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Perfection Pendinggo down to start
Welcome to Pleasantville
Where I just moved kinda reminds me of a modern day "Pleasantville". No traffic, perfectly pruned yards, even the strip malls seem clean. Everyone I met so far is super friendly, and the only thing offensive is the humidity. And yes, it is a bit… homogenous. I suppose that comes standard in a small Midwest town.
On Tuesday, Calvin started Pre-K at Pooh Bear Childcare. Yesterday, he started his tumbling class at The Little Gym. And he is IN LOVE. That boy thrives on social interaction far more than I ever did, craves it like candy. Sure, he can be shy to start, but he warms up fast and can turn into the class clown!
Thomas takes a nap shortly after we drop Calvin off at school, so that means FREE TIME for me! Two hours of uninterrupted bliss! I hope to spend a majority of that time getting back to what I love – web design – and blogging. I feel terrible about not posting as often as I should.
Lots has happened since my last post – moving to Wisconsin being a big one. But instead of trying (and failing) to remember it all, I will just recap the past month:
– On July 29th, I flew down to California with the boys. We spent the next three weeks visiting family and friends in SoCal, and getting ridiculously awesome tans.
– A highlight of our trip was going to Legoland, though I dare say Calvin had the most fun. Poor Thomas is just a "Hair" too short and too young for most of the attractions there. 😛
– We found friends quick when we moved here! The first Saturday, we were invited to a birthday party at Little Amerikka (ugh, I shudder to purposely misspell, but that is what it is called). It was like a giant carnival in the middle of nowhere – with a train:
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An ablution
Today was a bad day. We were at the church building for the last music makers class of the season (ever), when Calvin said he was thirsty. So we took a trip to the drinking fountain and gave each boy a turn. As I was lifting Calvin up to drink water, I heard Thomas scream. I looked down. His hand was covered with blood. I dropped Calvin, scooped Thomas up, and tried to stop the bleeding. I grabbed paper towels from the bathroom nearby. Covered his finger. It kept bleeding. The other moms in the nursery room helped as best they could. One brought a first aid kid and offered some band-aids. We finally got the bleeding under control. One mom assured me it wouldn't need stitches, just to keep it in bandages, and since it seemed to have stopped bleeding, I felt reassured.
As the day went on, Thomas' finger would occasionally start to bleed again. And each time, I would put a little pressure on it, add a new bandaid, and things would calm down. When Brian got home, he looked at it and at first thought it would be ok. But as I was giving Thomas his bath tonight, his finger started bleeding again. We looked closer and realized the cut was worse than we thought. More like filet of finger. Thomas had stuck his little pointer finger in the steel vent of the water fountain, and when he tried to remove it, cut it against the sharp edge of the vent. We decided to take him to the emergency room (urgent care was already closed), and the doctor said it was an ablution. I had to hold Thomas as the doctor pulled his cut apart to clean it. It broke my heart to hear him crying in pain. They glued his cut together and put a splint and gauze on it. Overall, he was such a brave little boy. Once we distracted him, he calmed down and even kept his hand still.
I know, I know… I have boys. These things will happen. But I hate to see my kids in pain and distress, to feel so helpless…
Categories: family
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Bloom Where You're Planted
So… I realize it has been far too long since I updated, and far too much has happened to give any in depth explanation. I apologize. But I will try to sum up as best I can all that's happened in the past few months:
– Brian's parents sold their house (they've lived in it about 40 years, so… yeah. Big deal)
– His parents also bought a new house, which they plan to move into at the beginning of July
– Brian extended his contract with Apex until July 17
– We moved into a new condo in Klahanie neighborhood, Issaquah
– ETC finally responded to Brian's job application – he passed the phone interview, had a (crazy) in person interview, and got offered the job
– Brian accepted the job, meaning we will need to move to Wisconsin in a few months
A while back, his mom shared some concerns she had about us moving to Issaquah. Brian made a very insightful comment: "Don't worry. We will bloom where we're planted"
I like that. Despite my reservations (believe me, there are many), I am reminded that we must choose to make the best of any situation. When we look for the best, we usually find it. The same can be said of the opposite. The first year we lived with Brian's parents was very hard for me. It wasn't the ideal situation to begin with, but my attitude just made things worse. Instead of focusing on our many blessings, I was frustrated. Brian and I hit a big pothole in our relationship about that time, and in the process of picking up the pieces, I had to change my perspective. I focused less on the minor annoyances in my day and tried to change what I still had control over – my attitude. Learning to be more positive helped mend my relationships and helped me reclaim the hope that circumstances would improve. And they did.
Now, I'll be honest. Moving to Madison, WI is not on my bucket list. In fact, I was a bit "chilly" to the idea from the start. But when Brian honestly asked me how I felt about it, I told him "It feels right". I know it is his dream job, and I would hate to force him to make a choice he would later regret. All my reservations are really quite petty, and based on ignorance. And I do not function well with ignorance. As I'm "doing my homework", I feel calmer about the decision and constantly remind myself of Brian's quote.
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Hair Family Annual Report for 2014
Hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas and Happy New Year's! As per usual, the holidays flew past – too much to do, and not enough time to do it. This past year has been quite a challenging year for our family.
Top 5 Highlights
- Thomas was born on March 18th – and he has already taken his first steps at 9 months! Precocious (and precious) little one
- Brian started and finished his internship with Pivotstream. Now, on to the arduous task of finding a job…
- We got rear ended just a few weeks ago and had to take our dear "Red" (as Calvin calls it) to the shop. Fortunately, we all walked away without an injury.
- In October, Calvin fractured the tip of his thumb – he got it stuck in the hinge of the car door as it was closing (ouch!) and we had a harrowing trip to the emergency room. So grateful for their service and for Calvin's recovery though!
- In July, we went to see Thomas the tank engine at the Snoqualmie Railway Museum. We got to meet Thomas the train and even ride him past the waterfalls!
We drove down to Portland for Christmas and spent the day at my mom's. It was fun to see everyone, but exhausting – driving six hours with two small children usually is! And we all caught a cold shortly afterward. Yay.
Brian is working hard to apply for a job now, so we are all hopeful that 2015 will be the year we find our own home and settle down as a family. We are so grateful for Brian's parents and all the assistance we've received this past year. We love our family so much!
For more family photos, click here
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I don't want to get lost
I love watching Calvin as he grows older and develops his own unique personality. Most 3 year olds always ask "Why???" But not Calvin. Instead, he is constantly asking, "How does this work?" And often finding out for himself by taking things apart, or using them in unusual ways. But he has grown much more mindful, and will ask if he can do something first.
I try to explain as much as I can, or admit I don't know. If it's safe to explore, I encourage him to find out. If not, I explain why.
Tonight, as we walked home from the playground, I explained to Calvin that he had to hold on to the stroller as we walked so he wouldn't get lost. He did, except at one point when we approached a big excavator truck. He loves trucks, and got so excited that he started to run ahead. But then he stopped, turned and ran back to the stroller. Grasping the handle, he said to me, "Mom, I don't want to get lost."
So he really does listen and understand… Sure, he shows defiance at times, but he is one smart cookie.
Categories: Everyday Adventures, Quick Updates
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Pirate Boot Camp
Stop yer pillaging
and lend me an ear
I have a message for ye to hear!
If ye want to be a pirate,
ye must pass my test
And yes, if ye be wonderin',
at the end is a treasure chest!
The message above was the start of a three day boot camp for pirates. The idea came to me late Saturday night, when I learned that we would be watching my nephews for three days this week. My nephew Bryce loves pirates, so naturally, I made that the theme of all the games we played. Man Overboard, Walk the Plank and Cannonball Attack were just a few of the games that were part of the boot camp. I wanted to take photos, but when I asked Bryce if I could, he simply said "No, we don't need pictures. I'll remember this forever." I guess it was a hit
We tried to include Calvin in the games as well, though some had to be scaled down to a three year old's level. Sometimes I forget he is only three – he is such an articulate, precocious kid. He has this uncanny ability to stay happy, even when his cousin is brooding or annoyed. He's like a spirited little puppy nipping at your ankles, always eager to play. Thomas is such a calm and easygoing baby too – patiently playing on the floor or chilling in the carrier as we ran around playing the games. The only time he's ever a bit grumpy is when he's in pain from teething or super tired. I feel kinda spoiled by his sleeping habits, really.
Speaking of Thomas, I really want to make sure I jot down some changes since my last post. At 3 months, he got his first two teeth on the bottom. Now, at nearly 5 months, his top two are breaking through as well. And his hair is growing an amazing shade of light auburn. It's still very fine in texture (unlike Calvin's) but there is more of it. Oh, and he can sit up with assistance now – and he loves to bounce! (Also with assistance, of course)
Here are some random photos of recent adventures:
In July, we went to "A Day Out with Thomas the Train" over in Snoqualmie. Highlight of Calvin's week, month, possibly life.
On August 3rd, Thomas was given a baby blessing at our church. A few family members from Brian's side made it as well, and we all gathered at his grandparents' house afterward.
This moment was too cute not to capture. Calvin loves to do everything Daddy does.
The most recent photo of Calvin and Thomas playing with playdough. Thomas is a sneaky little baby too – managed to grab a fistful of dough and tried to eat it before I could even blink!
Categories: Everyday Adventures, Quick Updates
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Bedtime for the Boys
I am so grateful to Brian for helping with bedtime – our current sleeping situation is admittedly a bit different from the "norm", but it is what works for now. For those who don't know (which would pretty much be everyone except Brian's parents, maybe even them?), Brian sleeps with Calvin in his old bedroom that has the full bed, while I sleep with Thomas in the smaller bedroom. Not out of any sort of marital strife or relationship type issues – it's just that the two boys have to sleep in separate rooms (for Thomas's sake and safety really, Calvin loves him a bit too rough). Both rooms are too small to fit a crib, and I really prefer co-sleeping with baby for the first few months anyway. I enjoy my sleep far too much
So for now, Brian tends to lead Calvin along the bedtime routine – brushing teeth, changing diaper, reading, rough housing and finally (eventually) sleeping. In the past, I have tried to put Calvin to bed while holding Thomas, but it proved far too stressful. It's pretty much impossible for Calvin to settle down when Thomas is within poking distance.
