Graham Hutchings in "Modern China: A Guide to a Century of Change", says this about the Taiwan issue: Realpolitik has persuaded all but about thirty countries in the world, most of them small, to establish relations with the People's Republic of China, and maintain only unofficial ties with the Republic of China on Taiwan. The Communist government insists there is only one China, that Taiwan is part of it, and Beijing is its capital. There can be no question of 'two Chinas' or 'one China, one Taiwan'. This book, free of the conventions of diplomacy, takes a different approach: it not only recognizes 'two Chinas', or 'one China, one Taiwan', it exults in their existence as a source of diversity and, ultimately, of benefit to China as a whole. Right on! I'm all for conflicting opinions, because this promotes discussion and critical thought. I applaud Hutchings for putting this more eloquently than I ever could have. Maos_ear_wax makes a good argument regarding complacency in the face of villainy on the Lonely Planet message board. The thread was started by a staff member of CCTV 9 looking for good attractions to feature on a travel show. Posters responded rudely, others took offense at the rudeness and disagreed, but maos_ear_wax thought it over and spoke thusly: the people themselves who work at CCTV 9 may be innocent, but cooperating with an arm of the same Chinese government that blocks Google is still condoning silence. "Nobody speaks out, nobody questions, everyone just plods on."