VSParagon

For what it's worth, I don't think the Chinese government is as monolithic or cartoonishly evil as Reddit says.

The Chinese Supreme Court issued a rare statement defending those who provided earlier information about the virus, even if it was later found to be inaccurate, as long as it was done with good intentions. One of the central committees also claimed that anyone attempting to conceal information about the outbreak would be "nailed on the pillar of shame for eternity".

The initial reaction of the local government was that there was some kind of infection spreading from diseased animals at a market in the city. They did not think it was transmitted person-to-person and to cover their ass they cracked down on anyone sharing information about it. Once the issue escalated from "local scandal" to a regional and then national epidemic, the Central government stepped in and has been more forthright.

I know you're expecting this question, so I'll just ask it:

If you sat in Harry Reid's shoes, would you have anything differently in negotiations leading up to the big shutdown today?

Do you expect this story to have an impact within Syria, or was the general scope and nature of these prisons already known there?