Forget the data. A dog posing as a lion could be the canary in the coal mine for the truth about China’s economy. “We’re doing our best in tough economic times. If anyone is unhappy with our displays, we will give back their money.” That was a spokesman for a zoo in Henan province, ranked third in China by population, trying desperately to explain away a dog-to-lion swap-out this week that has gone viral. The game was up for the zoo, which claims it removed the lion temporarily for breeding purposes, when visitors noticed something not right in the cage of the mighty beast. What they were looking at was really a ... (full story)