What Does the Dalai Lama Have In Common With a Swedish Chimpanzee?

Fifty years after a bloody uprising in Tibet that challenged Chinese rule and resulted in the expulsion of the Dalai Lama from his homeland, science contributes new findings to the understanding of consciousness, a topic that underlies many of the spiritual teachings the Dalai Lama has promoted throughout his lifetime.

I find both the following news stories quite interesting on their own, but understanding the connective strings makes each even that much more intriguing. For information about the Dalai Lama's understanding of the crossroads of science and spirituality, particularly in relation to the essence of consciousness, I recommend The Universe In a Single Atom.

Dalai Lama at Critical Crossroads
By Zoe Murphy
BBC News

Five decades in exile and years of denigration by Beijing have failed to weaken the Dalai Lama's influence over Tibetans in his homeland and beyond.

The Tibetan spiritual leader's unwavering commitment to non-violence has also earned the world's respect. But the long conflict over the status of Tibet has hit a critical juncture.

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Zoo Chimp 'Planned' Stone Attacks

BBC News

A male chimpanzee in a Swedish zoo planned hundreds of stone-throwing attacks on zoo visitors, according to researchers.

Keepers at Furuvik Zoo found that the chimp collected and stored stones that he would later use as missiles.

Further, the chimp learned to recognise how and when parts of his concrete enclosure could be pulled apart to fashion further projectiles.

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Excuse me, China, can we talk for a moment?

I have been trying to closely follow the conflict between the Chinese government and the protesting Tibetan monks in the Lhasa province (and elsewhere). I feel this latest unrest provides a prime example of the kind of human rights violations the Chinese government commits daily. Many human rights groups are calling for a boycott of the upcoming Olympic games in Beijing. The Bush White House claims it is encouraging the Chinese government to have a dialog with the leaders of these protests. However, this administration has refused to speak with its own adversaries, so it's quite absurd that it expects others to do so. I'm infuriated by the fact that Bush still intends to attend the opening ceremonies of the games. Simply showing his face at the games implies he endorses China's hosting these games, and it's disgusting to think about all the horrible acts China has committed against its own people.

I wonder what the White House would be saying if Barack Obama was president. I wrote a short email to the campaign, and I'm awaiting a response. I'll let you know when I receive it. This is an important issue, and we can't stand idly by as it unfolds. One of my friends likened the situation to the 1936 Olympics. While I think that's an overstatement and the situation could be a lot worse, we as citizens of the world have a duty to try to prevent it from becoming so.