Lol I know the feeling. My mind was blown time and again when I studied it in school AND heard even more preposterous stories that didn’t even make it into the history books(UK ones) from speaking to people who lived through that era.
But let’s not confuse it with present times. It’s WAY different now.
I hypothetically feel more free there than I do back home.
But you can see why they managed to mobilize logistics and manpower so swiftly and efficiently during the initial COVID outbreak since lots of their leaders lived through that era.
EDIT:
*Read up on Deng Xiaoping and his vision for China. This is something people who only want to focus on Mao to equate everything to do with any form of present day government acts with him always conveniently skip over.
But laws have been around guns for a long time and we have more guns than ever in the U.S. I remember when Obama was going to take away all the guns.
The media has always controlled whatever the narrative is. You have more possible outlets for news and opinion than at any other time in history. When I was a kid our options for delivered state papers were the Topeka Capitol Journal and Kansas City Star. The media has less control than it has ever had.
The weirdest thing is far right people will talk about the power of the mainstream media and yet they don’t consume any of it. They listen to right wing radio, watch right wing news, read right wing websites. If the “mainstream” media is so powerful why is it so easy to avoid?
This is nothing new. They wanted to ban hair metal and rap. A lot less shit is being censored and controlled than when I was a kid. But FWIW I find all of it pretty stupid.
Your use of narratives makes me think of paranoia.
Come on people have been saying this for forever. You can find posts on this very forum from 20 years ago claiming it and books claiming it years before that.
America is far more free in many ways than it was during WWII. Propaganda for the war was in comic books and cartoons. Women and minorities had far less rights. Income taxation rates were higher. Marijuana and marriage laws are both trending towards a more free stance.
It is, without a doubt. How long has it been since parents have tried to guilt-trip their kids into eating their vegetables by informing them that the Starving Children in China would love to eat those vegetables? That’s a serious question, by the way. It was a common refrain in the early-mid 1980’s where I was raised.
I was just a small child so I’m not sure why, but the millions who starved in China might be at the root of the phrase. Who knows, though? I wasn’t very politically savvy at the time. I was mostly into dinosaurs.
We don’t talk of starving children in China anymore, do we?
I will. The only Deng I knew before this thread was Luol Deng, who had a solid NBA career that I believe was slightly under-rated. Defense always gets under-rated.
I really think it was starving kids in Africa for me (born in 83 BTW). I didn’t eat my vegetables though I hid them in my napkin. I still don’t eat many vegetables…
It wasn’t an either/or, but every child of the 80’s knew about starving Africans as well, not to mention the amount of good you can do for the price of a cup of coffee paid to whatever organization aired that ad.
I’m just guessing here, but I may have been being persuaded with the Starving Chinese Children option due to my Polish heritage and the deep anti-communist, pro-American attitudes that were present in my family. If they had asked me about it at the time, I would have steered the conversation to the impressive size of Brachiosaurus, set to the backdrop of Michael Jackson’s Thriller.
Publically speak out against the government in China, you’ll know the difference then.
If you’re of the Uyghur ethnic persuasion you’ll know the difference right off the bat as the Chinese government has been committing ethnic cleansing against this particular group. There is documented evidence of forced sterilization, organ harvesting, rounding people up and forcibly putting them into detention camps etc.
In Hong Kong books related to democracy have been removed from libraries etc. The truth is, for the average citizen you can lead a semi normal life so long as you don’t cross certain boundaries (like talking shit about the government) in which case you are a liability… And an expendable one at that
Are you telling me you’d have a problem with being blindfolded and forced into cramped train carts like cattle? I can’t imagine why anyone would have an issue with this. It certainly doesn’t remind me of historical events relating to one of the most widely recognised and barbaric genocides in modern history.
To add, the UK is still set up under the guise of a constitutional monarchy
excessive censorship laws. If a very graphic/disturbing film comes to light, the BBFC will outright ban the film; labelling it objectionable. The same issue is present in Aus, though we aren’t quite as stringent for film classifications (we are with video games though our classification criteria is being altered to stop this from happening). In the USA films can be refused classification, though they’ll still make it to market unrated or “NR”. In the UK it’s now illigal to distribute these films (typically horror films). If I as an adult want to watch something admittedly trashy, exploitative and disgusting like the uncut version of the second human centipede I should be able to provided I’m not doing so in public
excessive sugar tax
the govt is trying to ensure any food deemed unhealthy will be sold in plain packaging like cigarettes. A ban on minors purchasing energy drinks is also in the works
smoking is terrible for you and I don’t support smoking tobacco, though it looks as if the British government is to ban cigarettes by 2030. I do support the right for adults to make decisions pertaining to their own health.
