Torching Tibet and the Olympics

The uprising in Tibet against China’s occupation provides an important test for China and the world. As the power of China grows, it will become clear what kind of China the world will have to deal with in the future. There are worrying signs: China’s support for awful regimes (North Korea, Sudan, Myanmar, etc); growing Chinese nationalism (especially visible in reaction to large protests that greeted Beijing’s Olympic torch in Europe); the communist regime’s continuing restrictions of human rights and basic freedoms do not bode well for the future. Olympics have always been ideal tools of national propaganda but the rise of a resentful and undemocratic China will pose serious risks to world peace especially as the conflict over Taiwan may degenerate into a dangerous war. History is filled with examples of humans’ potential for mischief, there is hope however that the rise of a prosperous China ever more integrated with the global economy will provide an incentive toward ever more cooperation. In the end free markets remain humanity’s best hope for peace and prosperity long after the theatrics of Olympic brotherhood and its torches will be extinguished in Beijing.