http://secrettibet.rsfblog.org/archive/2007/01/16/h istory-of-tibet-before-the-chinese-invasion-of-1949.html
History of Tibet before the Chinese Invasion of 1949 and attempted kidnapping of Dalai Lama in 1959.
Perhaps you are right Douglas Chalmers and my understanding not as vast as apparently yours is, but the Tibetans and Chinese do not have as close a relationship as you make out.  They have completely different cultures and religions.  Conflict is noted as far back as 4000 BC.  In addition to the site noted above, also found in Wikipedia references
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_Tibet
George Van Driem and Peter Bellwood, Peter & Colin Renfrew.  Also the Tibetans inhabited the plateau about a half a million years ago.  Peace treaties have been attempted several times apparently testifies to the enmity between the two countries. The “royal” marriage to which you refer was refused by the Tibetans and the Chinese forced themselves into the culture. 

I am not sure what your defense of China is all about, and I would not mind being informed but I would appreciate more respect on your part as I am not attacking you in any way or your knowledge.

The ostensible fact that the Dalai Lama had an association with the CIA, could be credible in view of the alienation between Tibet and China and the USA and China.  You seem to imply that was a bad thing?  That China does not trust the Dalai Lama is also natural but it was brought on by their occupation of Tibet for that to have happened.  It a push-pull situation. 

http://www.pbs.org/newshour/extra/features/world/jan-j une08/tibet_3-24.html

Protests Continue in Tibet segment of News Hour on March 25th. 
Donald Lopez –Univ. Michigan
Jeffrey Bader – Brookings Institution
Abraham Lustgarden - Fortune Mag.  China’s Great Train

Lopez.  Massive and economic inequalities.  Bader.  Anniversary of ignited but long term resentments about how Tibetans are ruled by Chinese. 

Lustgarden – Tibetan dominated the ethnic Tibetan.  Old historical buildings torn down, and outlying areas built up with modern Chinese building.  Promises from China of economic development but not materialized/

Lopez – Tibet and China have different language, different food, different religion, different social structure.  Tibetans never considered themselves to be Chinese, and Chinese never considered Tibetans to be Han.

Chinese wants stability and not a source of unrest.  But needs a serious dialogue with the Dalai Lama.  Chinese do not trust the Dalai Lama.  Needs a program to build the trust.  Otherwise no stability in Tibet. 

No doubt that a boycott of the Olympics by the world community will embarrass the Chinese and Tibetans will suffer as a result.  Chinese has to cease demonization of the Dalai Lama then progress may begin.

The lone Chinese man’s standoff was a media triumph, if ever there was one.  The picture of that one human being was plastered the world over.  The Chinese knew they were being watched.  However, a similar stand was taken by a lone American girl in Israel standing up for Palestinians, and she was mowed down.  Killed.  No pictures taken.  No repercussions for Israel!  So sometimes knowledge can make a difference in a larger scope, if it gets glamorous photojournalistic help.  What will change the situation today in Tibet?  The Dalai Lama has offered to talk with the Chinese but they have refused him audience.  The fact that he is a holy man ought not to be a criterion, however, to stop the decimation and appropriation of a people.  The fact that he is a man, a hu-man ought to be enough.  I do not think much can stop the reprobate China in utterly destroying Tibet.  There is no love lost between the two countries.  They have very little if anything in common.

Since I signed the petition to allow more foreign reporters in to Lhasa I wonder if the public response had anything to do with opening up that entry as reported in the BBC news today?  Signing a petition is somewhat better than just “knowing” about something that is wrong than not doing anything at all.  Most of the world simply does not know what they can do about genocide or oppression.

Boycotting the Olympics will only exacerbate the problem for Tibet.  Thinking about it was just a fantasy on my part because of the frustration of the struggle the Tibetan’s have had. The plight of the Dalai Lama is about a half century old.  Killing monks and other Tibetans is unconscionable.  Somewhere between the 19 as reported by the Chinese and the 140 said by the Tibetans whatever is the truth is that many people too many.  That mankind resorts to killing one another is a vestige of our brute and uncivilized nature. How long does it take for humanity to learn to have absolute personal regard for one another?  Now that one is a rhetorical question.

Knowlege does make a difference.  When the world watched the lone Chinese man’s standoff with tanks in Tianaman Square, China was forced to back off some of it’s more restrictive policies.  It realized that the tactics of oppression may cause you to loose business partners and much needed markets.  With enough knowlege of the attrocities in Tibet that businesses and nations adjust their relations with China, change may happen before the Tibetan culture is utterly destroyed.

Peace to the World and Blessings to the Dalai Lama!  I’m opposed to most organized religion but a culture that can birth that holy man should not be wiped out by a monstrous machine like china.

The consequences of mere knowledge without action

Not really asking rhetorically, but what does just the mere knowledge about atrocities and genocide contribute in reality to inhibit, prevent, obstruct, interrupt, terminate such from happening?  While it is slightly more than interesting, and inasmuch as most sufficient bodies of persons who are able to make a difference do not become involved, but maintain an apathy, what kind of action does such knowledge encourage or propel enough individuals to make a difference?  In otherwords, does just knowing a thing, actually do anything?  And if not, what do you think can be done to change that dilemma?

By bozhidar bob balkas, March 23: “...one could have expected that france also would condemn china for its ‘illegal’ and immoral invasion/annexation of tibet. however, the west led by us, nearly always condemns crimes of ....israel, us, uk, italy, canada, australia...”

