China – Saddle up, Boys, We’re Going In!

Apr 17 2008

China – Saddle up, Boys, We’re Going In!

Published by Steve N. Lee at 12:22 pm under consumerism, human rights

Untitled Document

Email to a Friend

Print This Post

London, Paris, San Francisco… Last week saw demonstrations around the globe against China. Why?

In Tibet, Chinese police might have killed as many as 80 people in clashes with protestors. But then, China isn’t hot on human rights.

Whether it’s children slaving in sweatshops or free-thinkers being imprisoned, China rarely shows leniency or charity towards its people.

Travelling to Dengfeng to visit China’s famous Shaolin Monastery, I chatted with a Chinese guy on a train. He whispered that he dared listen to BBC radio’s World Service to learn of world events beyond the Chinese government’s censorship, however, he refused to comment further for fear someone might report him.

But it isn’t only the Chinese who fear China.

China has been a nuclear power since 1964. And, post-Cold War, everyone acknowledges China is the biggest rival to America’s supremacy.

But what can be done about this threat, about these human rights abuses?

Isn’t it obvious?

We invade! Free the Chinese people from tyranny and the world from the threat of weapons of mass destruction?

Ooops!

I forgot…

China has 1.3 billion people.

Being outnumbered by four to one could prove tricky. Even for the mighty U.S..

Further, like every nation, industry and consumer, the U.S. military probably takes advantage of those sweatshop prices. That could prove awkward -

Mr. Chen? General Montgomery here. I wanna order 1.3 billion bullets. … Uh-huh, 1.3. … Yeah, I know that’s a lot. … Who are we going to war with? Hey, funny story. You’ll laugh at the irony…”

And the price of everything from cereals to CDs would skyrocket.

Could you convince people to go to war against 1.3 billion Chinese? A war for freedom over tyranny? Hell, yeah!

Could you convince people to go to war if it meant that the price of everything they ever wanted to buy could triple overnight? Ah…

So maybe we could aim lower. Practice. Till we get into the swing of things.

Is there a less imposing country that exploits a smaller population?

Anyone murder the innocent?
Anyone have a history of human rights abuses?
Anyone we can claim has a nuclear arsenal?

Well, last year Burma shot around 200 people, many peace-loving Buddhist monks, and imprisoned 1000s more.

Where was global outrage then? Didn’t those people deserve protection?

The U.S. could easily have taken on non-entity Burma, right?

But it didn’t. Could it be…?

No. That’s just being cynical.

Isn’t it?

Could it be that the only reason we did NOTHING was that Burma hasn’t any oil?

But then neither has China.

Or at least neither has enough to make a bloody invasion worthwhile.

So why would any sane government invade China to free its people if there’s no reward in it?

Because it’s the right thing to do?

Shouldn’t every person on the planet be allowed to pursue his dreams?
Shouldn’t every person be safe, healthy, fed?
Shouldn’t every person be free?

And shouldn’t we fight to our dying breath for that?

So why don’t we?

Ah… because just as governments won’t act without there being something in it for them neither will most individuals.

Of course, you could argue that suicide bombers, Kamikazes, missionaries who got eaten by cannibals were all great ‘humanitarians’ trying to improve the world with no thought for personal reward.

Were they? Or were they just trying to please their god so gaining a reward in an afterlife?

You see, when it comes to the BIG issues, so very, very, VERY few of us do the right things for the right reasons. We always ask one little question first - “What’s in it for me?”

And there’s the problem.

What happens when doing something will not only NOT reward you, but will actually impact NEGATIVELY on your life?

What happens? Nothing happens!

Fairtrade products aid a worthy cause, but most people don’t buy them. Why? Simple - they’ll never afford that 40 inch plasma TV if they pay double for their groceries.

So what would happen if we actually did do something which resulted in Orientals getting equal rights and so every single thing rocketing in price?

