What a nifty new concept -- ninja buddhists! I can see the TV series now, perhaps starring Jet Li or Jackie Chan, and, of course, Steven Segall and David Carradine have to be technical consultants:
State media, meanwhile, labeled a group linked to the Dalai Lama's India-based government-in-exile a "terrorist organization" — building on claims that recent anti-Chinese protests were part of a violent campaign to overthrow Chinese rule and sabotage the Beijing Olympics in August.
The Tibetan Youth Congress said China's communist leadership had long sought to destroy its effectiveness by smearing its reputation.
[. . .]
China has accused supporters of the Dalai Lama — whom it calls the "Dalai clique" — of orchestrating the violence within its borders.
The Dalai clique? Come on, that's just a euphemism for 'gang," right? It has become accepted wisdom in the "war or terror" that the Muslim militants are outmaneuvering the West in the PR department, brilliantly playing the press. Thank goodness China is still so ineptly heavyhanded when it comes to manipulating the media.
This interesting Wall Street Journal article hints at why China is trying so hard to discredit the Tibetan Youth Congress. Most TYC members are devout Buddhists who still revere the Dalai Lama as a religious symbol. But they're becoming impatient with his wish to remain part of China and his low-key tactcs. If the Chinese repression continues, the TYC leader says, "we can't guarantee our struggle will be nonviolent forever." A threat to fight back is the new terrorism.
