Beijing moves against Tibetan artists

If the Aritist is not success enough , Please do not say that it is the regime's false. You will never know if they are artists till you can really understand their culture and what are they singing.

• van Gogh was not famous till he dead many years.

Tibet is a beautiful place,Chinese famous dancer Shen Wei ,who is regarded as genius in US now ,wrote a book about Tibet. It is a place that is loved by all Chinese people. They are not as what is described as the media in CNN or BBC. What you heard from the media is not always true,cos I study media as my major.

You dislike the way Chinese goverment treat Tibet,Ok, I don't care,but you can not throw bad words on every things about China. No one is perfect, the same with you.

Hello, after read some articles on your blog. I am a little confused. Because you said this is an angry Chinese blogger, but you just quote the articles from the newspapers in America and UK. So can you give us some more information about what truly happened in China? Are there any pictures from you? Any thing happened to you? Or all of this is just what you get from those articles which are written by someone who has never been in China? Because we don't need you to quote those articles again, you can just give us a link and that's all.

Otherwise, your blog is becoming like an angry american blogger, your saying is just like to say that"China is evil! Because my mum told me that~" Isn't it? :)

Read my Archive. 90% of the entries on this are my own writing. The further back you go the more of my own righting you will find. You will also find that I comment on every foreign entry that I post. In many cases I am actually posting an entry that I disagree with and that my reason for posting it is specifically because I think that the foreign entry was Written by somebody who knows very little about China.

Here is a short example from a couple of weeks ago: http://angrychineseblog ger.blog-city.com/anthropology_a_taboo_topic_in_china.htm Here is a much longer example from 2005: http://www.angrychineseblogger.blog-city.com/yasa kuni_shrine_a_problem_with_no_solution.htm

I suggest that you read back through my old entries to familiarize yourself with this blog and writing style.

He's a US-American pure and simple. His own country murders hundreds of people every day and he's doing the xenophobic propaganda, very simple.

"If the Aritist is not success enough , Please do not say that it is the regime's false."

You may have misunderstood. The artist was not unsuccessful "不成功" they were arrested "逮捕了". This is the fault of the regime because it was the regime that ordered the arrest.

"the Tibet folk singer is not very popular in China has nothing to do with the regime."

Actually, they are not unpopular, they are illegal "非法", Beijing considers them to be subversive and bans them under article 105. Only Tibetan folk singers who do not promote the concept of an independent Tibetan identity are permitted in China.

"What you heard from the media is not always true,cos I study media as my major."

I studied history, I know that what both the media AND the government say is not always true. This is why I started this blog.

"you can not throw bad words on every things about China."

If you read my archive, you will see that I often defend China, particularly from foreigners who wish China to be seen in a bad light or whom do not understand China.

And you're a Japanese. So be away with you foreigner.

I don't agree with you. I have been to Tibet before,it's not as what you said.Maybe you said I'm wrong,but you yourself have never been and lived there,how can you know Tibet. What you know is only from media. 2lovelycake is right.

QQ:

I don't recall seeing you in Tibet. Besides, the media is censored, if I relied on CCTV I might know only what you know.

Oh God I can't believe I'm posting here too

Sorry people T.T

ACB is very limited in the resources available to him, so he obviously is biased. Besides, since he's not Chinese, how can we expect him to fully accept the Chinese way of thinking, which at times is opposite to Western philosophies? In any case, he obviously hasn't seen enough evidence supporting the other side of the argument (provided he isn't posting for impure political motives), that Tibet really did become better after the CCP took an active role in governing it (Yes, the Sinosphere goes as far as Korea and Japan, so it's gotta include Tibet as well as Outer Mongolia). Anyway, even if this "singer" was arrested, I say good riddance. "Freedom" at the cost of national unity simply isn't worth it. We Chinese value our country above all, and we can be very protective about. It's simply an axiom we accept, just like how ACB embraces the ideas of freedom, etc and raises them to religious heights.

In the end, if she wasn't singing for political reasons, why the crap would she be arrested? The Chinese government prints textbooks for teaching Tibetan children the Tibetan language. Why would it imprison someone who agrees with it?

ACB, 90%? get your math course again. Just an example, check how much you have copied from LOS Times in this post and how much of the stuff is written by you. Is this a joke?

CC:

Nope, 90% is about right. I only began posting foreign entries late last year. Check out 2004-2007. I think that maybe the joke is on you in this case.

