Golly,
I think FuManChu has a valid point. I heard a clip of the interview where he was screaming "shut up." Now I didn't hear the question before that, but if you just listen to that part, it sounds very much like he is a lunatic. I think this is sort of like Howard Dean's "O-Ya" speech after he lost Democratic Primary election in Ohio. There are several points that I think need to be considered:
1. The Chinese diplomat might have been angered by some pervious questions asked. I didn't get a chance to listen to the entire interview, and most media sources probably would never play those questions. They know that drama attracts public attention.
2. The Chinese diplomat has a very valid point. That is, the Americans have as much right to question China's defence's spending as Chinese do America.
3. The bad delivery of his arguments achieved opposite effects.
FuManChu said:
I don't see that as a reason why he had to scream into the microphone. Diplomats are supposed to be diplomatic. As I said earlier, rule 1 is to realise that how you say something can heavily influence how it is received. He could have said the same thing in an even tone of voice and made a much better impact.
Maybe he felt annoyed. Tough luck. That's like Zidane saying he was provoked - it doesn't cut any ice. You want to play with the big diplomacy boys, you play by the rules.
Mod's edit, by Golly:
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Let's not go that road, shall we??