Banned in China

1) The People's Public of China is rumored to have 40,000 Internet censors working full time. They are mostly responsible for blocking internal dissent, anything smelling of a pro-Democracy movement, or criticism of The Party.

2) Sometime in December, this blog's hits from China started slowing down. In January, they stopped altogether.

3) My good friend and co-worker Ray is working in China now. Ray tried to log onto this site from The People's Republic, but couldn't.

4) Is it because of The Infamous Chinese Dog Story? Was the criticism of Chinese traffic too much for the nation to bear? Was it The Notorious Chinese Washing Machine Story, with its implied condemnation of Chinese manufacturing safeguards? Or was I banned for openly griping about the absence of Chinese Road Signs in The Celebrated Chinese Typhoon Story? Too many Free Market diatribes? We'll never know.

5) But now that I'm banned, why hold back? Bill M., another co-worker, sent me this a few months ago. It's about the Chinese Olympic symbol....

The United States executes about 60 people per year. That's 20 executions for every 100 million people.

China executes about 3,500 people per year. That's 270 for every 100 million people. Many of these executions have been for political reasons.

All stats from Tony Wheeler, via Amnesty International.

The only way the old men running the Communist Party can stay in power is to silence any and all dissent.

I defy anyone to look at this cartoon and not think of it all through the Olympics.

Addition from later today....I picked up my Sports Illustrated, and S.L. Price had a great editorial on the same subject. No cartoons, though. Not as memorable.