents that had been covered up in Shanxi province, one concerning water contamination and the other an explosion in a tunnel, should remind policymakers of the urgency to rethink the country's accident reporting mechanism.

China has role to play in Mideast

Several major factors will affect the situation in the Middle East in the next decade. First is the eastward shift of the United States' strategic focus.

A chance to resolve Iran issue

A new round of talks on the Iranian nuclear issue between the five permanent UN Security Council members plus Germany (G5+1) and Iran will start in January, which will be the first such meeting after the re-election of Barack Obama as US president.

Letters

Africa must follow China's example

From the Chinese Press

Dog owners' comment condemnable