Implicit Truths

Also off-limits are questions about where foreigners live, where they have worked, their religious or political beliefs, or what they are currently doing.

Strange rules for a Chinese person in China during the Beijing Olympics, where the government has decided to encourage a new kind of manners. Interestingly, and unsurprisingly they also want Chinese people to not talk about their country or government in any way that will harm its national prestige or the country’s image. Of course there’s the usual bit about national security. How the bloody hell can a normal citizen harm national security by saying, “I’m not allowed to make fun of Chairman Mao.”?

Anyway, the part I like best is the bit where it says that queuing is encouraged. Good to hear you can be an economic powerhouse without any queuing, we Indians have hope still. It’s still damn annoying though that people don’t queue. I say this as a person who’s got people to hold a place in line for me, and who has otherwise jumped queues by telling friends to pay my fees and stuff like that. Yeah, I’m a hypocrite.

Which brings me to the topic of ‘hippocrete’, an animal commonly referred to on Digg. It seems to be some kind of large Grecian amphibian.