Crazybad air returns to Beijing

How bad is Beijing’s famously suffocating smog this week? Off the charts, according to the widely watched air monitoring system operated by the American Embassy here. The US Embassy’s @Beijingair Twitter feed, which not long ago slipped and labeled the capital’s air "crazybad,” has registered air pollution levels ranging from hazardous to exceeding the measuring equipment. In short, the air’s so bad, you can taste it.

Perhaps pictures tell the story better. China’s Caixin magazine has a photo slideshow of the smog, which is so bad that officials have warned that children and the elderly should remain indoors. It's no laughing matter for anyone, as the World Health Organization and other groups have issued many reports over the years linking China's heavy air pollution with high rates of respiratory diseases and death.