How to be evil

The Chinese President, Hu Jintao, will visit Sudan today. China has strong financial ties with the country, mostly based on oil interests, and could bring much pressure to bear on the Sudanese government. Please keep that in mind if you read this article, China's Hu to visit Sudan to review trade, not abuses.

In other news, Leading Sudan independent newspaper closed, ostensibly for publishing articles which might jeopardise a court case.

UPDATE

How to be partially non-evil

According to an anonymous Sudanese official who was present at their meeting, Chinese president tells Sudan counterpart he must do more for peace in Darfur.

(via Sudan Watch, thanks)

AND:

President Hu reportedly pledged 40 million yuan ($48 million - USD?) in humanitarian aid for Darfur: China's Hu tells Sudan it must solve Darfur issue. Please note that he also agreed to give Sudan an interest-free loan of 100 million yuan - compared to 40 million pledged in aid - for the building of a new Presidential palace. Thank God, eh? A palace is so important when you have a country to run.

PLUS:

The Committee to Protect Journalists with more information on the closing of the Sudanese newspaper: Paper banned for reporting on murdered editor.

Think like an astronaut...

One world, one people.

Today, if we have no peace, it is because we have forgotten that we belong to each other - that man, that woman, that child is my brother or my sister. If everyone could see the image of God in his neighbor, do you think we would still need tanks and generals?
- Mother Teresa (but see note below)

Photo by Harrison Schmitt, 07 December 1972, from Wikipedia via a re-uprighting at the old Plodding.

And "Think like an astronaut..." is idea no.64 in David Krieger's 101 ideas for creating a more peaceful world: Creating world peace takes many forms, but surely it begins with individuals.

I can't find the original source for the Mother Teresa quote, and can't be sure she said it. There's a whiff of the "make something up and attribute it to someone famous"s about it, because elsewhere (Suffering.net, quoting from a book) the same passage is written differently:

Today, if we have no peace, it is because we have forgotten we are all God's children. That man, that woman, that child is my brother, my sister. If everyone could see the image of God in his neighbor, do you think we would still have such destruction and suffering?

Still, the meaning is the same, I hope: we belong to each other, we're in this world together; if we could see and appreciate each other more clearly, we wouldn't get into so much trouble so often. One world, one people. Use it or lose it.

Merry Christmas, reader, however you choose to say it. Peace to you and yours and all of us.