“China Muzzles Online Talk of Tiananmen”

via Ratty:

…The Sina Weibo clampdown claimed a number of seemingly anodyne terms and images, including the emoticon of a candle that is usually available to users. It also claimed “Victoria Park,” the site in Hong Kong of an annual memorial to the event. It also claimed the number 35 because users hoping to fool censors sometimes refer to the June 4 event as May 35.

“Say nothing,” one user wrote. “Everyone understands.”

Users still found ways to discuss the event. Some began quoting a poem by ninth century literary figure Li Shangyin that includes the lines “A spring silkworm spins its thread until its dying day / A candle’s tears do not dry until it has burned down to ash.” The line is an apparent reference to the disappearance of the candle icon as well as the blocking of the term “candle,” though the poem uses an older character for that word that wasn’t yet blocked Monday afternoon.

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