WHAT THEY SAY

“In the Internet era, nobody will stay stupid for five seconds your competitors will soon wake up.”

Ma Huateng, chairman of the Chinese Internet giant Tencent, warning market leaders of a coming surge of interest in his company’s field.

“If your car gets stuck in heavy rain … you may be in a ‘developing’ country which has money to build skyscrapers, but has no

intention of improving its sewage system.”Taiwanese writer Lung Ying-tai in her book In Europe.

“What I write on my microblog is pointless, as what I want to write is forbidden. I feel guilty for not speaking from the heart.”Meng Fei, a popular anchor with Jiangsu TV, on the limitations of China’s online environment.

“Liu Xiang is now a son of the country, who will not come back to me until the end of the Olympic Games. If Liu Xiang is someday no longer outstanding, please forgive him.”Ji Fenhua, mother of hurdler Liu Xiang, on her son’s disappointing exit from the London Olympics.

“Being a Party member will inspire Sun Yang to fight on the Olympic battlefield.”Olympic swimming coach zhang Yadong explaining why China’s 200m freestyle and 1,500m freestyle gold medalist was inducted into the Party prior to departing for the London Olympics.

“The economic tide has swept away something more essential it is quite awful that people live for the prospect of riches.” Philosophy professor Li Chenyang from Nanyang Technological University, Singapore, on moral decay in the Chinese diaspora.

“I think the root motivation for corruption is the realization of personal value. People only bribe those in power, so the more you are bribed, the higher your value.” Wang Naiping, former president of the Guangxi University of Chinese Medicine, during his trial. Wang was found guilty of taking bribes worth two million yuan (US$294,000) and was sentenced to 12 years in prison.

“On the world stage, the Chinese government has a loud voice, while the Chinese are kept quiet.”Communications Officer of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) China zhang Wei, during a promotion for the UNDP video 2032, I Hope, in which 232 ordinary Chinese describe their wishes for the future.

“When charitable organizations are neither independent from the government nor open to the public, real charity is to refuse government calls for donations. If the government can make a profit whenever a disaster occurs, it will be inactive in disaster prevention, or even hope for disasters.”Critic Lian Yue’s response to requests from the Beijing government for citizens to donate money to the relief effort after the July 21 storm which killed 77 people in the capital.