(no subject)
Click to viewNew images of Abu Suruj. A formerly large town, now burned.
And this is only a taste. I haven't posted anything today on China proper or Tibet. This is why I'm boycotting the Olympics. Not because I hate Chinese people, or because I think athletes are jerks, but because the Chinese government is participating in and promoting the murder of countless people and the opression of even more.
But. It is important to note that many Chinese people, including some Chinese-Americans are offended by these protests. They really do think protesters hate them. What Chinese people need to recognize is that we in countries where we have a voice in our government often forget that everyone in the world doesn't have the same agency in their home nations. We forget that, while American actions are the personal responsibility of voting-age American citizens, the actions of the Chinese government are not the personal responsibility of Chinese citizens. But, they also need to recognize that the agency will never be theirs if they don't demand it. Why does China deny human rights? Because we're all not working hard enough to demand it. But it's not about cutting them off. We know that has failed in Cuba. It's about demanding and forcing change from the inside. Divestment and boycott will work, just as it did in South Africa. Embargo will not.