Cho:

You forget, I am the webmaster here, I can see who you are. You are not Mainland. You are Canadian. So it is you who have the limited resources and you who cannot understand the Chinese way of thinking. I think that maybe you know some overseas Chinese, yes. Overseas-Chinese whose grandparents left China just after the revolution. This would account for your unrealistic approach to China and for your lack of knowledge of China. You are seeing Chin through the eyes of people who fled 60 years ago.

"Tibet really did become better after the CCP took an active role in governing it"

No, Tibet became more Mainland after Beijing took over. Things in Tibet would have improved naturally with time even if the CCP hadn't taken over, just as many countries have improved naturally with time over the last 50-60 years. The whole world has changed in that time and Tibet would have changed, too.

"even if this "singer" was arrested, I say good riddance"

So, you do not dispute that a Tibetan singer was arrested?

"posting for impure political motives"

And, yourself?

"Freedom" at the cost of national unity simply isn't worth it."

I would beg to differ. How would you feel if Canada were invaded by America and you were all forced to give the American pledge of allegiance every day in school?

"We Chinese value our country above all"

Except that you're Canadian.

"if she wasn't singing for political reasons, why the crap would she be arrested?"

She was a folk singer, she was singing folk songs for artistic reasons. However, Beijing was afraid of her as her as Tibetan folk music often differs dramatically from Chinese folk music and is highlights the fact that Tibet has a separate cultural identity from the Mainland

"The Chinese government prints textbooks for teaching Tibetan children the Tibetan language."

Beijing prints textbooks for teaching Japanese, too. Are you suggesting that this means that Beijing approves of the Japanese occupation of China?

"Why would it imprison someone who agrees with it?"

See above, Beijing imprisons Tibetans who demonstrate that Tibet has a separate cultural identity from the Mainland.

"You forget, I am the webmaster here, I can see who you are. You are not Mainland. You are Canadian. So it is you who have the limited resources and you who cannot understand the Chinese way of thinking. I think that maybe you know some overseas Chinese, yes. Overseas-Chinese whose grandparents left China just after the revolution. This would account for your unrealistic approach to China and for your lack of knowledge of China. You are seeing Chin through the eyes of people who fled 60 years ago."

Actually, I've been to Canada only for about 3 years, before which I was in China. If my background was as you guessed perhaps I would be more hostile toward CCP?

"No, Tibet became more Mainland after Beijing took over. Things in Tibet would have improved naturally with time even if the CCP hadn't taken over, just as many countries have improved naturally with time over the last 50-60 years. The whole world has changed in that time and Tibet would have changed, too."

And Tibet hadn't changed under the CCP? What are you basing your prediction on?

"So, you do not dispute that a Tibetan singer was arrested?"

Note the use of the words "even if".

"And, yourself?"

And you?

"I would beg to differ. How would you feel if Canada were invaded by America and you were all forced to give the American pledge of allegiance every day in school?"

How is that "national unity at the cost of freedom"? A more relevant issue would be "would I be willing to sacrifice my rights for Quebec to stay in Canada". If I felt Canada was my home country, I think I would.

"Except that you're Canadian."

Correction: living in Canada, for now.

"She was a folk singer, she was singing folk songs for artistic reasons. However, Beijing was afraid of her as her as Tibetan folk music often differs dramatically from Chinese folk music and is highlights the fact that Tibet has a separate cultural identity from the Mainland"

You gather your information from Western sources, as I said. That is the only reason you arrived at such a stereotypical Western conclusion. You are not only anti-CCP, you are now against the Chinese culture as well. If China was to assimilate the "separate" Tibetan culture, it would do so regardless of the government that ran China.

"Beijing prints textbooks for teaching Japanese, too. Are you suggesting that this means that Beijing approves of the Japanese occupation of China?"

I'm sure the Chinese government doesn't mind the Japanese culture, just like how it has nothing against the Tibetan culture. I don't know how much Beijing approves of the theocracy-slavery system that existed under Dalai Lama, however.

"See above, Beijing imprisons Tibetans who demonstrate that Tibet has a separate cultural identity from the Mainland. "

And then teaches Tibetan children how to speak their traditional language and about their traditional culture. And then put Tibetan culture, alongside many other cultures existing within China, into the high school curriculum. And then spends millions up millions on restoring Tibetan cultural artifacts, palaces, art pieces, and sends scholars from other parts of China as well as from Tibet to document them. Several restoration projects are still being carried today. What's your point?

ACB, how much do you actually know about China? You've maybe wrote most of the things on your blog, but it's where you get your information that really matters. Do you actually read Chinese newspapers? If you have, have you considered the validity of the information, that perhaps the CCP doesn't lie as much as, say, BBC tells you it does?

