Not a Category to Lead the World In

Mark Steyn links to a fascinating article about China's out-of-control air pollution:

A dense blanket of smog covered most cities in northeast China this past week, reaching record pollution levels and grounding hundreds of flights at Beijing’s international airport. Public outrage over the quality of the air in the Chinese capital is rising high while the government insists that the problem is down to inclement weather and nothing to be overly worried about.

For most of this week the air in Beijing has been rated as “very unhealthy” and “hazardous” by the US Embassy air monitor, reputed as the most reliable indicator of pollution in the city. On Sunday it posted a new record: “beyond index”, as it registered 522 micrograms of particulate pollutants per cubic meter of air.

More and more Chinese citizens - and not just expats - are turning to the US Embassy's BeijingAir Twitter account for precise data on pollution, especially since Chinese authorities continued to describe the situation as “moderate” despite the thick cloud of smog – “fog,” according to them - that envelops the city. 

I have two observations for America's Sinophiles:

1. I find it fascinating that Chinese citizens have to rely on the U.S. embassy for accurate and reliable information about what's going on in their own country.
2. The right to assemble, organize and protest is extremely limited in China. How can anyone expect to see a legitimate environmental movement develop under the conditions imposed by Beijing? Or, does China not need an environmental movement? Will the Communist Party eventually get to this problem when the time is right? The United States started tackling these issues with earnest in the 1970s, but the problem was never as bad as China is right now.

The streets of Beijing are beginning to look like something out of Blade Runner.