Shut up, China

(above: examples of how China's dictators care about the environment and the people who live in it.)

Chinese Prime Minister Wen Jianbao publicly rebuked Prime Minister Stephen Harper for not caving in.... I mean... failing to visit China sooner.

From the article:

In a surprisingly undiplomatic rebuke, Prime Minister Stephen Harper
was publicly chided at a traditional Chinese welcoming ceremony Thursday for
taking too long to visit the country.

The subtle but pointed rebuke came as the prime minister and his
Chinese counterpart, Wen Jiabao, sat at a large oval table for talks following a
military welcome at the cavernous Great Hall of the People.

With television cameras rolling, Wen noted that he and Harper had yet
to meet and that no Canadian prime minister had visited China in five
years.

Mr. Harper responds (emphasis mine):

Asked about human rights after his meetings with the two Chinese
leaders, the prime minister said he had brought up in private both specific
issues and general ones, such as the situation Tibet.

One specific issue is the case of Husein Celil, the Canadian dual
citizen whisked out of Uzbekistan in 2006 and imprisoned in China. The
government is refusing Canadian consular visits.

But Harper has also been careful not to embarrass the Chinese
by bringing up the issues in a public setting.

"We always bring these up in a way that is frank and at the same time
that is respectful of Chinese sovereignty," he said.

Class from someone whom I don't believe will really make a dent in the human rights situation in China. Anyway, we see the Chinese believing they are superior to others because they use slave labour and a Westerner with manners. Maybe I'm being an elitist capitalist running dog but I don't see why we need to cater to a Third World dictatorship. After all, the jobs they take (which are granted to them by Western corporations ready to make a buck) are only making unsafe toys for children:

Researchers for the Ecology Center, a health-advocacy group based in
Ann Arbor, Mich., tested the products and released their findings in a yearly
report issued in time for the holiday shopping season.

The products tested include toys, clothing and jewelry that could be
purchased for children as gifts. The group said the toxic substances they
contain can cause developmental problems in children and are linked to
cancer.

Even the Chinese won't buy toys they make for their kids:

When freelance writer Wang Jian shops for toys for her 5-year-old son,
she’s happy to pay extra for Legos blocks and Japanese-brand train sets.
The reason, she and other parents say: Foreign brands enjoy a reputation
for higher quality — a perception reinforced by the product scares of recent
months.

China may be Santa’s global workshop, but when it comes to buying
playthings for their own children, Chinese families who can afford it opt for
foreign-brand toys — even if they are made in China.

Quality and safety issues are drawing more attention as incomes rise
and upwardly mobile Chinese grow more health conscious. While virtually all toys
on the market, whether foreign or domestic brands, are made in China, factories
making foreign brands are assumed to abide by more rigorous standards to screen
out lead paint and other harmful materials.

“I dare not buy cheap wooden toys or toys with paint,” said Lin Yan, a
professor at Shanghai International Studies University, whose 7-year-old
daughter tested for elevated levels of lead in her blood.

“I have a stupid standard: I buy her expensive toys in big department
stores. I can only assume most of the expensive ones are foreign brands and are
guaranteed to have better quality,” said Lin.

In my view, the Chinese don't have a lead-laced leg to stand on.