Some of them, like Bo Xilai, the Party Secretary of Chongching, have been openly arguing that China has become too Westernized, too materialistic, too unequal, and too untethered from its past. Bo has spoken of a return to Confucian values, encouraged festivals of communist songs from the Cultural Revolution. He speaks reverently of China's Moaist values. It is a conservative lament about the consequences of capitalism.

A Regretsy.com reader named Erica related yesterday how she sold an old French violin "that made it through WWII" to a buyer in Canada for $2,500. However, the buyer disputed the authenticity of the label and demanded his money back. When the buyer contacted PayPal with his concerns, the payment processor instructed him to destroy it and refunded the purchase price.

Speaker John A. Boehner said Friday that House Republicans would insist on including the Keystone XL oil pipeline in any legislation that extended the tax cut and unemployment benefits.

Vikings running back Adrian Peterson said he will play against the Saints on Sunday. As for why he'd actually want to play for a 2-11 team on a left ankle that he says is "85 percent," well, he has his reasons.

...

"It's very important, especially for my fantasy team owners," Peterson said with a smile. "They've been giving me a hard time."

A church group in Seoul wants to put up the Christmas lights on a massive steel tower shaped like a tree on top of a military-controlled hill just 3 kilometres from the border with North Korea.

When lit up, it will be able to be seen in the northern city of Kaesong, prompting Kim Jong-il's regime to denounce the display as "a mean attempt for psychological warfare" aimed at promoting Christianity, according to the North's official website, Uriminzokkiri.