Two decades after the tanks

Beijing China, 1989:

Fed up with a government they perceived wasn't acting in their interest, thousands of Chinese dared defy the idea of a totalitarian China, building the 'goddess of democracy' in Tiananmen Square. For a few days, the world held its breath. Then, just like the short-lived Prague Spring, the government acted to snuff out the defiance.

Still, the experience shook the rulers of China. An interesting thing happened. Though the government still considers itself 'communist,' and honors the trappings of such, they've become quite adept at the world market. There is no denying that while many still live in crushing poverty, millions of Chinese have seen their economic standard of living raised.

These developments came with a clear attachment: do not question your government. The powers that be may be communist in name only, but they are still what they have always been: intent on absolute rule. A generation later, tens of millions of younger Chinese accept this tradeoff as a given. Few even know much of what happened there in 1989, let alone the motivations behind it.

There are rumblings of unrest in our own country today. It will be... interesting... to see if we succumb to the same Faustian bargain--our freedoms for promises of financial security, in a vain attempt to avoid the consequences of our own actions over these past 20 years.