Eric's Beijing Diary

Three items in the news today. One of the young hikers who had strayed into Iran territory and been arrested as a spy was released. Four Japanese people who had strayed into a military in China were arrested. And Japan announced that the captain of the fishing vessel that rammed a Japanese Coast Guard ship would be returned to China. Not sure what connection, if any, exists between events, but I can't help wondering.

The Dialogue program the other day contained what I thought was a veiled threat. It looks like that threat has been carried out. If you're not that interested in this issue, the Dialogue program might not be that interesting to you. But it is (to me) a startling display of the siege mentality that can develop in a country where only one line of thinking is allowed. Can you imagine a conversation like this on a national network news program in the United States or Japan?