Better dead than red.
 

That goes to the "so long as you aren't fucking up other people" point.

Damn commies.

BR(Damn Ty, fucking up my hat trick)C

I thought it hilarious that an inexperienced (in the field) reporter's mistranslated musings could have such a cataclysmic effect on the markets. And also, that the PD, long thought of as the official organ, now vets its stories just like the LAT.

So, you think it was actually a mistranslation rather than intentional?

I do - mostly because I read the interview with the reporter somewhere in a blog or news story this morning. (Can't remember where.) Sounded shocked, and probably wondering about job security issues.

Reasons
to Fear Canada.
BY SEAN CARMAN

- - - -

Ninety percent of population is massed within 100 miles of northern American border.

Seems not to mind that one of its provinces has turned almost entirely French.

Excessive politeness only makes sense as cover for something truly sinister. But what?

Citizens seem strangely impervious to cold.

Decriminalization of marijuana and acceptance of gay marriage without corresponding collapse of social institutions indicate Canada may, in fact, be indestructible.

Has infiltrated entertainment industry with singers, actors, and comedians practically indistinguishable from their American counterparts.

Consistently stays just below cultural radar yet never quite disappears.

Parliamentary government and common-law judiciary appear to function acceptably yet remain completely inscrutable.

Never had a "disco phase."

Seemingly endless supply of timber, donuts, and Scotch-plaid hats with earflaps.

Keeps insisting it "has no designs on America" and "only wants peace."

Plays a mean game of pond hockey.

http://www.mcsweeneys.net/links/lists/20SeanCarman.html

I'm sure he was shocked, but I really don't think that, as the C Party's official news organ, the explanation makes any sense at all. If I were a PD reporter who had been fed a story by officialdom (the only sort the PD prints), which I duly published, and then had the powers that be denounce it and assert I had mistranslated something, I'd sure as hell freak about my job security as the duly designated official fall guy - and vehemently back whatever the official story was.

Retracted official pronouncements are pretty standard in the official Chinese media; they are rarely true mistakes. More usually, the party is sending out a trial balloon, someone in officialdom is trying to use the media to pull some corrupt boodoggle or other, or some party faction is trying to outpolitic some other party faction by forcing some situation to a head through public disclosure/misinformation.

My personal guess is that the CP, seeing protectionism on the rise in the west and realizing that they are going to reneg on their WTO full-membership obligations when they come due in late '06, wanted to test what the effects might be if they wanted to use the repegging option to buy themselves some breathing room in other areas of the economy, though they had no intention of actually doing so, certainly not just now.

But I'm cynical and don't really believe in simple mistakes in international politics (though I believe heartily in complex or systemic miscalculations; see: fall of USSR, WMD).

I'm Sure They're Terrified
 

• VIENNA (Reuters) - France, Britain and Germany have warned Iran they will break off talks and join Washington in seeking U.N. Security Council action if Tehran makes good on its threats to resume atomic work, EU officials said on Thursday.
  
  The foreign ministers of the European Union's three biggest powers sent a toughly worded letter to Hassan Rohani, Iran's chief nuclear negotiator, warning that resuming potentially arms-related nuclear work "would bring the negotiating process to an end," an EU diplomat quoted the letter as saying.
  
  "The consequences could only be negative for Iran," it said.
  
  British Prime Minister Tony Blair spelled out the potential consequences, telling reporters: "We certainly will support referral to the United Nations Security Council if Iran breaches its obligations and undertakings."

http://reuters.myway.com/article/200...R-IRAN-DC.html

Originally posted by Shape Shifter
Reasons
to Fear Canada.
BY SEAN CARMAN

- - - -

Ninety percent of population is massed within 100 miles of northern American border. It's worse than that - given the near complete depopulation of our side of the border, the whole population could cross over and who'd notice? Other than the occasional "eh?" we might not even notice the funny accents.

Seems not to mind that one of its provinces has turned almost entirely French. Oh, they mind, they mind. It might be different if it was "good" French, involving wine and cheese and cool accents, but all they got was poutine and gutteral quacking noises. And French governmental attitudes towards corruption.

Excessive politeness only makes sense as cover for something truly sinister. But what? That's the beauty of good manners - no one can manage to question your motives.

Citizens seem strangely impervious to cold. One word: Liederhosers.

Decriminalization of marijuana and acceptance of gay marriage without corresponding collapse of social institutions indicate Canada may, in fact, be indestructible. Nah, that's just proof that they're all Godless pinkos - they obviously can't have any good God-fearing social institutions, or surely all those relaxed, happy married people would have destroyed them!

Has infiltrated entertainment industry with singers, actors, and comedians practically indistinguishable from their American counterparts. And Celine Dion, too. That alone is an act of war.

Consistently stays just below cultural radar yet never quite disappears. Sneaky, that. Even more than Switzerland, they seem to survive, even flourish, without a distinctly identifiable identity. The single most defining characteristic of Canada seems to be that it is NOT the United States.

Parliamentary government and common-law judiciary appear to function acceptably yet remain completely inscrutable. I talked to a Canadian once about the Canadian constitution. I ended significantly less informed that I started.

Never had a "disco phase." But they apparently did have a major "Flock of Seagulls" phase.

Seemingly endless supply of timber, donuts, and Scotch-plaid hats with earflaps. I'll forgive them this, so long as they keep the donuts coming. Mmmmm, Tim Bits.

Keeps insisting it "has no designs on America" and "only wants peace." Yet they sneakily are taking over Florida and Arizona.

Plays a mean game of pond hockey. And even meaner road hockey. First was the Summit Series. Then the USSR fell. Coincidence? I don't think so.

http://www.mcsweeneys.net/links/lists/20SeanCarman.html

Sometimes a xue jia yan is just a xue jia yan.

Commie bastard.

Better red than read?

Isn't this the mantra of most of the posters on DU?

You know Mom?

You tell me. You, Hank and bilmore are the only way I find out what's those people are saying.

We're even, then. I had to find out we're a theocracy from you.