This begs the question: Does the Chinese government have no advisers?
A Chinese human rights activist, Chen Guangcheng, under house arrest for years for decrying Chinese gov’t abuses, escapes and turns up at the U.S. Embassy (we didn’t kidnap him or anything…). Of his own volition, Chen, a blind, self-taught lawyer, takes refuge in the embassy, though he reportedly never asks for political asylum (he has a family). He stays for six days, during a high profile visit by Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, then leaves after assurances are given by the Chinese government. He is promised a home with his family away from the province in which he was under house arrest, and that he may attend a university there to study law.
The Chinese government then makes a demand for an apology from the United States, saying we have interfered in internal Chinese affairs. This demand is worthy of facepalm, because expressing how dumb it is in words just doesn’t work. I certainly don’t need to explain it to you. Evolution has endowed us with an innate understanding of that level of stupid, without which any individual’s personal survival would be brief.
Ah, China. It is high time to overthrow your government. Come what may, it could only be an improvement.
B
UPDATE:
This is predictable. It is being reported that Chen now says the only reason he agreed to leave the embassy was that his government threatened to beat his wife to death if he did not. Par for the course.
B
