<p>I would like to point out that the “peaceful” Tibetian protest was NOT peaceful. No where near it. Not only that, but when the Tibetians when to the United Nations for help, American soldiers were told to stop their protest. The protesters were beaten and arrested. Those were AMERICAN soldiers. China has tried for years to help the Tibetians integrate, and they have been very successful with other minority groups. Yes, some times what the Chinese governmennt does is not great, but Americans can’t say that they have never oppressed a minority group (cough cough slavery) Many countries have oppressed minority groups and very few have tried to help them become part of the country’s society. </p>
<p>And one more thing… may of the CNN images of the “peaceful” protest in Tibet was edited. If you view the full image of the man walking in front of a bus looking dejected, you will see that there is a mob throwing large rocks at the bus carrying Chinese soldiers who were there to try and appease the Tibetians.</p>
The problem with China’s desire to integrate Tibetians is that its integration resembles how the Borg wanted to integrate Captain Picard in Start Trek.</p>
<p>Never been to China. Never been to Tibet. But I’ve been several times to Nepal and northern India and visited communities where thousands of Tibetans live in exile. I guess China missed integrating them somehow…</p>
<p>wraider2006: Yes, I’m sure they want to integrate them. Never had any doubt about that fact, actually. I take issue with how they go about it - like the Borg, as razorsharp so eloquently stated.</p>
<p>And yes, I’m well aware that the Tibetan protests have been violent. I guess you’ll have to excuse me for thinking that the level of violence in those protests is basically negligible compared to the way China treats its dissidents.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>First off, I’m Canadian. Second, are you saying that America’s horrific past of slavery (over 100 years ago) means they should not try to stop other countries doing things as horrific as they did? What a truly reprehensible position for you to take.</p>
<p>I feel no pity for the athletes who “trained etc” for all those years</p>
<p>That was their chose of life…they didn’t have to do that…yet we are supposed to worry more about their feelings then the hundreds of thousands tortured, beaten, killed, enslaved etc?</p>
<p>and Chinese soldiers trying to "appease’ the Tibetans,…is that a serious observation?</p>
<p>liberty or death- some people still hold that notion to be true</p>
<p>and they didn’t START out violent- they were attacked by Chinese thugs </p>
<p>Chinese has not tried to help the Tibetans integrate- they have tried to destroy them</p>
<p>If the whole world suddenly decided to boycott the Beijing Olympics, it would not change a thing. I blame the IOC. They knew better than to allow China to host the Olympics without a prior demonstration human rights concessions. Surly, they had to have known the upheaval that would result from awarding the games to China.</p>
<p>Yeah. No chance of China changing its policy… but maybe this will teach the IOC not to try to take grand, and misguided, symbolic actions like this.</p>
<p>I’m not saying that they shouldn’t try and stop or prevent discrimination, but that their decision to boycott the opening ceremony doesn’t do anything to help rectify the situation. If the US government wanted to help the Tibetians, they shouldn’t have shunned the Tibetian protesters when they went to the United Nations headquarters. </p>
<p>There are so many examples of violent independence movements, but many times they are only as horrific as the media portrays them. China is doing what they believe should be done. It may not be right, but they are trying to solve they problem. No country can run with disagreement and rebellion.</p>
<p>Any democratic republic can run with disagreement. The United States has been doing that for a long time, and now many other countries have learned how, just as the United States learned from some European republics. </p>
<p>The problem with China is that peaceful disagreement with the one-party dictatorship is treated as rebellion. Eventually that doesn’t leave any “escape valve” for differing opinions but actual, armed rebellion. The number of violent protests each year in China is far higher per-capita than in most other countries of similar size and geographic diversity. Perhaps the whole system will eventually collapse, as it did suddenly and unexpectedly in several eastern European dictatorships in 1989.</p>
Get a grip. Have you ever been to China, or Tibet? Not all Chinese soldiers are evil monsters, believe it or not. Not all Chinese Tibetans are thugs. Not all government officials are criminals. Sure there are lots of problems in Tibet, but they’re not the ones in charge of policy. Most are just regular hardworking people, looking for a paycheck and a way to put food on the table, just like everybody else in the rest of the world. I did observe with my own eyes some PLA truck drivers once helping an ethnic Tibetan family push a car that had broken down on the side of the highway up a hill in Tibet. And as far as I can tell, there was no enslavement or oppression or torture going on. Just some ordinary Chinese people helping some other ordinary Chinese people in an unfortunate situation. So yes, it is a serious observation- and I guess now you can at least say there was at least ONE case in history of Chinese soldiers acting rationally.</p>
<p>The irony. First you downplay the disgusting violence on behalf of the Tibetans because it pales alongside the actions of the Chinese government. Then you go on to say it is reprehensible to point out hypocrisy and wrongdoings of a Western nation.</p>
<p>Double standard, much?</p>
<p>If slavery is too long ago, what about Jim Crow laws? If still not recent enough, Kent State? Or even better, how about Abu Ghraib? Maybe a little bit of torture thrown in too for good measure.</p>
<p>You can’t have your cake and eat it too.</p>
<p>And look, peaceful protest is absolutely fine-- a good thing. But have you been following the Torch relay? It’s absolutely disgusting what some/many people are doing to get their points across.</p>
<p>First, the violence on the part of Tibetans is very much unfortunate, and I do not condone it, but it is truly not in any way proportionate to the long-standing historical violence that has been visited upon them by the Chinese regime. It’s that simple. I think they should be protesting non-violently, but when even that kind of protest is marked by bloodshed (Tiananmen Square anybody?), I’m not surprised at the way they’re acting out. At all. And frankly, I don’t mind it.</p>
<p>It’s not reprehensible to point out the hypocrisy of a nation when it exists. But you should remember that this is not about America, this is about China. China is repressing and killing its ethnic minorities; China have the horrific human rights record to answer for. Not America. End of discussion.</p>
<p>Well apparently there were chinese THUGS in France and England protecting the torch</p>
<p>and anyone else creeped out by the waving of all those Communist flags being waved?</p>
<p>and as for the Tibetans “violent” protest, we are getting the news from, gosh, Chinese media, who are just known for being fair and balanced and honest in their reporting</p>
<p>What the Tibetians endured during the 60s/70s got nothing to do with discrimination. <em>Every</em>one was screwed by this madman named Mao, whether they were Tibetian or Han Chinese. My family was lucky to be in Hong Kong but I got relatives that weren’t so lucky. I bet none of you knows this by just reading stuff from the Western media.</p>
<p>Too bad that in China they can’t even get close to what we can do here…how sad is that, yet we are supposed to celebrate that the olympics are there</p>
<p>“change” really? If we were getting more REAL news from Tibet and China, but you see we can’t as China doesn’t allow that sort of thing</p>