… and it strikes me. I’m always saying “perfection is the enemy of action”. Here it’s “perfection is the enemy of admiration”. Because the very perfection of the march past is going to enrage China hawks, China-haters. They’re all exactly the same height to the millimetre, march with perfect precision, not a hint of out of step, goosestep-lite and the whole thing is redolent of authoritarianism. It’s going to drive these anti-China folks batshit crazy.
Then the equipment, the biggest ever parade of killing machines, some of it seen for the first time, hypersonic missiles that can neutralise American aircraft carriers, ICBMs fly further than any on earth, can target any city in the. US, multiple nuclear warheads, undersea drones, hypersonic surveillance drones. And many that we are told were previously only owned by the west. And those China hawks are for sure for g to say they stole the technology.
China’s message clear: “don’t f**k with China”.
So China hawks, their worst nightmare.
For us? Jing says “too much military.” I agree. Impressive… but scary.
At least Xi Jinping’s speech didn’t raise any hackles on Hong Kong. Firm support for “One country, two systems”. And worldwide “peaceful development”. Ok, let’s see that then …
LATER: and now it’s the turn of the people. They get to march past and tell the communist party how much they love them. Leaders of said party up on the famous rostrum of Tiananmen Square, men all, middle and older aged, unsmiling, slow clapping, and I’m reminded of Prince Charles’s diary note at the handover in ‘97, that was leaked “a bunch of appalling old wax works”.
There are seventy floats, we’re told, one for each revolutionary year. The people, waving little flags, flashing a rictus, not a skerrick of spontaneity. Again, the China haters will hate it. I’m not a China hater, just a hater or the regime, and I don’t like it. At least, it’s not to my taste, all this choreographed jollity.
Then the equipment, the biggest ever parade of killing machines, some of it seen for the first time, hypersonic missiles that can neutralise American aircraft carriers, ICBMs fly further than any on earth, can target any city in the. US, multiple nuclear warheads, undersea drones, hypersonic surveillance drones. And many that we are told were previously only owned by the west. And those China hawks are for sure for g to say they stole the technology.
China’s message clear: “don’t f**k with China”.
So China hawks, their worst nightmare.
For us? Jing says “too much military.” I agree. Impressive… but scary.
At least Xi Jinping’s speech didn’t raise any hackles on Hong Kong. Firm support for “One country, two systems”. And worldwide “peaceful development”. Ok, let’s see that then …
LATER: and now it’s the turn of the people. They get to march past and tell the communist party how much they love them. Leaders of said party up on the famous rostrum of Tiananmen Square, men all, middle and older aged, unsmiling, slow clapping, and I’m reminded of Prince Charles’s diary note at the handover in ‘97, that was leaked “a bunch of appalling old wax works”.
There are seventy floats, we’re told, one for each revolutionary year. The people, waving little flags, flashing a rictus, not a skerrick of spontaneity. Again, the China haters will hate it. I’m not a China hater, just a hater or the regime, and I don’t like it. At least, it’s not to my taste, all this choreographed jollity.
