Those who wish China ill will only hurt themselves

If you listened to the comments of some government officials, lawmakers, pundits and commentators, it is not hard to realize that there are people in the United States who wish China ill.

DPRK plays a risky game that threatens the region

The claim by the Democratic People's Republic of Korea on Wednesday that it had successfully tested a miniaturized hydrogen bomb has sent shock waves across the world.

Bus arsonist has no excuse

There can be no excuse for such an inhumane act targeted at innocent people.

Temporary air quality measures must be backed up with long-term actions

THE GOVERNMENT of East China's Shandong province recently issued a regulation that will more heavily reward or punish city governments in the province according to their performance in curbing air pollution. Those cities whose PM2.5 levels exceed the set limit will be fined 400,000 yuan ($61,000), while those with PM2.5 levels below the limit receive a similar amount as reward. Will that help curb air pollution, asks Beijing Times:

Competition can end tow companies' overcharging

A TRUCK DRIVER, who was responsible for a collision with another truck in Beijing, is suing the towing company for charging him nearly 130,000 yuan ($19,000) for moving the damaged trucks, which he claims is exorbitant. Beijing Youth Daily urges better supervision over towing companies and breaking the existing monopoly in the market:

Officials damage govt image by winning trophies

THE LAST DAY of 2015 saw three local officials in the Ngawa Tibetan and Qiang autonomous prefecture in Sichuan province, Southwest China, win 19 major awards in a local photography contest. Other winners remain unidentified. The cost of the contest was 700,000 yuan ($11,000), of which the local government provided 500,000 yuan. The Beijing Times says:

Hot words

Birth registration service system

Cartoon

Migrant workers deserve better pay protection

The end of a year is usually a time to ensure migrant workers are paid their due wages. Given that many enterprises, especially small and medium-sized ones, are suffering because of the economic slowdown, it is likely migrant workers will face difficulties getting their wages before they return home for the annual Spring Festival holiday, which starts early next month.

Trump best mirrors US domestic politics

Donald Trump has been hitting the headlines almost every day for his absurd and inflammatory comments. To the surprise or chagrin of many people, the billionaire running for the Republican presidential nomination has dominated the Republican race since July.

Abe's political need behind deal with ROK

Japan has agreed to pay 1 billion yen ($8.3 million) to help the Republic of Korea set up a fund to support Korean women forced into sexual slavery by the Japanese army before and during World War II, in order to settle the "comfort women" issue.

Signs suggest force of Chinese consumers is now awakening

In spite of the darkening global growth prospects and the unexpected plunge in the domestic stock market on the first trading day of this year, Chinese consumers will no doubt demonstrate their growing importance to the global movie industry when Star Wars: The Force Awakens opens in this country on Jan 9.