In Sichuan, China, there is a proverb that said, "The Sichuan puppies barking at the sun." I never understand that until I spent a little over two years there in the mountains of Chonqing, Sichuan.

In Sichuan, according to the history, it could rain and rain alternating with heavy foggy days for months at a time. I lived through a period of over 2 months without ever seeing the sun there myself.

So, the poor puppies have never seen anything like a sun since the day they were born. Then, suddenly, one day the fog and rain cleared up and the sun appeared. It frightened those poor puppies very badly. So, without any other reactions known to them, they simply barked like crazy against the sun until they wre too tired to bark any more.

Unfortunately, barking with unexpected things that frightened them is not limited to the dogs.  Take the case of the CNN commentator's recent behavior.  If you can see his tail, you might find it tucked tightly between the between his hindlegs, just like those Sichuan puppies.