Beijing « The Irate Nation

Chinese Greet ‘Oba Mao’ With Flaming Statue, Wave of Enthusiasm

Pouches printed with a mixed image of U.S. President Barack Obama and late Chinese leader Mao Zedong are on sale at a small souvenir shop in Houhai, a famous tourist area in Beijing, on Thursday, September 24, 2009. (CCTV.com Photo)

clipped from www.foxnews.com

Sunday's arrival of a U.S. president admired for his charisma is already a source of profit and brief fame for some Chinese.

The Chinese have learned English from his speeches and celebrated the way he rolls up his sleeves. Now President Obama is finally coming, and he's being greeted with "Oba Mao" T-shirts and a statue of him that bursts into flames.

"Yes, setting something on fire can have negative connotations, but this piece represents energy and life that Obama has given to the world," said the 38-year-old, who made a similar piece for former revolutionary leader Mao Zedong.

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Iran is ready to launch its second homemade spy satellite

clipped from www.debka.com

Iran is ready to launch its second homemade spy satellite, with the Safir 2 rocket (Messenger of Ambassador) already in position on its pad, DEBKAfile's military and intelligence sources report. The new satellite weighs 200 kgs, ten times more than Omid 1 (Hope), which was successfully tested only ten months ago, on Feb. 2. Tehran's missile program is clearly rushing forward at a rapid pace. In fact, some Western and Israeli missile experts suspect it may have overtaken North Korea and that Iran no longer stands in need of technical assistance from Pyongyang or Beijing.