Wen There’s Trouble
I get the distinct feeling that the first reaction of the Chinese Government to any problem is “Send Wen Jiabao.” You have to feel for the guy. Only minutes after Sichuan was rocked by an 8.0 earthquake (the huge San Francisco earthquake of 1989 was only a 6.9), Premier Wen Jiabao was being whisked to the site of impact.
Concerns of aftershocks? Of course not. Hu Jintao isn’t worried anyway. You see, Wen Jiabao is a man of the people. If Dick Cheney is Darth Vader (and he is) then Mr. Wen must be Robin Hood. Or at least glutton for punishment. Why else would he always end up with the job of hanging around ravaged sites of destruction while President calls for an “all out effort” (on the part of Wen Jiabao presumably).
In all seriousness, I’m not criticizing Hu Jintao, but it is almost comical how Wen constantly gets the short end of the stick. Remember the snow storms during Spring Festival? Every day Wen Jiabao was on television in a new location trying to bolster morale. I would imagine if I had a political rival (and I myself had any degree of power) I would constantly send that person directly to disaster sites. Heavy snow falls? Fly him in. Earthquakes? He can stand his ground.
Which got me thinking…maybe Senator Obama can offer Senator Clinton the position of premier in his new administration.
Share This
Nick responds:
Posted: May 13th, 2008 at 10:19 pm →
Get the man a red cape
ERIC responds:
Posted: May 13th, 2008 at 11:44 pm →
secretary of state clinton?
Lindel responds:
Posted: May 14th, 2008 at 3:13 am →
Yes, and Chelsea with all her hedge fund analyis experience at Avenue Capital can be the Federal Reserve Chairman.
nanheyangrouchuan responds:
Posted: May 14th, 2008 at 3:21 pm →
Conspiracy theories abound about how local officials may have dropped the ball…again.
http://tinyurl.com/4bc49x
chriswaugh_bj responds:
Posted: May 14th, 2008 at 9:09 pm →
unConspiracy theories abound as to how kebab boy may be full of shit. Again.
nanheyangrouchuan responds:
Posted: May 15th, 2008 at 4:17 am →
Hey Chris, happy un-birthday!
China prepares to invade North Korea:
http://tinyurl.com/5jhh2c
Neddy responds:
Posted: May 15th, 2008 at 9:19 pm →
Conspiracy? What conspiracy?
“We have seen magnificent government buildings in poor cities where disasters frequently hit; we have seen officials in luxury cars though working in one of the most impoverished county. This time around, we saw elegant government buildings remain intact while dozens of schools crumbled like sand houses.”
http://www.eeo.com.cn/ens//Observer/2008/05/15/99788.html
Neddy responds:
Posted: May 15th, 2008 at 9:36 pm →
Or maybe this one?
“Several schools in nearby Dujiangyan collapsed while classes were under way. On Tuesday, Prime Minister Wen Jiabao visited two of them, including Xinjian Primary School, where parents say officials told him the death toll was 20 pupils.
…
But enraged parents interviewed at the morgue on Wednesday afternoon and early Thursday morning say local officials lied to the prime minister to hide the true toll at Xinjian, which they estimate at more than 400 dead children.”
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/05/15/world/asia/15morgue.html?ref=asia
erofang responds:
Posted: May 16th, 2008 at 7:37 pm →
good observation and funny title!