Chen Guangcheng was offered a Fellowship in America

http://www.thedailybeast.com/cheats/2012/05/04/activist-can-apply-to-study-in-u-s.html

Incredibly the Chinese government opened a door by stating the blind dissident could apply for a permit to study abroad. Now an American university has offered a fellowship to this man. He is truly a man in the middle of two powerful nations. One who has the right to pass any laws, including the right to stifle speech and the other who now convicts people for having dangerous minds. I still don’t understand the actions of my meddlesome government. Let the Chinese handle its people as it pleases.

Sent from my dUmb iPad.

Chen Guangcheng was at the U.S. Embassy!

The dissident who had escaped from house arrest was escorted by U.S. officials into the hands of the Chinese authorities. That action by U.S. officials seemed almost unbelievable. How do you return an individual who has seeked asylum back to the country that had him under house arrest? The eviction from the U.S. Embassy was allegedly done without coercion.

Now, Mr Guangcheng has changed his mind after talking with his wife.

Claiming of recent threats made against his family, he said he now wants to leave China as soon as possible. “My fervent hope is that it would be possible for me and my family to leave for the U.S. on Hillary Clinton’s plane,” he told the Daily Beast.

Now, what chance do you think he has of being released back to U.S. officials?

I still think the United States of America should not interfere with the laws of foreign nations. Who are we to judge about the rights of a man in China?

Where in China is Chen Guangcheng?

Who is helping him hide from the authorities after he  fled house arrest last week?  Is he in American hands in Beijing?

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton will be stepping into this mess to attend two days of talks in Beijing this week.  The Strategic and Economic Dialogue,  as this meeting is called is part of the administration’s policy to manage America’s  relations with China through regular discussions on a wide spectrum of issues.

Again a meeting in a foreign country is being overshadowed by shenanigans of others.  In this case a prostitute is not involved.

“The Chinese government regards foreign criticism of its human rights policies and practices as undue interference in its internal affairs, and it will almost certainly use the occasion of the talks to drive that point home, diplomats in Beijing said. In fact, the Chinese might go forward with the planned talks specifically to have the chance to confront Mrs. Clinton about it.” NYT April 29, 2012

Mr. Chen, 40, became famous because of his strong opposition to forced abortions and sterilizations conducted as part of China’s policy of limiting families to one child per couple.  NYT April 29, 2012

The presumptive challenger in next year’s election in the United States of  America stated,  “Our country must play a strong role in urging reform in China and supporting those fighting for the freedoms we enjoy.”

Why must we always interfere in the affairs of other nations?

President Barack  Obama’s top counterterrorism adviser, John O. Brennan was asked about Chen Guangcheng’s whereabouts on “Fox News Sunday,” and he declined to discuss anything.  He did acknowledged that “the United States is “working very closely with the individuals involved in this.”

Continuing to meddle in China’s policy he  went on to say the administration seeks an appropriate balance when advocating for human rights in strategically important countries like China.

“I think, in all instances, the president tries to balance our commitment to human rights, making sure that the people throughout the world have the ability to express themselves freely and openly,” Mr. Brennan said, “but also that we can continue to carry out our relationships with key countries overseas.” NYT April 29, 2012

Related articles

• US and China iron out deal over blind activist Chen Guangcheng (telegraph.co.uk)
• How to Handle Chen Guangcheng (brookings.edu)
• Chen Guangcheng: Fears for Chinese activist He Peirong who helped ‘barefoot lawyer’ escape (dailymail.co.uk)

Fighting the Illegal Slaughter of Elephants by Alex Shoumatoff

Vanity Fair, August 2011.  ”We are greeted by the nauseating stench of rotting flesh.  Fifty yards from the blood trail, the dead, decomposing elephant is kneeling in a poll of its own fluid, which is swarming with flies.  The carcass was covered with branches by the poachers so it wouldn’t attract vultures, which would alert the Kenya Wildlife Service’s pilots who make daily flyovers to its presence.  Its face is gone, hacked off by machete: no eyes, no trunk, no tusks.”

Such is the gruesome scene nourished by the demand from China’s “suddenly wealthy” who on their way to make riches for themselves have no concern for anything, including other people and the environment, let alone animals.

Agony and Ivory

Related articles

• Agony and Ivory (ourcompass.wordpress.com)
• Ivory burned to highlight elephant killings (msnbc.msn.com)