WHEN THE DRAGON FEARS A SPARK:

When rulers are not virtuous, sparks fly (Peter Kwong, April 4, 2007, Agence Global)

'The Nail House," a three-story building surrounded by a deep excavation ditch in Chongqing, China, has been at the center of public attention across China for weeks because of the well-publicized standoff between its owners, Wu Ping and her husband Yang Wu, and a developer raising a new skyscraper complex on the site.

Refusing to move out, the couple have rejected the pittance offered for their home and have demanded space in the complex instead. But the local authorities, as is so often the case in China, have sided with the developer and ordered the house demolished.

The couple's plight echoes the grievances of millions of Chinese who have been forced out of their homes under similar circumstances. Once Chinese bloggers spread the news of the tenacity of the couple, thousands of Chongqing residents and supporters from all parts of China arrived at the site to cheer them on, shouting "You are our heroes!"

Wu and Yang are tough as nails. They and their house have become the darlings of the domestic and international media. Sina.com, China's largest Internet portal, has even offered money for digital images that would best capture the essence of the struggle.

In the past, the Chinese government would not have tolerated such a public defiance. When I first saw the Nail House on Sina.com, it reminded me of the haunting image of that sole pedestrian blocking tanks in Tiananmen Square in 1989.

These days, ever more brave souls are staring down the Communist Party.