Liar, Liar! Pants on fire! XD

In all serious though, this can't be true. I mean don't the Chinese realize that all those burning people would release unprecedented amounts of C02 in the air, there in accelerating the already accelerated process of global warming even further? So obviously, we would not condone this because it is bad for our planet and the polar bears. Get it right, China!

There are those who say that violent movies and video games are causing the younger generation to commit the violent acts that are being committed today such as Columbine and the school in Connecticut. They may have something going in their favor that may be spot on. People who are weak minded or who have not been reared properly tend to live in a fantasy world. The comments by the young Tibetan who said he did it for the glorification and elevation to the status of Hero is just that type of person. Weak minded and typical of ignorant and unlearned people around the world.

Really? This again? Violent video games are not the problem. We have a rating system for a reason. (Rated E, T, M, etc.) Violent video games aren't made for young children. But if you don't follow the rating system, it doesn't matter now does it?

The only other people (besides young children with still developing brains) who can't distinguish fiction from reality are mentally ill. And that goes with everything from video games, to movies, to animal violence on Nat-Geo, Etc. We should be a focusing on mental health, the actual problem, rather than chasing after all of our fictional content.

It's all about people blaming forms of media which they don't understand. From music being blamed for violence and drugs, even to the Vatican blaming the opera for all their society's problems in ancient Rome. Opera, is not problematic in the slightest. And neither are video games. Anyone who can't tell fiction from reality has bigger problems than just violent video games and movie after movie that comes out with guns blazing, explosions, and fast woman.

Next they'll be saying things like, "No more fictional content. It's too violent. Ban all fiction! Ban all history books. Wars are violent. We can't allow our young people to become corrupted by their American History class." That is no worse or different an argument than the anti-video game one.

"A mass migration of ethnic Han Chinese to Tibetan areas" Yet they completely restrict movement in the rest of the country. hmmmm. They must have read "The Prince" by Machiavelli!

Just listening to Obama spout lies at the women talk shows would make you set yourself on fire!!!

VOA motto: "We report; you ignite."

roadkill: Not new about sending in Chinese nationals to dilute population in Chinese favor. Korea, Vietnam, and others come to mind, even if know one cared or reported it then or now. It did happen. My question is what does the VOA broadcast to people in Mexico? Why didn't the US support demockracy in Tibet? P.S. sonnet: The chinese government allows you free travel and no restrictions as to what you can do or see? I guess you must be a special citizen in China and live in a big house?

Hey China, here's a idea. Get out of Tibet and I bet the immolation's stop.

To be sure, the reporting seems to suggest that the Chinese propagandists didn't so much accuse the US of intentionally trying to persuade Tibetans to immolate themselves as acknowledged that one victim may have gotten the idea from a news report about Tibetan protest strategies he saw on VOA.

In other words, since the Chinese censor all stories of Tibetan protests, his only recourse for getting news was from VOA. ..in which case, VOA is actually doing its job. That somebody would choose to immolate themselves based on just getting this information is entirely their decision. We didn't cause him to choose to copy what he sees on TV or the Internet.

And you know this how? Are you in China and have proof of what you say? Or do you just believe what the government and media tell you which is pure horse hockey. I am in China and have been for the most part of 7 years. Things in China are not anything like what the media and government as well as those do gooder organization that say the manufacturers of most of the goods sold to America are done by slave labor in concentration camp style environments. Yes Chinese make less money per hour than Americans but they make a livable wage. It does not cost as much to live in China as America but the Chinese people in the cities have more than the average American because the Chinese government encourages the people to save. Until recently the only money you could borrow in China was to buy a home. Every one saves here. Parents buy homes for their children when they marry, or graduate from college

Sonnet, while I may not be in China, I know a great many people who have moved from there and the fact you say they are not an oppressive government and that they dont treeat their people like crap, makes me believe your a chinese official trolling American sites. The picture you use, did you get that with the frame?

