Heroes worshipped Villains vilified

Hero of the week

Beijing Zoo's giraffe escapee

It seems everyone is eager to hit the road and escape Beijing for the October 1 National Day holiday, and animals are no exception. The Beijing Zoo is notoriously busy during national holidays, when it sees an influx of tourists eager to poke and prod animals in their enclosures. It's no surprise then that some of them have decided to get out of town to avoid the spike in visitors.

A Web user surnamed Liu on Wednesday uploaded photos of a giraffe on a truck cruising along Beijing's Fifth Ring Road with the caption: "Where did the giraffe come from and where is it going?"

A short time later, a Tibetan antelope was reportedly spotted prancing nearby the National Stadium at the Olympic Park by another Web user, raising hopes among animal welfare activists that a breakout had occurred at the Beijing Zoo.

Alas, it was not to be. The zoo confirmed the giraffe was being transported to another zoo in Huaibei, Anhui Province, while the "Tibetan antelope" turned out to be a mascot dressed as Yingying, one of the 2008 Beijing Olympics' five fuwa.

Villain of the week

Drunk Shanghai gambler

China's legion of unlicensed taxi drivers are stigmatized as cheats and crooks, but it doesn't help when the public spreads rumors to reinforce this reputation. Shanghai police announced Tuesday that a local man had received 10 days of administrative detention for filing a false police report that claimed an unlicensed taxi driver stole 10,000 yuan ($1,585) from him prior to a high-speed chase.

Fang took an unlicensed taxi Sunday night when he asked the driver to pull over so he could get his friend. No stranger to this ploy, the wise driver surnamed Xu asked Fang to hand over the cash before getting out of the vehicle. An angry, intoxicated Fang allegedly threw 10,000 yuan he won gambling at the driver, who then sped off.

Fang then flagged down a motorist to help him chase Xu in a pursuit that lasted over half an hour at speeds of up to 150 kilometers per hour and ended in a crash. While investigating the crash, police found contradictions in Fang's story and discovered his friend had been asked to lie to further taint the noble profession of illegal cab driving.