A Friendly Nation?

If you missed it, a little while ago I wrote in one of my S&G's the following:

"Also - to everyone who takes our way of life for granted and
assumes that it could never change, check out what's happened to Hong Kong in the last ten years."

Most people here take their freedom as a God-given right that will last forever.

Ten years ago, the British turned Hong Kong over to China, who promised that it would remain a free port and a center of capitalism. That lasted about two years, when the Chinese government and army moved in and decided to use Hong Kong as a political weapon.

Over the last three weeks or so, at least three U.S. ships, including two who were caught in a storm and were low on fuel, were denied access to the port facilities. The USS Kitty Hawk aircraft carrier was supposed to meet up with family members who has spent large sums to get passports, visas, transport and accommodation.

This was to be a Thanksgiving celebration, but at the last minute the Chinese denied the ship entry, leaving many families pretty much stranded depressed and outraged.

Prior to 1997, Hong Kong was a British colony enjoying all the freedoms that went with that. Those freedoms and rights are gone because the people quietly accepted their new status.

Freedom is never free, and what most people consider "rights" are actually privileges that can be taken away at a moment's notice if you aren't willing to fight to keep them.