Brian is currently working at one job during the day and his internship later on towards evening, so bedtime is about the only solid block of time Calvin gets to see daddy. And he loves his daddy so. Just today, when Brian had to leave to help a ward member with tech questions, Calvin ran after him crying, "Daddy, don't leave!" Then with teary eyes, "I miss daddy."
Getting Thomas to sleep is far simpler – and currently something only I can do anyway, for the moment at least. I've noticed every baby has its own rhythm or schedule that starts to form around 3 months. Up until that point, they sleep so much, it's a bit harder to gauge. But I am noticing that Thomas gets sleepy around the same times – 9:30 for a short morning nap, then 12:30 or 1 for afternoon, then another short nap later towards 6 or so. He fusses a lot in the evenings just before going down to sleep, but usually a good feeding will cure that. He is the best little sleeper ever – and I'm so grateful for that! Sometimes I have to wake him a bit to change his diaper in the middle of the night – but otherwise he would sleep straight through til 7 am!
Oh, and totally off topic but too cute not to share:
Calvin has just recently discovered that stickers are fun
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A Season of Changes
I feel terrible about my lack of updates on here, and my general vagueness when I do post anything, so I'm going to make an effort to be a little more forthright from now on. There's no doubt in my mind that these past few months have been an important "hinge" in my life, as well as a time of preparation and of changes for my family. For that reason, I will try and summarize as best I can what's been going on these past few months.
At the end of August, we moved from Rexburg to Bellevue temporarily, to stay with Brian's parents while he searched for an internship. (As a side note, I just recently found out that he has until June 9th to secure an internship and get all the paperwork/registration completed. If I had known that six months ago, maybe I would have been less stressed out… or not. Oh well.) At first, I thought it would be for just a few weeks. Never imagined it would last beyond Christmas. I did have a strong suspicion that I might be pregnant at the time, but it wasn't until I was 12 weeks along (September) that I officially took a pregnancy test and confirmation. So finding out we were expecting along with the whole adjustment of moving was quite a challenge – emotionally and physically. I'm very much independent and like to be self-reliant, so it is humbling to have to rely so heavily on others for so much.
I know it's taken a toll on Brian as well, though I can only speak from observation and what he has told me. Toward the end of November, he was able to start working for an old boss – a "temporary" job that continues to this day. He does pretty much anything and everything his boss needs – "catch" shirts, serve as courier, handyman, etc. Meanwhile, the internship search continues. It has been a huge trial of faith for both of us – applying and waiting and waiting some more, hopefully soon an answer of some sort will come.
I have slowly adjusted to life here, reconnecting with old friends and making new ones. Calvin and I attend music maker classes on a somewhat weekly basis. I had little Thomas on March 18th, and feel so blessed to be entrusted with such a precious little spirit. I love watching how affectionate Calvin is with his new little brother, even though he still needs to learn to be a bit more gentle at times.
Little Thomas has had a small bit of medical issues already – he was born with hydrocele where his umbilical stump was and a cyst down below… the pediatrician assured us that both are benign, nothing to really be concerned about, so that is a relief. We just have to watch him over the next few months.
Since having a baby, I've tried to limit work stresses as much as possible; I stopped working at LWD, where I was a "mentor" for web design students – basically answering emails and providing technical support. I may pick up the odd job on occasion, but I would rather focus on my kids right now.
… Aaand Thomas is fussing, so I will wrap this post up. Probably should anyway, I've rambled on long enough
Here is a link to photos of baby Thomas: https://plus.google.com/photos/106617262831750383621/albums/5995623976136050865
Categories: Blah blah blah, Everyday Adventures
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Enduring to the End
Now that I finally have my hands free (thank you mei tei wrap!) and a few minutes to breathe, I thought I'd share a condensed version of Thomas' arrival into the world and some lessons I've learned as well. Now that I've given birth twice, I can't help but compare the experiences, and marvel at the comparative ease of my first. Oh, and by the way – anyone who dares say the second labor is faster or easier is LYING!! It really irks me to hear that now, since my experience was the exact opposite.
Maybe it is a bit unfair to compare the two – since it seems memory gets so fuzzy with time. But I'm quite certain with Calvin, the labor experience actually got more bearable over time. I never even experienced that famous "ring of fire" or panic-stricken transition that so many moms describe. (Bear in mind, these are experiences of other moms who chose unmedicated labor. Obviously those wouldn't apply to moms who had an epidural or c-section, since they would be numb at that point anyway).
This time around, I feel like I had the full classic labor experience – and all the pain other moms so readily tell you about. I'm sure my attitude at the time didn't help – I was, shall we say, just a tad bit frustrated and impatient – being anemic probably didn't help much either. It really is walking through the valley of the shadow of death, and the miracle of it all is, you don't just survive, you get the most awesome little bundle of joy as a prize.
I chose a birth center this time around as well, which is probably the only reason I was able to go drug-free at all. To be completely honest, I was sooo wanting an epidural as I headed to the birth center, totally exhausted and ready to give up. But that wasn't an option – not even discussed – and instead the midwives calmly led me through different birthing options, then finally into the tub. I was skeptical about the tub beforehand, but at that point, I felt far too tired to put up any fight. And no, it is not the midwives' epidural – at least, it didn't feel that way to me. But in the end, I ended up delivering Thomas in the tub – a waterbirth – which is nowhere near as clean as it sounds!
It's kind of ironic how so many people have commented about my quick recovery, trying to praise me for bouncing back so quickly. I may be walking around and going places, but mentally I feel whipped. The whole experience really humbled me, and I feel like my admiration for mothers (in general) has expanded so much more. The one tiny thread I clung to as I had to push was the thought that this pain couldn't last forever – there had to be an end, and I was going to get through it. And really, if the human (female) body can endure that much, we really are more powerful than we give ourselves credit for.
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Our newest bundle of joy
Born March 18, 2014 @ 7:17am, 8 lbs 5.5 oz, 20″ tall
Clues to his name:
– named after my very great grandparent who was martyred at Haun's Mill
– also happens to have ties with other family members on both sides
– shares the same name as one of Calvin's favorite characters
– and even shares a name with Hobbes… Sort of
Can you guess what it is?
Categories: Blah blah blah


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Awards Season
AFI Awards 2012 Film Submission Deadline
- Summary
- Reviews / Ratings
- Photos
- Videos
- Events
In just over a month (on December 10th), the American Film Institute will be announcing who is going to be honored, and the awards will take place on January 11th. Today though, following last week's television submission deadline, we hit the film submission deadline.
More Details
Released - Thursday, November 1 , 2012
Official Website
Official Website

subset: commoncrawl


text:
Upstate News
April 23, 2000
Doretta Royer 315 464-4833
Doretta Royer 315 464-4833
University Hospital offers new non-invasive technique to detect recurrent tumors at their cellular level
A non-invasive imaging technique used to find recurrent tumors at their cellular level, is now available to select patients at University Hospital of SUNY Upstate Medical University.
The use of the technique, especially for certain types of cancer, has demonstrated to be superior to other diagnostic tools in detecting primary and recurrent disease as well as local, regional and distant metastases within the human body. Ultimately, its use can spare some patients unnecessary surgery, provide more targeted therapies to others, or help physicians to better determine the proper course of management for certain diseases.
Search Upstate News
Upstate in the News
- New York Teen Donates Kidney to Younger Brother: 'This Was My Chance to Save Him'
- Syracuse teen receives kidney transplant from older brother
WTVH CBS5 Syracuse
- Inside the Mind of the Munich Mass Killer
Psychology Today
- How 'Determined Danielle' became president of Upstate Medical University
Syracuse Post Standard
- BRCA Gene Mutations May Influence Prostate Cancer Risk
Renal and Urology News
- Upstate Medical to use nearly $200,000 in NSF funding to fight Zika virus
Central New York Business Journal


text:
Company Overview of Nakina Systems Inc.
Company Overview
80 Hines Road
Suite 200
Ottawa, ON K2K 2T8
Founded in 2001
Key Executives for Nakina Systems Inc.
Nakina Systems Inc. Key Developments
Nakina announced enhancements to its award-winning cybersecurity solution. NI-DEFENDER combines identity access, configuration management and analytics. It allows service providers to prevent, pin-point, and neutralize network security threats. New enhancements include security policy orchestration across physical and virtual, multi-vendor and multi-technology networks, enhanced analytics, trending and reporting. Automated identity access and configuration management improves network security, accelerates detection and remediation of vulnerabilities, and proactively pin-points misconfigured or compromised network assets. The solution enables Chief Information Security Officers (CISOs) and network security operations teams to proactively audit, visualize, and assure the security integrity of network resources.
Nakina announced NI-DEFENDER a new class of network security solution called a Secure Network Auditing platform. It is the industry's only solution focused on the unique needs of service providers operating complex, multi-technology, heterogeneous networks. NI-DEFENDER combines Identity Access Management, continuous network configuration scanning, adding big data search and analytics technology to enable network and security operations teams to prevent, pin-point, and neutralize security threats. Also announced is NI-CREATOR, a collaboration application to discover and compile service and network configuration templates used by Nakina's network integrity applications including NI-DEFENDER. NI-DEFENDER leverages Nakina's customer-proven, market leading network integrity applications and orchestration enablement platform to secure any physical or virtual network - whether legacy or next generation technologies from IT servers and infrastructure to applications and user interfaces – and is cloud-ready. Available later this year, Nakina is already working with a number of leading service providers who plan to implement NI-DEFENDER.
