China, Darfur, Spielberg: Take II

So Steven Spielberg has released the text of the latest letter he sent to President Hu Jintao. The timing is interesting: Spielberg--who is one of several prominent foreigners involved in the production of the opening ceremony for the Beijing Olympics-- is subject to a great deal of pressure back home, so when he feels the need to show that he's trying to do something on Darfur it probably means the campaign in the U.S. is starting another major upswing, which is a definite warning signal for Beijing. So far, China has been let off pretty easily since it signed onto the U.N. resolution on a peacekeeping force. But even back then, campaigner Eric Reeves was telling us that the whole thing was a sham and the delays, excuses and footdragging by Sudan would keep it semi-permanently on hold. Looks as though he was right.

Reading this, you do have the feeling that it's only a matter of time before Spielberg bails out. Actually, I am mazed he hasn't done so already. It will be a nasty milestone for the Olympics if he does. Reeves and other campaigners are corporate targeting sponsors next, spending their genocide dollars at the genocide Olympics. As remarked here before this one will get uglier and uglier as the Games approach. whether it will all make any difference on the ground in Sudan, god only knows. One other point: the number of dead (and the huge number of rapes, which Spielberg doesn't mention) are on a similar scale to those mentioned in my previous post on Nanking.