Wednesday, September 19, 2012

Beijing: Protesters Mob US Ambassador's Car

Has everybody in the world been eating crazy flakes for breakfast lately?  Or perhaps these fine upstanding folks didn't want to get left out of embassy-storming and ambassador-assaulting, the hottest international fad in foreign policy commentary and cultural dialogue right now!  Don't miss out!
The car of the U.S. ambassador to China was surrounded Tuesday by a small group of demonstrators who damaged the vehicle and briefly prevented it from entering the U.S. Embassy compound in Beijing. 
A YouTube video of the incident showed the protesters chanting slogans such as "down with the U.S. imperialists" and, in an apparent reference to the Chinese government's purchase of U.S. government debt, "return the money!" 
...The U.S. Embassy is located near the Japanese Embassy, which in recent days has been targeted by thousands of Chinese protesters voicing complaints over Tokyo's move to purchase islands in the East China Sea that are also claimed by China.  
In an apparent reference to that dispute and the United States' security treaty with Japan, some of the demonstrators Tuesday chanted: "The U.S. government is the mastermind." 
Well, as for that final quote, I see fevered nutball conspiracy theorists are cavorting out in Beijing too.  It's not a proper ambassadorial assault unless you bring the nutball conspiracy theories about how everything ever that annoyed you is the result of the actions of an evil mustache-twirling mastermind.  You are also free to say mean things about our mommies and burn flags, but you do that last bit at your own risk.

1 comment:

CaliforniaDreamer said...

I say we bring all our boys and girls home, including the civilians -- close all the embassies everywhere! When you travel, you're on your own! Additionally, let's pull all our monetary aid, and then we'll see what happens!

I saw the most heart-breaking story today at the gym: a marine in Afganistan told his dad that an Afgan trooper was probably going to kill him. And he did. After chanting, "we don't want you here!" Let those asshats deal with their own mess, I say.