Sonnet, none of that really denies that the Communist government is socially and culturally oppressive, just that the Chinese are fiscally and economically successful (something that is quite self-evident despite people's complaints about their labor conditions).

To answer your question: Yes, I do believe what my government and media tell me until I find good reason to think otherwise, since our independent media and free speech protections make it harder to hide the truth.

My question to you in turn is: do you believe what the Chinese government and media tell you, despite their opaque power structure, unaccountable authority, and mandated censorship?

That's a silly comparison. A slow, painful death by burning as a protest is completely different from a suicide bomber killing many other people in a heartbeat.

Do you get paid in yuan or dollars?

That's a silly comparison

Actually it is a valid comparison, Self sacrifice for what they believe to be a just cause and becoming a hero/martyr coupled with what they believe will be a reward in the afterlife for their sacrifice in this life. While I am not saying that the purpose of VOA showing self immolation is to encourage self immolation it certainly could have the same affect and could be used as a propaganda tool by those to encourage others to self immolate just as Jihadists use newscasts of suicide bombers to promote and encourage others to become suicide bombers.

Citing the example of one 18-year old Tibetan named Sangdegye, who attempted to self-immolate last December, the China Daily notedthat he “adored the self-immolators VOA reported on,” citing them as “heroes.”

Comparable perhaps, but still very different. The point of a suicide bomber is explicitly to harm and kill other people, which is entirely different from suicide by immolation, which is done for the purposes of expression.

The point of a suicide bomber is explicitly to harm and kill other people,which is entirely different from suicide by immolation, which is done for the purposes of expression.

They have they same end goal and that is to attract attention and to drive the people they see as invaders out of their homelands, The purpose is the same, The methods are different

@davy

I have not been payed yet, but do tell what currency your mother accepts.
Seeing as I have stilled not payed back for her "services" yet.

But in all seriousness I did not compare the method of suicide just the FACT that they both glorified it in some way. Quit putting words in other peoples' mouths.

Oh and don't even complain about me insulting you since you cast the first stone.

I would argue that the purposes are not the same, actually, since suicide bombing has the explicit goal of harming others. It is a violent punitive action against people perceived as the enemy as well as a form of matyrdom and a method of "attracting attention". It is thus in a league above flashy protest suicides.

How the hell am I glorifying suicide?

Again I didn't compare the monks to terrorists, if you morons took some time to read what I wrote and had some english comprehension then you would realize this.

And the next time you reply to my comment actually REPLY to MY COMMENT, don't hide it in another thread so I maybe won't see it.

go away paid chinese government troll

Duh?: I am saving your butt from criminal activities or activity to contribute to the west to support Tibet liberation on political grounds and ignoring economic grounds so Tibet can be a standalone poor country and breeding grounds for criminal organization (there can only be one...boo har har).

You owe me millions of cooked and serve dinners for saving you like that.

Tibet was an independent nation that was occupied by the Chinese military. They are not, nor have they ever been, part of China by choice. If this were Israel, China would be the loudest voice yelling, "Give it back!" But the U.S. would never say that to China, because Americans have become addicted to the cheap plastic crap China exports from its sweatshop factories.

VOA just reports on the self-immolations, and the Chinese government claims we're inciting it. The truth is not an endangered species in China; it's an extinct species. In the 21st Century there is no room whatsoever for occupying a neighboring country by military force. And not just a bit of their country, the way Israel is accused of, but the WHOLE country. The U.N. is no good in this situation, since China holds a permanent seat on the Security Council, and they'd veto ANY resolution calling for their withdrawal from Tibet. And the worst of it is, Tibet has NOTHING China wants or needs. It's just about ego. It's as if adding more worthless square miles to China somehow makes the bosses' jis get bigger in Beijing. Disgusting!

Ask the Uighurs in southern China how their 'Modernization' is working out for them???

After China bulldozed the Uighur home sites and towns to make room for the strip mining of COAL. The Hans imported to do the work/supervise are now out of work...

