Interesting news from China

[JSCh]

Fujian Section of Beijing-Taipei Expressway Opened to Traffic
2015-12-19 18:22:40 CRIENGLISH.com Web Editor: Guan Chao


A photo of the Fujian Section of Beijing-Taipei Expressway taken in southeast China's Fujian Province on Dec. 18, 2015. [Photo: Chinanews.com]​

The Fujian Section of Beijing-Taipei expressway was opened to traffic on Friday. The section starts from Jian'ou county in the north of the Fujian Province and runs to the coastal Minhou county in the east of the province, with a total length of 155.285 kilometers.

​

 

[JSCh]

10-year-old wins world memory award
2015-12-21 16:20 Ecns.cn Editor:Yao Lan

Fifth grader Yan Jiashuo tries to remember numbers on blackboard at an elementary school in Jinan, East China’s Shandong Province, Dec. 21, 2015. Yan recalled 1,080 numbers and 646 playing cards in sequence to set a new record with 3,000 competition points overall in an hour during a world contest in Chengdu, Sichuan Province. The 10-year-old girl is the youngest receiver of International Master of Memory. (Photo/Xinhua)​

 

[JSCh]

December 16, heavy snow fallen in Xinjiang Korla region.

Photo shows Chinese Police on duty helping drivers

And this photo that went viral on Chinese internet.
A young girl saluting the policeman that stand guard duty outside Xinjiang Korla Huashan school.

 

[JSCh]

College denies ousting Christian students
Global Times 2015-12-22 08:48

An official with a university in East China's Shandong Province on Monday dismissed media reports claiming that six Christian students could have been expelled for praying together on campus.

"The university decided not to punish any of them after they promised not to do it again," Song Bolong, director of the publicity department of Shandong Yingcai University in the provincial capital Ji'nan, told the Global Times on Monday.

U.S.-based Christian human rights group China Aid reported Thursday on its website that five of the six Christian students faced expulsion from the university after they were spotted praying together on campus.

The six students were photographed by another student while they were holding their routine prayer session on December 15, and the photographer called local public security, said Song.

"We respect the students' legitimate right to religious beliefs, but the university has banned group religious activity by students according to the Ministry of Education (MOE) regulations," Song added.

Any individual or organization is banned from holding religious activities on university campuses, according to an MOE regulation on the management of college students enacted September 1, 2005. Religious activities and publicity are also banned in primary schools and secondary schools, according to the MOE. The regulation was made to safeguard the normal order of education in colleges and to guarantee students' physical and mental health, the ministry said.

An online search on baidu.com showed that such regulations have been adopted into the regulations of many universities, such as the Communication University of China in Beijing.

According to the education law of China enacted in September 1995, no individual or organization can use religion to interfere in education.

China practices a policy of the separation of education and religion, and educational activities must be conducted in accordance with national and social interests, the law added.

As for the need for religious practice, Song suggests that the six students can pray outside the campus and at religious sites such as churches in downtown Ji'nan.

 

[JSCh]

Chinese deputy mayor fired for playing golf
Xinhua, December 22, 2015

A deputy mayor in South China's Fujian province has been removed from his post for playing golf, the anti-graft authority of the Communist Party of China (CPC) revealed Monday, among other cases.

Lin Chunsong of Wuyishan city was expelled from the municipal Party leadership, the CPC Central Commission for Discipline Inspection (CCDI) said in a statement. He will be given another position at township level.

Lin played golf 163 times from June 18, 2013 to August 16, 2015, including 12 times during work time. He also let others pay the fees for his game, local authorities said.

Li Jian, deputy head of the Civil Aviation Administration of China, was given a warning, also for playing golf, the CCDI said.

The CPC central leadership introduced rules in late 2012 to ban extravagance and hedonism. In October this year, revised party rules banned members from holding pompous weddings or funerals, or gaining membership in exclusive clubs through improper means.

The CCDI also exposed five other cases.

Shanghai deputy mayor Zhou Bo was given a "serious warning" for attending banquets paid for with public money.

The Hubei Local Taxation Bureau's deputy head Deng Guoqiang was removed from his post for attending banquets and entertainment activities against party rules.

Zhang Jianfei, deputy governor of Hunan Province, and Zhou Jing, publicity chief of Binzhou city in Shandong Province both received serious warnings for organizing trips and banquets with public money.

