The typical media exaggerations have made it seem like the whole bridge was made of rubbish and collapsing but that is not the case.

In China, where even embezzlement can merit the death penalty, there's no way anyone would risk their lives (literally) just so a few crooked construction executives can make a little bit more money.

On the other hand, if the project in question was just a block used to hold up a lamp, it's much more plausible that this would be allowed to pass.

Again, this isn't about morality or ethics, these officials would literally be taken behind the woodshed and SHOT, and all their family's possessions taken away and their children sent to labor camps if an entire bridge was found built like this and people died. The rich ones up top could buy their way out, but the middle management wouldn't and they would much rather report it early and watch their greedy asshole boss get in trouble than risk everything in building an actual bridge with rubbish.

This is contrast with the hi-speed train crashes where poor worksmanship in the building process is much more easy to conceal given the unfamiliar nature of the construction, but there's no way you can hide the fact if something vital were constructed from mere trash, even from the most uneducated of construction workers on site. They knew it was rubbish, but since it was only for decorations, they just laughed it off.

Here is the Chinese wikipedia article which contains the name of the bridge so you can look into it yourselves if you wish: http://zh.wikipedia.org/zh/%E6%B2%B3%E5%8D%97%E8%B7%AF%E6%A1%A5 [http://zh.wikipedia.org/zh/河南路桥]

damn...

To make an "L" sound, take the your tongue and touch the back of your upper teeth. To make an "R" sound, take your tongue and point it to the roof of your mouth, but do not touch. To make any of the following:
ら り る れ ろ
Take your tongue and put it between the previous two locations mentioned, and touch briefly.

A more subtle alternative reading is that it's about how you shouldn't reinforce concrete with fucking, like, empty chip packets and shit.

man1 said:
Classifying this as "design failure" is a huge understatement. This is...

...PURE EPIC FAIL OF UNPARAMOUNT MAGNITUDE.

Seems that in China, it's wise to carry a hammer wherever you go. You'll never know if the very floor you're standing on is made of the same stuff you dispose off your home.

CHINA CONSTRUCTION: Every engineer's worst nightmare.

Nicely put.

...PURE EPIC FAIL OF UNPARAMOUNT MAGNITUDE.

Seems that in China, it's wise to carry a hammer wherever you go. You'll never know if the very floor you're standing on is made of the same stuff you dispose off your home.

CHINA CONSTRUCTION: Every engineer's worst nightmare.

Somewhat disappointed Artefact chose to kick-start the new year with such sad story....