posted by Kyle on Aug 9
The regime in China is cruel and is underwritten by an explicit philosophy of collectivism. When China was announced as the host of the 2008 Olympics, I had my own radio show in Spokane, Washington, and I was enraged. I saw it as an embrace of their flawed ideology. I was, at the time, sixteen years old, and didn’t appreciate the nuances of political action in this world. For me, there was only right and wrong, good and evil. That is more or less still true, but I understand the world a bit more. It was probably the case some involved in the selection process were attracted by the collectivist ideology. Some probably also saw the opportunity to shine light on their atrocities. The former are most likely regretting their decision today. China’s cruel and collectivist regime has been exposed for what it is in a way that wouldn’t have been possible without the Olympics. Prior to the Olympics, oppression in China wasn’t very newsworthy (i.e. couldn’t sell papers) , so news organizations didn’t spend much time discussing it. The oppression became newsworthy because of the Olympics and now a lot more people understand it. For the cause of human liberty, this has been positive. Only time will tell how positive.
Tom Palmer of the cato institute (and also a fellow alumnus of St. John’s College) has a very interesting perspective on this subject. He proposes that when we examine liberty in China that we do so while being mindful of China’s history, so that we can more fully appreciate the context of their policies. He claims (correctly) that China has become more free and will most likely continue to do so, while the United States has become less free. This is both true and sad.
It is worth reading: http://www.tomgpalmer.com/archives/042611.php
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