Is it possible to not like the Dalai Lama?

"Rupert Murdoch, the chairman of News Corporation, was condemned by human rights activists and Tibetans yesterday after criticising the Dalai Lama and condoning the Chinese occupation of Tibet.

Mr Murdoch, who hopes to expand his business interests in China, said of the leader of Tibetan Buddhism: "I have heard cynics who say he's a very political old monk shuffling around in Gucci shoes."

In any case, the chinese invasion did end slavery. Everything the monks lobby for [exempting certain aspects of religious suppression which are purely symbolic, and are indeed bad] amounts to something which would make life worse for most tibetians.

The monks he expelled were kicked out for PR reasons -- they worshipped a vengeful angry god & that was bad for rubbing shoulders in Hollywood.

Also, the CIA backed the Lama uprising in '59. Shouldn't that tell you something sort of knee-jerk?

As for the salt -- you can only get it from certain flats in the region, which involves an arduous trek across arid wasteland. If they had trucks and department stores &c. then life would be much easier. Also hot running water. Also gas, so they wouldn't have to burn feces.

I have respect for anyone who can fix a watch.

Wow, I'm known for fatuous and morally obtuse comments? I = new Dave Q?

Yer comments = fatuous and morally obtuse because they echo the various apologia various imperialists have used to justify their conquests and subsequent actions in foreign lands. The Romans ended human sacrifice among Druids, and the Spaniards ended it among Aztecs and Incas. The British ended the Indian practice of women throwing themselves on funeral pyres. If it wasn't for slavery, African- Americans would be living in squalor in Africa. The factory workers in Manchester had a better life in Manchester than they did as peasant farmers in the countryside. Palestinians have better education, sanitation, government, etc. in the occupied West Bank/Gaza Strip than they had before and they would have in Egypt, Jordan, any other Arab country. Those silly Afghanis need to be shown how to live a truly Islamic life by us Saudis.

The point being, not that the conquered's lives have been materially "improved" by the conquerors -- the real points are, that they have been conquered, that they are being occupied by a foreign power against their will, and whatever the situation was before conquest they are presently subject to human rights abuses. Hope you feel good being on the same side of this issue as the folks in Beijing, or mouthing the same rationales as such exemplars of human rights as Ariel Sharon.

And oh yeah, stating "the CIA was involved!", as if that fact alone somehow proves yer point, is not only fatuous and obtuse but also infantile.

Elton was just angry because the Dalai Lama accused Elton of doing "fuck all" after the death of Gianni Versace.

Cunt.

YAK TACOS!

Everything I've ever read indicates that traditional Tibetan food consists mainly of: tea with rancid yak butter in it and a dish called tsampa, which is parched barley soaked in tea and rancid yak butter. That was about it for regular daily fare. Dal (lentil mush) was a special treat for festivals.

This is one of the great movies.

But I can never forgive the D.L. for what he said about Sir Elton. See above.

Tsampa, butter tea, yak cheese, and yak and sheep meat are the most common Tibetan foods. Tsampa is roasted barley ground into flour. Tibetans mix butter tea with tsampa to make an instant meal. Butter tea is yak butter and salted black tea churned together, and resembles broth. The female yak (dri) provides rich milk from which butter, yogurt, and various dried cheeses are derived.

The above were daily staples, while the below were much less so:

Other common Tibetan foods include a hearty soup of meat and thukpa (fresh noodles), thing mo (steamed dough) with tsel (vegetable stew), and momo (filled dumplings). Tibetans also enjoy a home-brewed, tangy barley beer known as chang.

Yum.