Nakina announced that Turk Telekom is implementing Nakina's Automated Network and Service Discovery and Reconciliation solution, part of the company's management and orchestration enablement portfolio. Nakina provides network-wide data inventory discovery across Turk Telekom's multi-vendor, multi-technology network. Using Nakina, Turk Telekom anticipates improved management and orchestration efficiencies that will save the operator approximately $25 million over 5 years. Nakina's NI-COLLECTOR discovers and corrects inventory data discrepancies. NI-COLLECTOR accelerates time to revenue for new services by increasing automated provisioning success rates. It delivers proven operational process efficiency improvements, delivering an immediate return-on-investment. NI-COLLECTOR is part of Nakina's suite of orchestratable network integrity applications used by service providers to manage and secure multi-vendor, multi-technology physical and virtual networks.
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text:
I'm looking for as accurate distances as possible, "as the eagle flies," between four distant locations in Middle-earth. Any four locations will do, as long as they are very far apart (at least a few hundred miles) and small enough to provide unambiguous reference points (i.e. no forrests nor seas, but possibly mountains). It is important for my purpose that I get straight-shot distances, NOT winding-road distances. I found some example distances, but I question their legitimacy. I am also disappointed with my result from using the following distances, and I suspect that they are in fact contrived. Can anyone at least verify the following numbers:
from Hobbiton to Erebor: 813 miles
from Hobbiton to Dagorlad: 960 miles
from Hobbiton to The City of the Corsairs: 1112 miles
from Erebor to Dagorlad: 735 miles
from Erebor to The City of the Corsairs: 1498 miles
from Dagorlad to The City of the Corsairs: 780 miles


text:
Hello, just wondering if there are any plans on adding some way to reorder multiple field sets?
If I have a field set that consists of a file upload and a text box, and it has a 'multiple = true' setting. After I've clicked the 'Add New' button and added a few of these fields, is there any way to reorder them?


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Friday, January 16, 2015
More obstacles for Chinese lawyers
It may seem incredible, but apparently the authorities believe that the rights of Chinese lawyers need to be even further restricted. Thanks to Joshua Rosenzweig for his translation of, and commentary on, an open letter signed by more than 500 Chinese lawyers in opposition to proposed changes to the Criminal Law that would criminalize such acts as "insulting, defaming, or threatening a judicial officer or participant to the litigation after being told by the court to stop" and "engaging in other acts that seriously disrupt the order of the court."
January 16, 2015 in Commentary, News - Chinese Law | Permalink | Comments (0)
Sunday, December 7, 2014
China bans puns
Displaying a level of control freakery that probably reminds many women of their f'irst husband, the Chinese government has banned puns. I am not making this up. Here are some reports:
- "Punning banned in China" (Language Log)
- "No laughing matter: China's media regulators ban puns" (L.A. Times)
- "Chinese Government Moves To Crack Down On Puns" (The Guardian)
- "Nowhere to Pun Amid China Crackdown" (WSJ China RealTime Report)
- "Like a pun in a China shop" (Chicago Tribune) (weird humorless headline that contains no pun and uses an old expression apparently only because it contains the word "China" in it)
The Language Log blog has posted a translation by David Moser of the relevant document from the State Administration of Press, Publication, Radio, Film, and Television, whose acronym sounds like flatulence in a Don Martin cartoon.
December 7, 2014 in Commentary, News - Chinese Law | Permalink | Comments (2)
Saturday, December 6, 2014
China sets forth its position in the South China Sea dispute with the Philippines
China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs has issued a very legalistic position paper, thankfully short of the usual bluster, setting forth its position on the UNCLOS arbitration brought by the Philippines. Here it is, along with some accompanying documents:
- Position Paper of the Government of the People's Republic of China on the Matter of Jurisdiction in the South China Sea Arbitration Initiated by the Republic of the Philippines (English | Chinese)
- Summary of the Position Paper of the Government of the People's Republic of China on the Matter of Jurisdiction in the South China Sea Arbitration Initiated by the Republic of the)Philippines (English | Chinese)
- Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the People's Republic of China Is Authorized to Release the Position Paper of the Government of the People's Republic of China on the Matter of Jurisdiction in the South China Sea Arbitration Initiated by the Republic of the Philippines (English only)
- Remarks by Mr. Xu Hong, Director-General of the Department of Treaty and Law of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, on the Position Paper of the Government of the People's Republic of China on the Matter of Jurisdiction in the South China Sea Arbitration Initiated by the Republic of the Philippines (English | Chinese)
And in case anyone was wondering, here's the US government's recently released position, dated Dec. 5, 2014.
The language of the English version of the Chinese position paper is quite sophisticated; this does not read like a document that was composed in Chinese and then translated into English. It seems to represent China's way of responding to the arbitration proceeding in substance without formally doing so.
December 6, 2014 in News - Chinese Law, News - Miscellaneous, Publications | Permalink | Comments (0)
Wednesday, October 29, 2014
Annotated version of the Fourth Plenum decision (add your own!)
The Fourth Plenum's Decision is now available on the Law Genius site in annotatable form in both English (translation courtesy of Rogier Creemers and Jeremy Daum) and Chinese. I've already added annotations to the English text.
By way of explanation, genius.com is a site that crowd-sources knowledge by allowing texts of various kinds to be annotated. (It started as a site for annotating rap lyrics – go figure.) It has various sub-sites: Law Genius, Rap Genius, Poetry Genius, etc. – you get the idea. (Full disclosure: I know about it because my daughter runs the Law Genius site.)
I encourage anyone who might like to annotate the Decision to check out the site and add your wisdom. The annotating function is pretty intuitive: just highlight the text you want to annotate and then move your cursor over into the blank space on the right. An annotation box will appear. For tips on how to format your annotations (add italics, links, etc.), see this page.
October 29, 2014 in Commentary, News - Chinese Law | Permalink | Comments (0)
The Fourth Plenum's "Decision": my take
The text of the decision passed by the Fourth Plenum on Oct. 23rd, entitled "Decision on Several Important Issues Regarding the All-Around Promotion of Ruling the State According to Law," has finally been released [Chinese | English]. As expected, it offers more detail than did the Communiqué released earlier, but I don't see anything here that would require a fundamental revision of the preliminary assessments that observers (including me) made after reading the Communiqué. Even though those assessments were varied, my sense is that whatever you thought the Communiqué indicated, your opinion will be reinforced, or at least not overturned, by your reading of the Decision.
The big-picture summary is that the Decision contemplates no fundamental reform in the relationship between the legal system and the Party. It is clear that institutionally speaking, the Party will remain above the law. At the same time, the Decision does contemplate some genuinely meaningful (and in my opinion positive) reforms. It also has a lot of stuff that might look meaningful but isn't. I'll explain below. Please note that I wrote this under a lot of time pressure, so it is not as well organized as it might be. Conclusions are tentative.
1. Party first, law second
My impression (which I have not taken the time to verify) is that whenever the Party and the law appear in the same sentence, the Party comes first. Certainly it comes first in some important places.
(a) Section 1 of the Decision lists several important principles that must be upheld in order to achieve the goal of ruling the state according to law. The first: leadership of the Party.
(b) Section 6 states that judges should be loyal to four things: the Party, the state, the people, and the law. Notice which comes last. Grammatically speaking, of course, there is no reason why this sentence could not be interpreted as giving all elements equal value; in any list, something has to come first. But we know that in a document like this, nothing – not even a comma – is accidental. The elements of this list come in the order they do for a reason.
(c ) The "Three Supremes" (三个至上) long associated with former Supreme People's Court president Wang Shengjun (a man on whose CV not a single day of legal education appears), are resurrected in the same section. Legal system personnel should give highest priority to the cause of the Party, the interests of the people, and the constitution and laws – again, listed in that order. Lawyers must support the Party's leadership and party cells in law firms should step up their activities.
In addition, obedience of officials to law is presented throughout as a kind of internal Party policy goal: this is something that Party members should do, and officials will even be scored on it (Section 7, Subsection 3). Those who have a "special privilege" mentality will be criticized and educated, and if necessary removed from office. But because the Decision contemplates no changes in the relationship between the legal system and the Party, the system in which powerful officials can override law if they wish to remains comfortably in place. The Decision just wants them to wish to override it less often.
2. Meaningful reforms: major
(a) The Decision calls for some significant reforms in the system for managing judges.
(i) First, it says that judicial tenure should be protected; judges should be removed from their posts only for legal reasons and in accordance with legal procedures. It's hard to know exactly what this means; at present, as a formal matter, local people's congresses have the right to appoint senior judges in a court, and there's nothing in the law to suggest they can't replace them as they please. In any case, no more detail is provided, so we'll put this aside for now.
(ii) A very important reform in my view is the proposal (Section 6, Subsection 1) to establish essentially a career civil-service model for the judiciary. Junior judges should be selected by provincial-level courts and should start their careers in basic-level courts. They will then be promoted to higher-level courts based on their ability. The Decision does not actually specify who will do the promoting, although it would make sense for this power to be in the hands of the provincial-level courts as well. The same principle applies to procurators. This reform is significant precisely because such a model does not exist now. Courts are still making their way out of the work-unit (单位 danwei) model. The main (or at least, an important) way to become a senior judge at a high-level court is to start out as a junior judge at a high-level court – presumably by graduating with excellent grades from a famous law school. There is not now a good system for identifying promising judges at lower levels and promoting them to different courts at higher levels.
(b) The Decision also calls for some significant reforms in the court system, both apparently designed to address the problem of local protectionism. Because courts at a given administrative level are in practice answerable to local political authority at that level (which has power over appointments and finances), they tend to protect any party that local political authority wants to protect – for example, prominent local businesses. The Chinese legal community has long viewed this as a problem and proposed various ways of addressing it.