The West relies so heavily on the East’s cheap labour to produce cheap goods that if shoppers suddenly had to pay ‘full’ price, there’d be riots in the streets.

Don’t believe me? So you haven’t seen the news from Haiti?

Kena Betancur/EPA

So we can sign online petitions from our comfy air-conditioned apartments.
We can protest in the street, banner in one hand, Cappuccino in the other.
We can preach values and ethics, rights and morality till we go hoarse.

But ultimately, what are we truly prepared to sacrifice to enrich the lives of total strangers around the other side of the globe?

Invade China? End its human rights abuses? Create freedom, health and wealth for all?

That would mean Britney’s latest CD might cost double - the end of Western civilization as we know it! Oh, to hell with that!

So go. See. Feel. Live.
Steve

If you like my blog - the style, the passion, the philosophy - you’ll absolutely love ‘What if…?’, my suspense thriller. What’s it about?

When a mysterious stranger fights to end world poverty, his seeming ability to heal with just a touch catapults him to fame but thrusts him into a deadly struggle with corporate America and the White House that like the world just the way it is: under their control - poverty, disease, wars and all.

But can the stranger heal? Or is he the biggest villain of all, perpetrating the most elaborate scam of all time?

Is it any good?

‘An engaging and exciting thriller with a difference. It would hold its own with many of the books in the bestseller lists - and then some.’
Scott Pack, Book Reviewer, Me and My Big Mouth

‘”What if…?” is virtually flawless - Lee’s vision is precise, poetic, and skillfully crafted. It’s great writing with a great story, very well told.’
Nicholas Grabowsky, Bestselling Novelist

Please click here for more reviews and info.
Or check out Amazon.com, Amazon.co.uk or Barnes & Noble

Related posts:

What do you think? Have your say - leave a comment!

Email to a Friend

Print This Post

24 Responses to “China – Saddle up, Boys, We’re Going In!”

# Jillyanne Michelle Capeon 17 Apr 2008 at 1:12 pm

I have been boycotting products made in China for years. I do spend more money on everything as a result but I feel that social responsibility is important and what way can you make a bigger impact than where your money goes, if and when you do have a choice?
# MARY ZOGLIOon 17 Apr 2008 at 1:22 pm

Wow this is getting to be much,we have people all over the world doing this to there humans when is going to stop?we are spread thin in USA and now a other place that needs help,while it is time for us to kick some buttt,give these people peace to live in there country with out harm……
# Liz Don 17 Apr 2008 at 2:18 pm

And thats exactly why most government leaders keep quiet. Ultimately its a no win situation either side.

Leaders want to keep a hold on their seats, which they couldn’t if prices went up and there was a public outcry……and unfortunately the majority of the public, while sympathizing for the Chinese people, Tibetans or screaming about animal abuse, aren’t willing to make sacrifices…..

Its a sad world we live in.
# Michaelon 17 Apr 2008 at 3:28 pm

And we thought Iraq was a big commitment

If the dood ever hits the fan like that with China they’ll start recruiting every man woman and child.

We will see the draft come back in that case.
# Kathleenon 17 Apr 2008 at 4:12 pm

I certainly do not believe we should militarily rush in and take over the whole country of China! Geez, it’d take the whole rest of the world to join forces with the US for us to be a success with that plan. But I do believe in the power of boycotting, and I do believe that a LOT of the US citizens are aware of what kind of products they buy. I know I look, and check for things “made in America,” with every major purchase. I only wish the rest of the world would ALSO join in this boycott-China campaign and take it seriously. We ARE a conscientious nation, but I don’t think the examples we try to set are followed by the rest of the world. It will take a worldwide boycott of China and their products to truly make a dent in hurting them….and I just don’t see that happening now that everyone’s partaking of their “riches”.

I am, though, totally against using any sort of weapons when we haven’t even begun to negotiate in any way that matters!

