Clever Turtles

Here is probably the only time you'll see me recommend an article in American Conservative magazine.

Basically, a British guy knocks the faux-progressive pro-Tibet movement. And he's right; the pro-Tibet lobby in the West is frankly insulting to Tibetans. Liberals often see it as some sort of non-materialist oriental Disneyland.

And the Dali Lama. Look, I'm sure he's pretty wise, and I don't want to knock anyone too much for considering him a spiritual leader. But Tibetan resistance is a political deal, and the Dali Lama isn't really a political leader.

That's not to say that the Chinese annexation of Tibet is acceptable. What is not acceptable is the basis by which Western hipsters use to justify their opposition. It's racism, pure and simple.

That the article discusses the British perspective is suggestive. British colonial administration on India was rooted in the various racial assumptions. I don't think it's a stretch to see the elevation of Tibetans as spiritually pure, but outside of human society as deriving from the same basic concept of racial difference. They're spiritually pure and non-materialist because they are racially compelled to be so. The flip side of non=materialist is uncivilized, remember.

And China is, after all, the Yellow Peril. Cue racist John Wayne quote.

Basically, lets frame the debate in Western or Eastern political theory, and leave the pseudo-spiritual crap where it belongs.

EDIT: I almost forgot, I was going to mention one of my favorite spots in Seoul that no one has ever heard of. The Tibet Museum in Jongno is hard to find, but it's really cool. A small residence was converted into a museum to exhibit a private collection of Tibetan cultural miscellany. But, there is not nearly enough space for all of the stuff, and there is little in the way of explanation. It's basically a suburban junk shop jumble of Tibetan exotica. A very cool place to spend a few hours poking around.