with the religious intolerence happening between china and tibet

[kite]

have you been knowing where your money is being spent? should we keep supporting china? do you think any choices that we do make would ultimately affect what happens abroad or do you think it's all bs?
deep down inside i hope that my monitary actions do decide the fate and direction of unruly nations, but i look around and see my own and think that my thought process is quite foolish. what are your thoughts?

 

[chevre]

Well, China has had problems with human rights for a while. The problem is, if you livei n the USA it's just about impossible to not buy Chinese goods. I mean, what isn't made there? You'd have to try really hard. Heck, even greeting cards are often printed there.

 

[ayanna]

*climbs up on her soapbox*

I think that Americans who are worried about religious intolerance in China should look to their own backyards FIRST.

America, a country where a woman and her young child can be beaten simply for being Muslim.
America, a country where a SIKH (not a Muslim...a SIKH) can be beaten for "looking like a terrorist".
America, a country where an 80 year old man sitting on a park bench can be beaten almost to death by a gang of young able-bodied men, who would be better spending their time going to school or getting jobs, "because he looked like a terrorist".

And that is just the tip of the iceberg!

Clean up America first 'n then ask what should be done about China!

*climbs back down off her soapbox*

 

[chevre]

Are you trying to tell us Canada has no hate crimes? Not that I'd know, but it sounds unlikely.

 

[Dawes]

Hate crimes exist everywhere, unfortunately. They can't just be pegged to one country alone. Crimes that are racially, sexually, or genderly motivated are some of the oldest in existence, whether or not they are merited (usually never) or not. America, as a whole, is rather civilized (gasp!) when it comes to racial and religious tolerance compared to other countries elsewhere that still practice comparably "barbaric" ideals. Look at the Middle East, where women are still heavily punished -- sometimes by being killed -- for not being a virgin upon marriage. They still punish women for being raped, which is quite possibly the most ridiculous concept I can believe it. It's not up to me to decide the standards of other countries and what is truly wrong or right, but in retrospect, it goes to show that America suffers the same "minor" intolerances as other countries.

What you describe, Ayanna, are not just mistakes made by America, but are mistakes made by idiotic people the world over.

 

[kite]

with the downfall of america's economy i think we're already doing ourself in and with poverty and a depression looming it's only a matter of time before people start pointing fingers and hate crimes rise exponentially.
but i was wondering your people's take on the murdering of hundreds of budhist monks in tibet and in china.

 

[Dawes]

Murder of any sort is awful and unacceptable, regardless of whether or not it's for a cultural or religious purpose. Lives are not created just to end at the whim of enlightened "reason". What's happening in Tibet and China is not unlike, to me, what's happening between Palestine and Israel, and I find it all equally foolish.

Hopefully, differences of this sort can only be supported by so much blood, and those who perpetuate the killing will grow tired of their own violence.

 

[ayanna]

Are you trying to tell us Canada has no hate crimes? Not that I'd know, but it sounds unlikely.

Not at all. I was merely pointing out that America (the government, not individuals) is always the first to point fingers when they (the government) believe another country is committing some offense (true or not), and they should remember "When you point your finger at someone else there are always three fingers pointing back at you!"

I wasn't 'pointing the finger' at America, but rather indicating the hypocrisy of a nation with its own issues 'pointing the finger' at others.

 

[chevre]

Ah I see, a sort of meta pointing . Nah, okay I see what you are saying.

 

[IncompleteDude]

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20080321.wtibetprotest21/BNStory/International/home?cid=al_gam_mostview

I found this to be an interesting article about the situation in Tibet. I find particularly interesting the comments of Zhang Qingli, the Communist Party's regional leader for Tibet and the party "bull-dog", when he says, "Those who do not love their country are not qualified to be human beings." And there's more:
"The Communist Party is like the parent to the Tibetan people, and it is always considerate about what the children need."
"The Central Party Committee is the real Buddha for Tibetans."

It's a patronizing, arrogant and inhumane perspective imho, and this is the guy in charge of Tibet. I wouldn't be surprised if he comes up with a Final Solution to this Tibetan Problem.

 

[Aidy]

Ok, China is the worst country in the world. Before I even go into the religion I will list the human rights breaches that I know of off the top of my head.

Freedom of speech is severely restricted. The internet is screened to prevent people looking at information the government doesn't like. You cannot upload a video without it being screened by the government. (Kind of an impossible task screening the net)

China executes more of it's own citizens then every other developed country in the world combined. They then charge the cost of the bullets to the family of the person executed. (I heard of a man who was executed for stealing a $14 camera)

Those are the two that spring to mind. Spielberg has boycotted directing the Olympic games ceremony over the human rights problems.

That party shouldn't even be called communist. Kind of like saying Pakistan is a democracy.

Put it this way. I don't have a single issue of Amnesty International's magazines that don't have a China article in them. (I have about 10)