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Obama is Talking but Can Chinese Listen?
November 16, 2009 11:53 AM
Speaking in Shanghai today, President Obama spoke about rights enjoyed by Americans.
"These freedoms of expression and worship and access to information and political participation, we believe are universal rights," he said. "They should be available to all people, including ethnic and religious minorities -- whether they are in the United States, China, or any nation. Indeed, it is that respect for universal rights that guides America's openness to other countries; our respect for different cultures; our commitment to international law; and our faith in the future."
Our own Jake Tapper is traveling with the president and has been reporting all day on his blog “Political Punch” about this historic trip.
President Obama said, essentially, that the criticism he faces at home makes him a better president. Obama said that it ups his game, making him “a better leader because it forces me to hear opinions that I don't want to hear."
Obama is the first U.S. president to hold a town-hall style meeting in China. It’s not clear how many Chinese heard or saw his remarks – China, of course, is a notorious censor of free speech. The Town Hall was not shown live across China on their state television. It was shown locally in Shanghai on TV and streamed online but the audio was apparently hard to hear.
November 16, 2009 | Permalink | Share | User Comments (13)
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"Obama is Talking but Can Chinese Listen?" - ABC News
I find myself uninterested in this.
China's been a civilized entity for quite a while, if they wanted our type of freedoms and rights they would have instilled them long ago.
NoBo's words are good but it's still just talk.
We should set an example and that's all. Trying to change other societies at peace smells of over reaching dogma.
Maybe NoBo would like to pack his change in a suitcase and move to China in 2012. Maybe he could work at winning another Nobel Peace Prize then.
Posted by: Noz | Nov 16, 2009 12:27:40 PM
It was interesting to me, to ask a Chinese friend to translate some song titles for me, from Chinese to English. Some of the songs actually were "popular" songs of the 1960's, from the US.
The translations didn't even come close to the English titles.
Perhaps that says it all.
Posted by: Rick McDaniel | Nov 16, 2009 12:49:10 PM
Obama....
The constant lying.
The childish whining.
The disgraceful bowing.
The staggering arrogance.
The dangerous narcissism.
The outrageous radicalism.
The astounding incompetence.
Obama wants to put as much of the private economy under government control as possible to create his nanny state utopia where he is the boy king.
Let's continue to stand strong against Obama in every way and get Congress out of the hands of the insane Pelosi and Reid in 2010.
Obama is a smug, smirking con man. Nothing more.
Posted by: Derrick | Nov 16, 2009 1:02:45 PM
China listen to what? How are we telling them to behave now? More interventionism, now with words. Sure they appreciate it.
Posted by: Huh | Nov 16, 2009 1:03:43 PM
Obama preaches openness and transparency
aboard but at home he tolerates closed
door meetings
y
Posted by: william | Nov 16, 2009 4:07:13 PM
Mr. Obama will not be happy until the U.S. $ has been devalued to the point where the currency is worthless, private enterprise has been brought to it's knees, the external debt (owed to foreigners) is so large the interest on it can no longer be paid, the government controls everything, the armed forces are decimated by Islamic Fundamentalists, and he has been proclaimed PRESIDENT FOR LIFE!! Come on America get rid of the bum before America becomes a third world nation.
Posted by: Ernesto | Nov 16, 2009 7:51:06 PM
Obama should run for the next president of china. He can read a good speech, promise hope and be a community organizer.
Posted by: EmbarressedAmerican | Nov 16, 2009 8:57:37 PM
Instead of simply bowing to the Chinese leaders, our president must do the full traditional kowtow - three kneelings and nine head-bangings on the floor. It might encourage the Chinese to loan us another trillion so we can replace our worn out sneakers.
Posted by: jeff200 | Nov 16, 2009 9:00:29 PM
Obama is clearly the blessing this country finally got. He is smart, he is progressive, is is simply awesome! Go Barack, GO! But please stop smocking. This is not cool even in China.
Posted by: H1N1hysteria | Nov 16, 2009 9:35:46 PM
In just 33 years, China transformed from being a broken communist agrarian country under Mao to the most powerful economy on earth.
The didn't do this by listening to fascists hawking class-warfare as "rights", or Marcusians selling a horrendously expensive anti-marriage feminist welfare state under the guise of "Democracy".
I have worked in China and worked with students, academics, and corporate execs at Huaxin. They think we are nuts and they are right.
Having Obama over was not a sign they are listening, but is a trap for Obama to hang America publicly on the noose of whacko liberalism, financial irresponsibility, and acid radical feminist lpolitics on which the Obama/Biden presidency is built.
Posted by: David R. Usher | Nov 16, 2009 10:20:52 PM
I wish I had a penny for every right wing know-it-all that posts the garbage that we read on the internet. None of them can seem to remember that right-wing politics got us into a war without victory and long-term joblessness. What a shame! The rigth wingers have long-term memory loss AND are able to pass the buch. I guess the truth will never set them free, because they will never know what the honest truth is.
Posted by: junjohn | Nov 17, 2009 12:13:12 AM
Obama is doing it right....it's the only thing left to do after Dubwa's reign of lunacy. Imagine President Bush allowing Maddoff serve on the Security and Exchange. The samw guy runs off with about $65 billion of other folks' hard earned money, yet it's okay for him to be employed by the S.E.C. Only in america, folks. And only under a republican president.
Posted by: junjohn | Nov 17, 2009 12:19:37 AM
Shouldn't the real question be, Do the Chinese care to listen?
Posted by: ds | Nov 17, 2009 12:21:34 AM
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