China & Suicide

From the China Daily:

Suicide has become the primary death cause among people 15-34 years old in China, Deng Xiaohong, vice director of the Beijing Municipal Bureau of Health, said on Thursday, the Chongqing Evening News reported Friday.

Deng announced the finding a few days before World Suicide Prevention Day which falls on September 10.

Deng said suicide has become the fifth cause of death for Chinese people, with a suicide rate of 22.2 per 100,000 people. Roughly 2.25 million people attempt suicide in China each year, while 250,000 die from their attempts.

A recent global medical research study shows that 1 million people die from suicides worldwide each year, and 30 percent of those are from China.

Mind blowing numbers on the China front. I have spent years researching suicide and specifically suicide in China and it was only a few years ago that I tried to raised awareness about this issue. It gets very little attention for a problem that is so massive. To put this in prospective I spent 99% of my day interacting with high school students, college students, and young adults and professionals and among these fellow young people I am more likely to hear that one committed suicide then any other cause of death. Despite this why is this issue more than other more likely to fall on deaf ears? Why is this problem the one that is always ignored? Is it that more and more people have no idea what to do or how to help or relate to someone that is depressed or dealing with suicidal ideation? My pleas for change were ignored when I was enrolled in college. How will it be any different this time around? I would love for the opportunity to ensure a different outcome this time around.

China News Update- China Bans Bad Breath, Scars in Space

From Fox News:

Bad breath can disqualify you from becoming an astronaut in China, but even if your breath is minty-fresh, you won't be seeing orbit unless your wife says you can go.

Candidates for China's manned space program must be cavity-free and have no history of head colds or sore throats. In fact, candidates must show there has been no serious disease in the family going back three generations, Sina.com reported.

"Bad body odor will affect the colleagues in the narrow confines of a space shuttle," Shi Binbin, a doctor with the 454th Air Force Hospital in the east Chinese city of Nanjing, told AFP.

Preliminary tests are being conducted on potential candidates. A hospital employee at the No. 454 Hospital told China Daily Sunday that 100 fighter pilots with college degrees were among the hopefuls being tested at the hospital, according to Sina.com.

China's future astronauts must also be scar-free.

"Scars on the body, for example, might burst and bleed when spaceships are accelerating," Shi told Sina.com.

Stringent requirements, he said, will help make sure the astronauts can handle the harsh environment of space.

"The candidates who go through all the tests and meet all the requirements can really be called super-human beings," Shi said.

And the lucky few who qualify will have one final obstacle to overcome — their wives. If a potential astronaut's wife does not want him going to space, he will not be allowed to enter the program, Sina.com reported.

I guess this sounds reasonable but seriously how long is it going to take to have this standard applied to other means of transportation i.e. buses and subways.

An Eye Opening Read

Kindled my first e-book on my iphone and definitely a must read. Can't give you the name of the book or tell you what it was about but I will link you to Amazon so you can see for yourself.

You know you have been in China a long time when...

You travel 3 hours out of your way specifically to get here.

And some more similar thoughts from another expat...

1. The footprints on the toilet seat are your own.
2. You no longer wait in line, but go immediately to the head of the queue.
3. You stop at the top or bottom of an escalator to plan your day.
4. It becomes exciting to see if you can get on the lift before anyone can get off.
5. It is no longer surprising that the only decision made at a meeting is the time and venue for the next meeting.
6. You rank the decision making abilities of your staff by how long it takes them to reply "Up To You".
7. You no longer wonder how someone who earns US$ 400.00 per month can drive a Mercedes.
8. You accept the fact that you have to queue to get a number for the next queue.
9. You accept without question the mechanic's analysis that the car is "Broken" and that it will cost you a lot of money to get it "Fixed".
10. You find that it saves time to stand and retrieve your hand luggage while the plane is on final approach.
11. You can shake your hands almost perfectly dry before wiping them on your trousers, or you have your suits made with terrycloth pockets.
12. A T-Bone steak with rice sounds just fine.
13. You believe everything you read in the local newspaper.
14. You regard traffic signals, stop signs, and copy watch peddlers with equal disdain.
15. You have developed an uncontrollable urge to follow people carrying small flags.
16. When listening to the pilot prove he cannot speak English, you no longer wonder if he can understand the air traffic controller.
17. You regard it as part of the adventure when the waiter correctly repeats your order and the cook makes something completely different.
18. You have more knick-knacks than your grandmother.
19. You are not surprised when three men with a ladder show up to change a light bulb.
20. You understand all the above listed references.