| | The following is my post in response to another post that was forwarded to me regarding the Tibetan situation regarding China: (The original post follows my response.)
The mistake that most Westerners make about the posture of the Chinese government towards Tibet is to assume that we are playing in the field called reality. The Chinese power structure, however, is a classic positive feedback loop. (Negative feedback is what your thermostat does - it turns the heater or air conditioner on or off to keep the temperature stable. If you reversed the wires so that in response to a hot room, it turned up the heat, that would be "positive feedback.")
When Mao "revolutionized" agriculture, the villages were provided with fertilizer and a communist bureaucrat whose existence depended upon reporting things that pleased the guy next higher in the bureaucracy. Knowing nothing about the use of chemical fertilizer, but shown films of corn growing ten feet high (in American fields), the bureaucrats in each village competed with their peers to guarantee ever higher quotas for the harvest, often thousands of bushells per acre. This made their bosses happy, because then they could exaggerate further in reporting to their bosses and so on and so on and so on.
The typical party man had the farmers dig a hole and poured all the fertilizer into the hole, followed by the seeds. The raw fertilizer of course killed the seeds. When the harvest time came around, however, the government still demanded the quota that the village party boss had specified. Consequence: at minimum ten million, and perhaps as many as fifty million Chinese peasants died as a direct result of that "Great Leap Forward." This experience was replicated by almost equally disastrous "Great Leap Forwards" having to do with steel production in the villages and later the Red Guards and the virtual destruction of the entire educated class in China.
And, you can see it again in the downing of the American spy plane, when a Chinese fighter jet piloted by one of their top pilots collided with it, killing the Chinese pilot. I know, without even seeing any evidence, exactly how that happened. Each time the spy plane returned - which it did, regularly - the fighters were scrambled and each fighter jet videotaped their encouter with the running dog red-haired demons (i.e., Americans). Each time, the political officer at the base reviewed the tapes. If a fighter got closer to the spy plane than the previous time, that pilot was praised. If not, then they could expect a bad day. There is only one way that such a progression could end, and so it did.
Now consider Falun Gong and Tibet. In each case, a peaceful movement simply wants to pursue their own beliefs. In both cases, the participants are perfectly happy to let the Chinese communist party continue to run things. The Dalai Lama is happy that the Chinese have modernized his country in terms of technology, communications and medical care, and has stated that he does not want independence. Falun Gong has no organization and no leaders. People join for their own spiritual reasons and practice spontaneously.
However, the very fact that the requests are rational and reasonable and pose no threat is itself a threat, as it makes the Chinese authorities look threatening, irrational and unreasonable. In China, power is everything. "If you lack power, you will lose everything. If you have power, you can get anything."
And power is based upon appearance. Reality counts for nil. It is the ability to force people to act "as if" something blatently false is the pure truth that is the measure of power. If your power only extends to making people do what is reasonable and right, what kind of power is THAT?
So, naturally, the more reasonable the Tibetans and the Falun Gong practitioners are, the more they draw down the wrath of the Party bosses. And that anger feeds on itself, as the lower levels - local police, etc. - demonstrate to their bosses how on top of the situation they are by arresting and killing or torturing innocent people, which makes the authorities look bad, and makes them that much more angry.
(I have worked for a Chinese company for 17 years, and I see this mentality on a daily basis...)
Here's the original post to which I was responding:
From: civilianunrest@aim.com
MONDAY MARCH 31ST IS A GLOBAL DAY OF ACTION FOR TIBET.
Here’s the short version…
Three weeks ago, Tibetan monks from the Drepung Monastery staged a peaceful protest, demanding their own freedom. Their action spread to the Sera Monastery and then into the streets of the capitol city, Lhasa, igniting an (earlier than expected) nationwide uprising.
Despite widespread incarceration, torture, and an ongoing media blackout, Tibetans continue to move into the streets.
140 people have died during the protests THUS FAR… most of which have been Tibetans demanding religious freedom… and victims of security forces.
On Monday, March 31st… the Olympic torch will arrive in Beijing with much fanfare… in spite of its murder of over 1.2 MILLION Tibetan innocents during its occupation of Tibet.
