Is an Apology Enough?

A senior executive of U.S. toy maker Mattel admitted on September 21 that they should shoulder all the responsibility of recalling toys with unqualified lead paint, and apologized to Chinese producers who were said to have been blamed for this scandal.

Mattel withdrew about 21 million China-made toys in August and September on three occasions, citing the use of lead paint used by Chinese manufacturers. Media worldwide were quick to jump on the story reporting the poor track record of China's product safety standards. Now the facts showed that Chinese producers were used as a scapegoat.

This has happened on several previous occasions. As many Chinese factories are low-end producers, they are always the first to be blamed for quality problems. Although Mattel apologized for the wrongful treatment this time, Chinese products now have a poor image internationally and are dubbed "low quality" items, which cannot be compensated for by just an apology.

To extricate itself from the awkward situation, China should not only endeavor to lift its position in the industrial chain from more than just a low-end producer, but also strengthen its ability to deal with unexpected incidents.

Guangzhou Daily

No Cars Day A Flop

September 22 was set aside as "Car Free Day" in many countries and regions around the world. In China, 108 cities, including Beijing and Shanghai, actively participated this year, with the purpose of advocating public transportation. However, results show that the campaign came far from reaching its goal.

In Beijing, on September 22 (Saturday), there were more traffic jams than on weekdays. Private cars were forbidden in some specific areas, resulting in a lot of cars congesting in other areas. At 7:45 p.m. of that day, the average hourly speed of the cars running in the main streets of Beijing reached just 20 km, and buses, only 10 km, according to statistics from the Beijing Traffic Management Bureau. The number of streets that were congested by cars was over 80, almost double that of previous weekends.

Almost everybody knows taking buses is not only good for the environment, but also saves energy. However, faced with the choice of crushing into always-crowded buses, the owners of private cars chose the comfort of their own vehicles.

The paradox of heavy traffic jams on the "Car Free Day" is not fortuitous. Without a well-developed public transit system, "fewer cars, little pollution" will only be a well-intentioned slogan, which achieves little.

International Finance News

One Day? No Way

Local media report that the Chongqing Municipal Government is proposing to set aside the first Sunday of every November as the "Migrant Workers' Day" in this southwestern city. The proposal is for the day to be used to deal with any difficulties migrant workers are experiencing, such as labor safety, social security and health care. A different theme will be designated each year and the government will look to carry out relative policies in this regard.

Labor safety, social security and health care are surely the issues that migrant workers concern most about, each of which should be resolved as soon as possible. However, if the government deems a particular day, rather than a regular complaint handling mechanism, is enough for problem solving, then most probably all the problems will be put off until this day, while in the rest of the year, migrant workers' voices are left unheard. With problems facing migrant workers becoming more complex, it will take a lifetime before all problems are dealt with. .

Instead of spending time and money on some formalities that are useless to struggling migrant workers, the government should use the same amount of energy to look at the diversified needs of the huge contingent of farmer-turned-workers on a regular basis and get results.

China Youth Daily

Beauty Lies Within

In early September, a nongovernmental research institution published a list of 10 most beautiful cities in China. Beijing, Shenzhen and Shanghai are all on the list, ranking first, third and fourth separately. Ironically, only one day after this announcement, the China City Forum published the results of another study saying these three cities are increasingly inhabitable.

It seems ridiculous that the most beautiful places are unsuitable to live in. The China City Forum explained that the "inhabitable" factor mainly refers to the cost of living in the three cities, which is so high that many residents are struggling. Rocketing property prices are driving individuals, and even enterprises, out of the cities.

The criteria for the selection of the "most beautiful cities" are unknown and it has become habitual for China to rank top 10 cities in different categories, with the same political centers and business hubs, national and regional, always making the lists. While here "beautiful" might refer to just a few super-sized streets lined with modern shops and colorful lights, the outcome is clearly superficial.

Only when a city is inhabitable can it be beautiful. This cannot be changed by a title based on meaningless criteria.

Nanfang Daily