Li Baode, deputy chief of the forestry department of Liaoning Province received the same punishment for holding pompous funerals for his mother-in-law and his father, and a grand wedding for his son.

 

[JSCh]

Tibet insures urban residents against serious illness
Source:Xinhua Published: 2015-12-26 16:13:37

Urban residents in Tibet are now covered by a serious illness insurance, the local government said Saturday.

Residents with medical insurance records will be covered by the new insurance, and the local government will cover the premiums, said Ma Quanping, head of the insurance regulatory bureau of Tibet Autonomous Region.

The regional government paid more than 10 million yuan (1.5 million US dollars) to insure 294,000 people in 2015, Ma added.

The insurance will cover 70 percent to 90 percent of medical bills that exceed 5,000 yuan. It has been designed to alleviate the financial burden that accompanies serious illness like cancer, heart attacks or strokes, he said.

The insurance is managed by the Tibetan branch of the People's Insurance Company of China (PICC). In April, Tibet adopted a policy to promote the development of its budding insurance sector.

 

[JSCh]

Central bank gives a helping hand to Tibet

• China Daily
• 2015-12-28 08:46

A farmer holds money he borrowed from a bank in Lhasa, Tibet autonomous region, in August.(Photo/Xinhua)​

China's central bank is seeking new methods to strengthen financial support in the Tibet autonomous region, aiming to accelerate regional economic development and lift local residents out of poverty in the next five years.

New financial measures, including more aggressive bank lending with relatively low interest rates in Tibet than other regions, are under discussion, according to officials and financial industry executives.

The People's Bank of China, the country's central bank, will encourage commercial banks to issue more loans to enterprises in Tibet, based on lower financial costs and required reserve ratio, according to Pan Gongsheng, deputy governor of the bank.

"Financial institutions, including banks, securities companies and insurance companies, will launch more branches in Tibet in the next five years, and the policy will support development of private banks, village banks and other micro-financial institutions in the area to expand their service coverage," said Pan.

More funds raised by those financial institutions will be injected into infrastructure construction projects, environmental protection and urban development.

The policy will focus on small and micro credit for local farmers and herders, and be used to relieve poverty, the official said.

Due to its plateau climate and relatively undeveloped economy, the financial sector in Tibet lags behind other regions in the country, and especially lacks financial professionals.

According to data from the central bank, by the end of November, 11 banks had launched branches in Tibet. Total outstanding loans reached about 205 billion yuan ($31.6), 6.8 times the amount in 2010.

In the first 11 months, enterprises in Tibet has raised fund of 21.5 billion yuan from the equity market.

In 2014, the total GDP of the Tibet autonomous region was 92 billion yuan, the lowest among all 31 provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities, which equaled only about 7.3 percent of the GDP in Guangdong province－the country's highest last year.

Xie Xuezhi, chairman of the Agricultural Development Bank, one of China's three major policy banks, said his bank will invest more than 100 billion yuan into Tibet in the next five years. It has issued 4.9 billion yuan in loans in the region this year.

Liu Shiyu, chairman of Agricultural Bank of China, said by the end of 2016 his bank plans to expand services to all villages in the region that have basic telecommunication infrastructure.

Losang Jamcan, chairman of the autonomous region, said the region is predicted to achieve annual GDP of more than 100 billion yuan this year, up 12.2 percent year-on-year.

 

[JSCh]

Thousands fete Mao’s birthday

• By Cao Siqi
  
• Source:Global Times
  
• Published: 2015-12-28 0:38:01

Huge gathering shows support for legacy: observer
Thousands of people across China gathered at Shaoshan in Central China's Hunan Province to commemorate the late Chinese leader Mao Zedong on Saturday, the 122nd anniversary of his birth.

A woman holds a picture of late Chinese leader Mao Zedong in front of his statue at Shanxi University in Taiyuan, North China's Shanxi Province, on Saturday. Local residents came to the statue to commemorate the 122nd anniversary of Mao's birth. Photo: IC​

Mao, one of the most influential figures in China's modern history, was born in Shaoshan, Hunan on December 26, 1893.

Local authorities held a wreath-laying ceremony and a running competition to mark the anniversary of his birth. According to China News Service, hundreds of thousands of local residents convened at the square in Shaoshan on Friday and presented bouquets before Mao's statue while singing the song "The East Is Red." Large numbers of visitors also came to Shaoshan early on Saturday morning to pay their respects to Mao.

