A coalminer recently choked on coal dust and died in a mine in Shanxi Province. Instead of reporting the accident to relevant government departments, the mine owner was quick to bribe the media arriving on the scene, in hopes that they would not report the incident.

In neighboring Hebei Province, after a serious explosion in Weixian County, the mine owner bribed local officials and reporters. As a result, the accident was not made public for more than two months.

These scandals have cast a pall of shame over China's media organizations.

Many reporters are wary of reporting what officials may not like. They become very cautious in reporting sensitive issues and gradually avoid such topics. In Shanxi, some newspapers do not allow their reporters to cover negative news, except when they have gotten approval from local officials or even from the subject under investigation. Sometimes, powerful mine owners bribe responsible officials, ensuring that negative reports are squashed permanently.

This is a tragedy as it leads people to question to what extent can media reports be believed.

Nanfang Daily

Food Safety Warning Inadequate

Due to reports about wormy oranges in southwestern Sichuan Province, sales of the fruit around China dropped sharply in late October. The low prices and shrinking market share have caused big losses for everyone from orange farmers to retailers.

It seems that the country's pre-warning mechanism for food safety has collapsed, with warnings always coming after an incident has already broken out, much like closing the barn door after the horse has bolted.

As far as the wormy oranges are concerned, if the local government had launched an investigation into local orange farms when maggots were first found in some of the orchids, the situation might have been different. They should have warned local farmers of this pending infection, and then actively prevented the affected oranges from hitting the market. This would have minimized farmers' losses.

The ineffective warning mechanism not only threatens consumers' health but also food producers' interests. The key, therefore, is to inform all concerned about problems before they happen.

Yanzhao Metropolis Daily

Pet Culling Barbaric

Recently, the government of Mile County in southwest China's Yunnan Province announced that all dogs and cats in the region were to be culled, and local residents who hid the animals would be fined. The campaign was launched after a rabies-caused death was reported. When the residents protested, local officials said that human lives are more precious than the lives of pets.

Some people always think they are free to do whatever they want to other forms of life. However, even from a humane perspective, nobody has the right to end a life that is not human. Every life has its own value. The relationship between two different species of life is not always that of an enemy, but rather in many cases that of a friend. Harmonious coexistence is critical to the survival of all species.

No one is happy to see their pets beaten to death. In many rural areas, dogs have become an important factor in ensuring safety. Besides, Chinese and U.S. veterinarians have announced that vaccinated dogs do not spread rabies. Why then are these dogs to be culled after vaccination?

Mile County is not the first to cull dogs because of risks of rabies outbreaks. Does the government have to take such barbarian actions against animals to protect mankind?

Beijing News

Consumption Needed

Given the current recessive real estate market, the Central Government has recently issued stimulus policies, in hopes of boosting the market demand. These policies include lowering down payment requirements and mortgage loan interest rates.

However, the gloomy market has resulted largely from the fact that current housing prices excessively outweigh ordinary Chinese people's purchasing power. The ratio of housing costs to average family income is about 30:1 in China, while the internationally recognized ratio is from 3:1 to 6:1.

The government's new policies undoubtedly mean to balance current house prices and people's actual purchasing power.

These policies may help to boost the property market to some extent. But in the long run, if housing prices remain high, they will still eat into the majority of a family's income and curb people's consumption for other commodities.

If the country really hopes to bring the national economy back on track, it's time to turn from the investment-driven growth model to a consumption-driven new one by squeezing out the big bubbles in China's property industry and further developing the social security system. This will result in people having enough money to spend on other items, which is crucial for increasing consumer spending and maintaining a sound economy.

China Securities Journal