Schoolyard violence with Chinese characterisitcs

Despite efforts to downplay the story in the face of the Shanghai Expo, news of a recent wave of copycat killings has spread quickly through China, driven in part by the surprising revelation that many of the killers have been middle-aged and apparently well-educated men. Online, some netizens have blamed the government, which in turn blames social contradictions. Writing for The Telegraph, Malcolm Moore summarizes these attacks as a “turning point” created by alienation engendered over the last twenty years of China’s industrialization. Where does the truth lie?  With Kaiser Kuo out of the country, Jeremy Goldkorn of Danwei takes up hosting duties this week, joined by Sinica regular Gady Epstein, Beijing bureau chief for Forbes magazine, and China public relations expert Will Moss, whom you may know as author of the popular blog Imagethief. Qin Liwen, a Chinese author and bookstore owner in Beijing who has written about these killings in the domestic media, also joins Jeremy as a guest in the studio.