Viral photos posted online showed admirers holding photos of Mao and carrying red flags bearing Maoist slogans.

A 39-year-old Mao admirer surnamed Xia from Jingzhou in Central China's Hubei Province told the Global Times on Sunday that he has come to Shaoshan several times since 1996 to commemorate Mao, whom he adores and misses.

"He is a savior of the Chinese people," Xia said, adding that he cherishes the simple ethos of the society of the past.

"There were more young people and red flags at the site this time," he said.

Lin Minjie, president of the Hong Kong Society of Mao Zedong Thought, an NGO established in 2013 to study and spread Mao's thought and promote social development in Hong Kong, told the Global Times on Sunday that his association also went to Shaoshan to commemorate Mao on Saturday.

Lin said that his mission is to counter what he sees as an anti-communist trend in Hong Kong by spreading Mao's thought in Hong Kong and supporting socialism there.

"The grand gathering showed Chinese people's approval of Mao's and other revolutionaries' historic contributions to China," celebrity commentator Sima Nan told the Global Times on Sunday.

"It also reflects people's willingness to rehabilitate Mao from the false accusations made against him over the past 30 years," Sima pointed out.

Sima added that the presence of large numbers of admirers in Shao-

shan also demonstrated people's appreciation for the life of equality and justice experienced in Mao's time.

Several of Mao's relatives, including his grandson Mao Xinyu and Mao Xinyu's family, came to Beijing's Chairman Mao Memorial Hall to commemorate him on Saturday.

Other regions also carried out additional memorial ceremonies honoring Mao.

A library in Hefei, Anhui Province, came together with a local media company and calligraphy association to offer local residents free DVDs featuring stories from Mao's life.

Authorities in Northwest China's Gansu Province also held activities to recall memories of difficult times and to spread the revolutionary spirit, media reported.

 

[JSCh]

78% Chinese believe West intends to contain China
By Gu Di and Liu Xin Source:Global Times Published: 2015-12-30 1:28:01

Sino-US relations still considered most important: poll

A new poll shows that some 78 percent of Chinese believe Western countries intend to contain China.

Some 36.5 percent said the West intends to and have already moved to contain China. Some 41.7 percent say Western countries have such intentions but there exists no obvious action, according to a survey released by the Global Times' Poll Center Tuesday.

The annual survey, "How Chinese people view the world," involved telephone responses from 1,530 people from seven Chinese cities, including Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Changsha.

Jin Canrong, deputy dean of the School of International Studies at the Renmin University of China, told the Global Times on Tuesday that this is how the Chinese feel, following the past year's events.

Relations between China and the US have been strained in 2015 due to issues like the South China Sea disputes and cyber security. China and Japan locked horns in disputes around the Diaoyu Islands and Japan's attitude to face up to its wartime history.

"The US and Japan did things aimed at China, but China is not that easy to contain," he said.

The poll also finds that some 69.4 percent consider Sino-US relations China's most important bilateral relations. However, the number has dropped from 81.3 percent in 2009, 74.6 percent in 2012 and 72.3 percent in 2014.

Bilateral relations with Russia, Japan, and the EU ranked as China's second, third and fourth most important diplomatic relations.

"It is no surprise to see Chinese pay more attention to Sino-US relations since it influences their lives as the two countries share common interests," Jin said.

The survey showed that 27.8 percent agree that the South China Sea disputes have been affecting relations, while 10.5 percent think the cyber security issue soured Sino-US relations.

Other issues that may strain the Sino-US relations are the Taiwan issue, 22.6 percent, and the Diaoyu Islands, 22.1 percent.

According to the survey, 56.9 percent, most of whom are young people, are optimistic about the future of Sino-US relations while 28.5 percent believe relations will be strained.

Jin said that the positive views on the development of Sino-US relations reflect the respondents' confidence in China.

"The conflict between China and the US is more about national interests than ideology," Zhang Jiehai, a sociologist at the Shanghai Academy of Social Sciences, told the Global Times.

Ambivalent relations
Meantime, 28.6 percent said bilateral relations with Russia are China's second most important, and 24.9 percent said relations with Japan are the third most important.

