Jim Bratten
Early last week, Daryl Morey, the general manager of the Houston Rockets NBA team, tweeted:
“FIGHT FOR FREEDOM STAND WITH HONG KONG”
The Communist Party in Red China took notice and hit the NBA in its wallet. They banned Houston Rockets games from viewing by the Chinese people.
Steve Kerr, coach of the Golden State Warriors NBA team and a rabid progressive who viscerally hates Donald Trump, equated America with Communist China.
Gregg Popovich, head coach if the San Antonio Spurs, chimed in, blaming our country and Americans who voted for Trump. (It’s always Trump’s fault, isn’t it?) “We all know where the source is,” he said, obviously referring to Trump, “Where a lot of division comes from.”
A Rockets’ player in Tokyo begged the Communist Chinese for forgiveness, apologizing in front of the press. “We appreciate them [the Chinese] as a fan base and love everything they’re about…” (But not what Chinese in Hong Kong are about.)
The Rockets’ owner and NBA execs quickly caved to the Communist Chinese, promising to censure Morey and remove his tweets. Morey decided to keep his job by deleting his pro-Hong Kong comments. Hurriedly, the NBA issued stinging words about Morey and voiced full-blown regrets for his behavior. After all, NBA games in Red China are viewed by a potential 1.2 billion people. That viewership is the NBA’s gold mine and also a huge profit center for Nike, which makes a lot of money selling sports apparel to 1.2 billion Chinese who love basketball. And many work in Red China, manufacturing Nike products.
NBA Commissioner Adam Silver meekly attempted a defense of Morey but waffled. He desperately needs to grow a spine and stand against bullying by the Communist Chinese. Silver wagered on NBA popularity with the Chinese people but forgot who always holds the cards in a communist country. In this case, the government does NOT serve the people (sorry, Michael Bloomberg). Mr. Silver needs to understand that, in Red China, the people serve the government – under the type of totalitarian dictatorship arrangement that Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren think would work so well here.
After the Morey incident, two fans were ejected from a Philadelphia 76ers game when they held up signs, one reading “Google Uyghurs,” and the other, “Free Hong Kong!” Obviously that offended Beijing; the same type of offense that caused 11 of 13 Communist Chinese partners to sever ties with the NBA, despite Adam Silver’s pleading with Beijing.
Thirty years ago, no U.S. corporation was afraid of the Red Chinese government. Now there are many, including organizations such as the NBA, afraid to endanger their ledgers by offending despots who harvest organs from the incarcerated while they are still alive and force a million Muslim Uyghurs into reeducation camps. For American corporations today, dealing with totalitarian despots poses no problem that can’t be overcome by a little groveling.
It’s all about money… and a lack of morality. When profits are threatened, principles are abandoned to pander to the Red Chinese. Maybe a few NBA execs and team owners should visit some Communist Chinese reeducation camps for perspective.
It’s obvious that the NBA prefers business with a “Hammer and Sickle” nation to the “Stars and Stripes” nation. In the NBA case, when profits win, freedom loses.
Hoosier Patriots, Inc. is an educational and organizational non-profit for restoration, preservation and defense of the Constitution. We provide conservative commentary on public policy and government action across a variety of issues concerning the well-being of the republic. For more information go to www.vc-tpp.org or subscribe to the newsletter at hpnw.jimb@gmail.com.
