Chip's Chewable

It has been a while since I have posted a Chip's Chewable...so I am going to to post a grab bag of links that I have read recently that I find interesting about the Chinese people and their culture.

The first article is titled, "Second thoughts on College in China." This is an interesting article about some of the issues China's higher education faces.  As a future teacher at a Chinese university, this article is especially thought provoking for me. http://blogs.wsj.com/chinarealtime/2012/06/29/second-thoughts-on-college-in-china/

The second article is about China's major smoking problem.  The article is titled, "Smoking habit may cripple China social security." I have always been puzzled by the Chinese's insatiable desire to smoke; and yet, the Chinese are very concerned about their health. http://english.peopledaily.com.cn/90882/7874051.html

The third article hits on the morality debate in today's Chinese culture. China's morality or lack there of has become a "topic of widespread concern," according to the article. The title of the third article is "Toilet Paper Abuse Prompts China Morality Debate."  (Funny side note:  Mallary and her friends have created a 5-star rating system to rate Chinese bathrooms. Each of the following are worth one star:  running water/sink, soap, toilet paper, hand dryer, and smell/cleanliness. In my experience, most public toilets in China average 1.5 stars.) 
http://blogs.wsj.com/chinarealtime/2012/07/10/toilet-paper-abuse-prompts-china-morality-debate/

The fourth and fifth articles report on a touching story about a young Chinese girl who was abandoned because she has "fur" and spots covering the majority of her body. As a result of the first article, attention was raised to her condition and now she is receiving medial care in order to give her a more normal life.
http://www.chinasmack.com/2012/pictures/furry-child-chinese-girls-body-covered-by-black-spots-fur.html
http://www.chinasmack.com/2012/features/fur-child-lili-in-shanghai-visitors-friends-and-hope.html