“Let us never negotiate out of fear. But let us never fear to negotiate.” - John F. Kennedy
# pamelaon 17 Apr 2008 at 5:00 pm

Please these people are humans not robots
# Cebeliceon 17 Apr 2008 at 10:50 pm

Dear Steve, at last some article with major and real facts of life. I had a lot of conflicts regarding Tibet lately, pointing the same thing as you did here.
What are we really ready to do for human rights!??
Great question!!
And as every great question it already contents half of answer!!
( Mostly nothing , if figure out it will cost to much!!lol..)
# Christine P.on 17 Apr 2008 at 11:23 pm

Steve, you are so absolutely right about what you’re saying here. The very least we can all do is to boycott China! I’m afraid that too many people still prefer to turn-a-blind-eye to human rights abuses.
# Avril Kon 18 Apr 2008 at 12:16 am

Well said Steve, thats the first bit of sense i have heard in a long time.
# Hanson 18 Apr 2008 at 12:52 am

Steve!

What if all countries in the world would mind their own business?

Europe has plenty of own problems so has the USA Canada Japan Australia Africa and so has CHINA!

Dont you think the people in all countries should solve their own problems?
you cannot kill 1,3 Billion people so how many lives would a revolution
cost? 100.000 1.000.000?

Chindia will be the new world leader! so what!

All the world is helping CHINDIA to be the new world leader!

The new eco products all the world can afford will come from?
USA
EUROPE
CHINA
JAPAN

TATA has bought Land Rover and Jaguar and that is just the start they will also buy Ford or GM when the price is right !

The Olympic Games are a great opportunity for China to show
how great it is The human rights have improved and will still improve in China!

Lets celebrate CHINA!

Boycotting CHINA is impossible! I dont believe that you will find products
that have no chinese parts…even if they are made in EUROPE!

So good luck to all the Chinese people who will work hard to give the world what it wants!
# John Bessaon 18 Apr 2008 at 5:53 am

During the Vietnam war, US bombers were ordered away from bombing the “surface to air” missile sites that were taking down the US bombers.

If you aside for a second your feelings of the bombing tactics of the US during that war, you have notice that this is a strange strategy during a war.

As it turns out, it was Kissinger who convinced Nixon to do this strange practice — which directly put McCaine in the Hanoi prison called the “Hanoi Hilton.”

This is such an odd maneuver that I feel forced to look at this as this as a possible key to the problem. There is a force in the US, of which Kissinger is a member, that is working internally to empower China — to destroy the US.

Ok, what is the motive. Well, by looking at all the last names of all of China’s, and globalism’s, supporters in the US you have to notice a similarity — such as Goldman Sacs.

That may provide a clue, or perhaps a red-herring. Another idea may be that this force is looking to create the “New World Order” around China, as Europeans and Americans are far to sympathetic and generous to allow that to happen in the West.

If that is the case, we better lock and load in a hurry!!
# Steve N. Leeon 18 Apr 2008 at 7:25 am

Unless I’ve been astral projecting into the White House War Room while I’ve been asleep and heard something that an average Joe isn’t meant to hear, I doubt the only reason President Bush has chosen NOT to invade China is because Britney Spears’s next album might go up in price.

Dry British wit can be a little tricky if it’s something you’ve never experienced, but I did think that ending a post about war against China with a comment on Britney might just hint that the war wasn’t the serious issue here. In fact, buying a Britney CD is far more pertinent to the issue than a war which any nation would be suicidally crazy to initiate.

The subject matter here is not what each of the words and sentences of this post says, but what they mean as a complete whole. Some people are getting that, some are getting hung up on tiny elements - like the ‘invading China’ part.

I note no one has got hung up on the rioting in Haiti because of soaring food prices; children working in sweatshops (which is mentioned and linked to); the people shot dead for their beliefs; the real life censorship that goes on in China…

Thanks to all of you who get this article and have said so (and those others who’ve sent me messages). I’m pleased you are seeing the picture I’m painting. I’m sure as people get to know my writing style your numbers will swell and we’ll have some very active and interesting debates on this blog.

