March 24, 2008
There has been a great deal in the news about Tibet these last few days, and
whether or not Tibet should be a free country or should remain a part of China.
Although I pride myself on my knowledge of and exposure to foreign peoples
and cultures, I have to admit this one threw me for a bit of a loop. You see, I
just assumed that the China would want Tibet to be free, while the Tibetans
would want to stay part of China. I've never been to Tibet, but as I understand
it there really isn't much there aside from yaks, mountainous plateaus, the
ability to achieve true spiritual enlightenment, and more yaks. Who would
want to have such a place included in their national union? It'd be like
including France in the European Union, or including Arkansas in the United
States.
But seriously, as it turns out there are many Tibetans who really want to be
independent, and many Chinese who really don't want Tibet to be
independent. Go figure. Based on the protests, riots and deaths reported to date,
it's clear that some kind of resolution is necessary. In my opinion, any
resolution of this issue has to be centered around education.
Education is usually something that I stress. In order to succeed in life, you
need to have a deep and comprehensive education (unless you're really good at
basketball, or golf, or some other sport...or really pretty, or really musical...or
you have a really rich family, or you marry someone really rich...but I
digress). In the case of Tibet, however, I think the key to a peaceful resolution
lies in only educating one side in this conflict.
If we educate the Tibetans as to the reality of the world outside (and inside)
their "borders", I think they'll quickly realize how good they have it. I'm sure
one can get used to yak milk, yak cheese, yak-burgers and an occasional
yak-kebab, but Tibetans need to understand how nice it is to spice up that
routine with the occasional sweet and sour pork, sesame shrimp and General
Tso's chicken. If Tibet secedes from China, they will no longer have cheap
access to fake Oakley sunglasses (necessary with the glaring sun in Tibet),
fake Northface jackets (necessary in the cold of Tibet) and fake Rolex watches
(necessary really anywhere you go). If we point these simple truths out to the
Tibetans, my guess is they'll be falling over themselves to stay a part of
greater China.
On the other hand, if we educate the Chinese as to the drag on their economy
that is Tibet, I believe they'll drop Tibet quicker than K-Fed drops his baby
mamas. Tibet sucks precious resources from China that could otherwise be
invested in economic growth, and the only marketable commodities they
produce in return are all yak-related. I'm no international trade expert, but as
far as I can tell nobody is really interested in yak products outside Tibet
(except maybe Mongolia, and all they have to trade in return are camel and
llama products).
So as you can clearly see, if we don't educate anyone in this mess we'll watch
as lots of people suffer. If we educate both sides, Tibet will end up fighting to
stay in China and China will fight to be rid of Tibet. But if we educate only
one side in this dispute, we'll end up with a peaceful solution in no time. Give
me a few minutes and I'll sort out the Middle East situation next.....
There has been a great deal in the news about Tibet these last few days, and
whether or not Tibet should be a free country or should remain a part of China.
Although I pride myself on my knowledge of and exposure to foreign peoples
and cultures, I have to admit this one threw me for a bit of a loop. You see, I
just assumed that the China would want Tibet to be free, while the Tibetans
would want to stay part of China. I've never been to Tibet, but as I understand
it there really isn't much there aside from yaks, mountainous plateaus, the
ability to achieve true spiritual enlightenment, and more yaks. Who would
want to have such a place included in their national union? It'd be like
including France in the European Union, or including Arkansas in the United
States.
But seriously, as it turns out there are many Tibetans who really want to be
independent, and many Chinese who really don't want Tibet to be
independent. Go figure. Based on the protests, riots and deaths reported to date,
it's clear that some kind of resolution is necessary. In my opinion, any
resolution of this issue has to be centered around education.
Education is usually something that I stress. In order to succeed in life, you
need to have a deep and comprehensive education (unless you're really good at
basketball, or golf, or some other sport...or really pretty, or really musical...or
you have a really rich family, or you marry someone really rich...but I
digress). In the case of Tibet, however, I think the key to a peaceful resolution
lies in only educating one side in this conflict.
If we educate the Tibetans as to the reality of the world outside (and inside)
their "borders", I think they'll quickly realize how good they have it. I'm sure
one can get used to yak milk, yak cheese, yak-burgers and an occasional
yak-kebab, but Tibetans need to understand how nice it is to spice up that
routine with the occasional sweet and sour pork, sesame shrimp and General
Tso's chicken. If Tibet secedes from China, they will no longer have cheap
access to fake Oakley sunglasses (necessary with the glaring sun in Tibet),
fake Northface jackets (necessary in the cold of Tibet) and fake Rolex watches
(necessary really anywhere you go). If we point these simple truths out to the
Tibetans, my guess is they'll be falling over themselves to stay a part of
greater China.
On the other hand, if we educate the Chinese as to the drag on their economy
that is Tibet, I believe they'll drop Tibet quicker than K-Fed drops his baby
mamas. Tibet sucks precious resources from China that could otherwise be
invested in economic growth, and the only marketable commodities they
produce in return are all yak-related. I'm no international trade expert, but as
far as I can tell nobody is really interested in yak products outside Tibet
(except maybe Mongolia, and all they have to trade in return are camel and
llama products).
So as you can clearly see, if we don't educate anyone in this mess we'll watch
as lots of people suffer. If we educate both sides, Tibet will end up fighting to
stay in China and China will fight to be rid of Tibet. But if we educate only
one side in this dispute, we'll end up with a peaceful solution in no time. Give
me a few minutes and I'll sort out the Middle East situation next.....
| Tibet - March 24, 2008 |
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