Because of this… Human Rights Activists around the world will take part in a Day of Action for Tibet.
The beginning of what may be a long and harsh last bid for Tibetan Freedom.
If you would like to -- GET INVOLVED -- in the Global Day of Action for TIBET HERE ARE SOME OF YOUR OPTIONS: IF YOU CHOOSE TO !!!ORGANIZE YOURSELVES!! ! ON THIS DAY… And if you need a place to be, or an organizer… Call Kalaya’an Mendoza 917.595.0140 THIS GOES FOR ALL REGIONS. Normally Kala is reserved for his own district, but that’s not what’s going on today… If you need somewhere to be… call him. And don’t be surprised if he sounds burnt… he is. -- Just roll with it.
Now that that’s out of the way… I can give you my joyous narrative on what’s been going on so far…
1- China’s ambassador, Zhou Wenzhong, told an environmental conference this week that his government moved against protesters to defend law and order and not to suppress religious freedom.
This is ABSOLUTELY true:
I.E. "They haven’t had an ounce of religious freedom in years! So how can we be accused of suppressing it? Dumbasses."
2- "Chinese President Hu Jintao told Bush that the protests in Tibet were by no means peaceful demonstrations or activities of ’nonviolence’."
I’m sorry… I thought we were talking about the people you BOMBED while they were in CHURCH! --- Yeah… obviously they have an itchy trigger finger! --- Something is clearly wrong with them… they should definitely be less violent.
3- Chinese President Hu Jintao said China is willing to continue engaging in "contact and discussions" with the Dalai Lama, but he must "stop inciting and planning violent and criminal activities and sabotaging the Beijing Olympics."
Ok --- I move that we immediately forgive President Hu for this comment, because apparently… he has been living, in a cave… underground… on another planet… behind a triple locked door…. with a sign that says, "do not open until Christmas" …with his eyes shut… and his fingers in his ears… going, "laaa laaa laaa laaa laaa laaa laaa".
So, Mr. Hu… I’m going to ask you a question, and I’m going to use very small words… Ok? Ready?
Do… you… have… any… idea… how… dumb… that… is?
The Dalai Lama… is the military equivalent… of John Denver.
Sunshine… on his shoulders… makes him happy. Capiche?
4- Bush decided to support the Tibetan people by announcing that, he would attend the Olympic Games in Beijing, crackdown on Tibetan protesters aside.
"Bush considers the games to be about athletics and not necessarily politics."
Sorry guys… if you’re playing street hockey… and there’s a girl getting raped in the yard across the street… the game gets put on hold. That’s the way it goes.
5- Thursday - A group of monks stormed a controlled Chinese media tour of Lhasa – capturing the attention of the ONLY foreign media allowed into Tibet since the uprising began on March 10th. At great risk to their personal safety, these thirty monks burst into the press room shouting, "Tibet is not free" – "Do not to believe China’s lies."
"We are deeply concerned about the safety and well-being of the monks and appeal to the international community to ensure their protection."
- Chhime Chhoekyapa, secretary to the Dalai Lama
6- "China has blamed the ’Dalai clique’ for the unrest and called him a separatist."
Dude… when you point a KILLO-TON-BALISTIC- FUCK-WARHEAD at me, and I RUN away from you… that does not make me a "separatist" . That makes you nuts. End of story.
7- Go Steven…it-chir-birthday…
Steven Speilberg was hired over a year ago to act as the ARTISTIC DIRECTOR of the 2008 Olympics, by the Chinese government. He could have turned the job down then… but he didn’t. Why? (No… not because he’s an idiot.) He waited until all eyes were on the Olympics… and then condemned the job publicly. Ninja points. Good call.
(And then < http://www.guardian .co.uk/news/ video/2008/ mar/04/bjork>Bjork sang TIBET! TIBET! in the middle of her Beijing set.) Rock On.
The AVAAS group has orchestrated a STAND WITH TIBET PETITION that has over 1.2 million signatures thus far and will be DELIVERED on March 31st.
For up-to-date information on the situation inside Tibet, please continue to monitor SFT’s website and blogs.
No animals were harmed during the making of this revolution.
-Synthian
For more information please see:
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