For those of you still unsure - this post is not about war, but about what we as individuals would have to give up so that every single person on the planet could have the same freedom and standard of living that so many of us in the West enjoy. Sacrifice doesn’t have to be about your life, but a third TV for your house, a second car, buying more food than you can eat, wasting energy…

Thanks for contributing everyone. Have a great weekend,
Steve
# Simon Ashworth Woodon 18 Apr 2008 at 11:01 am

I agree that this is an important issue. But what right do you have to invade other countries? If you take the line that a country’s human rights abuses justify other countries invading that country, then by that criteria, other countries are more justified in invading the U.S.A. than China, because the U.S.A. commits greater human rights abuses than China does. China is more justified in invading the U.S.A, than the other way around!!!

The U.S. government (that you U.S. citizens elect and support with your taxes) does much worse than the Chinese government does. E.g. the U.S. military has killed hundreds of thousands of Iraqi people in the last few years (mostly civilians, but also some Iraqi freedom fighters who are defending their homeland against U.S. forces that are greedy for oil). And e.g. the U.S. gives $3 billion military aid each year to the brutal and racist Israeli regime, $600 billion per year to the brutal terrorist regime in Colombia, and plenty of military aid to other oppressive regimes, such as the undemocratic, fundamentalist Saudi Arabian regime.

The U.S.A. has always been a brutal, hypocritical, racist, imperialist machine. It was founded on genocide, and on the land stolen from that massacred people. Its economy was built on the genocidal slavery and forced ocean transport of millions of African people.

That past has not even been addressed. The Indigenous people inside the U.S.A. still don’t have their land - the invaders still occupy and control it. The Indigenous people inside the U.S.A. continue to live in Third World living conditions.

A majority of Black people in the U.S.A. continue to suffer deplorable effects of continuing racism - being poorer, dying younger, and so on. Where are the 40 acres and a mule for Black people that were promised when slavery was abolished? They haven’t even been given that.

And on top of that, the U.S. continues its centuries-old imperialist policies of direct imperialist war, imperialist proxy war, and plunder of the Third World - most famously, the Middle East and Latin America. That U.S. imperialist war directly kills hundreds of thousands of people each year, and the proxy wars kill many more people (not to mention the many people maimed, raped, tortured, terrorised, and so on). And the U.S. imperialist plunder takes hundreds of billions of dollars each year from the people of the Third World, thus causing the deaths of millions more people from poverty (including millions of children).

The U.S.A. does all this and more. The U.S.A. clearly does much more harm, causing much more suffering than China does. So, by the same logic that you use about China, let’s take even more action to stop the U.S.A.!!!
# Simon Ashworth Woodon 18 Apr 2008 at 11:10 am

Oops, I meant to write that the U.S.A. gives $600 MILLION military aid to Colombia’s corrupt, brutal and oppressive regime - not “$600 billion”. Sorry about that. Now, to our U.S. friends: your turn to apologise - for that murderous military aid. And preferably STOP GIVING that military aid.
# Izaon 18 Apr 2008 at 1:50 pm

I am sorry people do not understand your point of view! Your post is not about the war for God sake! Is about our attitude to life and others who suffer! I am really p… off with some comments! I am sorry some do not understand you!This is so comfortable for us -from the West to buy Eastern products- sometimes I think - everything I have, comes from there. I cannot afford spending money so I buy the cheeper version. But… I have no idea most of the time that people are USED to MAKE this for me! There is no info around! So I buy!
I promise, I will try to do more research and to buy more fair trade products in future!
# Brennan Kingslandon 19 Apr 2008 at 7:41 am

Steve,

Thank you for a thought-provoking article! I understand that you were not intimating that we should invade China.

Americans seem to want to focus on the human rights, health, etc. etc. etc. issues in other countries, rather than looking at what we need to straighten-out here at home. We’re really a naive bunch, when you think about it.