The Chinese Coal Industry has fallen on hard times with the slowing of Chinese Industry and LOW World coal prices...

The Tibetan people have been saved from this fast Modernization, due to their remote location and difficulty of constructing the roads/railroads for the shipping of their resources to China...

When Nationalist China became Communist China, China invaded again in 1951, taking over Tibet. Religion of all forms was then banned, this was modified after Mao's dead and the failure of his Cultural Revolution..

It was Mao that stated, "Religion is a disease that weakens the Tibet Society and has to be eradicated..." This was what he supposedly told the Dalai Lama during the 1950s after the Chinese invasion...

The following Chinese 'White Papers' on Tibet 'White Wash' China's actions. There is now NO mention of the Cultural Revolution, leave alone the other atrocities committed on the Tibetan people, including the 1.2 million Tibetans who died as a direct result of the Chinese communist occupation of Tibet...

BTY - While the US Presidents would not overtly support Tibet. The US CIA did train Tibetain FREEDOM Fighters for decades. But this was just one of the FIRST of the CIAs FAILURES...

The US Congress has continuously supplied support for the Dalia Lama and MOST US Presidents have welcomed the Dalia Lama's official visits. That was until OBAMA assumed office...

Lol.

However, jujubefruit does make a good point (albeit poorly worded). If China was to pull out of Tibet and give it it's independence. What then? The reality check is that the Tibetans are a minority population in their own 'country'. There is no historical government outside of buddhist monk authority. And while most of the west would cheer such a 'liberation', at the end of the day, there would be no real investment outside of ensuring that Tibet remains undeveloped for tourist purposes. The only real industry Tibet has to offer the outside world (with maybe a fair trade exception for woolen goods).

Also, Tibet would be slammed with serious financial burdens of having to equip it's own police force, sanitation, postal delivery, court system, and other general public works issues. These are serious logistical endeavors that every nation has growing pains with. Look at the middle east an see how they are coping with self governance. Not pretty.

And also even the Dalai Lama himself has recognized that there simply aren't enough Tibetans left to really expect independence to work. So all these Tibetans setting themselves on fire only exacerbates the problem.

However, I do not believe VOA has anything to do with these people killing themselves any more than I believe Al Jazira incites terrorists. People latch onto stories that resonate with their own feelings to begin with, and while I haven't seen the show to tell if they portray the individuals who they covered as being heroes. It is one thing to idolize someone, and another thing entirely to set yourself on fire. I like Jackass, but am not about to put a sock on my d1ck and let a snake bite it any time soon.

Roland Scott,

Tibet existed CENTURIES on their own...

Prior to 1951 Tibet; had its own army, currency and operated its own postal system...

The Nepal and Tibet Treaties of 1789, 1792 and 1856 CE...

The Sino-Tibetan treaties between China and Tibet of 706 and 822 CE, established their common border...

Tibet also has abundant natural resources:

1. Total surface water resources amount to 448.2 billion cubic meters...

2. More than 3,000 proven mineral reserves containing 102 varieties of resources...

3. It has China's biggest proven chromium and copper reserves, the Yulong Copper Mine, one of China's biggest copper mines...

4. A salt lake area in the northwest that is expected to become a major base for saline minerals and lithium (rare earths)...

These resources are why China will not let Tibet go, without a FIGHT...

jockmama-1543705: that is your view or western view. The sheer fact that the communist china overcome thousands of year of failures to finally invade and conquer Tibet is a conquest marvel that has not been accepted by the west with only histories of the failures of past western civilization. Usage of term the west assume exclusion of USSR, because ussr were also communist regime, and they conquer siberia in their time to allow siberia to be a part of Russia today.