"Sino-Russian and Sino-Japanese relations are considered the most significant neighborly relations. China and Russia have been in recent years moving in a good direction, while Japan and China are still locked in feuds, including historical issues and disputes over the Diaoyu Islands," Zhou Yongsheng, a professor at China Foreign Affairs University, told the Global Times.

Zhou said that although Japan is China's second largest trade partner, the disputes between the two countries involve national honor and interests, leaving most Chinese with little faith in the future of Sino-Japanese relations.

People who think relations between China and Southeast Asian countries remain important to China dropped by 2.5 percent, compared to 2014. And 53.6 percent agree that disputes in the South China Sea were the main cause of strained relations.

The survey also showed that 53.9 percent are optimistic about the future of China's international relations, while 37.6 percent are concerned.

 

[JSCh]

Amazing sun pillars make N. China city a wonderland (4/4)
2015-12-31 13:31 Ecns.cn

Sun pillars appear in Xilinhot City, North China’s Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, Dec. 30, 2015. A sun pillar is a vertical shaft of light extending upward or downward from the sun. Typically seen during sunrise or sunset, sun pillars are formed when sunlight reflects off the surfaces of falling ice crystals associated with thin, high-level clouds. (Photo/IC)

 

[TaiShang]

Now, the nation is nuts about, well, nuts
China Daily, January 1, 2016


In December, Bree Morse, a Miss California USA, spent her 23rd birthday in China. She was on a nine-day nationwide tour, not to promote her personal career as an entertainment industry personality, but to advocate the benefits of California pistachios.

As it turns out, it is not just the state of California, or the United States itself, that wants a share of the growing nuts-and-seeds market in China.

According to the National Food Industry Association, sales of nuts and seeds in China were worth 111.7 billion yuan ($17.29 billion) in 2014, accounting for more than one-third of the overall snacks market. Everyone who exports nuts and seeds are eyeing China.

Morse and her fellow delegates from the American Pistachio Growers visited Shanghai, Ningbo, Xi'an and Beijing, meeting consumers, retailers, caterers, bakers, and impressed upon them how pistachio nuts could enhance foods like glutenous rice ball soup by replacing sesame. The visitors emphasized how pista nuts from California, even when eaten plain, could prove healthful.

The 650-strong APG, the delegates said, spans California, Arizona and New Mexico, and wishes to bring its special food item to a wider range of consumers in China.

Since 2008, the US has been the world's largest grower of pistachio nuts, and exporting some of them to China. But the savory food is not the only variety of nuts to enter the China market.

Zhang Liang, director of the snacks department of the supermarket chain RT-Mart in Shanghai, said imported nuts are getting increasingly popular among consumers, especially during holidays.

"Pecan, chestnut, walnut, macadamia, almond, hazelnut, you name it. Consumers are trying more varieties of nuts as snacks during quality time with families and parties with friends, replacing the old pattern of just peanuts and sunflower seeds," said Zhang.

Not unexpectedly, competition in the nuts-and-seeds market is turning fiercer by the day as new players enter it.

In a store of Ole supermarket, the high-end retailer of China Resources Enterprise, as many as 12 salesgirls clad in bright costumes promoted their respective brands of nuts and seeds in the run-up to Christmas.

"Try this pecan from the US," said Zhang Xiaoting, 21, extending a handful of nuts. She is a part-time promoter who works two days a week introducing pecans to consumers.

Wang Juanjuan, 37, just two meters away from Zhang on the shopfloor, roasts "delicious Thai cashewnuts" and shares a plateful of them with shoppers passing by.

Next to her, the kiosk of Australian macadamia offers a free nut opener for every can of nuts bought. And next to it, the promoter of Canadian walnuts says, "Buy one packet, get another one at half price".

As several happy consumers enjoy multiple helpings of various nuts, and avail discounts and gifts, it becomes clear producers' hardsell and sustained multi-media campaigns are paying off.

Yang Jiangang, 58, said he has been noticing ads about almonds being good for health as dietary supplements in magazines and on billboards for some time now, and wanted to buy some for his visiting grandson. But, after going around the nuts-and-seeds shelves, he ended up buying five packets of different nuts, which set him back by more than 400 yuan.