Well that sucks for you but maybe I want to die from Terminal Coolness.
Just kidding… Well… Kinda sorta. Hear me out. Cigarettes are actually fantastic and if you’d just start smoking them you’d understand why.
I’m more-or-less 10+ years tobacco-free with a few minor lapses. I understand why they are bad now, but I’ll never forget how sweet a good cigarette can be after a man’s done a man’s work for the day. I got to ride that train for 15 awesome years before fears of lung cancer prompted me to hop off.
Any red-blooded American is ready for a nice Camel Light or Camel Wide after that long of a lapse. I know I am. It just sucks that I can’t because of those horrible ways to die.
Meh, nothing’s going to happen as long as you’re not considered a major threat like a well known personality.
I can go around town doing this with a loud speaker and people will just think I’m nuts while the police won’t even be bothered to arrest me unless someone makes an official report because they’d have to do extra paperwork.
EDIT:
You know what? I think it’s more likely the police will end up stepping in to protect me since some people will get offended enough to attack me.
That’s absolutely not true. You’re confusing this with books with overlapping anti-CCP content.
It’s really true. I quit 10 years ago. People would always ask why smoke, because it’s fucking delicious. Coffee and cigarette on the morning drive. Beer and a smoke, euphoric. But we all have our choices to make. Still enjoy chew while hunting/fishing though.
Hahaha I’ve never said I haven’t smoked tobacco. I never took it up for long enough to become addicted (probably smoked regularly for 2-3 months and I don’t have a particularly addictive personality); but it was one of the most regrettable decisions I’ve ever made. Even now there are times I’ll be drinking a beer (I don’t usually drink, but as an example) and the thought "you know what’d be fantastic right now? A cigarette’’ pops in. Same goes for whenever I feel stressed, anxious, worn out from a tough day etc.
I understand why people like them despite the health ramifications. They’re feel fantastic, soothing, relaxing. It’s a form of recreational drug use. My demographic in Aus tends to vape nicotine as a packet of cigarettes costs around 50$ and vaping is illigal here thus creating an allure. It appears tobacco cooperations have swindled another generation as many can’t perceive the difference between the two. “I don’t want to get addicted” they say… Then don’t habitually use products containing nicotine…
I understand why people like them. The prospect of lung cancer wasn’t what made me put them down. It was heart disease/the risk of stroke, peripheral vascular disease and macular degeneration.
Joshua Wong is a whiny kid who’s full of shit. They removed HIS books.
If they really did that - removed all books about democracy - there would be no more law students.
*I’m not justifying the act of removing books of any kind.
EDIT:
The laws pertaining to removing books with “seditious content” were already in place during the British era.
Read the wording of the article carefully. It states “pro-democracy books” as in “democracy for HK” which obviously have anti-CCP content, not books about democracy.
What’s the greatest number of cigarettes you’ve smoked at once? To be clear, I’m talking about lit cigs in your mouth with all of the smoke from them being inhaled at the same time. I’ve done four at the same time, but this was back in the day when none of us carried cameras in our pockets.
And if you aren’t sure what I meant by that, I am talking about the telephones we carry that have a photographic lens attached.
I mean… To each his own… And not to nitpick one’s choice for abandoning objectively cool and satisfying behavior for any means whatsoever… But aren’t these all equally undesirable medical conditions?
100%, though the likelihood of getting heart disease throughout your lifetime is already high. The chances of dying from a heart attack/stroke mediated through long term tobacco use supersedes lung cancer (wherein lifetime risk with heavy smoking is around 10-15%). The mechanisms by which cigarettes cause arterial damage are multi-factorial and disturbing to read about (as is just about all clinical literature on darts).
Ciggies long term induce various ailments of which may not objectively kill you but are difficult to live with like emphysema, COPD, chronic bronchitis etc
I’m presently reaching out to see if any of my ex-girlfriends can swing by to bum me a smoke or two. Everything will be fine as long as I don’t buy an entire pack.
