Stern's Totalitarian Regime of the day: China bans reincarnation without permission

[CptStern]

In one of history's more absurd acts of totalitarianism, China has banned Buddhist monks in Tibet from reincarnating without government permission. According to a statement issued by the State Administration for Religious Affairs, the law, which goes into effect next month and strictly stipulates the procedures by which one is to reincarnate, is "an important move to institutionalize management of reincarnation."

as silly as this is there's a real motive behind the law:

But beyond the irony lies China's true motive: to cut off the influence of the Dalai Lama, Tibet's exiled spiritual and political leader, and to quell the region's Buddhist religious establishment more than 50 years after China invaded the small Himalayan country. By barring any Buddhist monk living outside China from seeking reincarnation, the law effectively gives Chinese authorities the power to choose the next Dalai Lama, whose soul, by tradition, is reborn as a new human to continue the work of relieving suffering.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/20227400/site/newsweek/

 

[Godron]

Screw China. No doubt this is also part of their general plan to wipe Tibetan culture off the Earth. They blew up the monasteries, slaughtered the people, moved in their own people to dilute both the culture and the gene pool, they even re-named the country so it's technically part of China now. Every new law like this they brings in serves to crush any spirit and independance the Tibetans have left. It's cultural genocide, plain and simple...
I'm sure you already knew that. It's just one of the few things I happen to know about politics, because I'm doing R.E. for GCSE.

 

[kirovman]

I was just joking about the same kind of thing last week, where only the Communist government are allowed to choose who reincarnates as the Dalai Lama.

I'm glad to see they are extending their reincarnation privileges further.

They blew up the monasteries, slaughtered the people etc

No worse than what the British have done in the same area of the world.

 

[CptStern]

ban the 2008 olympics ..2 canadians (+ 2 americans, 2 brits) have been arrested for protesting over tibet the day before the Beijing ceremonies started

http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNe.../china_protest_070807/20070807?hub=TopStories

 

[15357]

Lolololololololol hehe...


I am torn between laughing to death, and hating the evil, vile, and disgusting [communist] goverment of [Communist] China.

 

[Godron]

No worse than what the British have done in the same area of the world.

You mean the British Empire, right? Like that British Raj thing in India? I never knew they used cultural genocide, but yeah... I suppose they did basically conquer whole countries and move their own people in, all in the name of more money and power.

EDIT: And those self-righteous missionary bastards, turning random people into Good Christians. Do they count?

 

[kirovman]

It's funny, the British Raj used to say that their rule was "for the natives' own good", arguing that they brought advanced infrastructure, and abolishing feudalism in favour of a more advanced government.

The Chinese argue the same thing in Tibet now.

However, I wouldn't say that rule under the original Tibetan government would be much better. People were still relatively oppressed due to the feudal society.
Perhaps it was true in British India too.

 

[evil^milk]

Stern, where the heck have you been? D:

 

[losttheskyagain]

That's disheartening. I don't really know what else to say.

 

[CptStern]

Stern, where the heck have you been? D:

I've been busy ...creating a fool proof plan, a final solution if you will, one that will eradicate hl2.net's members in a orgasmic bloodbath of epic proportions ......whoops I've said too much ..nevermind

 

[Ennui]

Free Tibet? I want one.

 

[DeusExMachina]

I'm too busy saving Darfur to free Tibet.

 

[Godron]

As I understand it, no-one dares stand up to China because of their huge commercial weight. India took in some refugees from Tibet, and China instantly servered a load of buisness contracts with them. About half of... everything seems to come from China. The UK hardly manufactures anything itself anymore, so our economy would be hit pretty hard if China stopped doing buissness with us.
All that, plus the fact that any real action against them would probably spark World War Three.

It's funny, the British Raj used to say that their rule was "for the natives' own good", arguing that they brought advanced infrastructure, and abolishing feudalism in favour of a more advanced government.

The Chinese argue the same thing in Tibet now.

However, I wouldn't say that rule under the original Tibetan government would be much better. People were still relatively oppressed due to the feudal society.
Perhaps it was true in British India too.

Yes... I think governments just generally suck everywhere. I don't know how India was run before the British Raj either, but I do that wars tend to change things a lot of things, mainly by shaking up old traditions. I think women's rights kicked off after WWII for example. Or possibly WWI. I know the caste system has been abolished since the Raj, and that probably wouldn't have happened if India had just been left on its own to function like it had for so many years. So maybe the Raj played an indirect role there.

 

[-Psy-]

Free Tibet? I want one.

That tingles my tastebuds for some reason.

 

[Beerdude26]

Yes... I think governments just generally suck everywhere. I don't know how India was run before the British Raj either, but I do that wars tend to change things a lot of things, mainly by shaking up old traditions. I think women's rights kicked off after WWII for example. Or possibly WWI. I know the caste system has been abolished since the Raj, and that probably wouldn't have happened if India had just been left on its own to function like it had for so many years. So maybe the Raj played an indirect role there.

Yeah, the caste system really sucked. But that was abolished by Gandhi (well, he was a fierce opponent of it)

And yes, women's rights really kicked off after WWII because they helped produce ammunition, weaponry, smokes, pretty much everything for the soldiers. This reminds me of a hilarious quote (don't remember where it's from) :

Feminism is the radical notion that women are people.

Ah found it: ~Cheris Kramarae and Paula Treichler