One of the greatest stand-up comedians of all time, George Carlin, passed away at 71 today in Los Angeles. While George might not have gotten better with age, his unique brand of comedy became more meaningful to me as I got older. I hoped that he’d continue to write and rant and perform on stage for years to come, but apparently George’s heart wouldn’t cooperate. Of his 40 years of comedy my favorite Carlin line was from a 1978 special when he explained his “Seven Words That Can Never Be Said on Television.” He said, “twat’s twat, and that’s that.” Here’s the clip:

NYT: George Carlin, Irreverent Comedian, Dies at 71

It’s like India curbing curry, Thailand banning Buddhism or Australia outlawing disingenuously laid back blokes from saying “no worries.” Instead, it’s China, cleansing itself of one of its most integral entities: the fireworks. On many a morning in my days in Shanghai, I would wake up thinking I was on set in the bank robbery scene of Heat. If someone Chinese get married, Roman candles. If a Chinese couple moves into a new place, it might be a Waco Wake Up or a few bottle rockets. New baby to the family? More of the same. Beijing, however, for the next few months, will get used to a little something foreign to Beijingers called silence. Here’s a brief from the New York Times:

The Beijing city government has banned fireworks for three months around the time of the Summer Olympics for safety reasons, according to a post on a government Web site. From July 1 until Oct. 8, fireworks dealers will have to suspend sales and lock existing stocks in special warehouses. The ban is among a host of restrictions that the Chinese government has imposed for the Olympics, which begin on Aug. 8.

While no explanation has been given for the ban, it is clear that the government doesn’t just simply want its citizens to sleep past 7am for the first time ever. It’s pretty clear, Beijing can’t afford to have loud and sudden bangs going off during the Olympics.