In any case, the 56 cultures within China have been interacting with each other for a long time, and therefore can be considered interrelated cultures within the Sinosphere, unlike say Japan or India. In that case, should these cultures, which naturally deal with each other, be left to work out their differences? If one culture is assimilated, perhaps that is the natural trend in the region that doesn't get stopped regardless of government system? No government has been able to completely destroy entire cultures before. When cultures are destroyed, it's one culture destroying another. One such example is the European culture destroying the Native American culture. Can you blame that on the government system in place in Europe at that time? Or the naturally expansionist / imperialistic nature of European culture that feels the need to impose its way of living on people on the other side of the globe?

Cho:

I've been to Canada only for about 3 years, before which I was in China.

Ah, I notice that this isn't the same as "I am Chinese", may I take this as a confession that your a foreigner? Or should I take it that you've lived amongst foreigners for too long and have forgotten where you came from?

"If my background was as you guessed perhaps I would be more hostile toward CCP?"

No so, many overseas-Chinese are more patriotic than Mainlanders. They haven't experience life under Beijing and so they have not experienced the darker side of China for themselves, and they have lived in the West with a certain level of detachment making them more resistant to Western anti-China propaganda. Equally, you could just be defending Beijing for the simple reason that I am criticizing it.

Either way, you're not doing yourself any favors.

"What are you basing your prediction on?"

Based on the fact that pretty much the whole of Asia has advanced over this period. Even Burma is better off than it was 60 years ago. Pretty much the only country in the region that is worse off is North Korea. North Korea was better off under the Japanese than its current leadership. The Japanese had smaller death camps.

"Note the use of the words"

So, if there was an arrest you see nothing wrong with it? That's just plain weird.

"How is that "national unity at the cost of freedom"?

"If I felt Canada was my home country, I think I would"

Tell me, which rights would you be prepared to sacrifice? and how many lives?

"Correction: living in Canada, for now"

But still not saying that you are Mainland? Are you a Chinese-America living in Canada? Or maybe just an American living in Canada? So, how long were you on the Mainland, a week, a month, a year, or were you in Taiwan or some place else?

"You gather your information from Western sources"

Western sources, amongst others. You think that they don't have telephones in Tibet?

"You are not only anti-CCP, you are now against the Chinese culture as well"

Go on, quote me. Show me the exact sentence where I betray 5,000 years of Chinese history.

"If China was to assimilate the "separate" Tibetan culture, it would do so regardless of the government that ran China"

I think not. I'm no big fan of the nationalists, but they didn't control Tibet nearly so tightly.

"just like how it has nothing against the Tibetan culture"

So, why was this singer arrested? Did they preach violent insurrection, did they plot any murders, did they pass any state secrets on?

"I don't know how much Beijing approves of the theocracy-slavery system that existed under Dalai Lama, however"

So, how many Tibetans did the current Dalai Lama throw in jail?

"And then teaches Tibetan children how to speak their traditional language and about their traditional culture"

No, they are permitted to learn Tibetan as a second language, and the version of their culture they are taught is highly watered down and alll elements of nationalism have been removed. The traditions that Tibetans are taught bears about as much resemblance to the old ways as Indian Camp bears to native American culture.

"spends millions up millions on restoring Tibetan cultural artifacts, palaces, art pieces"

It was Mao who smashed them in the first place. Beijing is doing this because of tourism, not because of national pride.

"ACB, how much do you actually know about China? You've maybe wrote most of the things on your blog, but it's where you get your information that really matters"

I've been doing this for a long time, I'm very good at getting information. Besides these arrests are public knowledge, they're not a state secret.

"Do you actually read Chinese newspapers?"

Even foreigners can do that with some learning. it's nothing special, many even publish online so you can read them without having to even be in China or read Chinese.

"perhaps the CCP doesn't lie as much as, say, BBC tells you it does?"

Maybe you've forgotten what it is like. You can get CCTV4 free in Canada if you point your satellite in the right direction. I suggest that you watch it some time. It's often not so much the lies that are put in, its the truths that are left out. For example, there is pretty much nothing on Chinese television right not about the schools that collapsed in the earthquakes and how many were so poorly built that they were death traps in that quake. Remember the Huankantou (Huaxi) riots in 2005. All over the Western and Hong Kong meda, but there was a total blackout on the Mainland.

"In any case, the 56 cultures within China have been interacting with each other for a long time"

Not so, for most of the last 5,000 people didn't travel much beyond their home county. An ethnic people might have traded a little with their neighbors but not much more than that. "Interacting" is not the word that I would use.

"If one culture is assimilated, perhaps that is the natural trend in the region that doesn't get stopped regardless of government system?"

