It’s nothing like that in China.  Public Security minister Zhu Entao passed the first censorship law in December 1997. Fines up to 15,000 Yuan (about 2200$) could be given for ‘defaming government agencies,’ ’splitting the nation,’ and leaking ‘state secrets’.

Also no sexual or violent materials are allowed. No “injuring the reputation of state organs” is allowed either. That basically means no Chinese person can say anything against the government or give their opinion.

The Chinese government blocks web pages like the Chinese Wikepedia, BBC News, Facebook and Twitter and the censorship influences the people in China everyday.

Not only the Internet but also most radio and television stations are under governmental control. No unfiltered information reaches the Chinese people.

We often rely on information from the media. Different newspapers and news channels give us information from different viewpoints. Therefore we are able to process the information given to us and build our own opinion from it.

This is what the government in China tries to prevent. Information is given from one viewpoint and doesn’t allow critical thinking.

Article 6 of the UN Declaration on Human Rights Defenders says

“Everyone has the right, individually and in association with others [...] freely to publish, impart to disseminate to others views, information and knowledge on all human rights and fundamental freedoms [as well as] to study, discuss, form and hold opinions on the observance, both in law and in practice, of all human rights and fundamental freedoms and, through these and appropriate means, to draw attention to those matters.”

Amnesty International, a worldwide human rights organization, reports on many incidents in which people have been arrested for apparent “anti-governmental” activities.

A 36-year-old shopkeeper, Lou Yongzhong, was sentenced to three years in prison because he published his own opinion on the Internet. He wrote that “Human rights and democracy aren’t something that the government would like everybody to discuss because it is thought to be anti-government, unpatriotic. But I believe that a patriot must first of all try to uphold human rights and democracy.”

Not only the people in China are influenced by the governmental censorship but also business all over the world. In the past, Google had a conflict with the Chinese government because a third party accessed Gmail accounts of advocates of human rights in China. On their blog, Google states that they launched Google.com in January 2006 to give the people in China the opportunity to get information in a more open Internet. With ongoing debates Google now stated that they would reconsider the provided Google service in China, even if that means to remove Google completely.

The Chinese government, however, not only tries to censor the Chinese people, but also holds back information from getting outside. Journalists often need permission to visit China. Often they are watched by governmental workers and are harassed if they want to cover a delicate topic.

The webpage of The Council on Foreign Relationships reported that “180 foreign correspondents were detained, harassed, or attacked in China in 2007 despite the nominally relaxed regulations.”

China now is the winner in the category of the most imprisoned journalists for the ninth time in a row. If you want more information on the censorship in China or even decide to take action you can visit http://www.amnestyusa.org .

The Who, What, Why and When of the H1N1 Vaccine. Essential information you may need.

According to http://www.newsweek.com, Federal Officials are planning for a H1N1 pandemic that could effect 30% to 50% of the population this flu season. With the first cases possibly starting these next few months . A vaccine will be crucial for protecting people. But will it be too late? Who should get the shot? How safe and effective will it be?

Fortunately, the new H1N1 virus has been mild so far. It has affected a million Americans so far and only 556 deaths have been recorded. This compared to the 36,000 a year for the normal flu. But it also arrived very late in the last flu season and didn’t spread through the whole country. This year the vulnerable population will be much larger.

The H1N1 virus is even affecting Mountain View “Not many people are out of school sick yet, but I’m sure in the next month we will defiantly see an increase. Right now there are a few students out sick, but we are still not sure whether its H1N1 or the normal flu.” Said Sandy Young, Attendance Secretary here at Mountain View.

Federal Officials  do not want to discourage  anyone from getting the shot. But The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, also known as The CDC, is only recommending the vaccination for people in the high risk groups, these include Health Care and Emergency workers, Children and young adults (6 months to 24 years old), Parents and care takers of babies under the age of 6 months (since infants under 6 months have a poor vaccine response, the best defense is having parents who are flu-free), and last but not least, adults ages 25-64 with other underlying health conditions including diabetes, asthma, and chromic lung disease and heart disease.

The government has ordered 195 million doses of vaccine, 45 million of which will be delivered by mid to late October. The vaccination will take 5 weeks to fully develop immunity. Some people are worried about that. Even if they get it now, they won’t be immune until late November and the flu season is supposed to peak in mid- October. The CDC has no idea how the H1N1 virus will behave this year. Officials suspect that flu season will strike early this year because in contrast to the seasonal flu, the H1N1 virus continued to circulate throughout the summer. The fact that school is now back in session will likely fuel the spreading.

If you get the H1N1 shot, you still need to get the normal flu shot. The Swine flu shot will not protect you from both. The H1N1 vaccine is suspected to be very accurate unlike the normal flu shot which is just the best guess at what will vaccinate you. The H1N1 virus is very stable, unlike the seasonal flu which mutates and makes it hard to protect against.  The H1N1 vaccine should match the strain, therefore be highly effective.

Many people are wondering how to best avoid the virus if they aren’t getting the vaccine. To protect yourself wash your hands frequently and well; 20 seconds with soap and warm water will do. Avoid touching your eyes and nose. Alcohol based hand gels are also effective. Second, avoid spreading germs by covering your mouth when you cough or sneeze, preferably using a tissue or your sleeve. And third, if you’re sick or your children are sick, stay home until the fever has gone away for at least 24 hours without the use of fever reducing medications.

For those interested in getting vaccinated the H1N1 vaccine will be available at MVHS on October 29^th, throughout the day. It will be the nasal mist version. It is still unsure where the vaccination will be located, so stay tuned, talk to your teachers, counselors, or the staff in the main office to find more information.