(i) The Supreme People's Court is to establish "circuit tribunals" (巡回法庭 xunhui fating) each with jurisdiction over several provinces, to try cases involving more than one province. Note that this proposal does not involve setting up another layer of courts. The institutions in question are tribunals, meaning they are simply branches of the SPC. A decision of such a tribunal would be a decision of the SPC. A model for this currently exists in basic-level people's courts, which can establish "people's tribunals" (人民法庭 renmin fating) that exist in, or travel to, areas physically distant from the court's location. The decisions of such tribunals are decisions of the court itself.
(ii) There is another, different proposal to establish another layer of courts that will cross jurisdictional boundaries, again to try cases that are in some sense cross-jurisdictional. Such a proposal would require legislative and possibly constitutional amendments. The Decision gives it only a sentence, so we know basically nothing about how this proposal might be carried out.
Note that in both cases, the institutions involved (whether tribunal or court) are intended to hear only a particular kind of case: cross-jurisdictional cases. They do not appear intended to solve in a general way the problem caused by the dependence of courts on political power at the same administrative level.
3. Meaningful reforms: minor
(a) The Decision calls for breaking the link between amounts received by a government agency in fines and confiscations and that agency's (or, presumably, its officials') interests. The reasons for (and merit of) this are obvious. In fact, it's a reform that has already been carried out, at least to some degree, in a number of sectors. (I just wish the U.S. government would adopt the same principle in its civil forfeiture laws.)
(b) The Decision calls for control over personnel and finances of state auditing organs to be centralized up to the provincial level. This is presumably to provide auditing bodies with more independence from local officials, who might pressure them to look the other way during their investigations.
(c) The Decision calls for reforms in the case docketing (立案 li'an) system. Any court system needs a gate-keeping procedure to weed out non-meritorious suits before they get very far. The problem with China's current system is that in practice, courts can avoid hearing troublesome cases (for example, cases where no matter what they do they'll be criticized) by simply refusing to docket them (i.e., refusing to accept the case filing). While such a refusal can be appealed, courts can get around this by simply refusing to refuse; they don't issue a decision rejecting the filing, but instead just do nothing. The Decision calls for reforming this by (it seems) removing the discretion of courts to refuse cases. Instead of a system where courts can review filings for docketability (and thus have the power to reject the filings), we will get a system of "case registration" (立案登记制 li'an dengji zhi). But if so, the system will still have to come up with some way of filtering out frivolous and otherwise utterly no-hope cases without having to do a proper hearing on the merits.
(d) The Decision has some welcome language on civil rights. It specifies the principle of the presumption of innocence (疑罪从无 yi zui cong wu: literally, something like "when there is doubt about the crime, err on the side of finding no crime"). It also endorses the principle of exclusion of unlawfully gathered evidence. I put both these items in the "meaningful but minor" category because I don't want to say they're meaningless, but at the same time we have heard this before and problems persist.
(e) The Decision endorses an Anglo-American type jury! At present, China has a system of so-called "people's assessors" (人民陪审员 renmin peishenyuan): lay people who in certain cases sit alongside judges and have (in theory, although of course not in practice) exactly equivalent decision-making power over the case. It's just a vote at the end. Thus, it's not appropriate to call them a jury, even if they functioned exactly as they are supposed to in theory, instead of (as seems to be the case in practice) as decorative extras. But the Decision calls for the gradual implementation of a system whereby assessors will decide only issues of fact (did A actually call B a stinker?), not issues of law (assuming A called B a stinker, is B entitled to damages for hurt feelings?). This is exactly how the Anglo-American jury is supposed to function.
I group this with the minor reforms because although it would be major if actually implemented, I'm not confident that it will get very far. I should also say that it's not unambiguously positive. Just because it resembles the Anglo-American jury doesn't automatically mean it's a great thing. I'm undecided on this one.
3. Meaningless feel-good language
The Decision gives a shout-out to innumerable Good Things, from constraining state power to increasing legal aid. Typically, it calls for strengthening or increasing something that is already there. Consider how often the following verbs appear:
No. of occurrences
jiaqiang (加强strengthen)
jianquan (健全 strengthen)
wanshan (完善 perfect)
tigao (提高 raise or increase)
It would be otiose to go through them all. I would instead propose that the burden be on those who assert in any particular case that this language means something to point to the specific institutional reform that accompanies it. If there is none, then we can only wait and see. Talk is cheap. Something may come of the promise and something may not. Here are a few examples.
(a) The Decision calls for strengthening the system of constitutional review of legislation. There is such a system in place now, but it appears to be utterly non-functional. The Decision does not propose a fundamentally different way of ensuring that legislation and government actions conform to the constitution. It essentially calls for maintaining the current system of (potential) top-down review, but doing it better.
(b) The Decision makes a bow to the concept of limited government in several places, but typically only in general terms. The institutional changes that would actually accomplish this do not appear. An important principle is declared in Section 3, Subsection 1: administrative organs cannot act without specific legislatively delegated authority. This seems pretty good, and in general might be laudable, except that it is profoundly unrealistic. Emergencies happen. It might be better to establish the principle that administrative organs must act within certain bounds or according to certain principles (set forth, for example, in the constitution or a statute). Here as elsewhere, we see the idea that while the actions of state officials need to be controlled, that control should be internal to the system and not achieved through external constraints.
(c) The Decision denounces attempts by leading officials to interfere with court cases, and calls for the establishment of a system for keeping track of such attempts. But the same system of incentives that now makes judges responsive to such attempts is going to make them reluctant to record and report on them. Moreover, the same Decision elsewhere (Section 7, Subsection 1) stresses the importance of the Legal-Political Committee, a Party body that exists at various administrative levels, and calls for the Party organization in political-legal bodies (which includes courts) to report important matters to the local Party committee. Given what we know about how China operates now, I think it's fair to ask for very, very strong evidence before believing that powerful officials will no longer be able to interfere in cases that interest them. Does anyone really believe that Bo Xilai's case was decided solely by the judges who presided at the trial, or that Zhou Yongkang's case will not be decided by the Standing Committee of the Politburo?
4. Dogs that didn't bark
Curiously unmentioned in both the Communiqué and the Decision is an important reform mooted at last year's Third Plenum: the centralization up to the provincial level of court finances and personnel appointments. This reform, designed to counter local protectionism, is apparently already being tried out on a pilot basis in Shanghai and perhaps other places. It's odd not to see it mentioned here. [UPDATE, Oct. 29, 5:30 pm EDT: This reform is popular among legal academics but controversial among judges. There are at least two reasons for this. First, judges fear that a more hierarchical system of authority in general will increase the power of court leaders over them. Second, judges in prosperous areas fear that putting court finances under a higher adminstrative authority (i.e., the province) will mean a unified salary scale for all judges under that authority. Judges in poor areas might get more, but judges in rich areas will get less. Or so they fear. In any case, the absence of language about this may well be evidence that this reform has stalled.]
A welcome (to me) absence in the Decision is language downplaying legal professionalism and touting closeness to the masses, praising the Ma Xiwu adjudication style, etc. We have seen a lot of this language in recent years (for a thorough analysis, see Carl Minzner's "China's Turn Against Law" and Ben Liebman's "A Return to Populist Legality? Historical Legacies and Legal Reform"), so it's a bit surprising not to see it here. There is a moderately troubling line endorsing the move of "qualified" military officials into the ranks of legal system personnel; it doesn't exactly support the much-criticized practice of retired military officers simply donning judicial robes, but the drafters of the Decision cannot have been unaware of this background.
[UPDATE, Oct. 29, 3 p.m. EDT: It occurs to me that this fits well into a professionalization model, but not very well into the story of deprofessionalization, populism, and China-turns-against-law that we see in the work of Carl Minzner and Ben Liebman (a story that I generally agree with). In addition, it suggests a greater role for court decisions as sources of legal authority and not just one-off judgments as between two disputing parties. If a court decision is just a one-off judgment unrelated to anything else the legal system does, then it doesn't much matter if untrained lay people decide legal questions as well as factual ones. But if a court decision constitutes legal authority to any degree, then you want to control who's making that decision and how they make it. This reform, if carried out, makes it more possible for court decisions to have precedential value.]
5. Objectionable items
While I am disappointed (but not surprised) at the continued invocation of the need for the Party to control everything, many and perhaps most of the specific reforms endorsed in the Decision are positive. But not all. Take the problem of judges being too responsive to media pressure. This is a real problem: sometimes the media will take a particular view of a case, and the actual facts get completely lost in the dominant narrative. But why do judges feel pressure to satisfy the media? The media does not pay their salaries; the public doesn't even know their names. The reason is institutional: they are getting phone calls from their political superiors, who are getting phone calls from their political superiors, and everyone is barking, "What the hell is going on down there in your jurisdiction? Make this fuss go away!" Chinese officials lose favor in the eyes of their superiors when there's a commotion in their jurisdiction; the superiors don't care about the merits. But instead of addressing this problem, the Decision takes the easy way out: let's control media reporting (Section 4, Subsection 6).
This policy has to be seen in the context of recent rules severely restricting the ability of lawyers to comment on cases they are handling; it's part and parcel of a general crackdown on information regarding court cases. Since getting your case into court was one of the few ways remaining for marginalized people to have a legitimate way of getting press coverage (the press can't report on a demonstration, for example, but can report on a court case), the policy represents a further closing, not an opening.
October 29, 2014 in Commentary, News - Chinese Law | Permalink | Comments (2)
Sunday, October 26, 2014
The Chinese Legal Documents Series
The International Society for Chinese Law & History has a feature on its (terrific) website called the Chinese Legal Documents Series. Here's what it's all about:
This special series invites researchers to introduce a document from their own collections, provide a translation, and discuss what these texts might be used to study. Our goal is to showcase the research of members, offer a small corpus of legal texts for the training of students, and give readers a wide view of what the study of Chinese legal history looks like.