Yes, but this is forced. What do you think would happen if Tibetan schools decided to teach Cantonese instead of Mandarin? After all, Tibet is close to Cantonese speaking regions? Tibetans have no choice so this is not a natural process.

"No government has been able to completely destroy entire cultures before"

So, just because it's hard to do it's not wrong to try?

"Can you blame that on the government system in place in Europe at that time"

Yes. They did it on purpose. They wanted to convert them to Christianity and felt that their native ways were barbaric and wrong.

"Or the naturally expansionist / imperialistic nature of European culture that feels the need to impose its way of living on people on the other side of the globe?"

Er, hello, did you even bother to read up on me? Even a little. I've been blasting the West for their blatant cultural imperialism since you were in grade school. I've called foreigners out on this one more times than you've messed in a diaper. Go on, ask people about it. I'm very well known as an Anti-Imperialism blogger. Read my earlier posts.

"Ah, I notice that this isn't the same as "I am Chinese", may I take this as a confession that your a foreigner? Or should I take it that you've lived amongst foreigners for too long and have forgotten where you came from?"

Not long enough to forget where I came from. That doesn't usually happen with Chinese people, it seems.

"No so, many overseas-Chinese are more patriotic than Mainlanders. They haven't experience life under Beijing and so they have not experienced the darker side of China for themselves, and they have lived in the West with a certain level of detachment making them more resistant to Western anti-China propaganda. Equally, you could just be defending Beijing for the simple reason that I am criticizing it."

You're automatically assuming the average citizen living in China constantly suffers? Standard of living has constantly been raising in China, the only "problem" seems to be that they haven't got the rights most of them won't use anyway. So other than the people who just want freedom for the sake of having it, nobody is complaining about anything except problems unassociated with the government (corruption has always been part of Chinese politics, ie. the "backdoor", and pollution is inevitable in a developing country, Europe went through the same phase).

"Based on the fact that pretty much the whole of Asia has advanced over this period. Even Burma is better off than it was 60 years ago. Pretty much the only country in the region that is worse off is North Korea. North Korea was better off under the Japanese than its current leadership. The Japanese had smaller death camps."

Again, nationalism vs. individualism. Apparently some North Koreans prefer starving in North Korea to being under Japanese rule. Not saying one is better than the other, but some prefer it that way.

"So, if there was an arrest you see nothing wrong with it? That's just plain weird."

As I said before, freedom and human rights, despite what the UN says, are not universal values until the entire world adopts the European way of thinking.

"Tell me, which rights would you be prepared to sacrifice? and how many lives?"

If I was born and raised in Canada and I felt Canada was my inviolable homeland, I'd be willing to sacrifice, at the very least, freedom of speech / press. Giving up the democratic government for a relatively benign authoritarian government is also acceptable. As for lives, IF I was a stereotypical WASP (but not think like one), I'd be willing to sacrifice the lives of every man, woman, and child living in Quebec. I know this kind of thinking obviously has absolutely no market here in North America or in most of Europe, but in some areas more affected by tradition, like some places in Africa and Asia, thoughts like these are commonplace. It used to be commonplace in Europe too (convert or burn on the stake).

"But still not saying that you are Mainland? Are you a Chinese-America living in Canada? Or maybe just an American living in Canada? So, how long were you on the Mainland, a week, a month, a year, or were you in Taiwan or some place else?"

I've been living on China mainland until recent years when I moved out of it. I clearly remember what it was like. It honestly wasn't all that different from the life I lead here.

"Western sources, amongst others. You think that they don't have telephones in Tibet?"

Who's "they"? And do you think Western sources would willingly report news that view the Chinese government in a positive light?

"Go on, quote me. Show me the exact sentence where I betray 5,000 years of Chinese history."

For one thing, your other posts linking "Confucianism" to "ignorance". And since you are not Chinese, you haven't the right to "betray" Chinese culture.

"I think not. I'm no big fan of the nationalists, but they didn't control Tibet nearly so tightly."

Party of cultural evolution is due to the government in place. Why can't you see the current government as the culmination of Chinese culture up until this point?

"So, why was this singer arrested? Did they preach violent insurrection, did they plot any murders, did they pass any state secrets on?"

Maybe. Would the source you quoted on say anything about that if that was indeed the case? Or would they try to make it look like just another random arrests they continuously report?

"So, how many Tibetans did the current Dalai Lama throw in jail?"

