China Blocks Websites at Olympics

excerpts from an email Exchange between the International Olympic Committee and the Chinese Government's committee for information exchange.

from IOC: Dear Committee members; Congratulations on a fantastic opening ceremony!
We are writing because we've heard from some reporters that some web sites are blocked to them. In previous discussions, you had promised that all web sites would be accessible to all journalists. Please advise, regards.

from China Info Committee: Dear IOC; thank you for the congratulations. We're glad you liked it. As far as the web sites, we have unblocked nearly all web sites for journalists. The few that remain blocked are related to Falun Gong, the terrorist organization. I am sure you can see that we must do this - it's a matter of national security. Regards

from IOC: Dear Committee members; thanks you for your reponse, it was very helpful. We understand your concerns with national security, but we still have a few more questions. Why is the official site for "America's Got Talent" blocked?


from China Info Committee: Dear IOC; thank you for your replies. As far as the "America's Got Talent" site - we blocked that for the journalist's protection. I mean, seriously, have you seen it? I'm sure the USA government would not approve of that, it must have been created by some commando group, right? Maybe a group of deaf and blind commandos? Regards.

from IOC: Dear Committee members; thanks for your reply. We suppose you have a point there. But, we've also heard that the Democratic National Committee's site is blocked. This is entirely partisan, and we cannot put up with any political grandstanding. Regards.

from China Info Committee: Dear IOC; We are very sorry about that. Wait - that was real? We thought it was some parody, or farce? Sorry about that one.
P.S. really? Howard Dean? really?

from IOC: Dear Committee members; Umm, yes, anyway. So, we've also heard that the site for the TV sitcom "According to Jim" is blocked. Could you explain this? Regards.

from China Info Committee: Dear IOC; Yes, it is.
Umm, you think this is a bad thing? Really, we thought it was a health issue. To make sure we have fewer incidents of people gouging their eyes out.
Really - don't you have any schools over there that teach some sort of arts, or culture? Regards