"You know, just by tasting these nuts (here in the supermarket), you can get really full, leaving no space in your tummy for lunch. I'm not exaggerating, mind you. I hadn't realized so many nuts are easily available these days. When I was a kid, I had just peanuts during holidays. Then I bought pine nuts for guests on my wedding day. Now, you see, we can afford more varieties as snacks. So, I wish to buy whatever I find are good," said Yang.

Besides discounts and offers, producers of nuts share recipes on their websites and gourmet magazines, and host cooking workshops to teach consumers how to use nuts in desserts, main dishes, and even as staples.

Ready-to-eat food industry analysts said China's demand for nuts has grown to a significant size, and promises potential for tremendous sales growth.

According to Qu Fengying, deputy chair of the Chinese Nutrition Society, per capita consumption of nuts in China is still lower than that of many developed countries.

But things will change sooner than later, she said. "On average, the Chinese residents' daily consumption of nuts and seeds is about five grams per capita while the figure is about 100 grams in many developed countries. The demand for nuts may grow significantly in China."

 

[ahojunk]

Everyone is trying to sell to the rapidly growing Chinese middle class.

When you have the money, everyone is nice to you and try to sell you their stuff.

I am glad Australia is also into the act, can't let the Americans or Canadians having it all.

Thailand, Vietnam and the Latin American countries are producers of nuts and agriculture products. Sure, they are also trying to sell to the Chinese too.

 

[ahojunk]

I am now wondering what other sh*t these unscrupulous producers put into our food.

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Taiwan Candidates "Chew the Fat" over U.S. Pork Imports
2016-01-02 21:31:02 | Xinhua | Web Editor: Guan Chao

The three candidates for Taiwan's leadership in this month's election on Saturday engaged in a heated discussion about whether Taiwan should import pork from the United States that contains the leanness enhancer ractopamine.

The issue has remained hot since it was raised in the first televised debate on Dec. 27 and was put forward again at Saturday's TV debate.

Eric Chu of the Kuomintang (KMT) argued that Taiwan should not rush to lift the ban on ractopamine since the Taiwanese consume much more pork than Europeans or Americans. He stressed that Taiwan should have its own standard for the acceptable level of ractopamine based on local dietary habits.

James Soong of the People First Party (PFP) also expressed strong opposition to the imports, saying that the authorities should spare no effort to ensure food safety.

In the previous TV debate, Tsai Ing-wen of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) suggested that Taiwan adopt Japan and the Republic of Korea's standards. Her statement drew condemnation from the agricultural department and farmers who argued that opening the local market to U.S. pork that contains ractopamine would endanger public health.

The island's association of pig farmers threatened to stage a protest rally if the ban was lifted.

During Saturday's debate, Tsai said it was too early to decide whether to lift the ban for it will need complicated negotiations and denied that she had made any promises to the U.S. side.

The debate began with opening statements and five questions selected from thousands posted online by the public before candidates challenged one another with their own questions followed by closing statements.

They debated cross-Strait relations, economic restructuring, Internet development, pension reform, corruption and labor rights.

Chu noted that Taiwan business people who invested in the mainland have been worried about political instability across the Taiwan Strait brought by the DPP's ambiguous cross-Strait policy.

The KMT, he said, will try its best to maintain stable cross-Strait relations, he stressed.

TV debates, sponsored by four daily newspapers, a news agency and public TV station, have been a regular fixture of elections since 2004. This year's were scheduled later than normal because the DPP refused to follow previous protocol. It was not until late last month that the three parties finally agreed on the schedule of three debates, two for leadership candidates and one for their deputies.

 

[ahojunk]

Another post on the same issue.
Politicians are the same everywhere, they will say the things to get them elected.
Ah, it's interesting that the TPP may require Taiwan to relax its standards.

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Taiwan can't follow int'l pork standards due to diet: minister
By Stephanie Chao ,The China Post
December 30, 2015, 12:13 am TWN

TAIPEI, Taiwan -- Taiwan cannot follow similar standards as Japan and Korea on U.S. pork due to differences in dietary habits, stated Minister of the Council of Agriculture (COA) Chen Bao-ji on Tuesday.

The average Taiwanese consumed 34 kilograms of pork last year, higher than Japanese and Koreans, who consumed 15 kilograms and 24.4 kilograms, respectively, Chen stated.

On the other hand, beef consumption in Taiwan was an average of 5 kilograms per person, according to last year's statistics. If the nation followed the same ractopamine-laced U.S.-pork standards as Japan and Korea, it would severely affect public health, Chen said.

