Freedom Ain’t Free
Day in and day out we watch this country lurching from one outrage to another, usually more than one or two a day. Mass shootings are common now, illegal deportations are too. If we had more time, I’d chronicle them, but you know what we’re talking about here. The list is long and the country is getting a firsthand look at how we can easily slide into despotism with only a whimper.
But there are countries that fight back. Hong Kong has been waging a furious battle against their Chinese overlords who initially promised, once the British turned over control, to honor their independence while still holding sovereignty. They were under no illusions so that when the edict came down that citizens could be deported to the Mainland for trials and prosecution, they understood implicitly what this meant, a thumb on their liberties. Unlike us freedom-loving Americans, they fought back. Maybe you remember Tiananmen Square. Tanks rolling over protesters, an insurrection ruthlessly put to a complete stop. You better believe Hong Kong remembered. But it didn’t faze them. They took the streets, the airport, the business district. They wore gas masks, hurled Molotov cocktails, took vicious beatings and came back for more.
Why? Because they knew this was the first step the Chinese would take to make them servile to the State. The rest would be pre-ordained. Even the United States, once that cheerleader for democracy, once the protector of civil rights, once that City on the Hill, stood mute. Wouldn’t want to spoil the chances for a trade war resolution by irritating the Chinese with our intervention. Their business, after all. Let Hong Kong fall behind the Iron Curtain, not our concern.
Today the Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam rescinded the extradition order. There would be no Tiananmen Square. But that was what it would have taken to stop the rioting and the Chinese apparently had no taste for a bloodbath in front of the entire world. Times change but tyranny still rears its ugly head.
We take our freedom for granted. We wave our little flags and go nearly crazy if someone suggests abrogating our 2nd amendment rights. We wear red baseball caps that say Make Us Great Again and we demonize anyone who dares kneel at our precious Star Spangled Banner as a protest against racial discrimination. We tell ourselves the press is the Enemy of the People, same as Hitler did, and Stalin, and Mao. Same as every despot who ever jackbooted down the highway. We can see the elections being rigged, minorities disenfranchised, income inequitably distributed. But we’d rather watch Wheel of Fortune and Fox News. We’re no Hong Kong. We’re more King Kong, hanging for one last breath off the Empire State Building, killed by our own people.
Hurrah for Hong Kong. You were courageous beyond belief. The world should take notice.
Hits: 200
Tags: Hong Kong vs. King Kong, Rage Against the Machine!