Outlawing Reincarnation

In the movie "Dead Again," Robin Williams has a line where he points out "a lot more people believe in past lives than don't." The Chinese government is trying to change that. China has banned Buddhist monks from reincarnating without state permission.

According to a statement issued by the State Administration for Religious Affairs, the law, which goes into effect next month and strictly stipulates the procedures by which one is to reincarnate, is "an important move to institutionalize management of reincarnation."

The stupidity of this act is mind-blowing. Forgetting the ethical dilemma of legislating one's beliefs, how do you prove someone did something illegally when you can't prove it was done in the first place? This blatant attempt by the Chinese government to choose who the next Dalai Lama will be violates both human rights and common sense. Maybe the Chinese government should spend less time trying to oppress its citizens and more time stopping their businesses from shipping poisonous items all over the world.