#china

The British seizure of Hongkong was an aspect of one of the most ugly crimes of the British Empire: the takeover and destruction of India, and the use of India to flood China with opium. ↗

— Robert Trout

#british #british empire #china #crimes #destruction

Because of the economic crisis, China and the United States are bound together. This is a totally new phenomenon, and nobody will fight for ideology anymore. It's all about business. ↗

— Ai Weiwei

#anymore #because #bound #business #china

China has not established the rule of law and if there is a power above the law there is no social justice. Everybody can be subjected to harm. I'm just a citizen: my life is equal in value to any other. But I'm thankful that when I lost my freedom so many people shared feelings and put such touching effort into helping me. ↗

— Ai Weiwei

#any #china #citizen #effort #equal

Everyone wants an iPhone, but it would be impossible to design an iPhone in China because it's not a product; it's an understanding of human nature. ↗

— Ai Weiwei

#china #design #everyone #human #human nature

I don't believe in the so-called Olympic spirit. I speak from personal experience. When China hosted the Games, it failed to include the people. The event was constructed without regard for their joy. ↗

— Ai Weiwei

#china #constructed #event #experience #failed

Since the global economic crisis began, the change in global attitudes is clear to see - and I think it is pitiful. Barack Obama came to China and he is probably the only president of the United States never to mention the words 'human rights' in public. ↗

— Ai Weiwei

#barack #barack obama #began #came #change

The Beijing Olympics and the Shanghai World Expo show just how much effort China is willing to spend to enter the global stage. But while China desires to understand the world, it fails to accept its universal values. ↗

— Ai Weiwei

#beijing #china #desires #effort #enter

To protect the right of expression is the central part of an artist's activity... In China many essential rights are lacking, and I wanted to remind people of this. ↗

— Ai Weiwei

#artist #central #china #essential #expression

To survive, China had to open up to the West. It could not survive otherwise. This was after many millions have died of hunger in a country that was like North Korea is today. Once we became part of global competition, we had to agree to some rules. It's painful, but we had to. Otherwise there was no way to survive. ↗

— Ai Weiwei

#agree #became #china #competition #could

To the media, I have become a symbolic figure, critical of China. According to the government, I am a dangerous threat. ↗

— Ai Weiwei

#am #become #china #critical #dangerous