U.S. imported leanness-enhanced pork remained the topic of debate after the first presidential debate on Sunday, with Kuomintang (KMT) caucus members, along with Chen, coming out to refute Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) presidential candidate Tsai Ing-wen's stance on the pork issue at a press conference.

Countries worldwide implement ractopamine-residue standards according to the country's staple meat. Chen emphasized that Taiwan still maintained separate guidelines on pork and beef imports since opening up the nation to U.S. beef.

"Why should Taiwan be accepting when there are so many countries that don't allow ractopamine-laced U.S. beef?" Chen asked.

The two neighboring Asian countries have implemented restrictions, he said. Ractopamine residue pork is completely banned in domestic products in Japan, while imports with 10 ppb ractopamine are allowed; Korea allows 10 ppb of residue in both domestic products and imports.

Both countries also import pork mainly from New Zealand and Australia, the minister said. Mainland China, Russia and the European Union have all banned ractopamine pork.

Chen said that as pig farming is at the top of Taiwan's agriculture sector, in terms of production value, the government should not force the industry into a corner based on "one person's statement."

Taiwan currently allows U.S. pork imports without ractopamine residues, yet as leanness-enhanced pork maintains a 10 percent lower cost than otherwise, Chen stressed the importance of reconsideration.

KMT Deputy Party Secretary Alicia Wang pointed out that Tsai's statements implied that she was in favor of letting U.S pork with ractopamine residue into Taiwan by following Japanese and Korean standards.

Yet, Wang stated that the DPP caucus party had made their objections to such imports clearly before, suggesting the DPP only had one opinion: "what Tsai says goes."

It's Too Early to Say: Tsai

In response to media questions on her stance — allowing U.S. ractopamine pork imports under certain conditions — Tsai stated that everything was still "too early to say."

"Nothing can be concluded when the negotiations haven't even begun," Tsai said. At Sunday's post-debate press conference, other than stating that U.S. pork imports to Taiwan should follow international standards, she also denied that equaled opening up the market for imports.

People First Party presidential candidate James Soong and KMT candidate Eric Chu have both expressed their opposition to allowing the imports.

Chu stated during the presidential debate that Taiwan should not "blindly" follow international standards, but set up stricter guidelines. While in favor of Taiwan's bid for Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) membership, Chu stated that Taiwan should still set up guidelines for U.S. leanness-enhanced pork.

 

[JSCh]

Survey: 67% of singles want a second child
2016-01-06 15:59 Ecns.cn Editor: Mo Hong'e

(ECNS) -- Sixty-seven percent of respondents to a survey said they would prefer to have a second child as China scaled back its decades-old one-child policy last week, allowing all couples across the country to have a second child, Beijing Morning Post reports.

Zhenai.com, one of the country's leading matchmaking websites, surveyed its unmarried members to gauge their eventual willingness to have two children, finding that more than two-thirds of respondents said they would have another kid.

One common assumption is that people with less education prefer to have more children, but that was not the case, said the report. Higher income and education are factors boosting the desire to eventually have a second child, it found.

The report showed that 58.6 percent of respondents with bachelor degrees or above would like to have two children, while 70.8 percent of single men with a monthly income of more than 20,000 yuan ($3,065) have a strong interest in having a second kid.

The survey also found a significant number of respondents advocate delayed marriage and later childbearing. Ninety-seven percent prefer to get married after 25 years old; 45 percent of female respondents would like to have children when they are between 30 and 35 years; and 35 percent of female respondents do not mind being older mothers and having a second child after they turn 35.

The results also showed that the vast majority of respondents prefer marriage to single life. Only 2.9 percent said they enjoy single life, while 45.9 percent said they felt very lonely.

The report also showed that 66.7 percent of respondents feel pressure to marry against their will, especially in first-tier cities.

"Every time I come home on holiday, my parents try rush me into a marriage," said one respondent. "I just lower my head and say nothing."

There are other signs of yearning: 21.23 percent of those surveyed said they long for marriage because they do not want to miss out on the optimal age for proposing, while another 38.82 percent feel lonely and want somebody around.

Along with traditional dating and social networking, online dating websites are becoming a more common way to meet in the Internet age and claim a high success rate in matchmaking.