The National Basketball Association debased itself in public as it heaped praise on the authoritarian regime of China after a manager simply tweeted support for Hong Kong protesters. China has canceled plans for a NBA exhibition game and is threatening a lucrative expansion deal into China. Basketball player James Harden profusely apologized to China for a manager simply expressing a view in favor of human rights. The league and top players have shown how money is an easy substitute for principle. Morey was forced to delete his innocent tweet and apologize. Harden is shown proclaiming “We apologize. You know, we love China. We love playing there. For both of us individually, we go there once or twice a year. They show us the most important love.” As the NBA heaps fawning praise on the Chinese regime, Amnesty International is calling for world action over its crackdown on protesters seeking simple forms of democracy and free speech. They however give no money to the NBA or its stars.
The NBA immediately fell over itself to beg forgiveness for a single manager expressing support on a political issues. That night the NBA released a statement expressly regret that Morey’s views have “deeply offended many of our friends and fans in China.” By the way, the statement was translated in China as “Extremely disappointed in Morey’s inappropriate statement. No doubt he’s severely hurt the feelings of CN fans.” The NBA did not object to the translation.
The Chinese cut off broadcasting games after NBA Commissioner Adam Silver apologized but had the temerity of express support for free speech, a right that the Chinese have long denied to its own citizens. The Chinese television officials expressed outrage at the mention of free speech: “We are strongly dissatisfied and we oppose Silver’s claim to support Morey’s right of free expression. We believe that any speech that challenges national sovereignty and social stability is not within the scope of freedom of speech.” Well, few things are “within the scope of freedom of speech” in China beyond praising the Communist regime.
Brooklyn Nets and New York Liberty owner Joseph Tsai wrote their own self-debasing letter explaining why it is not cool to support protesters who are being beaten and shot by China in an effort to secure democratic rights: “The problem is, there are certain topics that are third-rail issues in certain countries, societies and communities. Supporting a separatist movement in a Chinese territory is one of those third-rail issues, not only for the Chinese government, but also for citizens in China.” Nothing like team owners to explain to Americans why authoritarians are so sensitive about criticism of repression. What they did not fully explain to the unwashed fans is how free speech is a “problem” when it takes money out of their pocket. Owners could care less about millions of people denied basic political and individual rights. They appear arbitrarily located in a country that values free speech. Their statements show that they value one thing only and it is measured at the end of every month in an accounting report.
The NBA is not alone of course. GAP apologized for a shirt of China that did not show Taiwan as a part of China. Marriott quickly apologized for listing Taiwan as a nation while Daimler debased itself over the mistake of quoting the Dalai Lama. As China’s power rises, these companies have shown how money alone will trump any notion of free speech.
Fortunately, I do not follow basketball but I do follow the Hong Kong protesters, who constantly cite our own country as a model in their courageous struggle for basic human and political rights . . . precisely the type of people that NBA owners and players want nothing to do with.
Screw democracy, we want money.
Stephen A. Smith, your a disgrace!
Off topic, but Ellen Degeneres is showing us what we use to be like. She has more character than most of our fellow citizens.
Looks the NBA has deflated balls!
Wonder if these NBA millionaires will move there and become Chinese citizens?
Do you think that these NBA players will kneel during the Chinese national anthem? Money talks, bull$$$$ walks.
Woke Steve Kerr lost his sanctimonious tongue. He’s puzzled about everything except how bad his native country is. China is just inscrutable to the NBA Mouth-o-matic!
No Balls Atall
G
NBA: “No Backbone At all!”
Did anyone kneel in protest?
I doubt it. after all the PRC national anthem’s chorus is
CHU LAI! CHU LAI! [arise]
won’t tolerate any kneeling there you can bet on it!
Here is a really good article on how China got the muscle to er uh er . . . muscle the NBA into compliance. One tidbit:
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The Chinese market is massive, both as an importer and exporter. We can see it use its power to attempt to bully U.S. politicians over agricultural products in hopes of gaining leverage in the trade war. This NBA situation is no different.
Among the nearly 1.4 billion people who call China home, 640 million of them watched some kind of NBA programming over the course of the 2017-2018 season, per league figures. That’s nearly twice the population of the entire United States.
“When global partners are looking at the NBA, I think for them the two big markets are really the U.S. and China,” Chang said. “And in some respects for some of these guys, they start to look at China as almost a bigger opportunity going forward.”