Jealousy! Britain made it into Tibet (invaded 1904) but France didn’t, uhh. Oh, the frailties of “settler society” and their colonial dreams.........

Now the evil twins from NATO are going to use the excuse of “build(ing) power stations that do not rely on fossil fuels” to wreck the planet permanantly.......... UK and France ‘plan nuclear deal’ - http://ukpress.google.com/article/ALeqM5h97DFX3u6aPDBg uS31NkPqG21ArQ

Britain and France to take nuclear power to the world - Britain and France are to sign a deal to construct a new generation of nuclear power stations and export the technology around the world in an effort to combat climate change.

The pact is to be announced at the “Arsenal summit” next week when prime ministers Gordon Brown and Nicolas Sarkozy will meet at the Emirates stadium in north London.... http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2008/mar/22/nucl earpower.energy1?gusrc=rss&feed=networkfront

You are being fed BS by the Chinese gov’t. How does it taste?
China has committed genocide it Tibet at the level of Stalin’s pograms during his heyday.  More than 50% of the native Tibetan population has ?disappeared? in the last 25 yrs.  Tibet is no more.  The larger tourist destination temples are manned by ‘fake monks’ of han chinese decent.  The Chinese just can’t seem to get over the fact that TIBET ACTUALLY HAS A BETTER HISTORICAL CLAIM FOR RULING CHINA, THAN CHINA DOES FOR TIBET.

As another poster suggested, our athletes should attend the games but carry Tibetan flags.

Everyone else should stay home and let the Chinese eat thier new stadiums.

The U.S. can’t boycott the Olympics, the U.S. govt. owes China big bucks and the Chinese would be quick to point out what hypocrites the U.S. leadership is.

However, we and citizens of other countries can hurt China everytime we shop.  Be discerning.

For those barking mad about boycotting Olympics and hallucinating that they somehow have this wonderful leverage to pressurize us. I would like to inform you that your bubble just burst. Sorry!

National territorial integrity is more vital than being the center of the world’s attention for two weeks. China will be upset if the Olympics were watered down by a boycott of individual athletes. BUT WE WILL GET OVER IT. WE DO NOT NEED OLYMPICS TO VALIDATE US AS A COUNTRY. If Westerners think they could lead us by the nose because of Olympics, that just reveals how ignorant they are. The reason China has this thorny problem that is Taiwan is precisely because of US intervention.  WE WILL NEVER ALLOW THAT TO HAPPEN AGAIN. China will NEVER bend in front of Western pressure. Never!

Quit your imperialistic ways! You have already earned an atrocious reputation for meddling in Iraq and the Middle East. Why do you want to attract more hatred towards you? Is it your nature to attract hatred?

Perhaps you did not know that all foreign journalists are being barred or expelled from Tibetan areas. Thousands of Chinese troops are inundating Tibet as China crushes the demonstrations going on in Tibet to make sure no outsiders can see.

You can speak up now to urge the Beijing 2008 Olympic Organizing Committee and the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs to obey their own laws and allow foreign journalists access to Tibet. Click here to add your name to those of us who are taking at least this action:
http://actionnetwork.org/campaign/media_freedom

Kicking out journalists reduces the information the rest of the world gets about what is really happening in Tibet, but it also removes independent witnesses, thereby giving a soldier or police officer one less reason not to use violence to suppress the protests. Tibetans know this, and are afraid: as one Tibetan in Lhasa told the BBC, “We are all very worried about the lack of western people and journalists in and around Lhasa.”

The obstruction of journalists also defies new regulations passed in 2006 that were supposed to give foreign journalists expanded freedoms in the run-up to and during the 2008 Olympics in Beijing.

Tibet & Gaza “libre”

“Today’s rally is to fight against the oppression of Tibetans by the Chinese,” said one Vietnamese demonstrator who preferred to remain anonymous.  “China cannot do anything they want in Tibet. They need the support of foreign governments,” she said, stressing that the violent clashes in Lhasa and neighboring provinces don’t just represent a problem for Tibetans; rather, “it’s a global issue.”

Agreed, China can’t just do anything it wants in Tibet. After all, the USA is already doing whatever it pleases in Iraq and Afghanistan. But it is ironic that people are ignoring what the Tibetans first did to the ordinary Chinese citizens living and working in Tibet. That is not being genuinely interested in human rights.

But the question of European + US interference is something that goes back to the 1800’s in China - as well as in Tibet, India and Vietnam. In the end, it was the cause of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor as their greedy manipulations of Asia backfired badly. China won’t tolerate that kind of interference ever again.

France’s Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner is a rank opportunist and, along with their president, Sarko the Neocon, they are only too willing to do whatever they can to tip things in their favor. Using unrest over the Tibet issue is only the most recent. They have already toured the Middle East selling nuclear reactors to friend and foe alike in the past few months, uhh.

A boycott of Olympics ceremony? France raises idea, then backs off - http://www.iht.com/articles/2008/03/19/asia/react.php - and also note the link to the article about the forthcoming elections in Taiwan.......

Ma is the front-runner, but his 20-point lead in opinion polls has dropped into single digits as opponent Frank Hsieh mounts a fierce final-stage rally. On Friday, Hsieh’s campaign unveiled a new TV ad showing Tibetan monks staging a candlelight vigil to protest the Chinese clampdown in their homeland...... “When China is cracking down on Tibet ... the Ma camp is drawing ever closer to China,” the ad says.