An introduction to the series, as well as the first post in it, are here.
October 26, 2014 in Commentary, News - Chinese Law, News - Miscellaneous, People and Institutions | Permalink | Comments (0)
Friday, October 3, 2014
Budget Law revisions tighten, not loosen, central government's control over local government bond issues
Recent amendments to the Budget Law have been reported as liberalizing the regime for local government bond issuance, but it doesn't look that way to me.
For a long time, local governments in China have generally not been allowed to issue bonds. In order to finance projects such as infrastructure construction, therefore, they have turned to what are called local government financing vehicles (LGFVs): companies established and wholly owned by local governments that raise money through bank loans and bond issues. These LGFVs have some serious debt problems, as has been noted in many places, and those debt problems are generally viewed as local government debt even though local governments are typically not on the hook as a legal matter.
Many have proposed that local governments should be allowed to issue bonds directly, and that letting them do so would somehow alleviate the problems of LGFV debt. It has never been clear to me exactly why this should be so—infrastructure projects that don't pay off when financed through LGFVs are not going to be more profitable when financed through direct local government bond issues—but that's tangential to the purpose of this post, which is to discuss recent relevant amendments to the Budget Law regarding local government bonds.
The 1994 Budget Law (Art. 28) stated clearly that local governments could not issue bonds unless there was a statute or State Council rule stating otherwise. No statute ever gave this permission. Only in 2011 did the State Council first provide the explicit permission required by law for four local governments (Shanghai, Zhejiang, Guangdong, and Shenzhen) to issue bonds directly, and in 2013 the provincial governments of Shandong and Jiangsu were granted permission to issue bonds.
The Budget Law was revised on Aug. 31, 2014, with the revisions to be effective on Jan. 1, 2015. The revisions relating to local government bonds (now in Article 35) have been reported as liberalizing the rules. For example, a Bloomberg report is headlined, "China to allow local governments to sell bonds directly." The rating agency Fitch welcomed the amendments as "formalising long-running proposals to enable local governments to issue debt directly for the first time."
But how much have things really changed?
Under the previous Budget Law, local governments at any level could not issue bonds unless explicitly authorized by statute or by the State Council. Under the revised Budget Law, that condition is still in place. Bonds may be issued only by local governments authorized by the State Council. In fact, the revisions tighten the conditions in two ways: first, only local governments at the provincial level may issue bonds. Second, bond issues may be used only to finance public utility projects and not to finance commercial projects; neither limitation was in the original Budget Law.
In short, the revisions don't allow local governments to do something they could not do before. State Council permission is still required, and in fact the terms upon which the State Council may grant permission have been tightened, not loosened.
UPDATE, Oct. 4, 2014: It occurs to me that I should add a clarification here: tightened standards don't necessarily mean few or no local government bond issues. Very possibly the revisions and the publicity around them are a sign that the State Council intends to change its cautious approach and grant permission liberally. But it's still up to the State Council's discretion, as before, and indeed the State Council has lost the discretion it had before the revisions to allow cities (such as Shenzhen) to issue bonds.
October 3, 2014 in Commentary, News - Chinese Law | Permalink | Comments (0)
Friday, August 8, 2014
Weibo transcript of Peter Humphrey trial
British corporate investigator Peter Humphrey and his wife and business partner Yu Yingzeng were sentenced on August 8th to 30 months and two years in prison respectively on charges of illegally obtaining personal information about Chinese citizens. I hope to have some commentary up shortly, but first I want to read the trial transcript, which was posted by the Shanghai No. 1 Intermediate People's Court on its Weibo site. I've collected all 31 entries (they are graphic files in jpg and png format) and put them in a zip file, available here.
August 8, 2014 in Commentary, News - Chinese Law | Permalink | Comments (2)
Sunday, July 6, 2014
Controversy over elder law in China
Those who are interested in elder law might be interested in a debate now going on in China over some draft legislation proposed in Shandong. According to the legislation, those who have a duty to support the aged (i.e., the children) must maintain their parents' standard of living at a level at least equal to their own, and they are not allowed to seek property from their parents on the grounds of being unemployed, etc. (有独立生活能力的成年子女要求老年人经济资助的,老年人有权拒绝。成年子女或者其他亲属不得以无业或者其他理由索取老年人的财物。) Yes, the last bit is as vague as it sounds. Here's an article in the People's Court News in support of the law; here's Peking University law professor Shen Kui's critique, in which he says that the nanny state (保姆国家) must not go too far.
July 6, 2014 in Commentary, News - Chinese Law | Permalink | Comments (0)
Murong Xuecun returns to China, asks to be arrested
Last May, the writer Murong Xuecun (慕容雪村, real name Hao Qun 郝群) published an op-ed in the New York Times protesting the arrest of Pu Zhiqiang and others for "stirring up trouble and provoking disturbances" and announcing his intention to turn himself in upon his return from Australia. Today (or perhaps yesterday - the statement is undated) he made good on his word, issuing a Statement of Surrender. Here's the Chinese text, followed by my translation.
Statement of Surrender
Two months ago, Pu Zhiqiang, Xu Youyu, Hao Jian, Hu Shigen, and Liu Di were arrested on suspicion of "stirring up trouble and provoking disturbances." This so-called "stirring up trouble and provoking disturbances" was in fact nothing more than people getting together at home: some ten-odd people met at Hao Jian's home and discussed the Tiananmen Incident of 25 years earlier, and this became a crime. I was supposed to have been there, but on the day of the meeting I was to go to the University of Sydney to be a visiting scholar, so I made only a written declaration stating my own views of the Tiananmen Incident. I never imagined that in this so-called People's Republic even this kind of trivial incident could become a crime. I made a declaration on the internet stating that I also participated in their stirring up trouble and provoking disturbances but was currently abroad, and asked the authorities to please wait for two months until I had finished by trip to the University of Sydney, when I would return to China and surrender.
I in no way accept the arrest of these people, but also don't feel that I should get some special treatment. I did the same thing that they did and cannot stay outside of the matter. I have already returned to Beijing and await arrest at any moment. For the next 24 hours after issuing this statement of surrender, I will be waiting in my home in Haidian District, and request that those who come bring the appropriate documents. After 24 hours, please telephone in advance to arrange a time.
Hao Qun (Murong Xuecun)
July 6, 2014 in Commentary, News - Chinese Law, People and Institutions | Permalink | Comments (0)
Saturday, July 5, 2014
Creditor bank sues local government financing vehicle over unpaid debt
Reuters reported a few days ago about the lawsuit brought by Qilu Bank against a local government financing vehicle (LGFV) in the same city (Jinan in Shandong Province) for unpaid debt. The lawsuit is unusual for two reasons: first, it is apparently the first openly disclosed default of a LGFV on a bank loan, although few doubt that there have been others that have been quietly dealt with, and second, not only is the debtor a shareholder in the creditor (albeit small: only 0.08%), but the debtor is controlled by the local government, which probably controls the creditor as well. In addition to the informal influence the Jinan city government undoubtedly enjoys, what appear to be entities directly under its control hold more than 20% of Qilu's equity. And of course the Jinan political authorities also have the power to ensure that no local court will issue a verdict displeasing to them.
LGFVs exist because in general, local governments in China don't have the power to borrow, but they still want to spend more than they have for things like infrastructure projects. They then set up wholly-owned corporations (LGFVs) to do the borrowing and undertake the construction. The problem is that local governments also lack the power to guarantee debt. Thus, LGFV debt as a legal matter is either unsecured or secured by something other than a government guarantee - for example, land-use rights that the local government has transferred to the LGFV.
As the Reuters article reports, many lenders consider (or at least at the time of lending considered) LGFV debt to be informally guaranteed by local governments. Now, apparently, they are having second thoughts. They should have more of these. I was struck by a paragraph in an earlier version of the Reuters report (apparently removed from the version now at the link):
A senior bond trader at a major Chinese state-owned bank in Shanghai noted that while investors still largely considered debt issued by provincial-level financing vehicles to be effectively guaranteed, that no longer held true for lower level entities.
Any non-central government guarantee of LGFV debt is invalid and legally worthless, full stop. And this is over and above the fact that even if the guarantees were legally valid, a creditor could not win a case and enforce a judgment against an unwilling guarantor government. What is remarkable is that creditors still continue to believe in these guarantees, and possibly quite improperly carry these loans on their books as if they were guaranteed. The worthlessness of the guarantee is evident in the sentence itself: it says that investors "no longer" consider lower-level LGFV debt to be effectively guaranteed. So they considered it guaranteed at time A, and at time B they do not consider it guaranteed, even though nothing of legal significance has happened. That's not what "guarantee" means; it is a legal obligation that persists despite changing circumstances. If investors understand that a lower-level guarantee can evaporate, why do they think that a provincial-level guarantee can't? It looks like the GITIC bankruptcy all over again.
Relevant links:
- Reuters news story
- Qilu Bank 2013 annual report disclosing the existence of the bad debt and the lawsuit (excerpts) [English | Chinese]
- October 2013 IMF Working Paper explaining LGFVs
- Short article from Sept. 2013 International Business Times explaining LGFVs
July 5, 2014 in Commentary, News - Chinese Law | Permalink | Comments (0)
Tuesday, July 1, 2014
"Picking quarrels and stirring up trouble" in Chinese law
Stanley Lubman has a column today in the China Real Time section of the Wall Street Journal online edition that discusses the charges against Pu Zhiqiang. With the greatest respect for Lubman, I think that his discussion could give readers an inaccurate understanding of those charges and what they say about the Chinese legal system, so I want to add this modest clarification to his discussion.
Lubman states that Pu
now awaits trial for "picking quarrels and provoking troubles," a crime with no clear definition.