Or do you mean, how many Tibetans starved, were slaved, and often mutilated (a legitimate punishment). Over 90% of Tibetans at the time were slaves. To quote Washington Post in 1999:

• "Many Tibetan farmers, for example, have no interest in surrendering the land they gained during China's land reform. Tibet's former slaves say they, too, don't want their former masters to return to power."I've already lived that life once before," said Wangchuk, a 67-year-old former slave who was wearing his best clothes for his yearly pilgrimage to Shigatse, one of the holiest sites of Tibetan Buddhism. He said he worshipped the Dalai Lama, but added, "I may not be free under Chinese communism, but I am better off than when I was a slave." "

"No, they are permitted to learn Tibetan as a second language, and the version of their culture they are taught is highly watered down and alll elements of nationalism have been removed. The traditions that Tibetans are taught bears about as much resemblance to the old ways as Indian Camp bears to native American culture."

What are your sources? And by this, do you mean Chinese students in the part you call "Mainland" should learn nationalism and loyalty to the countries they belonged to when China was multiple countries thousands of years ago? Should the US teach nationalism as was during the Civil War? Should students in Quebec be taught to hate their British conquerers and their Canadian descendants? Should students in Texas and New Mexico learn Spanish and be loyal to Mexico?

"It was Mao who smashed them in the first place. Beijing is doing this because of tourism, not because of national pride."

Mao personally disapproved of the violence that was occuring nationwide during the Cultural Revolution. And if China is repairing the damages, why do you care why it's doing it? Besides, if allowing Tibet to have an independent culture truly is dangerous, would the Chinese government risk having Tibetan revolts simply to get some money from tourism?

"I've been doing this for a long time, I'm very good at getting information. Besides these arrests are public knowledge, they're not a state secret."

The parts the Western media tell you aren't state secrets. The other parts aren't either, but there's no way in hell you're ever gonna find out about them.

"Even foreigners can do that with some learning. it's nothing special, many even publish online so you can read them without having to even be in China or read Chinese."

Maybe you'll do that some day then?

"Maybe you've forgotten what it is like. You can get CCTV4 free in Canada if you point your satellite in the right direction. I suggest that you watch it some time. It's often not so much the lies that are put in, its the truths that are left out. For example, there is pretty much nothing on Chinese television right not about the schools that collapsed in the earthquakes and how many were so poorly built that they were death traps in that quake. Remember the Huankantou (Huaxi) riots in 2005. All over the Western and Hong Kong meda, but there was a total blackout on the Mainland."

The same could be said for Western media. The reports about the government's supposed "inadequacy" was all over the news during the earthquake, especially when reporting about the Tangjiashan lake that displaced countless amounts of people. However, when it was finally fixed without a single casualty, no major newspapers / TV stations reported it in nearly as much detail as when they were bashing the Chinese government. Another example is Sharon Stone. I'm sure you know about her comment. Did that make headlines anywhere? The last example I'm going to give is the Tibet riots. On how many TV stations could you actually see Tibetan mobs running around with knives stabbing people? I'm sure you've been to www.anti-cnn.com. Watch the Indian reports with faked translations. What are your comments?

Just the other day, the Minister of Education in China (I think it was him anyway) pledged to build stronger school buildings, and there have been vast amounts of criticism on Chinese media, including the internet, especially on the people.com.cn, the official Chinese government newspaper's site, about the poor quality of the school buildings and how in Japan, the mentality is "any building can collapse, but school buildings can't". I think that's the Chinese government at least agreeing with the people that school buildings need to be built better.

"Not so, for most of the last 5,000 people didn't travel much beyond their home county. An ethnic people might have traded a little with their neighbors but not much more than that. "Interacting" is not the word that I would use."

It's the word you'd use if you knew about the issue enough. True enough, people didn't travel a lot, but in terms of interactions between the ethnic groups as separate organizations, there has been a lot historically.

"Yes, but this is forced. What do you think would happen if Tibetan schools decided to teach Cantonese instead of Mandarin? After all, Tibet is close to Cantonese speaking regions? Tibetans have no choice so this is not a natural process."

There are schools in Mandarin-speaking areas that teach Cantonese. The government didn't ban those. Individual will, when not express in overwhelming strength and unity, has very little effect on the flow of history. How many Chinese people hate corrpution? Most of them, I would say. But why is it that the "web" of "relationships" and the practice of going through the "back doors" have continued for thousands of years? Is it not the trend of history, therefore, for corruption in those forms to continue? Similarly, individual desires among some Tibetans for a separate Tibetan culture may be strong, but in the end, if it results in nothing, is it not the historical trend for Tibetan culture to be weakened and assimilated? I view governments as the result of that nation's culture. Authoritarian government for China and Russia due to their imperial systems in the past, and democratic republic / constitutional monarchy in Europe and their North American descendants due to the liberal philosophers that have come from there. Neither can be said to be "better" for a culture that did not evolve its own.

