"Recall that earlier generations faced down fascism and communism not just with missiles and tanks, but with the sturdy alliances and enduring convictions."
If you were jam packed into Glamour Bar with 600 other people earlier this morning, watching President Barack Obama being sworn in, you might have been a little too dizzy with euphoria (and possibly heatstroke) to notice particular segments of his 18-minute inauguration address -- specifically, ones that likely caused the head honchos in Beijing to collectively cringe.
Remember how the new President mentioned "communism" and "facism" in the same sentence? Oh, and how those who silence dissent are "on the wrong side of history"? China's hoping its netizens won't, with various portals that translated Obama's address censoring various offending parts.
According to Reuters:
U.S. President Barack Obama's inauguration speech has a little twist in translations available on some Chinese websites where his references to communism and dissent have been cut.
Sina and Sohu had omitted the word “communism” (共产主义) in the line:
"Recall that earlier generations faced down communism and fascism not just with missiles and tanks, but with sturdy alliances and enduring convictions,"
And removed an entire paragraph on dissent:
"To those who cling to power through corruption and deceit and the silencing of dissent, know that you are on the wrong side of history, but that we will extend a hand if you are willing to unclench your fist."
Netease.com included the paragraph on dissent, and was reportedly commended by netizens for its honesty, but omitted the word "communism” in the prior paragraph. A quick Baidu search and browse found that other Chinese websites have chosen to post the speech in excerpts according to themes.
Only Hong Kong-based Phoenix TV has posted the translated speech in its entirety, which we include below so you can send to your friends.
http://shanghaiist.com/2009/01/21/chinese_media_censors_obamas_speech.php
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