Question, basso. Did you ever start a thread to commemorate , say, Kent State? How about Mai Lay? Abu Ghraib? Will you start one for Haditha? My point is this: expect those 'atrocities' to be brought up in response to your thread, which will undoubtedly be seen as a cheap attempt at 'China bashing'. Good luck!
not really an attempt at "china bashing" although, the chinese government deserves it for tianamen- you don't agree?
The PRC government really had few choices at the time. The loss of lives is always unfortunate. As someone who participated/witnessed this "democratic movement" (quote added in purpose), upon reflection, I think the outcome could have been much worse.
few choices? how about government by consent? there's a choice. i'm not trying to be a smartass. and i recognize my feelings on this are strongly colored by the culture i grew up in. but this was very clearly, in my mind, the bad guys winning. squashing free speech.
I don't know if you know what I was talking about, max. At the height of the events leading to Tiananmen Square incident, the PRC government would either let the situation escalate and worsen, risking the whole nation being thrown into complete political and possibly economical turmoil, or swiftly put things back "in order." It chose the latter, with some regrettable casualties. In hindsight, it was a right move.
Last I heard, the PRC government has just paid monetary compensation to the family of the first ever victim of Tiananmen tragedy, and it's considering a second case. Such things are not a big deal in this country, nothing out of ordinary that the U.S. government pays victims if it screwed up badly. But it's unprecedented in China. Bash PRC all you want, it is taking concrete steps toward political reform, albeit slowly.
