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).

Who harmonized us?: CDT translates an account by Liu Xiaoyuan of visitors who advised him not to go to Bao Zunxin's funeral, and the connection of that episode with losing his lease:

The three men went into Li's room and started a conversation with him. They started off by saying that it's so difficult for a non-Beijinger to work in Beijing and that other lawyers from elsewhere had had difficult experiences. They also offered to befriend us, and to be "helpful" to us. Slowly, they cut to the chase, educating us with words of persuasion. Don't bother to be involved with "trivial matters" in the society, they said. The world is what it is, how can you lawyers change it? Then, they directly asked him not to attend the funeral for Bao, who was not his relative, they said.

Exhibiting Chinese oddness: Josh at Cup of Cha writes about his visit to the Second China (Beijing) International Cultural & Creative Industry Expo:

One booth featured a laser tag-like shooting range, except it looked more like a military recruiting event. Instead of toy-looking guns you might see elsewhere, these looked like something that might intimidate the Taliban. Old folks, children, and women alike all took turns firing what can only be described as a plastic bazooka at a water cooler fitted with sensors.

New AIDS numbers: 218,107 reported cases in China: From The China Daily:

China reported 218,107 AIDS cases by the end of August this year, with an increase of 3,807 cases in August, said Dai Zhicheng, director of the Chinese Association of STD (sexually transmitted disease) & AIDS Prevention and Control.

In central Henan and southwestern Yunnan provinces, the reported infected cases exceeded 30,000, Dai said at a recent seminar to raise people's awareness of AIDS in Liaoning Province.

China's new labor law - it's a huge deal: The China Law Blog looks at what changes to expect from the new labor law, set to go into effect on the first of the year:

The new labor law is going to apply to all employers, no matter how few employees (even one!) they might have. It is going to require all labor contracts be in writing and it will impose significant penalties on employers for failing to comply with this. Employees can claim double salary for months worked without a contract for up to 12 months' salary. This rule is absolutely going to apply to "informal" employment relationships common to so many foreign businesses doing business in China. Expect a whole slew of lawsuits to be filed on January 1, 2008, by employees seeking double damages for the 12 months they just completed without a contract.

Jiang Rong's Wolf Totem wins Man Asian Prize: From the IHT:

"Wolf Totem," a Chinese novel that has attracted critical and popular acclaim for its thought-provoking reflections on Chinese culture and society by Jiang Rong, a publicity-shy first-time author who writes under a pen name, has won the inaugural Man Asian Literary Prize.