China has such a huge bureaucracy that, best I can tell from years of being a news junkie, it’s rare that anyone with final authority is making these decisions. Australia’s bureaucrats will talk to theirs and, probably, this will get sorted out in a day or five. As to the nuclear subs, I’d guess those are mostly status symbols. Aside from their understandable paranoia at being the last big Communist country, China is making a move toward becoming a modern industrialized country so, as their culture dictates, they’re acquiring things to give them status. All the other big countries (Russia, US, UK, and even France) have nuclear subs, so, just like keeping up with the proverbial Joneses, China has to have some. It’s the same thing with their space program, which they really can’t afford.

As to the Olympics, I’m still ticked off that they never televise all the events! I get four channels on cable dedicated to showing nothing but sports, and I fail to see why 80% of the air time during the Games isn’t devoted to the Olympics.

the Grit