China fires tear gas on monks protesting in Tibet

Reuters: China fires tear gas on monks protesting in Tibet

I'm disappointed, but not surprised. Many had hoped that having the Olympics in China would help boost the human rights issue. The theory was that in order to improve it's global reputation, it would clean up it's human rights image. China's definition of "clean up" means sweeping ugly issues under the rug, rather than addressing them. Increased global attention has only resulted in on-the-surface changes on human rights issues. In essence, officials will be all smiles and happy faces to the camera, but the underlying problems of oppressive government will still remain.

The world media has slowly been painting the picture of China as the next economic superpower, especially with the United States facing it's current economic problems. I believe this to be true. China is changing, adapting, and progressing at a rapid pace on an economic front. In stark contrast, progress is non-existent on the political front. In fact, increased economic power has given China's government more sway and influence than ever before. I've tried to be optimistic in believing that Chinese government will one day embrace social progress, but these recent developments are not very encouraging.