Human rights violations in China, Tibet, Darfur are unpleasant to think about, so let’s claim to be offended and then continue on our merry way, gathering-up quarters from the sofa pillows to buy gasoline to go to the store to buy the cheapest products we can find. Survival first!

I think most Americans are unaware of the real risks this country faces. At a time when we should be solidarizing and strengthening internally, we are being torn apart by bipartisan politics and finger-pointing from within.

Our dependence on foreign oil will keep us from confronting evils. Our dependence on foreign money will shackle us to those very countries we claim are such abusers. The average American has NO concept of the amount of Chinese money invested in the USA. They could easily pull the rug out from underneath us, with one hand tied behind their back.

This sword they have hanging over our head is possibly one reason that Bush will be the first U.S. president to attend the Olympics when it is being held anyplace other than the USA. (in spite of the fact that Nancy Pelosi and Hillary Clinton are asking him to boycott the opening ceremonies, to protest the China-Tibet ‘thingy’).

Most Americans have no concept of how powerful China is. We will never invade China. Let’s hope they don’t decide to invade us.
# Terrie Won 19 Apr 2008 at 11:12 am

Very thoughtful and well presented Steve (yes, I ‘get’ Brit wit LOL).

I have tried diligently for a decade not to purchase anything made in China. If I can’t find something I need or want, and the only thing that is available is made in china–I go without. Notice to people boycotting made in China–now manufacturers are getting sneaky and NOT putting place of origin on the packaging! You have to really hunt for it.

However, even if ALL of the US were to actively boycott products it more than likely would have minimal effect on China’s production. The US ISN’T the only country buying from them!!!

I am not saying buy or don’t buy–that is a personal preference, bu if you do buy or boycott, do it for the right reasons! Or at least be honest with yourself as to why you are buying.

I do not buy Chinese products because I do not like what they do to their own people and to Tibet. I end up buying products that are more expensive but I feel better about it. It is just my own feelings and my own purchasing power–but as an individual I feel I did SOMETHING to protest their ethics or lack thereof. Will it make a difference–not really. But I feel better.

And for those who feel the US is no better than China on its human rights record–you are correct. So, who are we to tell other nations how to treat their own people? Nobody. Until we take care of our own problems HERE we have no business trying to FORCE our beliefs on other nations. All we can do or should do, is try to correct our own mistakes, starting one person at a time if need be. There are only 300 million US Citizens–there are 1.3 billion Chinese citizens. We do not have a leg to stand on.

War–ANY war ANY where–is out of the question or should be. War is not the answer to anything. War for oil is the worst of all. Unfortunately, until we rid ourselves of the capacity within our species to war it will not change.

Yes, Steve I caught your parting shot about the food riots in Haiti. And did the US do anything about it–NO. Where are the relief ships and planes loaded with tons of food to alleviate the problem? Not happening. Why? That is what I do not understand–the ‘why’ of why we are not doing this to help the people. Oh wait, silly me, Haiti doesn’t have anything the US wants right?! No oil, no natural gas, no coal, no diamonds or precious metals, not even uranium for weapons. There’s the why! Sickening isn’t it….
# ericon 20 Apr 2008 at 11:53 am

Yes it is all about the power of the almighty dollar. well make that the yuan. The continuing drive to screw the worlds working class has lead to the outermost reaches of China.

Boycott Walmart and any Olympic advertisers and maybe there will be a chance to have a small amount of change.
# Karen Won 20 Apr 2008 at 8:26 pm

Excellent points, Steve, with a wee bit of “tongue in cheek” humour thrown in! No, I don’t think the price of Britney Spears’ CD’s will present a financial burden for me! LOL!
I’ll continue to boycott Chinese made products but I’m NOT into invading another country(God knows, enough is ENOUGH already!)…especiially one as powerful as China!
# Steve N. Leeon 21 Apr 2008 at 8:48 am

Hi guys,

Thanks for all the comments. Good to know that people are trying to make a difference the only way we ‘non-entities’ can - with our purchasing power!