AC Robertson-2414093: You post is a good read too But sticking to Tibet, tibet is a logistic isolation issue. It is because of that conquest of Tibet is a problem. But it allow Tibet to be lazy and not contribute to their current communist rule. Where was Tibet when most of china went through a communist revolution and all the educated got kill because they can think to reject communism. As you can see, the logistic isolation is a two way problems for outsiders and for tibet to help outsiders. Tibet or Mongolia were the two last reqion to show up on communist chinese rise to power in China. So they have a lot of time to help rebel communist rule. The unification of china by communist power is also a conquest marvel. Note: i think ussr conquest of siberia is also a conquest marvel. The russian can take the deepfreeze.

Roland scott: I have to worded same my brain thinks to make words to penetrate brains humble by unity. For example, the english language make use of plurals and singular syntax but only for brians that goes to church for unity. It makes a confusion to brains that apply themselves for purpose of synergy in chaos. The concept of unity to singular as plural to chaos is not a certainty of science fact. Vary (mock singular version of varies) hard to establish when allowing for chaos in thinking process. Also, it is very hard to stop thinking and figure out rules of english grammar to write and continue to finish thouth process. For example, if you brain is constraint by unity, could it result to your thinking be box in by unity? So how does one think outside the box? apple cmputer advertisement was to think out side the box. do you remember? No, not the hammer to pc commercial, the newer one, it use literal words: think outside the box.

jujubefruit - your Chinese to English translator appears to have a few bugs in it. You might want to look in to that :)

The Tibetans have to deal with the cards they've been dealt, and make their own decisions. If they've decided to resist Chinese assimilation even at the cost of their lives, well, that's their deal (though I doubt it will work). I'm not sure that's the best decision, but I respect their choice.

China, on the other hand, chooses to address the problem through blanket police oppression and flinging blame at foreign entities. It's silly and transparently dishonest to try to blame American news for prompting suicides that are an explicit protest of Chinese occupation. It is the Chinese authorities that are acting like immature children, not the Tibetans.

to all: allowing yourself to think outside the box by entering the darkside or by allowing freedom to think unbounded can cause brain to loose itself and go banana before age catches up to you. Having a brain go bananas before old age is a possible result of thinking out the box as describe from above post without kungfu is to do in blind faith. Learn to stop and sip your tea or beverages. Alcohol choke the brain cells with lack of oxygen. Etc. om. om. om. i.e. imaging banana is yellow meaty and smooth fruit, while brains is smooth and full off creased folds. Brains going banana means soft and squishy and cannot stop, therefore fusing reality and endless reality. okay?

AC Robertson-2414093: your assessment about greed for rich in high possibility for natural resources is a great point, but there is another issue that is not evident in your second post. It is about destiny and building a new empire for all chinese. The problem with the logistic isolation is a dream come true for criminal mastermind living in that region of development. So, that is a visible issue if one is to rule China like the communist party for the good of a new chinese civilization. So, it is up to the communist chinese and their vision of the future. Tibet being part of china satisfy global peace too. Easy to write too. For example, oil in the north of canada exists but requires different extraction business unit or team?

LoneStarKC: I think in english but ignore grammar prefering natural thoughts unbounded by english grammar I think to summarize. The end result is I can read you from your word writings. A matter of evolution. A due diligence for business opportunities. Meanwhile, you read me because I tell you about me. So, it is not me bragging, it is me give and take, my generosity... SEE?

SF accountant: then you agree to spend the money wisely?

jujubefruit,

Logistic isolation has been the SAVIOR and the oppressor in their region...

Nepal is in the same boat as Tibet. Nepal is exploiting their isolation and pristine natural wonders, now earning Multi-millions in Tourist dollars. Until China finishes building their Sapta Koshi river dams and puts an end to the 'White Water Rafting' and ECO Tourism industry...

We will not talk about the Communist Part now running Nepal, which has Green-Lighted the almost DOZEN Hydro-Electric facilities. The vast majority of this power is going to be transmitted to other countries. These transmission lines will destroy MILLIONS of additional acres and the surrounding scenery. Just like the diverted water lines that supply China NOW...