His case dramatically illustrates the contradiction between attempts to increase legality in an authoritarian regime and that regime's overwhelming anxiety about maintaining social stability. The vagueness of the "crime" of "picking quarrels" – authorities didn't say who Pu allegedly picked a quarrel with, or about what — allows police unlimited discretion to detain and arrest offenders for almost any action.
This, I think, is misleading. There is in fact no general and vaguely defined crime of "picking quarrels and provoking troubles" (寻衅滋事), and there's no need for the police to identify the other party or the subject of any quarrel. The relevant article of the Criminal Law, Art. 293, states, "In the event of one of the following acts of picking quarrels and provoking troubles, ..." (emphasis added). It then lists four relatively specific acts -- or at least more specific than the vague "picking quarrels and provoking troubles." Things that could be called "picking quarrels and provoking troubles" but that do not fall within one of the four listed categories are not crimes. As a matter of written law, therefore, the police do not have unlimited discretion to detain offenders under this vague rubric. Moreover, as Jeremy Daum has pointed out in his excellent analysis of this crime, there is a further judicial interpretation of Art. 293 that narrow its scope even more. Lubman is aware of this and links to Daum's article, but the main message of the column seems still to be that there exists a very vaguely defined crime of "picking quarrels and provoking troubles."
The reason I think it's worth taking this issue up is that if the diagnosis is wrong, the cure is going to be wrong. If the diagnosis is that the law is vague, then it would seem to follow naturally that the solution is to make the law less vague. I want to stress here that in fact the law is not all that vague, and as applied to Pu's case has to be stretched beyond all recognition in order to apply. But the authorities are using it anyway. The problem lies in the lack of any independent body that could put boundaries around the ability of police to make words mean anything (or more to the point, not mean anything). In other words, it's a problem of institutions, not of legislative drafting.
I doubt Lubman would disagree with any of this, and possibly it's what he meant to say. I'm just not sure the column actually says this, so I want to add my two cents.
JULY 3, 2014 UPDATE: Here's a response from Stanley Lubman.
July 1, 2014 in Commentary, News - Chinese Law | Permalink | Comments (1)
Wednesday, June 25, 2014
Process, schmocess
There has been quite a bit of attention in the Chinese press recently to proposed and perhaps in-process reforms to the Chinese judicial system. These reforms were authorized in broad strokes by the 3rd Plenum of the 18th Central Committee last fall, and at least some are now on the road to implementation. An important reform is that of partially centralizing (i.e., up to the provincial level) the power of appointments and funding for local courts (see para. 32 of the Third Plenum Decision).
Recently, the Central Leading Group for Comprehensively Deepening Reform, a Party body headed by Xi Jinping, issued three documents relevant to judicial reform: (1) Opinion on Deepening Reform in the Judicial System and Social System and Plan for Division of Labor in Implementation (关于深化司法体制和社会体制改革的意见及贯彻实施分工方案); Framework Opinion on Several Issues Relating to Experimental Points in Judicial Reform (关于司法体制改革试点若干问题的框架意见); and (3) Work Plan for the Shanghai Experimental Point in Judicial Reform (上海市司法改革试点工作方案). Unfortunately, none of these documents have been made public, but their content has been sketched in the official press. Here are two articles from the Chinese press [first | second] and very helpful English-language summary courtesy of Chinese Law Translate.
These documents (at least as explicated by a government spokesman) contain a number of worthy and important reforms. Financing of all local courts is to be handled at the provincial level, as are appointments. Apparently this reform is already in process in Shanghai. (Shanghai has the administrative status of a province.) What this means is that district (区) governments and People's Congresses will no longer have power over finances and personnel respectively in Basic-Level People's Courts in their district.
This is all very well, but what seems to have been overlooked in the zeal to reform the court system is the fact that you can't do it just by making some decisions within the Party. The system whereby local authorities (i.e., Party, government, and People's Congress) control courts at the same level (at least as to personnel appointments) is enshrined both in the Court Organization Law (Art. 34) and the Constitution (Art. 101). To be sure, as reported it is not crystal clear that the reforms formally take the power of appointment away from local authorities. But it is crystal clear that local authorities will not be making the decisions. The decision as to who will be a judge in a local court will be made at the provincial level, and then "the local People's Congresses will appoint or dismiss in accordance with legal procedures" (人大依照法律程序任免).
In other words, a project designed to improve the legal system is treating legal rules as at best meaningless formalities and at worst non-existent. It seems that the problem of weak legal institutions is being dealt with the same way Simon Leys (quoting Alexandre Vialatte) describes the fate of cannibals in a certain republic: "There are no more cannibals in that country since the local authorities ate the last ones."
June 25, 2014 in Commentary, News - Chinese Law | Permalink | Comments (0)
Thursday, June 5, 2014
Chair in Chinese law available at Faculty of Law, Victoria University of Wellington, NZ
Here's a great opportunity for the right person. Note that the application deadline is July 6, 2014.
June 5, 2014 in Internships/Employment Opportunities, News - Chinese Law | Permalink | Comments (2)
Saturday, April 5, 2014
Chinese law news, Qing Ming Festival edition
Today is Qing Ming Festival, or Tomb-Sweeping Day in China, when one pays respect to the dead. And what better way to introduce today's topic, which is minor property rights in grave sites?
"Minor property rights" (小产权) is the term used to describe the rights you get (or think you get) when you "buy" rural, collectively-owned land. I use quotation marks because you can't actually buy collectively-owned land. You can't even buy a long-term use right to it, the way you can buy a 70-year use right to land for residential use in urban China. But villages purport to sell these rights and urbanites purport to buy them, because they're cheaper than the fully lawful and relatively robust rights you get when you buy urban land. And the developments on minor property rights land can be pretty substantial (see the photo below); we're not talking about tarpaper shacks here.
Now the media is reporting that minor property rights land is being occupied not just by the living, but by the dead - and for the same reasons. It's getting too expensive to die in China, so people have to find cheaper options. Here are some reports:
- http://finance.sina.com.cn/china/20140404/005918706659.shtml
- http://news.xinhuanet.com/legal/2014-04/05/c_1110116188.htm
- http://www.chinanews.com/sh/2014/03-31/6012923.shtml
April 5, 2014 in Commentary, News - Chinese Law | Permalink | Comments (0)
Sunday, March 30, 2014
Talk at GWU Law School by Prof. SHEN Wei on local government debt
Prof. SHEN Wei of Shanghai Jiaotong University Law School will give a talk at GW Law School this Thursday evening. The topic is "Understanding China's Local Government Debt Crisis: Causes and Solutions (or No Way Out?)". Click here for a flyer and a bio of Prof. Shen. The talk will be recorded and webcast live; here's the link for the webcast.
Date: April 3
Time: 6 p.m.
Place: Room 402, Lerner Hall, 2000 H St. NW, Washington, DC (Lerner Hall is where you are when you enter the law school at the 2000 H St. entrance).
March 30, 2014 in Conferences, News - Chinese Law, People and Institutions | Permalink | Comments (1)
Monday, March 10, 2014
Pershing Square, Herbalife, and Chinese law
You have to be impressed with Pershing Square's PR operation. Those who don't read the business section might still have heard of William Ackman and his hedge fund Pershing Square's campaign against Herbalife, as it was the top story on the front page of today's New York Times. Ackman has a huge short position in Herbalife and is trying to talk down its stock by saying it's a pyramid operation. (I report this simply as a fact and express no opinion on whether Ackman's allegations are true.)
Today I received an email from someone at the Global Strategy Group, a PR firm, alerting me to a webcast Pershing Square is putting on tomorrow. The webcast will charge that Herbalife's operations in China violate Chinese law, presumably because of their alleged pyramidal nature. (My recollection is that China passed a law prohibiting pyramid sales structures after some early bad experiences in the 1980s or 90s, but I don't have the details at my fingertips.) I don't plan on watching the webcast and (since I don't have an opinion on the merits) it's not really my job to provide publicity for one side in this dispute, so I'm not going to provide the link here. But at a time when China is cracking down disproportionately on foreign firms, it will be interesting to see if Pershing Square manages to stir up some official action in China against Herbalife.
March 10, 2014 in News - Chinese Law, News - Miscellaneous | Permalink | Comments (0)
Supreme People's Court Work Report to the National People's Congress
Here's the full text of the report on the China Law Translate site, where it's in the process of being translated. Click on the "Select Language" button on the right of the screen to ensure you're getting the version you want (i.e., Chinese or in-process English translation).
March 10, 2014 in News - Chinese Law, Publications | Permalink | Comments (0)
Friday, February 14, 2014
English translation of Xu Zhiyong verdict now available
Here it is: brought to you by the ChinaLawTranslate web site.
February 14, 2014 in News - Chinese Law, People and Institutions, Research Resources | Permalink | Comments (0)
Monday, February 10, 2014
Zhang Qianfan to speak at George Washington University Law School on Feb. 12th
Professor Zhang Qianfan of Peking University Faculty of Law will speak at George Washington University Faculty of Law on Feb. 12th. His subject will be "A Constitution Without Constitutionalism? Paths of Constitutional Development in China." Details here.The talk will be webcast live; please check back to this blog for the URL, which I will post before the talk.
For those who don't know him, Prof. Zhang is an impressive guy. In addition to a Ph.D. in government from the University of Texas at Austin, he also has a Ph.D. in physics/biophysics from Carnegie-Mellon. He recently published a book in English on the Chinese constitution.
February 10, 2014 in Conferences, News - Chinese Law, People and Institutions | Permalink | Comments (0)


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*Buy $100 of Bitcoin, get $10 FREE*
These are just the most recent badsites. Click below for these
and more Cryptocurrency badsites In alphabetical order.
2375 Badsites as at Aug 17th 2016
We've all looked down the back of our sofas, but we are still short of funds. Any donation, no matter how small will help us keep going. Thanks
It can be argued that mining bitcoin is always unprofitable - however...
