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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Sancho" data-source="post: 1601030" data-attributes="member: 27039">Good point. And I´m not arguing that there is no environmental destruction in China, or that its human rights record is spotless. No-one´s is. We´ve all contributed to screwing up the planet, and we´ve all got dirt and blood on our hands one way or another. I have lived in China (in the past) for a number of years, and certainly I didn´t like the air in the cities. I lived in New York too and wasn´t crazy about the air there either. And for most of my life the air in Dublin was foul. Poverty? Human Rights abuses? Doesn´t matter where you live. Just look around you , folks, or scratch the surface and you´ll find the same. You sure the slums and jails in your country aren´t predominantly populated by one ethnic group? You sure there aren´t some native peoples in your country who claim land was robbed from them? You sure democracy in your country isn´t denied to some, or heavily compromised by Supercapitalism? You sure Superbusiness Inc. in your country isn´t screwing up the air, or the water, or the land? So why criticise China ´cos they produce cheap binoculars? You sure the guarantee of our oil supplies isn´t leading to massive human rights abuses in many countries? There is absolutely no proof whatsoever that Chinese-produced binoculars have caused any destruction, or infringement of basic labour rights. But there is plenty of evidence that the copper we buy from Bolivia, or the Coffee from just about anywhere, or the Diamonds from Africa, and much else we take for granted, are produced in inhumane conditions. The only way to try to improve the lot of the planet, the Chinese people and by extension the peoples of the world, is to co-operate with them, as they are eager to do, rather than preaching at them. They are not a newly-arrived "developing" society, they were an advanced civilisation when most of us were still barbarians. Have a look this coming October 1st. Through your Zen-Rays or your Leicas or your Vortexes, whatever.</blockquote>

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