The National Basketball Association, like most American producers of goods and services, sees the potential for eye-popping profits in China. Of course, it’s a trade-off that comes with steep costs, like censorship. And it will ultimately collapse because the CCP is not interested in trade, it is interested in dominance.
https://mattstoller.substack.com/p/how-joe-biden-empowered-chinas-censorship
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There is a lot more at the link than just the basketball stuff. It is very informative.
Squeeky Fromm
Girl Reporter
Are you not Entertained yet? If not sit your coffee cup down so you don’t spit it up all over your keyboards as Memeworld has a few new ones up.
https://www.memeworld.com/
More free speech censorship from China: South Park axed from internet
https://www.rollingstone.com/tv/tv-news/south-park-china-censorship-ban-895732/
Apparently Winnie-the-Pooh has been banned, too. The Grand Pooh-ba in China can’t handle being compared to a bear of very little brain.
“Chairman Xi is the kindest, bravest, warmest, most wonderful human being I’ve ever known in my life.”
— NBA Pledge of Allegiance
It’d be interesting to me to see just how much of the US that China & other foreign entities own of the US, including just how many of our politicians they’ve bought off.
BTW: Nice Scam against the American people by the Globalist banking trash.
Set up a private banking system, aka the federal reserve system, print unlimited amounts of fiat currency at interest for the citizens, then make lopsided trade deals with other countries like China so the globalist banking trash can use our own hard work, paid for with Federal Reserve Notes, to transfer anything of value from our hands to theirs.
No wonder they have to take our gun Rights, because at a certain point when enough citizens understand the banking trash’s scam it’s game over for them.
As a current or former head of Credit Susie (sic) said recently with zero percent interest moving in fit currencies are worthless.
Daryl Morey, the general manager in question, makes less money than Turley and has 86’d his career in professional sports. Yet he is showing cojones in leading in the public square. Hopefully he can network globally and build his brand to do what Turley does
Of course not everyone can command speaker fees of $15K-$25K like Turley
https://www.wwsg.com/speakers/jonathan-turley/
Expert physician speakers are lucky to command $3K for addressing newly published evidenced based data from clinical trials on a topic like cancer or Alzheimer’s.
Yeah, that incentive for money in America: really sinister
In a way, what the NBA did was right. Because Hong Kong is not going to get its freedom from the mainland. It just ain’t gonna happen. So what good comes from encouraging them to protest??? None. It will only end in death for a lot of people, and more repression, not less. China is not afraid to kill and/or imprison millions. The only thing keeping Hong Kong as free as it is – is the money it generates for China, and the place for Chinese oligarchs/businessmen to hide and spend cash.
That being said, I think it was chicken for the NBA to backtrack on Morey’s statement, but you know. Money. IIRC, Facebook has done the same thing. And, the whole U.S. government over its shunning of Taiwan.
As a matter of fact, the only American fly in China’s ointment is Trump, who is holding their feet to the fire on trade. Which, is another reason the money and powered elite and the MSM can’t stand him.
Squeeky Fromm
Girl Reporter
The NBA kowtows to Beijing, however Trump doesn’t, Hmmmmmmmmmmm??????
Hey, PaulCS! Great minds think alike!
Squeeky Fromm
Girl Reporter
“As China’s power rises, these companies have shown how money alone will trump any notion of free speech.
Fortunately, I do not follow basketball but I do follow the Hong Kong protesters, who constantly cite our own country as a model in their courageous struggle for basic human and political rights”
Why does their power rise? Our leadership sold out our values back in the 90s. Tiannamen Square meant nothing. Bill Clinton and the DNC took Chinese money for his 1996 reelection campaign. Then China got special deals for satellites, and, were allowed into the World Trade Organization–despite all their dictatorship and human rights abuses. Newt Gingrinch talked out of both sides of his mouth, pretending to lead an investigation about Chinese interference in the election, but then wholeheartedly allowed them into the WTO.
The Chinese see that our leadership pretends that our values matter. Perhaps we ought to stop feeding the dragon before it truly is large and strong enough to eat us.
https://www.nytimes.com/1998/05/18/us/clinton-says-chinese-money-did-not-influence-us-policy.html
https://www.nytimes.com/1998/05/20/us/gingrich-plans-panel-on-china-and-clinton-tie.html
American companies are no longer American. Like our sports teams, they’re “global.” Great, let the Bangladeshis support them.