The vast MAJORITY of the people in Tibet that will NOT benefit from this resource development. It will not be the poor ethnic Tibetans that were forced off their lands. Instead the Han business owners that supply the logistics, supplies and technical know-how, that will...

Fool! Tibet is a sovereign nation occupied by a neighbor by military force. When you do something like that in the 21st Century, you demonize YOURSELF. If Peru occupied Ecuador and claimed it was part of Peru, the world would be in an uproar. If Croatia occupied Slovenia and claimed it was part of Croatia, the world would be in an uproar. If Laos occupied Cambodia and claimed it was part of Laos, the world would be in an uproar. Then why is everyone giving China a pass on Tibet? This has absolutely nothing to do with "weakening" China, since Tibet has nothing that China wants or needs. If we woke up tomorrow and found a gigantic hole in the Earth where Tibet used to be, it wouldn't affect Beijing one iota. VOA is merely reporting what's going on, and is in no way responsible for any ideas others take from the news. The only message Tibetans take is that the Chinese invaders don't like this - so it MUST be a good thing.

'If Peru occupied Ecuador and claimed it was part of Peru, the world would be in an uproar. If Croatia occupied Slovenia and claimed it was part of Croatia, the world would be in an uproar. If Laos occupied Cambodia and claimed it was part of Laos, the world would be in an uproar.'

Seriously, that is an absurd statement. China has been in Tibet for over 40 years now. That would put it back in the 20th Century. Along with us invading Iraq... twice. Afghanistan by two separate cold war powers. Cambodia and Laos were both occupied by U.S., French, Chinese, and Vietnamese forces. Croatia only exists now because Yugoslavia dissolved into ethnic violence that had one of many genocides of the 20th Century in it. And Peru and Ecuador have been fighting over the same bit of land sense 1941. Which btw the rest of the world did not give two $h1ts over.

Don't mind you making a statement over how you personally feel about war, but your references are clearly out of historical context. You would have been better off using the U.S. vs Canada or England invading Norway. Not countries that either exist out of serious conflict or ones that have actually invaded each other, in some cases multiple times (Peru and Ecuador have invaded each other three times last century alone).

When the Yellow River floods AGAIN, historically about every half century...

The 1887 flood has been estimated to have killed between 900,000 and 2,000,000 people.^[18]

The 1931 flood killed an estimated 1,000,000 to 4,000,000.^[18]

The 1938 flood of an area covering 54,000 km² took some 500,000 to 900,000 Chinese lives, was induced to block the invading Japanese...

China will be the one with their hand-out...

Hopefully their rabid dam building will stem this looming natural disaster. Because their extensive canal systems built CE 581 to 604 and the rebuilt Grand Canal did not prove to be very effective ...

Or this could be their Achilles’ heel, that has been used before by the waring Chinese Armies. The latest, where the Nationalist troops breached the dikes, Jun 1938 resulting in hundreds of thousands drowning and the flooding of large areas of China's north...

Mr. Von Dorf, did you accidentally burn your grammar books? Learn how to spell.

Human right and demoncracy are issues where US conveniently used to attack China.

It's convenient because there's so much to complain about. Detention without charge or trial, a non-independent judiciary, censored press, harrassment or imprisonment of civil rights advocates, the world's highest number of official executions... I could go on. But that's not what your post is really about, is it Dorf?

I believe this is more of the point you were trying to make:

It is part of the US's concerted effort to discredit, embarrass and demonize China in an attempt to thwart China's peaceful rise that challenges US hegemony and world domination.

So unedited and uncensored reports of the unrest and protest in Tibet qualifies as attempts to embarrass and demonize China? Or is it actually impossible that reporting on the truth (and China has never denied the self-immolations, certainly) embarrasses and demonizes China, because China often does embarrassing and demonic things to its citizens?

Never mind that if we're trying to "take over the world" by releasing news reports of other countries' misdeeds, then it's probably the most noble and ethical attempt at world domination humanly possible. That's the kind of empire I can get behind, you know?

