News of the Day (September 12, 2005)

Cadres planned to steal U.S. intelligence data, wanted families of rouge agents dead: Communist China “secretly tried to buy U.S. electronic equipment that would allow Beijing to intercept U.S. intelligence data sent to the ground by satellites” (Bill Gertz, Washington Times). However, the agents sent to buy the equipment disappeared with the money, and the cadres decided the following: “disclosure of the purchase attempt would be ‘far more detrimental to [China] than the loss of the money.’” So they ordered their agents in the U.S. “to find the men” and – yes, you read this right – “Chinese intelligence was prepared to kill the men and their family members.” All of this comes from papers seized from Katrina Leung, the FBI agent and Republican fundraiser whom the FBI now believes was one of the most dangerous Communist double agents in America. The government is appealing the idiotic dismissal of her case.

Hu Jintao avoids protestors in Canada as criticism of him mounts in United States: Communist leader Hu Jintao came to his hotel in Toronto “via the underground parking garage” (Epoch Times) rather than face the Falun Gong and Tibetan protestors who jostled for position with the usual group of bribed welcomers (fourth item). Hu took time out of his joint press conference with Canadian Prime Minister Paul Martin to rip the Dalai Lama for “considering Tibet independence” – something Tibet’s spiritual leader has actually ruled out. Meanwhile, Congressman Christopher Smith (R-New Jersey) wrote President Bush demanding he “raise our urgent human rights concerns during your meetings” (Epoch Times) in New York with Hu this week.

Bo Xilai sued by practitioner in Canada: Why was Bo Xilai a no-show in Hu’s delegation (sixth item)? Here’s why: “One day before the arrival of President Hu Jintao of China in Canada, a Canadian Falun Gong practitioner initiated a lawsuit to sue the Chinese Minister of Commerce, Bo Xilai for crimes of torture” (Epoch Times).

More on Hu’s visit to North America: Anthony Spaeth’s symposium in Time Asia on what President Bush should discuss with Hu Jintao includes some leading lights, but too many dim bulbs. Li Tu, Epoch Times, has a better analysis of Hu’s visit. The paper’s editors call on overseas Chinese to refuse the aforementioned welcoming bribes.

Woe Canada! Ezra Levant, Calgary Sun, reminds his readers of the Communists’ tyrannical actions in Canada (including the 1,000 espionage agents). Meanwhile, Brian McAdam, a Canadian expert on Communist Chinese espionage (and Member since 2005), discusses the Communist threat to Canada, and explodes some “engagement myths” (reprinted by Prime Time Crime, link courtesy Kevin Steel, Western Standard on the Friendly Blog Shotgun).

Charles Li’s health deteriorates: Charles Li – Falun Gong practitioner, American citizen, and prisoner in a Communist half for over two-and-a-half years – “is suffering from heart palpitations and shortness of breath” (Epoch Times) as a result of torture.

Yahoo still trying to spin its way through damning Shi Tao case: Jerry Yang, Yahoo’s co-founder, insisted his firm did nothing wrong in helping the Communists find and arrest reporter Shi Tao (fourteenth, fifth, lead, third, and eighth items). Yang parroted the company line: Yahoo followed the law. That led to the Title of the Day, from Edward Lanfranco (United Press Int’l via Washington Times): “The China Yahoo! welcome: You've got Jail!” John Simpson, BBC, also weighed in (although the piece is subpar).

Clinton punts on internet freedom as Communist crackdown expands: Meanwhile, former President Bill Clinton, who happened to be at an internet conference in Hangzhou, had the audacity to only mention the internet crackdown as a possible dent against future commerce (Washington Times). As he was punting on human rights, Communist China publicly mdae a vague promise to drop the “state secret” label from natural disaster information (BBC), while at the same time banning some voice over internet protocol (VOIP) telephone service (UPI via Washington Times).

More on Communist China and the United States: Ethan Gutmann, author of Losing the New China, visiting fellow at Project for the New American Century, and Member since 2004, responds to Cisco’s hissy-fit after he caught them playing up their ability to help the Communists enforce their police state (Taipei Times). Lev Navrozov devotes his latest Newsmax column to a hearty endorsement of Gutmann and his efforts. Longtime dissident Wei Jingsheng repeats his warning of the Communists’ readiness for nuclear war (Epoch Times). The editors of the Washington Times split the middle on the flood of Communist textiles into the U.S. Finally, the Epoch Times reprints the speculation from yours truly on the Hainan outrage’s possible role in the 9/11/01 attacks.

Communists send warship to disputed region as Koizumi wins big in Japan: Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi scored “an overwhelming victory in lower house elections” (BBC). Koizumi’s Liberal Democratic Party and its coalition partner “will have a key two-thirds majority in the new parliament.” The opposition Democratic Party of Japan, which has talked about moving away from the U.S. in favor of Communist China (fourth item), lost over 60 seats. Just days before the vote, Communist China sent a guided-missile destroyer and four naval ships to the Chunxiao gas field, where the Communists are drilling despite Japan’s concern that some gas is being extracted from Japanese territory (Japan Times).

Secretary of State talks to Communist China about sanctioning Iran: That’s right; Ms. Rice actually called on the Communists to “back US threats of imposing sanctions against Iran over its nuclear program” (BBC). Given the Communists’ extensive history in Iran, one would have to say it was not time well spent.

Communists ban Catholic bishops from Vatican synod: Four Catholic bishops, including three in the Communist-run “Patriotic” church, were invited by Pope Benedict XVI to attend a synod in Rome next month. Communist China has banned them from attending, and ripped the pope for inviting them, for good measure (UPI via Washington Times). Millions of Catholic worship “underground” and risk arrest because they refuse to put the Chinese Communist Party between themselves and their God.

More on human rights in Communist China: Hannah Beech, Time Asia, goes to Linyi Province – where Chen Guangcheng has made his stand (tenth, second, ninth, and ninth items) – and examines the horrors of the Communists’ “one child” policy: “the most brutal mass sterilization and abortion campaigns in years.” Jiang Weiwei, Epoch Times, peeks behind the curtain of supposed white-hot growth in Communist China and finds – as one would expect with no legal independent unions – rampant worker abuse.

Ignorant Comment of the Day: Today’s prize goes to Richard Halloran, Washington Times, for an assumption he tacks on the possibility the U.S. could walk away from the six-party talks on Stalinist North Korea’s nuclear weapons (which itself is a fine idea, so long as liberation is part of the plan): “An unspoken stipulation to the Chinese and South Koreans: It would be up to Beijing and Seoul to resolve this issue – or see North Korean nuclear arms deployed just across the Yalu River from China and across the demilitarized zone that separates North and South Korea.” Does Halloran really think Communist China would feel threatened? Will they never learn?

More on Stalinist North Korea: The Stalinist are now saying they “would no longer receive food aid from U.S.-led international relief agencies” (UPI via Washington Times) due to “information leaks during relief agents' monitoring of distribution,” i.e., “outside information (which) could damage the decades-long cult worship” by Stalinist-in-chief Kim Jong-il and his father, the late Kim Il-sung.