"So, just because it's hard to do it's not wrong to try?"

As I said before: a country adopts a form of government due to the culture that country has. If the Chinese government is trying to assimilate Tibetan culture, doesn't that mean it's the Chinese culture, represented by (and the driving force behind) the Chinese government, assimilating Tibetan culture?

"Yes. They did it on purpose. They wanted to convert them to Christianity and felt that their native ways were barbaric and wrong."

Just like how you believe the Chinese disregard for human rights and freedom is barbaric and wrong.

"Er, hello, did you even bother to read up on me? Even a little. I've been blasting the West for their blatant cultural imperialism since you were in grade school. I've called foreigners out on this one more times than you've messed in a diaper. Go on, ask people about it. I'm very well known as an Anti-Imperialism blogger. Read my earlier posts."

Personally, I see no problems with expansionism and imperialism, so long as it's within Europe and not with cultures that have absolutely no dealings with them. If Britain takes over France and calls it a colony, isn't that equivalent to saying French culture is inferior to British culture since they evolved under similar circumstances and are located in close proximity? But if Britain takes over North America and takes over the land of the Native Americans, that's saying nothing but that the British are more warlike and can make better weapons since they would be destroying a culture completely foreign to them, with different values and traditions. That is not the case in China. The traditional area of the Sinosphere has always included Tibet, and there have been significant interactions between the two (think about the reason why Potala Palace was constructed). Therefore, these two cultures can be said to co-exist in the same geological region and share similar roots, just like the relationship between Britain and, say, Spain (yes I'm aware of Spanish history, these two are still more similar to each other than say Britain and Egypt.)

"You're automatically assuming the average citizen living in China constantly suffers?"

Given that half of the Chines population lives on less than a dollar a day, I'd say that this one was given. Cold, hunger, high school fees. There is a lot of suffering in China right now, but if you want to keep this purely to a human rights issue I will tell you this for nothing every Chinese who has fewer rights than a Japanese, a Korean or a Taiwanese is suffering an abuse of their basic human rights as defined by the wider international community. Why are these rights Good for Korea, Japan and Taiwan but not for the Mainland?

"they haven't got the rights most of them won't use anyway"

Maybe you should open up your eyes. Chinese campaign for these rights regularly. Let me give you a few examples of rights that the Chinese people do not have but want:

Factory workers want the right to form independent unions and the right to strike so that they don't get stiffed by greedy companies

Christians who wish for the freedom to worship outside of the official state church and to be allowed to follow the Vatican

Newspaper who have to have state permission to publish, and extra state permission to open up websites, even if they are publishing identical news stories, which want ot be able to publish the news freely and fairly

Democracy, the right to choose China's leaders. There is a big protest every year in Hong Kong on the anniversary of the handover, even in Canada you will hear of this

"nobody is complaining about anything except problems unassociated with the government"

What about illegal land seizures, it's the local governments that are doing it? Or restrictions on freedom of speech? In China you must even have state permission to leave the country, this is not right.

"Apparently some North Koreans prefer starving in North Korea to being under Japanese rule"

They don't have a choice so how would you know? They would also face jail if they actually came out and said that they would prefer to live under Japanese rule. No comparison.

"despite what the UN says, are not universal values until the entire world adopts the European way of thinking"

Japan, Korea, Taiwan?

"I'd be willing to sacrifice, at the very least, freedom of speech / press. Giving up the democratic government for a relatively benign authoritarian government is also acceptable"

I suspect that most Westerners would disagree with you. Google ACLU.

"I've been living on China mainland until recent years when I moved out of it. I clearly remember what it was like. It honestly wasn't all that different from the life I lead here."

Let me guess, you lived on the East coast? Shanghai, maybe. And you still haven't said that you're Mainland. What's so hard, just say it "I am a Mainland Chinese, I am ethnically Chinese and was born on the Mainland like my parents before me".

"Who's "they"?"

The local newspaper offices, for one. Maybe my friends who have family that work in Tibet, NGOs, the local party office. The list goes on.

"do you think Western sources would willingly report news that view the Chinese government in a positive light?"

Check P2P websites for the English programs "Wild China" and "Chinese School". They are by the BBC and show much good about China.

"For one thing, your other posts linking "Confucianism" to "ignorance""

Quote me. Confusionism = Obedience, ignorance is a secondary issue. You also need to remember that ignorance means a lack of knowledge or understanding, not the inability to kown or understand. Ignorant doesn't mean stupid.