But that is getting harder. Terrie, you’re right - some companies simply lie about the manufacturing location, some neglect to mention it, and others get around it by adding some last minute touches to a finished article in another locale and claiming that as place of origin.

Brennan, it’s probably best we don’t talk about just how much of the U.S. the Chinese probably own - we want people to sleep soundly in their beds!

Iza - yes, many people buy stuff purely because the information isn’t easily available on how it was made. Oh, activists will complain anyone can discover that info if they want to on the internet - and they probably could. But it would take the average person quite some time as they don’t know where to look, what sites to trust, what terms to search under… And governments and corporations don’t want you finding all that out anyway, so they’ll try to whitewash//greenwash whatever’s out there anyway. (As Liz commented above. And Eric.)

Hans, it’s not about China being the new world leader - we have little control over that. It’s about basic human rights for all. I wasn’t joking about the guy on the train being frightened to say anything derogatory about the Chinese government - he really was scared! Would you like to live in constant fear of accidently saying the wrong thing to the wrong person and ending up in a cell for it?

Cebelice, Christine, Avril, Karen and Jillyanne, I’m pleased you find it an interesting post and that you latched onto my train of thought. I’ll be returning to the problem at the root of this issue - apathy - on another occasion.

Thanks,
Steve
(A new world order is a scary issue I might look at another day, John.)
# New Orleans Nativeon 21 Apr 2008 at 9:47 pm

Simon Ashworth Wood, I appreciate your passion on this issue, but your facts simply are not correct.

The Native American population was not massacred. Nearly all of the Native American deaths following colonization were the result of diseases brought over by the colonists of which the natives’ immune systems could not fight off. Yes, some Native Americans were slaughtered, but so were many colonists. One of my first short stories was on this very topic. But, statistically, it is in the severe minority.

I live in New Orleans, which is one of the few areas that is predominantly African American (somewhere around 60% of the total population was a statistic I remember hearing recently). Race relations in New Orleans are truly the inverse of what you described. I, nor anyone I have ever known, has ever done a favor for someone based on their skin color. I have never in my life witnessed a Caucasian person say, “Hey, you’re white; I’m going to help you out.” I have on a daily basis witnessed the inverse happening. My brother’s car was broken into at college in New Orleans. He went to the security office bc/there was a camera covering the area where he was parked. An African American woman said they did have a tape recording. She gets the tape and views it on a screen within earshot of my brother. She actually says out loud, “Oh, that’s a black boy.” Then, she tells my brother that they don’t have the video. Never in my wildest dreams would I consider withholding evidence for a criminal, especially when it’s based on the fact that he/she might resemble me. But, it does happen.

O.J. Simpson was let off with murder. Obvious, brutal, leave-your-blood-and-DNA-at-the-scene murder. Not to mention the blood in his getaway vehicle and his home. While on the talk show circuit, several jurors admitted that they believed he was guilty yet they voted to acquit. I was in college when the verdict was declared, and it was a celebration among the African American students. People were celebrating an African American man getting away with murder as if it were a breakthrough in civil rights. Martin Luther King, who is a hero of mine, would have been sick to his stomach to witness this event.

I am a white male, and I get pulled over ALL THE TIME. I drive a red sports car that happens to be popular with thugs and drug dealers. I often match descriptions, or at least the car matches descriptions. The police run my plate, my license, my registration, and my insurance every time. And, every time I leave with no problems. Why? Because, I pay for insurance and registration. I let the police search my vehicle if they want. I don’t have anything to hide. Anyone who has trouble with this in New Orleans has the trouble because they do have items in the car that are illegal, they do not have insurance, and they do not have registration. Often, they do not even have a license. People are not pulled over for racism; I get pulled over far more than any of my African American friends. And, I’m quite happy that they do so. Police catch many wanted people from the same exact type of traffic stops.

