Congratulations to Liu Xiaobo for winning the Nobel Peace Prize
– and to the Nobel committee for giving it to him. China has
countless dissidents and people pushing for democracy, of
course, but there’s a reason Liu rose to the top in Nobel
estimations. He has combined relentless courage and persistence
in pushing for democracy over 21 years with a broad vision of
democracy, all tethered to moderation and willingness to work
with Communist Party leaders. That moderation got Liu in trouble
with some fellow dissidents, who argued that he shouldn’t win
the prize. To me, it seemed ridiculous to object that he was too
moderate, considering that he’s now serving an 11-year prison
sentence. I first encountered Liu in early 1989, when he was one
of the visionaries behind the Tiananmen democracy movement. Some
activists lost their moorings in that heady movement, but Liu
didn’t. He encouraged the students in the center of Tiananmen
Square to save their lives and retreat, and he negotiated with
the soldiers to let them