Wow Henrich. seriously?. that's a bit .. extreme, even in the realm of conspiracy theories. I don't even think the Chinese would hire you to do propaganda for 'em.. your theories may be too wacky for even them. The North Koreans might.

Ba-dum-cha!

I dunno I didn't go to college graduated high schooland went into the service had part time job cleaning the town office/mowing the lawn sweeping the parking lot and shoveling the snow at 12 years old.Nobody gives me hand out's, nor would i take one.My parents taught me how to hunt fish what wild edibles i could eat what ones i couldn't.They taught me how to grow and harvest a garden.how to raise pigs/chicken's.i live in Northern Maine I'm proud of were I come from.I'm proud of the fact that every time this country has called my family has answsered.For the record i'm proud of being a redneck.What you learn from being a redneck .1 you do something wrong you pay for it.You take on a RESPONSIBILITY you see it through, and not look for someone else to blame if you fail,if you fail you own it example(Mrs. Clinton wasn't responsible for Benghazi, OBAMA was.To send in a reactionary team is the president's call no one else's own it MR.President.)3. if you want something get a job and earn it, don't go runnin to the nearest social services office to get the latest available hand out.What is a Liberal by definition exactly? because the comments i see on here ussually strike me as progressive socializm witch only exists within a communist regime,doesn't belong in America.Myself i guess i'm a constitutionalist although I never tried to label myself before,..although I guess it fits I once took an oath to uphold and defend the constitution of the united states of America.Although that should be every Americans oath.Sadly our president took that oath then started looking for ways to rewrite it or bypass it all together.To a family like mine that's the definition of a traitor.example(the republican's took the oath then signed an oath to grover Norquist I consider that an act of a traiter also.So long as we are devided they will continue to erode this country.You either stand by the constitution our forefather's wrote, or join what ever communist country our gov. sells us out to.GL

Carl, WTF are you talking about? Big deal, you can fish. You don't know the difference between socialism and communism? Read a book, and try to learn some spelling and punctuation. I usually don't attack people, but the stupidity of your comment was so profound I couldn't keep silent.

You clearly have a mental disorder of your own. Radical partisanism strikes again.

Another Demoblack?

No, I'm an Independent who believes blind, radical party bias is tearing our country apart. You know, like what this person said. And based on your comments, I see you are yet another person obsessed with chasing the donkey's @ss. So long as people like you keep "contributing" to the image and reputation of the Republican party, they will have a difficult time overcoming it. Which is a shame, because we need a strong Republican party to balance out the Democrats for the United States to be healthy again.

China isn't so interested in making us look bad as they are in blaming their problems on foreigners.

But yeah, it's a pretty bad stretch, isn't it? "Voice of America" makes an unlikely villain.

Yeah, I want to know who thought that could possibly work? How would anyone even go about it?

"Hey listen. You are a drain on society. Everyone will be much better off if you light yourself on fire, even you..."

And why would anyone listen? I don't get it...

"Congratulations! You will be a hero! There's just one catch. First, you have to light yourself on fire..."

Nope. Still seems silly.

Are you old enough to remember one on the Major events that resulted in the US Public turning against the Vietnam conflict???

1963 Buddhist Monk THICH QUANG DUC set himself on fire as a protest against the Diệm regime in Saigon, Vietnam...

Norman Morrison (December 29, 1933 – November 2, 1965), born in Erie, Pennsylvania, was a Baltimore Quaker best known for committing suicide at age 31 in an act of self-immolation to protest United States involvement in the Vietnam War.

Norman graduated from the College of Wooster in 1956. He was married and had two daughters.

On November 2, 1965, Morrison doused himself in kerosene and set himself on fire below Secretary of Defense Robert McNamaras Pentagonoffice. This was probably in emulation of Buddhist monk Thich Quang Duc, who burned himself to death in downtown Saigon of then South Vietnam to protest the Vietnamese War and repression of the South Vietnam government. Morrison's choice to self-immolate was particularly symbolic in that it followed President Johnson's controversial decision to authorize the use of napalm, a burning gel that sticks to the skin and melts the flesh, in Vietnam.