Take for example, Rodney King. Most assume his arrest/beating was just cops being racist and violent. The media never played the first part of the video where King fought with the police and refused to do anything that they told him to do. Sound unbelievable: take a look at King’s arrest record:

July 27, 1987: According to a complaint filed by his wife, King beat her while she was sleeping, then dragged her outside the house and beat her again. King was charged with battery and pleaded “no contest.” He was placed on probation and ordered to obtain counseling. He never got the counseling.

November 3, 1989: King, brandishing a tire iron, ordered a convenience store clerk to empty the cash register. The clerk grabbed the tire iron, causing King to fall backwards and knock over a pie rack. King swung the rack at the clerk and fled the store with $200. King was arrested and charged with assault with a deadly weapon, second-degree robbery, and intent to commit great bodily injury. In a plea agreement, King pleaded guilty to the robbery charge and the other charges were dropped. He was sentenced to two years in prison, but was paroled on December 27, 1990.
The Arrest of Rodney King on March 3, 1991
March 3, 1991: After being seen speeding on the 210 freeway by CHP officers, King led them on a chase at speeds estimated at up to 110 to 115 mph. When finally stopped, King refused requests to get into the prone position and appeared to charge one of the officers. He was beaten and arrested. King was charged with felony evading. Charges were later dropped.
King’s 3/3/91 Arrest Record
King’s Trouble with the Law After March 3, 1991
May 11, 1991: King was pulled over for having an excessively tinted windshield. Although King was driving without a license and his car registration had expired, King was not charged.

May 28, 1991: King picked up a transvestite prostitute in Hollywood who happened to be under surveillance by LAPD officers. King and the prostitute were observed in an alley engaging in sexual activity. When the prostitute spotted the officers, King sped away, nearly hitting one of them. King later explained that he thought the vice officers were robbers trying to kill him. No charges were filed.

June 26, 1992: King’s second wife reported to police that King had hit her and she feared for her life. King was handcuffed and taken to a police station, but his wife then decided against pressing charges.

July 16, 1992: King was arrested at 1:40 A.M. for driving while intoxicated. No charges were filed.

August 21, 1993: King crashed into a wall near a downtown Los Angeles nightclub. He had a blood alcohol level of 0.19. King was charged with violating his parole and sent for sixty day to an alcohol treatment center. He was also convicted on the DUI charge and ordered to perform twenty days of community service.

May 21, 1995: King was arrested for DUI while on a trip to Pennsylvania. King failed field sobriety tests, but refused to submit to a blood test. He was tried and acquitted.

July 14, 1995: King got into an argument with his wife while he was driving, pulled off the freeway and ordered her out of the car. When she started to get out, King sped off, leaving her on the highway with a bruised arm. King was charged with assault with a deadly weapon (his car), reckless driving, spousal abuse, and hit-and-run. King was tried on all four charges, but found guilty only of hit-and-run driving.

March 3, 1999: King allegedly injured the sixteen-year-old girl that he had fathered out of wedlock when he was seventeen, as well as the girl’s mother. King was arrested for injuring the woman, the girl, and for vandalizing property. King claimed that the incident was simply “a family misunderstanding.”

September 29, 2001: King was arrested for indecent exposure and use of the hallucinogenic drug PCP.

I do believe the police used unnecessary force, and I’m happy there was an investigation. But, I’ve seen a cocaine addict fight a bouncer at a concert. The bouncer pummeled the coke addict over and over again, but he kept popping back up due to the drug. The bouncer did not want to hurt the drug addict, but he had no choice as the man kept coming at him no matter how many times he knocked him down. Police often face this same issue all the time.

I have been in jobs where a completely inept employee would not be fired by the boss. When asked about it in private, the boss admitted it was a race issue. Fire an African American employee, even a grossly inept one, and, especially in New Orleans, expect a lawsuit. Had I have behaved in a similar fashion, I would’ve been fired immediately.