"since you are not Chinese"

Not Mainland.

"Party of cultural evolution"

Not evolution, assimilation. Forced assimilation at that. It would be a whole different issue if Tibetans had a choice. In fact, Mainlanders don't have a choice, either.

"Why can't you see the current government as the culmination of Chinese culture up until this point?"

Because it is so much of a break from the past that it's a replacement for Chinese culture, not an advancement of it. Come on, Beijing wants to ban fortune telling even though it is as old as China itself, it considers many rural traditions to be superstition even though they are thousands of years old. Mao's face is over the Tiananmen gate like he is some kind of emperor. This is the erosion of Chinese culture, not the culmination of ot.

"would they try to make it look like just another random arrests they continuously report?"

Why arrest singers at random? It makes no sense. They were arrested because they sang traditional Tibetan folk songs and Beijing is afraid of this.

"do you mean, how many Tibetans starved, were slaved, and often mutilated (a legitimate punishment)"

It was the same on the Mainland. You can't criticize one without criticizing the other. Besides, the correct word is serf, not slave. Serfdom was common in Europe until industrialization, too.

"What are your sources?"

This is Chinese law. Mandarin as a first language in schools and universities. Please check out the Chinese ministry of education.

"do you mean Chinese students in the part you call "Mainland" should learn nationalism and loyalty to the countries they belonged to when China was multiple countries thousands of years ago?"

Tibet was autonomous until 50 years ago. It's a little different.

"Should the US teach nationalism as was during the Civil War?"

I wouldn't know, is it different from nationalism today?

"Should students in Texas and New Mexico learn Spanish and be loyal to Mexico?"

Ironically, many are. The Spanish speakers, anyway.

"if allowing Tibet to have an independent culture truly is dangerous, would the Chinese government risk having Tibetan revolts simply to get some money from tourism?"

Because it isn't. Beijing plans to manage Tibet. It is currently feeding Tibetans a watered down version of Tibetan culture that is stripped of any nationalist identity, and which puts loyalty to Greater China first. Beijing's ultimate goal is for Tibet to be just like the rest of the Mainland, but with different tourist attractions. Tourism is also one of many reasons, others include that Beijing wishes to have direct control over all territory that it claims. Tibet is just like Taiwan, in this respect.

"The parts the Western media tell you aren't state secrets....."

Why not? most of the contents of my blog doesn't cover state secrets, just things that go on in every day life and politics. You can find out about most of it from every day conversation. You might also be surprised to know that two of my prime source are the Chinese Foreign Ministry and the Chinese Ministry of Information.

"Maybe you'll do that some day then?"

Been doing it for years. In fact I've been part of it for years.

"The same could be said for Western media."

Yes, it was me who said it. Please read my About Me page. It's been up there for several years.

"However, when it was finally fixed without a single casualty, no major newspapers / TV stations reported it in nearly as much detail as when they were bashing the Chinese government."

You obviously don't watch BBC World.

"Another example is Sharon Stone. I'm sure you know about her comment. Did that make headlines anywhere?"

Yes, I read about it in several foreign language newspapers and it was broadcast on many international channels. BBC Word, Deutsche world, France 5. Foreigners could even see it on CCTV4 which is free in many Western Countries.

Just to prove you wrong, here are headlines from three of the worlds best know Western media outlets covering this story.

It made headlines on the BBC: (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/7423089.stm). It was broadcast on CNN (http://ie.youtube.com/watch?v=v8_usaBh3h4&feature=related) It was Broadcast on Fox (http://ie.youtube.com/watch?v=1f8ZPpaYSRM&feature=related)

"On how many TV stations could you actually see Tibetan mobs running around with knives stabbing people?"

I didn't see any stabbing, but I did see kicking and brick throwing, and so did the rest of the world, it makes good TV. There were actually more pictures of the monks rioting than of them being suppressed.

Here is an example from CNN http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QTDm2eAn44Y

Maybe I'd have seen stabbing if more foreign reporters were allowed in to Tibet,, but since foreign reporters are "discouraged" ....

"I'm sure you've been to www.anti-cnn.com."

Been there, I'm features there.

"Watch the Indian reports with faked translations. What are your comments?"

Link, please.

"Just the other day, the Minister of Education in China (I think it was him anyway) pledged to build stronger school buildings, and there have been vast amounts of criticism on Chinese media"

Firstly, you're in Canada, how do you know what is on TV in China? Secondly, why were pictures of defective building removed from a Juyuan school removed from an exhibit in Jianchuan?

