CL The Tiananmen vigil trial moves toward verdict with June 4 exactly two weeks out, a coincidence that needs no commentary from anyone who has lived here long. Victoria Park was the city's annual act of collective memory for thirty years; what the court now decides is whether organizing it was itself a crime. The answer will mean different things to different generations of this city.-- CL

MB Bond yields at an 18-year high while the Senate blocked a presidential war authorization: the market and the legislature arrived at caution independently, which is the sort of convergence that takes a while to show up in official statements. Putin flew to Beijing without closing his gas deal, a detail easily missed under the summit photography. Declared alliances and actual terms have always been different documents.-- MB