I had assumed that all Tibetan lamas were just like the Dalai Lama, teaching that they were nonviolent people living simple lives, and they did not engage in politics. But I was wrong.

People were complaining that on the big sites they weren't finding people that shared their spiritual interests. I find that people, the deeper they are into Buddhism, the more important it is for them to have somebody else who's interested in it. The people who meditate or go to a Buddhist center tend to place a high premium on finding people who share their spiritual path.