Let's Play a Game!

The Chinese government says it is drafting new laws to tackle the growing gender imbalance caused by the widespread abortion of female foetuses.

The practice is already banned, but new rules are expected to set out specific punishments for parents and doctors.

China's Family Planning Association (CFPC) has revealed the extent of the imbalance - in one city there are eight young boys for every five girls. Experts fear the phenomenon could have unpredictable social consequences.

Some believe that with millions of men unable to find a wife, there could be risks of increasing anti-social and violent behaviour.

China's one-child policy, and a traditional preference for male heirs, has led many couples to try to ensure that their single offspring is a boy. Some pay for illegal ultrasound tests to discover the sex of a foetus, and abort it if it is female.

"The root cause is traditional thinking that boys are better than girls, especially in poverty-stricken areas," Song Jiang, said a population expert at Beijing's Renmin University. "Those people expect boys to support the family."

On Friday it was revealed that the eastern city of Lianyungang had the most skewed population. Among children under four years old, there are 163.5 boys for every 100 girls.

Ninety-nine cities had gender ratios higher than 125, state-run news agency Xinhua quoted the CFPA as saying in a report. The UN recommends a gender ratio of no more than 107. Link

Quick! Name one way to deal with 150,000,000 extra men..Spread the word! 

_____________________________________I guess you'd better look at THIS, too.

Comments

[Phoenix]

I tried to download/upgrade Windows Media Player, but as usual, it was too confusing. I read the 'Read me' sheet of dumb information and then got ready to click for the download and there was no button for it. Why can't PCs just say CLICK HERE and be done with it? Like a Mac.

[Steel]

This time, it is an AOL video in flash and you should get it.

It does take a minute to load.

I won't be using that other system unless it is absolutely necessary. There's this one video source from the Middle East that has evaded my capture until now.

MEMRI. That will be the only time I use that new capture software - to snag MEMRI videos.

They translate all the al-Jazeera and al-Qaida releases.

Quit yer snivelin'.

:)

[Phoenix]

Mac people are too cool to snivel. If you don't mind.

[Bomb-a-rama]

Connie Francis.

I remember picking through my uncle's console record player when I was a kid, and looking at all the albums. There were several Connie Francis LPs in there and her typically formfitting clothing was something I always noticed, even tho I was still quite a ways off from the teen years.

[Phoenix]

I doubt it has anything to do with her form-fitting clothes, Bomb, but her big hit was a song entitled: "Where the Boys Are".

They be lookin' at her album! :)

[Phoenix]

I like how we just ignored this post altogether.

I have one thing to say about the Chinese tradition of wanting male children so those men can take care of his parents until they die. YUK.

I know it makes sense in an agrarian society, and that the thought of being old and unable to care for yourselves is frightening, but it's just indicative of a sorry society to begin with. I have a Chinese friend who spent his life savings on a cool little restuarant. It was really neat and he opened to great fanfare and lots of visitors. His parents were retired from their own restuarant at the time and decided they needed to run it. His mother was so rude - she's why their original restuarant didn't make it, and she killed his restuarant within a year. He tried to tell them to stay home and tried to explain the 'American' way of expecting friendly service but to no avail. He was so bummed. He figured he'd never be able to marry, either, as his parents would not consider an American wife. Like there are ten Chinese people in this town. ?

restaurant. restuarant. oops. :) I spelled it wrong. I had to write it out as I spell by sight.

[Mouse]

I'm laughing because they think that too many males and not enough females will lead to violence. In this country we have too many males having their way with too many females while not being responsible about it and we still have too much violence:)