If you get your calculator out, and weigh up all the costs, the contract or hardware costs, the electricity cost, pool fees, increasing difficulty,
reducing reward, and obsolescence - and then offset those against current bitcoin price, then bitcoin mining is simply not profitable.
It has been a long time since it could be mined profitably, so why do a lot of us still mine it, and why is it a good idea for you to mine it as well?
Bitcoin is a finite Virtual Currency. It cannot be inflated by money printing, there are 21 Million Bitcoins to be mined in total, and it is getting harder all the time to mine them, whilst at the same time, demand is increasing and that inevitable demand is in turn driving investment and innovation.
This is all good for the market value of bitcoin, and so miners do it because they are prepared to invest in a long term investment, and realise a profit at the end of a term. Rather like a 1 or 2 Year Bond Yield.
For those of you who cannot afford to get involved in mining bitcoin, then you can still get bitcoin through earnings from "Bitcoin Faucets" - a few can be found on our Safelist. On Faucets, you earn by simply visiting the page, and earn small amounts of bitcoin (called satoshis or bits).
If you earned some satoshis a couple of years ago, they are worth a lot more today, but this time around, you won't have to wait long. Bitcoin price is set to soar as more people realise that this is the future of Trade and Barter, without Banks in the middle to steal it and issue promissory notes despite the reality that they are simply not underwritten by anything tangible.
There is a lot to learn about bitcoin, but it is really easy to buy, earn, use and enthuse about, so get involved at any level.
To report Internet Fraud to IC3 -
Click Here
To report Internet Fraud to the FBI anonymously - Click Here
To report Internet Fraud to the UK Police - Click Here
Ponzi is any scheme which pays interest to "Investors" from Bitcoin coming in from new Investors. A
HYIP (high yield investment program) is just a Ponzi. All Ponzi/Hyips will fail. The later Investors will lose everything when the scheme folds and leaves with the Bitcoin.
Most HYIPS and doublers etc, just steal it immediately. You send it and they keep it.
Due diligence is your own responsibility.
There are plenty of good sites out there where your Bitcoin and your work are safe. You just need to do your homework, including checking here. If it isn't in our Badlist, email us, and we'll check it and get back to you.
Here's the
psychology behind the typical ponzi's & HYIP's run by the
"professional" scammers. They know most people will do this.
You deposit a small amount, you want to be cautious, you can't quite figure out how they do this – but they sometimes double it (or pay promised interest) and pay you.
You think – Ah that's great, so you either redeposit the entire amount, or just your profit. You get that back and think wow, it works, so then you deposit a much larger amount and in the worst case, even get your friends and family involved in this wonderful money making scheme.
Then one day, after not long it just doesn't get returned – there is some issue with your account, or your withdrawal is stuck or something similar, so you keep emailing the site and gradually it dawns on you that you've been scammed. Commonly the scammer will even show you the transaction, but it just isn't real.
Even if you just put your initial profits back in, the conman hasn't lost anything – and the depositors who think they are 'playing' the ponzi, by getting in early, do try that, and most of them don't get it back either. People who run Ponzi's are thieves.
Some people empty their life savings into these scams, and they are the ones the scammers are really after. Once they get that big depositor, they move on and create a new ponzi, just leaving the old one alive for a while to mop up any new 'mugs' Some even return after a 3 or 6 month absence to catch a fresh load of hits, they will never run out of victims. It's what they do, and they are expert at it.
You will no doubt come across negative comments about this project, but understand that this is the scammers only route to fight back, and a great
many of these scammers are the same people who are Senior, and Gold members of forums.
Forums relating to bitcoin are the best source of conflicting information ever, which is why we keep it plain and simple, we tell you it's a badsite (albeit sarcastically - we have to stay sane) and that's really all you need to know to stay safe.
When we started this project, we didn't expect that it would still be needed years later, but the interest in bitcoin is driving every web fraudster to try their hand after bitcoin. The bitcoin Industry on the whole is clean, these fraudsters generally do not come from the inside, but often from the world of fiat, and a great many from developing countries and Eastern Europe.
It can be really easy to misunderstand the bitcoin environment when it's all new to you, and it will take you some time to grasp some of the rules, concepts, and limitations. This leaves you vulnerable to the swathes of scams and ponzis that try to lure you into their promises of easy money, and doubling or even 100 times multiplying your new 'Magic Internet Money'
It doesn't work like that. It isn't magic, it's just very efficient, very secure, and much sought after by thieves the world over.
If you have bitcoin, you need to learn to look after it, or these crooks will soon take it from you.
Don't make it easy for them. Contribute by reporting suspect sites to us when you find them, and we'll do the rest.
As we approach 2065 sites listed since Feb 2014, our track record is one of getting it wrong on only 2 occassions. On both of these occassions, we erred on the side of the Scheme Operator. However, one of these errors, the GAW Miners and Paycoin debacle is yet to be fully heard and ruled on by the SEC, and at this time is still a matter of debate.
Declaration of Interests.
We currently have personal and project investments in Bitcoin VIP and
Mining shares at
Miningsweden.se (Now closing their mining), and Ethereum mining shares at
Genesis Mining. We would not invest
in anything we considered to be a Ponzi or Scam. As a project, we
are not directly funded by any organisation and depend on ad
revenue, our own, and other donations, and our external investments. We also provide links including referral
links to trusted 3rd party sites, not including *External Advertiser - Check our Badlist*s
beyond our control. Updated August 2015
PS - As a friendly tip, we probably aren't the people to generally ask about good bitcoin investments. We are pretty good at what we do, but so far, like yourselves no doubt, we aren't really that succesful when it comes to our own investments. Mintsy being our latest fail.
** Buy $100 of bitcoin and get $10 of bitcoin FREE - While offer lasts **
The high costs of running this site are helped by adverts. We also have to advertise in the same places as the scamsites. We have little control over the content, and consequently we do not directly endorse any advert. Some adverts will even appear in our Badlist. But at least the Bitcoin they spend on ads is coming back into the Bitcoin Industry.
Footnote. The evolution of society beyond the demise of the failed capitalist neo-liberal (Neo-con) experiment, first needs the evolution of it's means of trade and exchange. The current financial system, and system of fiat currency, is not fit for present or future purpose, and for all intents and purposes is already obsolete. Bitcoin is our first financial step towards a fairer, more benefecial society for all. Bitcoin is incorruptible, decentralised, concensus led, and above the influence of conventional politics and economics. A parallel currency with which you can begin to trade, and no middleman to take their slice or to gamble with your asset. When you deposit money to a Bank, it becomes the Banks property to do with what they choose, bitcoin is different, and you are your own Bank. It is up to you to take care of your bitcoin, and also to use it, not hoard it, and to be an important part of helping to build this fair and open global society. Bitcoin is worth what somebody is prepared to exchange it for, be that USD, Yuan, PC-hardware, Webhosting or anything that 'money' might buy. You can even get a bitcoin Debit Card. However, the bitcoin Blockchain, and it's potential is a much much bigger subject.
*External Advertiser - Check our Badlist*


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In short, IDX means the ability for consumers to search the MLS on your website.
There are 2 ways to integrate IDX into your website.
The majority of MLSs today offer their agents an IDX link/URL. This IDX link/URL provides an MLS search page that can be embedded seamlessly into your website. Contact your MLS to see if they offer you an IFramable (Smart-Framable) IDX link/URL. If your MLS does not provide IFramable IDX links, then you need to ask them if they provide an IDX data feed. Our Ultra Agent IDX below takes a data feed and provides the MLS search functionality for you.
Our Ultra Agent IDX takes a data feed from your MLS and provides an advanced IDX solution with advanced lead capture functionality for your real estate website. It also includes a mobile IDX website.
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text:
2012 MetroPCS Dallas Marathon
Photo: G.J. McCarthy/Staff Photographer
Half marathon runners Ashley Johnson (right) and Lauren Barnett embrace at the finish line during the MetroPCS Dallas Marathon Sunday, December 9, 2012 in Dallas. Johnson came in first in the women's division with a time of 1:21:36.
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So, my pallies over at Broward County sent me today's Commission meeting Scrivener's Notes. There's a ton to absorb, so right now I'll just highlight the key passages that got me wet.
Mayor Kristin Jacobs:
So all of upper personnel, management, the City Manager himself who I believe this equated to another $7,200 a year as well as the City Commissioners all have received this raise, and so or restoration of a former cut from last year. I find it to be of concern, and then further, in speaking to the Commissioner, learning of other ways in which salaries that there were certain employees that didn't receive the original ten percent cut at all but now have enjoyed a four percent increase. So I find this troubling, and I wanted to bring it to your attention to ask (it up) for your concurrence in generating a letter to the Mayor of the city to just raise some of the concerns that we might have related to raises in the city, particularly when this county commission has not taken a raise in many, many years.
I find it disturbing that the city that's in such dire straits is still not behaving in the most conservative manner that it should.
Commissioner Sue Gunzburger:
I don't think that the city has bothered taking care of the CRA money that was used for the general operating, and so that we are supposed to be as a county looking at CRA money and how it is spent.
I understand but a raise can be rescinded.
or the very least the elected officials who received it can pledge to give it back.
I also know that there is some strife between the City Manager and some of the Commissioners as other items that they thought they had approved or not approved have been continuing to come their way. So at any rate, I find it alarming.
Commissioner Stacy Ritter:
It appears that just in reading the Commissioner's comments that are in the paper about their own raises, they're not getting it, still not getting it, and right now on this board, I think there are two votes, maybe three.
I know Commissioner Gunzburger and I did, to raise again the point that we should not be in business with Lauderdale Lakes. If there is TIFF CRA money left over at the end of year that is not spent, it should come back to us, among the four entities that are eligible. Where is that money, because there is money left over from the lauderdale lakes cra that is not spent, that is not spent that, by statute, is supposed to come back to us. Where is it? I'd like to know that.
