Please drop this. It is distracting from the thread.
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I know you’ve seen post #30 and #34. No more on this hijack.
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No. I thought it was racist/derogatory and coincidentally I had the chance to ask someone who is from China. He agreed. Looking for an authoritative cite online I see all sorts of talk on all sides. Maybe I’m off base here.
Since Tiananmen was mentioned, here’s an interesting point:
That’s a reddit post, and it’s complete horseshit. The students were out there mainly because of Hu Yaobang’s death. He was a member (leader of the communist party IIRC) of the CCP working for reform of the CCP using the system, and with his death there had already been rollbacks of some of those reforms. So the students came out to honor and mourn the man and to call on the CCP to continue with the reforms that had already been put in place and were slated to go in. They weren’t there for democracy, per se, nor to get rid of the CCP…they wanted change and reform within the system.
I could go into more detail, but with your usual drive by post I don’t think it’s worth the time. Feel free to post something other than a drive by link to another message board if you want to discuss this more. What I will say about Tiananmen showed the CCP that they could do something horrific, get a lot of flack from the west, but that within a short period we would cave in and be back trying to get into their good graces.
Thread on this subject here.
Thanks! 
A very long list on Reddit, compiled, of Western companies or individuals that have been coerced by China because of some message China didn’t like.
I’m guessing you’re not much of a sportsball fan. Adam Silver and the NBA are the only US major sports league that is (generally) good at PR - though this incident is obviously a major gaffe.
Man, the Chinese, in a surprise decision, have…sit down everyone and prepare for a shock…they have BANNED SOUTH PARK!!
I can’t believe it! It’s shocking! They banned South Park! :eek:!!!
What is the world coming too? I think an apology…deepest, most heartfelt and abject apology…from the creators of South Park stating in no uncertain terms that they are sorry for offending the Chinese people is in order. Hopefully they are working on a new episode doing just that as we speak.
Also, in other news, Poo and Piglet have died. This has nothing to do with the CCP, and any rumors that Piglet was part of the strategic pork reserve and that some of Poo’s organs have found their way into several prominent billionaires bodies have no…let me repeat, zero…basis in fact. It was an unfortunate smelting accident…
- But as you surely realize, it’s not that simple. The US media/entertainment complex lionizes twentysomething athletes for expressing political opinions on other things. Some of those things are arguably (may or may not be) closer to their own personal experiences (police and the justice system), but some really aren’t (climate, environmental). It’s not as simple IOW as every person with a high profile having a duty (or even unlimited right vis a vis their employer objecting to it being done on ‘company time’) to opine on things that are ‘internal’ but it being fine to duck other issues because those are external and those are the govt’s job. Where I am to begin with rationalizing your argument to accept the obvious fact that not every issue is ‘what the govt is for’ therefore individuals don’t need to express themselves about anything in the political realm.
Not entirely rejecting your point, just saying it’s a lot muddier in reality. It also depends on degree. IOW the degree of difference between the level of big deal of players in the NFL about racism vs. standing for the national anthem, though OK that’s ‘our’ issue. But then NBA players impose complete silence on themselves about Chinese Communist repression (which notice they have: at first a few apologized to or at least James Harden, now it’s pretty much 100% radio silence which I expect to be permanent, I doubt you’ll ever see NBA team expressions of solidarity with HK protester like displays of their solidarity with NFL players on the anthem thing). I see that degree of disparity as undercutting their credibility, not saying they as individuals have to care equally about the two issues, just a huge difference in their reactions based on their own economic interests. I also realize your statement might imply we shouldn’t take athletes seriously as social spokespeople at all, but with other issues a lot of people do.
- But the second part of your point there is the ostensible reason for the first. We ‘willingly participate’ partly on the idea that’s for the benefit of freedom in China in the long run (though also to get more for our consumer $, and the trade also economically benefits people in China, whether it makes them freer or not). But the freedom part of argument has become weaker as China has greatly advanced economically but the Communist regime has become in important ways (not every way, granted) more oppressive.
And now China’s economic clout is seriously affecting discussion outside China. As this episode shows again especially considering what you don’t hear, people in the US (and other ‘free world’) academic, entertainment and media worlds calling out China in comparison to their activism on various other things and countries. For example in reality, as opposed to in Hollywood movies, ‘powerful corporate interests’ are not very effective in stifling criticism of corporate excess. The Chinese Communists OTOH are becoming pretty effective stifling criticism of them outside China (including by Hollywood), as a byproduct of China’s greater economic heft.
If anyone is interested, here is China Uncensored’s (YouTube video) quasi-humorous take on the NBA/China incident. Warning though…he does use the term ‘kowtow’.
A Yahoo! article on how China’s people are taking it: Nationalism over NBA fandom: Fans support 'motherland' China
Yeah. If you thought ugly American nationalism was fun just hold on to your hat.
Here’s a New York Times article that specifically mentions the term “political correctness,” although it’s more in the context of how Chinese people speak about things than how Westerners handle China: China’s Political Correctness: One Country, No Arguments
A “superstar” German DJ has been “permanently banned” from China for liking a South Park tweet.
If money is the god that sports teams worship then they will eventually have to weigh the value of local dollars.
I disagree. I think the Chinese government fears basic freedoms.
Seems to me that the NBA was making sufficient money before they started marketing in China. Sure, they can pay the players more by letting China dictate what they do or don’t say, but is that money worth sacrificing their freedom of speech? I think not. I’d like the NBA to tell China to stop trying to dictate what US citizens say in their own country and if they don’t like it, then find another professional basketball league to carry in the Chinese market.