George Winne, Jr. (April 2, 1947 – May 11, 1970) was an American student who,
in protest of the United States' involvement Vietnam War, set himself on fire

Roger Allen LaPorte (1943 – November 10, 1965) is best known as a protester of the Vietnam War who set himself on fire in front of the United Nations building in New York City on November 9, 1965, to protest the United States involvement in the war. A former seminarian, he was a 22 year-old member of the Catholic Worker Movement at the time of his death.

On March 16, 1965 Alice Herz, an 82 year old pacifist, immolated herself on a Detroit street corner in protest of the escalating Vietnam War.

Florence Beaumont (died October 15, 1967, Los Angeles) was an American who self-immolated herself in protest of the escalating Vietnam war. She had two children.

After soaking herself in gasoline, she set herself alight in front of the Federal Building, Los Angeles.

This is the short list of Americans who have self immolated here in the US as a form of protest.

Bet they couldn't do it again. Either way, there have got to be far better ways to protest.

It killed 1.2+ Million in Iraq and the destruction of most of Iraq's more than 500,000 houses occurred between 2003 and 2006.

It killed hundreds of thousand Palestinians and the displacement of close to a million from the creation of israel.

The list goes on......

Henrich von Dorf,

Israel’s juridical birth certificate was the League of Nations Mandate for Palestine of 1922...

It was the United Nations that created the state of Israel during 1948...

The same day Israel was formed the Arab Nations attacked and then lost MORE LAND to Israel... Ha! Ha!

Sorry Dorf, but I think China is still winning that fight.

Not that it's much of a contest. Why do you think that "Israel is awful" is a counter-argument to every complaint about a foreign country? If you're not okay with Israel's brutal militarism and treatment of the Palestinians that they've more or less annexed, why is China's treatment of Tibetans okay?

Tibet has officially been part of the Chinese nation since the mid-13th Century.

Tibet was a feudal serfdom under the brutal rule of dalai clique and the Tibetans were nothing more than slaves. Since returning to under China rule, Tibet has developed considerably and Tibetan areas are much more wealthy than they would otherwise have been. Tibetan communities enjoy a great deal of autonomy under a system of devolved government. Tibetan language and cultures are preserved and as religious freedom. Tibetans enjoy more rights and privilege than their Han Chinese counterparts in Tibet.

The Tibetans seem far less optimistic about their wonderful lives under Chinese rule than you do, as evidenced by their deciding that lighting themselves on fire is an appropriate way to draw attention to their problems. Obviously you're convinced that they're better off under Chinese rule than they would be otherwise, but that accounts for precisely squat. You don't get to make that decision for them. The Chinese government DOES get to make that decision for them, however, on account of them having all the guns and tight control of the media.

Their so-called "autonomy" is a joke when they operate under the heel of the Chinese Communist party. The government sends in police whenever they want, squash protests, make mass arrests, and prevent foreign journalists from traveling to the region. What kind of administrative "autonomy" could make up for that level of oppression?

Those Tibetans who yawn for secession are minorities under the spell of dalai.

Go to Tibet and find out the situation first hand, rather than believing in whatever your media seemingly have fed you so negatively.

YOU HAVE KRAPP..FOR BRAINS..

NO ONE BELIEVES..

YOUR

B.U.L.L.SHYTTE

"PARTY"

LINE

PROPAGANDA..

You Are

a Make Believe .pseudo-nim DORF...

So that means that VoA is trying to get Tibetan monks to commit suicide to protest Chinese oppression?

Because that's what this article is specifically about.

It would seem that Mexico is using a similar tactic, Hence the importance of the Latino vote in the last election and the rush to make over 11 million people who are in this country unlawfully into citizens with voting rights.

Better than the American tactic of just wiping out the indigenous people!