I have African American friends. Honestly. My whole point on this issue is not to believe a trite, cliche story about African Americans having a hard time in the US. Experience it for yourself; don’t let the media brainwash you with their agenda.

All people are created equally. Don’t make excuses for some based on their skin tone. Everyone deserves an equal chance. Don’t point to poverty either. Scholarships and grants are readily available to every African American student who puts forth any effort. The same cannot be said for other ethnicities.

After Hurricane Katrina, there were thousands and thousands of jobs in the construction/demolition business that were paying extremely high salaries. Do you know who took most of the jobs? Illegal immigrants from Mexico. Why did the local, supposedly oppressed, population not take the jobs themselves? It is hard work, and they’re quite used to money for nothing. That’s what happens when you make excuses for people. In the process of making excuses for them, you’re implying they are not as capable as the rest of the population. And, that is racism (it’s obviously also a terrible lie). One more time: a handout is racism.
# Angelaon 22 Apr 2008 at 5:22 pm

Well said, as the governments of our so called free west wont do anything, if everyone at least tried to stop buying things made in China [and yes this could prove difficult] perhaps it would force the Chinese governments to look at the abuse that has been going on for years, But then again, in the end who is it that suffers, yes the poor people in the sweatshops, who work to death for bare sustenance. without that bare sustenance, what then?
The only way to stop the abuse of Tibet and the people is for the world governments to get involved, but as there is no gain for them to do so, They wont.
It is a sad world we live in,.
# Arletteon 26 Apr 2008 at 9:54 am

We can judge and express in many ways that we do not approve what is happening in other countries. Might it be China, Tibet, Burma, Somalia, Darfur, South Africa, Cuba, Colombia or any other country on this planet. The only country we can really change is our own country, where we are living in. To judge what other countries and people are doing is easy, to change the own country is a big effort and needs courageous people. Everywhere in this World.
Thank you Steve for this interesting post
# Uncle Bon 17 Mar 2009 at 6:03 pm

China may hesitate in loaning Obama the money he needs desperately, to keep us from starving in the food-lines next year! The Chinese have already commented negatively about our ability to “Pay Back” such loans - apparently we have nothing they can’t build better and cheaper for themselves! We now go to them for advanced medical treatments, SEE:
Chinese Stem Cells for Americans
American medicine epoched by Chinese intelligentsia again! (CBS) Shaun Boyd of CBS4 Denver reports on a blind Colorado girl who went to China for experimental stem cell treatments which have radically improved her vision — she’s now taking driving lessons. http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2009/03/10/national/main4856566.shtml
By this time next year, we will be driving cars made in China, SEE:
Chinese Volt
“The astounding Chinese have epoched the great GM, of U.S.A. in producing an Electric/gas/plug-in car! They are driving them in the streets of China as we speak, they will be retailed in the U.S.A. by 2011, they will cost half the price of a “Volt” and they are “On Order” for Israel! GM, take a deep breath, your naughty parts have just been cut off by a Chinese high-tech competitor, and the “Volt” is still “Vapor-ware”!” See:http://www.cleantech.com/news/3983/chinas-byd-sells-first-mass-produced-plug-cars
Finally, a very sad but true situation, The Chinese have more post grad students with IQ’s of 130+ than the U.S.A. has high school students, drop-outs included! Soon they will run the world with scientific discoveries we GED,ed Americans can’t even understand!
Another amazing but true fact of Chinese life, More people in China speak English, than all the people of U.S.A.!
China has, at the moment, nuclear capabilities equal to, or better than the U.S.A.
Americans are so “lost in the movies” and have been propagandized as superior, entitled beings, so they can be easily enslaved into the credit, wage, payment shyster schemes of vulture capitalism as to not realize the truth, and deny it when it is presented in simple form to them.

Only the small secrets need to be protected. The big ones are protected by public incredulity.
– Marshall McLuhan