Danwei Picks is a daily digest of the "From the Web" links found on the Danwei homepage. A feed for the links as they are posted throughout the day is available at Feedsky (in China) or Feedburner (outside China).

All the dope on 'so yellow, so violent': The first Chinese Internet catch phrase of 2008, 'so yellow, so violent' came from the mouth of a school girl whom CCTV news reporters used as part of a propagandistic report on the dangers of the Internet.

John Kennedy of Global Voices has rounded up and translated all the major discussion about the affair.

The death of Zhou Enlai: Zhou Enlai died on January 8, 1976. The Granite Studio blog has published an excellent illustrated roundup of Zhou's life.

Is our lasting image of Zhou Enlai to be the smooth, urbane diplomat showing up for talks in Geneva in a tailored-suit, silk tie, and fedora? Or will it be the Zhou Enlai standing on top of Tiananmen with a red armband and a little red book, screeching in a high-pitched hysterical frenzy, "Long Live Chairman Mao!" as hordes of fanatical teenagers chant in the square and the Chairman looks on in approval?

See also Frog in a Well for more on Zhou.

China bans free plastic shopping bags: Reuters reports:

China launched a surprise crackdown on plastic bags on Tuesday, banning production of ultra-thin bags and forbidding its supermarkets and shops from handing out free carriers from June 1...

...In addition the manufacture, sale and use of bags under 0.025 mm thick is banned from the same date, with fines and confiscation of goods and profits for firms that flout the rules.

...Chinese people use up to 3 billion plastic bags a day and the country has to refine 5 million tons (37 million barrels) of crude oil every year to make plastics used for packaging...

China's "green deserts": At China Dialogue, Gaoming Jiang writes on the vast poplar plantations that have replaced native trees in many parts of China:

High-density, single-species forests are a source of almost never-ending problems. Some even call them "green deserts" since they are very poor at retaining soil or water, unproductive and monocultural. China has the largest area of artificial forests in the world, but ranks last in terms of these forests' productivity. These single-species require the constant use of fertilisers and other chemicals. They are weak ecosystems that are vulnerable to disease and pests, which can devastate large areas. They are also unattractive; artificial forests in scenic areas and along roads and railways are nothing to look at.