I'd like to know how it's possible that the Lauderdale Lakes City Commission can agree to defer CRA payments and that deferral the agreement is made with the CRA board and they're one and the same. How is that? Where is the accountability there?
I know Senator Sobel has called for a state audit. Senator Smith has been asked to call for a state audit but hasn't come out yet to do it. I hope he does come out because we would all feel better if there was a state audit that expressed that alleviated our concerns here.
I am deeply concerned about where this city continues to head which I believe is off a cliff, and it would not be responsible for this board to follow them, and so far, it seems like that's what we're doing, and I want to know if we can stop it, if you can get in there and give us a better idea of what's going on with the CRA money, with their general revenue money, and if it turns out that the rest of this board is as uncomfortable, how can we stop this?
The city is costing us a lot of money at the expense of other things and they don't seem to be getting the fact that we have cut them a break over and over and over again. For me, break time stopped a long time ago.
Commissioner Chip Lamarca:
I think the governor probably should have removed everybody in power of a failing business and figured out a way to put somebody else there because it was very
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'Pacific Rim' puts summer blockbuster on steroids
I lost my critical judgment about summer blockbusters at about the same time blockbusters lost their sense of scale.
So I'm at a bit of a loss as to what to think about "Pacific Rim." »Read Full Article(1)
Journal Broadcast Group announces reorganization
Journal Broadcast Group announced an organizational shakeup that moves the company away from its "regional alignment" structure and toward expanding the company's "two main businesses: Television and Radio."
The changes were announced in a memo released Tuesday by Andre Fernandez, president and CFO of Journal Communications. »Read Full Blog Post(10)
Reading the John Updike stories: 'Walter Briggs'
I'm reading and commenting on a story from The Library of America's recently published 'John Updike: The Collected Stories' each Wednesday until I finish the collection or give up.
In Updike's slight story "Walter Briggs," the young married couple Jack and Claire are driving back from a thing in Boston with their two droopy little kids in their car. They're passing time in the enforced setting, as these young Updike couples of the late '50s seem to do, with a verbal game: "Who's Best?," riffing on people from their past. »Read Full Blog Post
On Tap Today: Bucks, Updike, art and anti-anxiety
Hello and welcome to your Wednesday. What's going on today? »Read Full Blog Post


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Nobel Prize winner will be at Northshire Bookstore on FridayJune 27,2013Nobel laureate to speak at Northshire
MANCHESTER Vermonter and Nobel Peace Prize winner Jody Williams will be at the Northshire Bookstore on Friday at 7 p.m. to discuss her book, My Name Is Jody Williams: A Vermont Girls Winding Path to the Nobel Peace Prize.
Williams is the 10th woman to win the Nobel Peace Prize and third American woman to receive the honor. She was awarded the Nobel in 1997 for her work with the International Campaign in Ban Landmines.
In the book, Williams writes about her Catholic roots; learning how to stand up against injustice while defending her deaf brother, Stephen; transforming from a good girl to a hippie at the University of Vermont; and protesting the war in Vietnam. Williams began a life dedicated to global activism in 1981 when she advocated for the end of the U.S.-backed war in El Salvador.
In her memoir, Williams discusses her belief that an average woman, through perseverance, courage and imagination, can make something extraordinary happen.
For more information on this free event or others at the Northshire, call the store at 362-2200 or 1-800-437-3700, or visit the website at www.northshire.com.MORE IN This Just InHARTFORD, Conn. Full StoryWHITE RIVER JUNCTION A Springfield man will spend 17 months in jail and the next decade on... Full StoryEvery year thousands of school children are transported in school buses. Full Story
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Landry needs his own thread, clearly. Tough as nails, outstanding route runner and a very enthusiastic blocker. He fits this team's offense and style perfectly. If you've read my draft musings, you know how much emphasis I put on a guy's viability within the 49ers system. Landry is a great fit, hard worker, great teammate by all accounts, busts his ass out on the field, a very willing blocker, not flashy, just consistent, works hard, plays smart. I see him projecting out as a very good #2 WR in the NFL, similar to Boldin in terms of his demeanor and hard-nosed style of play, not as big physically, but a fearless guy who simply makes plays for you.
He plays with an edge and makes some flat-out ridiculous, Brandon Lloyd type circus catches routinely. He's not as fast or as explosive as his teammate Beckham but he's solid like a rock, just a consistent playmaker, a guy who rarely let's the ball get to his body, he snatches it out of the air and is a threat to make huge gains after the catch. He's one of those guys that QB's absolutely love, a highly dependable target, you put the ball in his general vicinity, he'll haul it in.
Personally, I'd be happy if the 49ers traded down in the 1st, up in the 2nd and took both Landry and Beckham. Toughness, receiving ability and speed, all of this to go along with Patton and Crabtree long-term.
[ Edited by Phoenix49ers on Jan 14, 2014 at 10:22 PM ]


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- Report: #826586
Report - Rebuttal - Arbitrate
Complaint Review: Irvine Arts and Music Center
Irvine Arts and Music Center15315 Culver Dr. Suite 150, irvine, California 90624 Internet United States of America
Irvine Arts and Music Center Irvine Art and Music Center Internet
*UPDATE Employee: Former employee false accusation.
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The female manager name Jennifer Cheng demonstrated an outrageous rudeness toward me and my daughter. I told this female manager that I would pay the reasonable repair cost. The female manager attempted to charge me the repair cost 10 times higher than the original rental fee
I was extremely unpleasant that this female manager took this opportunity to rip us off. I decided to take somewhere to fix the problem. Eventually, it only cost us very reasonable cost to repair the minor scratch
Parents do not rent any music instrument from this horrible business. And dont send your kids to their after school program. They will rip you off as well
This report was posted on Ripoff Report on 01/22/2012 12:08 AM and is a permanent record located here: http://www.ripoffreport.com/r/Irvine-Arts-and-Music-Center/internet/Irvine-Arts-and-Music-Center-Irvine-Art-and-Music-Center-Internet-826586. The posting time indicated is Arizona local time. Arizona does not observe daylight savings so the post time may be Mountain or Pacific depending on the time of year.
Ripoff Report has an exclusive license to this report. It may not be copied without the written permission of Ripoff Report.
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#1 UPDATE Employee
Former employee false accusation.
AUTHOR: Irvine Art - (United States of America)
SUBMITTED: Thursday, March 29, 2012POSTED: Thursday, March 29, 2012
We had proof it was her because when she first started she used her own account, and all her stories targets our manager. Also, she continues to list our manager's full name, and misspell it in every post.
If she can provide proof that she's a real customer, and that she really was "ripped off" from us, we will be happy to change our ways, and attempt to resolve the situation. However, she is a former employee telling a false story and should not be allowed to post false claims.
Thank you,
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A Bangor man was charged Tuesday with delivering cocaine to a man in Bethlehem almost seven months ago.
David R. Heckman, 33, of S. Third Street was arraigned by District Judege Karen Devine on charges of delivery of cocaine, possession with intent to deliver drugs, possession of drugs and conspiracy.
In the 1200 block of W. Rosemont Drive in Bethlehem, Heckman on July 3, 2012, handed a man a plastic bag holding about 1.5 ounces of cocaine, according to the police arrest affidavit.
The man who received the cocaine from Heckman then delivered about 1 ounce of the drug to an undercover police officer, the affidavit says.
Heckman was released on $50,000 bail.
Distributed by MCT Information Services
Location, ST | website.com


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Igloo Legend Half Gallon Jug Beverage Cooler
Product Information:
The Igloo ® Legend 1/2 Gallon Jug is ideal for mixing up your favorite beverage and toting with you to the beach or to the game. This fully-insulated jug features a removable pour spout cap for easy dispensing. Use the plastic carry handle to carry with you and stay hydrated during long days in the sun.
Click here for additional information relating to the Manufacturer's Warranty.
- � Gallon Jug
- Fully-insulated to keep your drink colder, longer
- Removable pour spout cap
- Plastic carry handle
- Great for the beach or sporting events
- Igloo
Click here for additional information relating to the Manufacturer's Warranty.
Country of Origin: VietnamWeb ID: 4063000
Customer Reviews:
Rated 3.2 out of 5�by 988 reviewers.
Rated 5 out of 5�by JMETIM WATER JUG Great product for my son to use in football and baseball. Keeps the water cold all day long. August 24, 2016
Rated 1 out of 5�by UncleBuck2 Good price, poor quality I purchased 2 of these. One works fine and the other leaked the second we filled it. The o-ring will not stay in place that seals the flip spout to the lid. August 23, 2016
Rated 1 out of 5�by Kryder Poor design Handle comes off easily. The lid is hard to screw on and sometimes leaks. August 23, 2016
Rated 4 out of 5�by Sunshine Great item! This is perfect for all our soccer practices and games! August 23, 2016
Rated 4 out of 5�by adam handle broke quickly but keeps fluids cool disappointed in the handle breaking quickly with one drop August 23, 2016
Rated 5 out of 5�by Tim Durable. Son uses for football and loves it. Keeps water cold for long period of time. My son was very happy that this item came in colors other than red. August 23, 2016
Rated 1 out of 5�by Trina04 Broke rather quickly The spout broke after using it for a week at soccer practice!!! August 17, 2016
Rated 1 out of 5�by Jer704 Garbage Cheap, flimsy water bottle. Needed one for my daughter's practice and this is the only large one they sold. Don't buy it! August 16, 2016
Rated 5 out of 5�by TH Durable I have 1 of these jugs for each kid. They use them everyday for football/cheerleading/band practice. Very durable, never a problem. August 16, 2016
Rated 3 out of 5�by Orca Watch out for leaking Sturdy and keeps fluids cold but make sure to test your seal. It has a tendency to leak if the spout isn't in just the right position. I have a damp car trunk. August 16, 2016