There was this author (one of the guys that popularized 6 degrees of seperation, analyzing abortion caused less crime and others in his 4? 5? books.) that news of suicide can induce suicide in a general population. (from an island)

The statement from the actually makes sense.

So reporting suicides (obviously caused by something other than suicide news) can cause other people to commit suicide, and thus shouldn't be reported?

Putting aside that suppressing news for fear of a bad reaction is dictatorship 101, is there any psychological evidence that seeing suicide reports can, on its own, provoke that kind of response? Because I find it far more likely that it's other factors - far more relevant in the daily lives of the Tibetans - that are pushing them to suicide and the uncensored news is just giving them the idea of how to do it so that it makes some kind of impact.

Or are you opposed to the media spreading ideas, too?

in case you have not noticed your free world is crumbling before you eyes

in case you have not noticed your free world is crumbling before you eyes

Just looked out my back window, Some light snow on the ground, Both my irrigation ponds are frozen over, A troup of wild turkeys are picking at my buckwheat stubble and dried umbrella grass and some deer are grazing on the buds of some scrub oaks...But no crumbling, Just to make sure I called my bank and they were still open, I went online and checked my balances, All Ok, still no crumbling, I plan on going out to ship some eBay sales that I just finished packaging and then off to my local Tractor Supply Co. store to pick up some dog food a salt/mineral block and some molasses oats, I will check back and let you know if I find any crumbling, There are some potholes in the road in front of my property that have a little crumbling from road salt and freezing weather...Is that the crumbling you are talking about?

well believe it or not i also live in the same environment that you do but i get out of my bubble and into the real world once in a while.

... And your "real world" is crumbling before your eyes?

That's so sad. I get out a fair bit but I rarely see much in the way of crumbling. You should address that with your local administration or community. It sounds awful.

Thats how the US operated as well, but China doesnt kill, they merge into their society by dominating their culture. Which again what the US is doing globally.

Thats also what the Romans did, the US is just doing it better.

Yet the US is accepted at THE world power, owning everyone else.

And if anyone doesnt take any information objectively, they are just being brainwashed. No News is perfect.

Uh, yes, actually, China does kill. All the time. They perform more executions than any other nation in the world, including the United States. Are they killing Tibetans (which they detain frequently)? We don't know, actually, since there is so little transparency in their judicial system. I suppose you'd just have to ask the Tibetan families if they ever saw the detainees again and make a guess.

And the US is accepted as "owning" everyone else WHERE, exactly? Because last I heard, there were precisely zero countries that were okay with that, even extremely friendly ones like Japan and Israel.

Well, okay, maybe there's Puerto Rico. So that's one, but they put it to a vote and everything.

You seem to grossly overestimate America's global influence, Rich.

It's not a "matter of time" before China sets its eyes on Taiwan. China has always claimed Taiwan as a territory and refused to recognize their sovereignty.

China is extremely unlikely to nationalize American holdings in China specifically because America is such an important trade partner. They know that foreign investment is an important source of growth and the core of their trade surplus that finances the state.

The goal you imagine they share, of finally being able to afford an army capable of sealing themselves off from the rest of the world, is entirely self-defeating, and unlikely to be shared by anyone of any consequence in China.

Their prime military defense doctrine is denial of access!!! THAT is what I was referring to!

And their military defense doctrine is going to override their domestic and economic concerns? Denial of access refers to territory, not markets.

The military in China is subordinate to the Communist Party, not the other way around. It's unlikely that the government is going to sacrifice its own geopolitical goals and economic prosperity to maintain its military integrity.

Of course, I could be wrong; China's recent nationalist rhetoric has become more heated, and their military spending has expanded. The Communist Party regularly uses surges of nationalist sentiment and xenophobia to its advantage, but has more and more often assented to popular will. It is possible, then, that if mass demonstrations emerge demanding war over some irrelevant slight, that the party will decide that it needs to fight or be overthrown. But I see your scenario as a remote possibility, not an eventuality.