Microblog insights

Topic 1: China's largest machinery manufacturer Sany Group vowed at a news conference on Oct 18 that it will sue US President Barack Obama for his blocking of its wind farm project in Oregon near an American military installation over national security concerns. Regardless of the indirect losses resulting from Obama's attitude on the issue, the Chinese machinery giant said that it caused it a direct economic loss of more than $20 million from the failed wind project as well as hurting other emerging economies' confidence in investing in the United States. Xiang Wenbo, director of the board at Sany Group, said although the results of the lawsuit are unpredictable, the company would not compromise at all over it because the process is more important than the outcome.

LILYLIIIU: Politics and the economy are mostly bound together. Also, this is one of Obama's chips for his presidential re-election campaign in November.

LIWEIYI: If this is the complete truth behind the case, the chances of Sany Group winning the case are rather big. The US government's actions make it look like a rascal and, I suspect, US citizens are probably equally perplexed.

AMERICANCHIPMUNK: This is just a waste of money.

YINGHANALPHA: This really humiliated us, we who live in a country under the rule of law. They dare sue the president of the US?

QINGSHUIZHUSHI: Good! Whatever the result will be, at least we don't give in any more. After one year of keeping away from the stock market, I bought Sany's shares today as a show of support.

Topic 2: Xie Zhenhua, deputy director of the National Development and Reform Commission, said on Oct 17 that, starting in October, China banned the import and sales of incandescent light bulbs of 100 watts or more, Caixin.com reported. At the end of 2011, the commission announced use of the bulbs would be phased out in 2016. If all filament lamps are replaced with energy-saving bulbs, as much as 48 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity could be saved annually, equivalent to the emission of 48 million tons of carbon dioxide.

SHENQIVERA: Philips has finally succeeded with its public relations work.

FALLCHANGEAPLACE: I think energy-saving lamps are bad for one's eyes.

CANQUEDELAOHU: Why not go straight to the use of LED lamps directly? Doesn't it save more energy?

SITKEUNG: Why does no one mention the electronic pollution caused by energy-saving lamps? Under most circumstances, the lamp tubes are damaged on one side, causing a lot of electronic fallout.

MAOMAOQI_VANVESEE: Will there be subsidies or other measures? What about the garbage classification?

XIYANGTINGHE: How long has it been since this idea was first proposed?

All the information is from Sina Weibo.

(China Daily 10/22/2012 page14)