Can you imagine not being able to pick your child’s name or being told to change your own name if it’s not on the ‘List’? the other day I came across this article in the New York Times about how Chinese “Government officials suggest that names have gotten out of hand, with too many parents picking the most obscure characters they can find or even making up characters, like linguistic fashion accessories” and that just complicates things when making computer generated identity cards. I know it’s a different culture and maybe a varied way of seeing ones self in relation to one’s society and government, but that seems a bit harsh.