Dirty Dishes	Dirty Dishes Archive

Apropos of Dawn's first two items comes news from China that the charmingly monickered "Shenzhen City Public Security Bureau's Internet Surveillance Centre" has introduced the internet icons "Jingjing" and "Chacha" (whose names are made up of the Chinese characters for "police") to remind 'net users that the government (with tech help from Google...) is always watching.

"All around the world there are internet police, but they always operate backstage," says the SCPSBISC's Ms. Chen. "No other internet police have stepped to the front of the stage," she says. "We really feel that this is a historic breakthrough."

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In a demonstration at the SCPSBISC officer Xu Qian showed press how the Jingjing icon keeps pace whenever a user of a local discussion website scrolls down a page. "He is just like a policeman, interactively moving along with you. Wherever you go, he is watching you," Mr. Xu told reporters.

By clicking on the icons, users can report crimes or learn about the rules on online conduct. Jingjing and Chacha also have their own websites with a selection of music including the "Song of the People's Police."