Friday, January 30, 2009

The Freedom to Write

Here's why China is still behind us in ideas and why our freedoms matter.

From a post titled, The Freedom to Write:

We take it for granted. In China, not so much. Liu Xaobo was arrested last December for signing a petition calling for peaceful reform of the Communist dictatorship. PEN is organizing online to seek Xaobo's freedom. You can read the text here. More info, including a sample letter to the Chinese government, here.

9 comments:

Jonathan said...

This is so horrible. Why does China think they can get away with that? They won't be able to survive as a nation if they continue to suppress people and ideas this way.

steve said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
steve said...

My fellow class mates.
I implore you to understand that freedom of expression is not the norm, it is an aberration. Next time you see one of those, “It’s okay, I wasn’t using my civil liberties anyway” bumper stickers, take a moment to reflect on just how free we really are. Not compared to some unattainable ideal, but to the reality of a deeply imperfect world.
-Matthew

Anonymous said...

Imagine if the "Naked Lunch" was published in China. William S. Burroughs would have never survived.....Unfortunately as happy as I am for our freedom especially compared to China I don't believe we are fighting enough for our own. Violation of civil liberties and the shredding of the Constitution start with the president and come down from there. When is President Obama going to address the unconstitutionality of the Patriot Act. So as a citizen of the United States I can have my Habeus Corpus put back into the constitution where it belongs. The news agencies are also responsible for this. How is it I can lose my rights to the constitution and it's immediately forgotten as soon as Britney Spears shaves her head?

"In questions of power let no more be heard of confidence in man, but bind him down from mischief by the chains of the constitution."
- Thomas Jefferson

steve said...

John,
Please tell me what civil liberties you have lost, and in what way habeas corpus was removed from the constitution? I am not trying to be confrontational here, but you cannot make a broad statement like that without further explanation. Those are bumper sticker buzz words not an argument, please give examples.
-Matthew

Unknown said...

China is horrible to treat its people with no respect and not having the freedom to write and possibly being killed for writing. All i can say is that I'm glad to be in America.

Elise2013 said...

China has survived for hundreds of years suppressing innovation and individuality. Fortunately China's behavior has allowed them to survive, but held them back enough for the US to get ahead.

I agree with Mathew. However I think, that with the flattening of the world creating the fact that some very unhappy Chinese can now truly know how good we Americans have it, things could change.

Juan Carlos Farias102 said...

i like that this person is in jail but now I'm worried if one person gets ideas then I'm sure there will be a lot more and I can even beat money on it.

scott said...

jonathan they have been doing this for a thousand years and as a country there achievments are amazing. you would be suprised what billions of people can do if they only are alloud to do what there told. 1 billion people with 1 mind equals unstopable force