Interesting article on how hard Cubans must work in order to blog. They have to pretend to be foreign and sneak into the big hotels that have unfiltered — or at least more open than elsewhere on the island — internet pipelines to the rest of the world. (The blog mentioned, in Spanish of course, is here.) This is a small part of what our fellow humans living under totalitarianism must do to have their voices heard. Be thankful for your political freedom and don’t take it for granted!

Tibetans broke into the Chinese embassy compound in New Delhi. More here. They’re protesting — well, they’re protesting pretty much everything China does in Tibet. And they’re doing it in New Delhi. Well, India is a democracy, and as Donald Rumsfeld said, democracies are messy, things happen. China and India are also sparring over Tawang Monastery in India. (Remember ‘control Buddhism, control Asia?’ More here and here.) China wants it all. (The graphic at right above came from the US Campaign for Burma and I love the Olympic rings as handcuffs.)

We all know Germans love Buddhism. Here’s more evidence.

George Dvorsky of the Institute for Ethics and Emerging Technologies writes on how Christopher Hitchens hates Buddhism (along with everything else except Ayaan Hirsi Ali and the Kurds.) It’s an excellent and very entertaining piece. Atheism and scientism are enemies of religion. No religious person should try to embrace them. Links at the bottom of Dvorsky’s piece to several more articles on Hitchens v. Buddha.

96-year-old Luang Phor Panya Nantha Bhikkhu has died in Thailand. “An era has ended,” says The Nation, Bangkok’s Independent Newspaper.

UPDATE: The Buddha as a Che-esque universal symbol of protest?: ‘Protesters Building Large “Buddha” Outside Pelosi’s House’

- Philip Ryan, Web Editor

The situation in Burma has exposed links with the dictatorship all over the world. Obviously, most of Burma’s trading partners will be neighbors, just as the U.S.’s largest trading partner is Canada. This has put southeast Asia — already a troubled area with two Communist countries (Vietnam and Laos) and two other military dictatorships (Burma and Thailand, which has a virulent Muslim insurgency in its south) — in a tight spot. As a result, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations opposes sanctions on Burma, and Singapore is said to be “a crucial ally” of the junta.

The Western Powers (The U.S., France, and Britain) have issued a “softened” UN statement decrying the crackdown in Burma. An exiled leader of the protest, meanwhile, blasts the UN for accomplishing nothing.

Win Shwe, a 42-year-old member of the National League for Democracy was arrested on September 26th and has reportedly died under interrogation.

Look out, junta: Laura Bush is gunning for you!

And the Worst Horse points us the very cool Burma conflict through the eyes of Second Life.

- Philip Ryan, Web Editor