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Energy regulation plays an important role in China's economic development. Focusing on the electricity industry, four shortcomings of the country's current energy regulation become apparent: first, overemphasis on energy supply and neglect of other aspects of the industry's impacts; second, an unclear system of regulation for the energy sector; third, over-regulation of the energy market; and fourth, insufficient environmental regulation. These shortcomings could be remedied by improving the understanding of the impacts of the energy sector, reforming the administrative regulation system for the energy sector, deregulating the energy market, and strengthening related environmental regulations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In March 2008, the Chinese National People's Congress elevated the former State Environmental Protection Administration to the Ministry of Environmental Protection. The reform strengthens the environmental protection sector's administrative stability, political will, decisionmaking power, and access to resources. However, the new Ministry confronts insufficient legislation, ambiguous authority allocation, and weak central-local management. Future reform needs to focus on administrative law legislation and language clarification for existing regulations, establishment of collaborative frameworks, and application of incentive-based approaches to central-local relationships. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Looks at how far China's economic reform policy can go while maintaining the existing political system. History of China's road to modernization; Reform policy of the current Chinese Communist Party; Four cardinal principles; Chinese people's ernest demand for democracy.

Is opening our doors to the outside world merely an expedient measure or is it a basic policy to be maintained over the long-term future? This question has been raised by people both at home and abroad. Most recently, Comrade Deng Xiaoping responded to this question with a most clear-cut and unequivocal answer. He said: "Opening our doors to the world outside is a fundamental policy of our country. If there is to be change, it will be in the direction of even greater openness; anything else and our people themselves would not approve." He also said: "This policy of China's will not be changed in this century; it is also hard to imagine its changing in the second half of the next century. By that time the relations between China and other countries in economic and commercial terms will have become developed, and much more intimate, and it would be impossible to change the policy even if one would want to do so."

How do we assess society: is it that "reality is disappointing everywhere" or that "aside from things false, evil, and ugly, there are more things true, good, and beautiful"?

In a modern socialist country, not only should the material and spiritual civilization be highly advanced; moreover, it must develop a high level of democratic life. "Socialism" is not merely a social economic system. It is a new society, an era above the capitalist one, which has its distinctive economic base and superstructure suited to that base. …

Focuses on the social condition of Chinese intellectuals. Arrests and crackdowns in 1989; False confessions and their legacy; Limitations of research to topics that are not politically sensitive; Chinese Communist Party's (CCP) antispiritual pollution campaign; Cultural Revolution and capital punishment; Deng Xiaoping's new policy.