Shine a light?
Many times, over recent years, I and others have argued against any increased official or business contact with Communist China. We are a small band of protesters, unorganised and unfunded; and I for one would never have credited my joining any protest organisation, partly because there was very little chance of a murmured protest working out against the combined weight of a bunch of blood-stained dictators, big business and the apathetic disinterest of the wider public.
But there is a glimmer of hope, there is a slim chance that the hopes of an entire nation might receive just that very thing which the Chinese detest most. After the brief rise of, and consequent bloody repression of, the monks and protesters in Lhasa and Western Tibet, the Chinese thought and hoped that it might all go away, but thankfully there are a few people who just might stand up and be counted during the travels of the blood-soaked Olympic Torch as it meanders around London tomorrow, and the world later on.
As I have often argued, violent protest, murder and mayhem are no substitute for the ballot box, but just think what this torch represents for the Communist Chinese Regime. It stands for legitimacy, despite never having sought or listened to the voice of it’s own people. It stands for publicity, both for the Beijing Olympics and for the wider actions of a repressive regime! It stands for the knowledge that thousands of athletes, swimmers, riders and archers will travel to Beijing to contest their skills against each other in the Capital City of Communist China!
As an individual, I have taken a few steps of my own, such things as buying a more expensive pair of ‘rigger’ work boots rather than buying one of the ubiquitous and cheaper Chinese-made alternatives; of buying a Hungarian-manufactured DVD recorder rather than a China-built one even though the Chinese one was far cheaper. Perhaps just a pin-prick, and the loss of such minute quantities wouldn’t even disturb any sales team in Britain, never mind Beijing, but I would remind the reader that great movements have small beginnings, especially if the end-game is worth the effort!
So let’s watch the Torch as the gullible fellow-travellers such as Jane Tomlinson, Tim Henman and Sir Roger Bannister, Dame Kelly Holmes and Sir Steve Redgrave prance along carting the Flame of Freedom, and hope against hope that some brave soul is able to extinguish the flames which commemorate the death of Olympic Ideals.
P.S. Still like the LOGO?
Mike Cunningham
After watching the scenes of the truly wonderful protests which highlit the disgusting travesty of an Olympic torch being dragged through the mud of Beijing propaganda, and the clowns who carried it through the soiled streets of our Capital, I have just one question and one comment.
The question: Why were a bunch of Chinese Communist thugs allowed to convoy the Olympic Shame through the streets of London?
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Reader Comments (3)
Nice one Mike. Putting a little thought into what you are purchasing can make a huge difference.
So many stores now tell you things about their goods, ie that they won't end up as landfill etc. Just by simply realising that a boycott of stuff made in China could make a great difference. Too many of us buy without thinking.
They don't call China 'the elephant in the corner' for nothing!
You might find it harder than you imagine to avoid contact with them. Mind you, the quality of their products seems to get worse by the day, the 'good stuff' comes from places like Taiwan.
It is all very well to condemn the way their country is run, but with a population that size, it may well be the only system that can achieve any sort of order. The democratic way certainly doesn't appear to work too well with such supersized entities.
Bear in mind that it is four times the size of the US, and has a far more diverse population. Hardly surprising individual freedoms get short shift..
Just thank your lucky stars they don't have too many colonial ambitions.
Hopefully time will improve their population management skills...
You may have a point there Ernest.
Cf: Most Iraqis seem think life was better under the Saddam dictatorship.
Without a history of a free democracy, the Chinese, likewise, could break up into warring 'dynasties'.
Also, the EU could get over-excited if China went democratic and invite them, posthaste, into the Union!
The thought of several hundred million Chinese setting up firework factories all over the UK could be problematic.
The good news is that the Olympic torch, being made in China and will probably mal-function and fizzle out before the warranty expires.