"There are schools in Mandarin-speaking areas that teach Cantonese. The government didn't ban those."

Ask yourself this, what would happen if the schools in Cantonese speaking areas decided to make Mandarin an elective subject?

"Individual will, when not express in overwhelming strength and unity, has very little effect on the flow of history"

Individual does when it enough individuals gather together. This is why Beijing fears unions and other groups.

"why is it that the "web" of "relationships" and the practice of going through the "back doors" have continued for thousands of years?"

Because people suck?

"individual desires among some Tibetans for a separate Tibetan culture may be strong, but in the end, if it results in nothing"

The only reason for it to come to nothing would be because Beijing acted to surpress it. If left alone it would amount to something much more. Maybe you should ask yourself why Beijing would wantit to come to nothing?

"is it not the historical trend for Tibetan culture to be weakened and assimilated?"

Yes, it is the trend. Now, if Beijing would just stop doing it.

"I view governments as the result of that nation's culture. Authoritarian government for China and Russia due to their imperial systems in the past"

Japan, Korea, Taiwan?

"a country adopts a form of government due to the culture that country has"

Except that China did not adopt Communism. There was a revolution and it wasn't even a domestic enterprise. Much of it was foreign.

The previous Chinese government was critically undermined by foreign intervention by the Western powers who wanted to keep China down so that they could rule their so-called concessions. It was finally crushed by Japanese aggression.

Once Japan had been critically weakened by America and Russia the Russians took a large chunk of Norther China and began supplying arms to the communists there who eventually took over a weakened country. They used foreign money and foreign weapons to put in place a government based on foreign ideals. This is not very Chinese, not at all.

Even when Chinese were involved on the ground many did not remotely imaging that Beijing would be the result. They didn't want to replace feudal landlords with Communist ones, but that is what they ended up with. The People are no more in charge than they ever were.

"Just like how you believe the Chinese disregard for human rights and freedom is barbaric and wrong"

Yes, it is, isn't it.

"I see no problems with expansionism and imperialism, so long as it's within Europe and not with cultures that have absolutely no dealings with them."

Ah, but by this logic aren't you also saying that Japanese aggression against China was OK because it was within Asia, and was against a country with whom Japan had long had dealings with?

"If Britain takes over France and calls it a colony, isn't that equivalent to saying French culture is inferior to British culture since they evolved under similar circumstances and are located in close proximity?"

Historically, Britain always considered France to have the superior culture even during periods where Britain ruled much of France.

"if Britain takes over North America and takes over the land of the Native Americans, that's saying nothing but that the British are more warlike and can make better weapons since they would be destroying a culture completely foreign to them, with different values and traditions."

So, you are saying that Because Beijing took over Tibet in much the same way in 1949 this means that China is warlike and has good weapons?

The traditional area of the Sinosphere has always included Tibet

Actually, Tibet was what was known as a Tribute Kingdom. It paid tribute to the Emperor (Literally) but existed as an autonomous state. The closest that it came to being under Chinese rule was several periods of Mongol rule.

Until the late 8th century Tibet dominate what is now south West China, and took much territory from China. In the 9th Century China even signed a treaty with Tibet describing both as separate countries with their respective boundaries. You can find the text of this treaty carved in stone at Jokhang temple in Tibet.

Then, during the 13th century the Mongols whom had invaded China began to attack Tibet in a serious fashion. Tibet was eventually conquered during the 1240s and was placed under the control of the Mongol Sakya Pandita. His house was eventually knocked from power during the mid 14th century and was replaced by the Pagmodru house. After several periods of instability and stability Tibet came under the rule of th Dali Lama in the 17th century and for the next few hundred years various Mongol and local factions vied for power. This went on until 1720 when toppled the ethnic Mongolian Dzungars.

However, Kangxi decreed that Tibet would remain an independent tribute kingdom and that it was not a formal province of China, and in 1751 Qianlong decreed that Tibet would be ruled over by the Dali Lama (funny that you would always criticize the Dali Lama for slavery, when he was there with China's approval. Or did you not know this?).

Tibet continued autonomously as a tribute state until 1910 when Qing China attempted to take direct military controll of Tibet, leaving in 1912.

In 1914 Beijing signed the Simla Convention which reaffirmed that Tibet was an autonomous tribute kingdom. It was recognized as a protectorate of China. This is very different from being a fully fledge province in the same way that places like Zhejiang are.

From the conflict with Japan until 1959 Tibet fell outside of China's sphere of influence, it was ruled by a domestic government and did not ever pay tribute. Then in 1959 Beijing took direct military control bringing Tibet under direct Han rule.