President Bush Should Boycott Olympics
Dave Gibson
March 11, 2008
President Bush is planning to attend the Olympics this summer in China. In doing so, he delivers a slap in the face to every American whose factory job was relocated to China; every American whose pet was poisoned by tainted Chinese wheat gluten; every American whose child has played with lead-laden Chinese toys; and every American who is sickened and angered by China's use of slave labor...In short, Bush will show his disregard for all of us as he sports his sophomoric smirk in Beijing this August.
Whether it is tainted pet food, faulty automobile tires, contaminated produce, antifreeze-infused toothpaste, or lead-filled children's toys--China is always ready to supply Americans with sub-standard and dangerous goods. Last year, thousands of our pets suffered horrible deaths due to the intentional use of the toxic substance known as melamine in wheat gluten sold to pet food manufacturers by China. Between 2005 to 2007, hundreds of thousands of tubes of toothpaste containing diethylene glycol were imported into this country from China, the chemical known commonly as DEG causes liver and kidney failure with continued exposure. We all remember the recent and ongoing recalls of Chinese-made toys due to dangerous levels of lead. Many children have been made ill by these toxic imports.
Through the use of slave labor, China has nearly eliminated our manufacturing base. While losing our factory jobs to China has proven to be disastrous for our economy, there is another frightening aspect to slavery in that country. The Chinese Army maintains factories which operate on the forced labor of political prisoners. The Army benefits directly from the sale of the items made in these dungeons, which they then use to purchase weapons, undoubtedly to be used on us one day. The toy car you buy your child today will help finance the missiles used on all of us tomorrow.
In addition to posing a direct threat to the health of Americans, China is unquestionably the world's greatest offender of human rights. The majority of people held in Chinese prisons are in fact being held for their political beliefs, usually for speaking out against the government.
The Associated Press recently reported on the imprisonment of a Chinese factory worker who dared to say publicly that human rights are more important than the Olympics. The worker has been charged with subversion and could be put to death for the offense.
It is widely known that Chinese political prisoners are regularly tortured and even executed, with their organs being sold on the black market.
Rep. Frank Wolf (R-VA) has raised objections to Bush attending the Olympics, hosted by a country which Wolf compares to Nazi Germany. Congressman Wolf who sits on the House Appropriations Committee, is incensed with the President and is introducing legislation which would prohibit any U.S. government official from using taxpayer funds to attend the Beijing Olympics.
Rep. Wolf has cited the facts that China has sold weapons to enemy states such as Iran, China's brutal treatment of dissidents, their role in the ongoing massacre in Darfur, and that country's continued spying and theft of U.S. technology as reasons to prohibit official state visits to Beijing.
China is a criminal state and should be treated as such. However, Bush will ignore the ugly facts and attend the Beijing Olympics as if he was watching a Sunday baseball game. By doing so, he will send a message to the world that the U.S. approves of their behavior, and the Chinese will take his visit as a sign of weakness and ignorance to be exploited. Rep. Wolf may have described it best when he said that any American caught on camera in the stands "will go down in history as cooperating with the genocide Olympics of 2008. And history will never, ever, ever forgive them."
Of course, Bush sees no threat to this country from China, the same way he sees no threat from illegal immigration, nor from runaway spending. He will be seen smiling and laughing in the stands next to China's despotic leader Hu Jintao. He will embarrass and put us in danger all in one trip...And he will do it on your dime!
Whether it is tainted pet food, faulty automobile tires, contaminated produce, antifreeze-infused toothpaste, or lead-filled children's toys--China is always ready to supply Americans with sub-standard and dangerous goods. Last year, thousands of our pets suffered horrible deaths due to the intentional use of the toxic substance known as melamine in wheat gluten sold to pet food manufacturers by China. Between 2005 to 2007, hundreds of thousands of tubes of toothpaste containing diethylene glycol were imported into this country from China, the chemical known commonly as DEG causes liver and kidney failure with continued exposure. We all remember the recent and ongoing recalls of Chinese-made toys due to dangerous levels of lead. Many children have been made ill by these toxic imports.
Through the use of slave labor, China has nearly eliminated our manufacturing base. While losing our factory jobs to China has proven to be disastrous for our economy, there is another frightening aspect to slavery in that country. The Chinese Army maintains factories which operate on the forced labor of political prisoners. The Army benefits directly from the sale of the items made in these dungeons, which they then use to purchase weapons, undoubtedly to be used on us one day. The toy car you buy your child today will help finance the missiles used on all of us tomorrow.
In addition to posing a direct threat to the health of Americans, China is unquestionably the world's greatest offender of human rights. The majority of people held in Chinese prisons are in fact being held for their political beliefs, usually for speaking out against the government.
The Associated Press recently reported on the imprisonment of a Chinese factory worker who dared to say publicly that human rights are more important than the Olympics. The worker has been charged with subversion and could be put to death for the offense.
It is widely known that Chinese political prisoners are regularly tortured and even executed, with their organs being sold on the black market.
Rep. Frank Wolf (R-VA) has raised objections to Bush attending the Olympics, hosted by a country which Wolf compares to Nazi Germany. Congressman Wolf who sits on the House Appropriations Committee, is incensed with the President and is introducing legislation which would prohibit any U.S. government official from using taxpayer funds to attend the Beijing Olympics.
Rep. Wolf has cited the facts that China has sold weapons to enemy states such as Iran, China's brutal treatment of dissidents, their role in the ongoing massacre in Darfur, and that country's continued spying and theft of U.S. technology as reasons to prohibit official state visits to Beijing.
China is a criminal state and should be treated as such. However, Bush will ignore the ugly facts and attend the Beijing Olympics as if he was watching a Sunday baseball game. By doing so, he will send a message to the world that the U.S. approves of their behavior, and the Chinese will take his visit as a sign of weakness and ignorance to be exploited. Rep. Wolf may have described it best when he said that any American caught on camera in the stands "will go down in history as cooperating with the genocide Olympics of 2008. And history will never, ever, ever forgive them."
Of course, Bush sees no threat to this country from China, the same way he sees no threat from illegal immigration, nor from runaway spending. He will be seen smiling and laughing in the stands next to China's despotic leader Hu Jintao. He will embarrass and put us in danger all in one trip...And he will do it on your dime!
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