**thats 2600 hundred years of spin... pc

You would think that on "On the Media" would have something more interesting about the recent visit of the Dalai Lama than rehashing a story that has played before.
How clever of the Dalai Lama using such a simple bland concept as compassion....to sell himself to the masses. He should work for Madison Ave, advise presidential candidates. The article could be titled: Buddhism 6000 yrs of spin. Buddhists had a phrase for that its called turning the wheel of the dharma.

To reframe your comments that "empty space" is the basis of the Dalai Lama's appeal - rather than seeing this as some media trick, please note that "empty space," along with his teaching of compassion and "seeing more clearly," are the basic teachings of Buddhism. Since the Dalai Lama is, as he says, "a simple Buddhist monk," this is most appropriate.