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FOLLOW-UP—It didn’t take long for the three floating officials of Huili County, China to become a very hot and very funny internet meme. At the time we posted the story about this PhotoShop disaster earlier today, it seemed as if the three Chinese men had only visited the moon and gone wading with dinosaurs. But as you’ll see at the link, they have been so much more active than that. Also at the link, you’ll be able to read a translation of the (China) Southern Metropolis Daily story about the original photo and the apology which was issued for it. It sounds like people got in some hot water for this, but we hope the memes we’ve seen and the ones to come have a humorous and non-damaging impact on the lives of the innocent guys in the original picture. (EastSouthWestNorth blog – Huili Officials’ World Tour)
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Let’s face it, this story is boring. Or at least it was supposed to be. What was supposed to happen was some Chinese government inspector guys were supposed to get photographed doing their inspector stuff on a newly-constructed road in the Sichuan Province county of Huili. And that photo was merely to be posted on the county’s website to show a nice little story about local pride and progress in this very rural part of China. But thanks to the miracle of PhotoShop, the picture of the government officials inspecting the road has turned into an embarrassment (literally) of riches in press coverage for Huili County. Above on the left, you can see for yourself the original picture source for two of the three men in the resulting image on the right. The road looks like a nice road, and the men look comfortable and pleasant enough. It’s just that they appear to be floating, which is pretty much what has the international press buzzing about the clumsily-manipulated image. And it is likely these three guys will become a popular internet meme. We’ve already seen them at the beach, and getting attacked by dinosaurs. (The Guardian UK – Floating Chinese Road Inspectors)
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