Comments on: China watch

By: jim tong

jim tong — Mon, 12 May 2008 07:10:02 +0000

just reading jason soon’s reply and i have the exact same call
even though i am also on the do not call register. it comes as
a private number so i cant trace them.

By: Joe

Joe — Wed, 30 Apr 2008 11:38:57 +0000

Cronulla is exactly where they should have run it.

By: Kev

Kev — Mon, 28 Apr 2008 23:04:42 +0000

Sterile Canberra with a devoted police force, a worried government and a desire by everyone, except the Tibetans, for a peaceful, not newsworthy passage of the torch through our streets.

I don’t think Britain was ‘the best possible media’ for China. Even they must have seen that they looked like thugs but the sea of Red Chinese flags in Canberra could be construed as good.

By: 1735099

1735099 — Mon, 28 Apr 2008 20:51:26 +0000

This puts it in perspective – (ABC on-line)
http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2008/04/29/2229755.htm?section=justin

By: 1735099

1735099 — Mon, 28 Apr 2008 07:27:59 +0000

There’s no question that the Chinese government was involved in organizing ex-pats during the torch relay, but I don’t see this as sinister or confined to Australia.
They did it everywhere else (Korea & Japan for example) and it was obvious that the goal was to get the best possible media.
The relay was well-managed by the AFP and the ACT police, and the spectacle of the track suited member of the PLA being “guided” was hilarious. At least here, they weren’t allowed to get physical with anyone – unlike what occurred in the UK and France.
The whole event was choreographed by the participants – the AFP, the ACT police, the Chinese Embassy and the IOC. For me the fascination lay in the fact that there were at least three different choreographers, which created the potential for disaster. In the end this didn’t happen essentially because of Canberra’s physical sterility.
Now if they had tried to run the torch through Cronulla…….

By: Kev

Kev — Mon, 28 Apr 2008 02:58:19 +0000

That’s weird and it does sound like you were targeted because of your surname…more grist for the mill. I see Club Troppo think I’m into paranoia but personally I think I’ve got the start of a good believable conspiracy theory.

By: Jason Soon

Jason Soon — Mon, 28 Apr 2008 01:36:05 +0000

Well, I don’t know whether there was more to this than meets the eye
but:

I am on the Do not call list which means telemarketers can’t call me.
Despite this, in the last 2 weeks before these protests I got called
up twice by some total stranger speaking Mandarin. Everytime I said
‘Sorry I don’t understand, I don’t speak Mandarin’ she hung up.

I could hear noise in the background like it was some mass dial up
operation but remember only ‘charities’ and ‘non profits’ can call me
as I’m on that anti-telemarketing list.