Wednesday, February 15, 2012

A Shout or a Whisper?


I have muttered and mused about the situation in Syria a few times and on the last occasion reader Ian mentioned the veto of a United Nations security council resolution by both Russia and China. The action of those two countries was reprehensible and happened just before Prime Minister Harper headed for China.
Commentators wondered if the PM would have much to say about China's veto because he was there to sell our oil to this potentially huge customer. Mr. Harper has spoken out about human rights issues in China before and been told to mind his own business. This junket was even trickier because China may be happy to buy the oil Americans don't want travelling across their land.
The prime minister is not a biblical prophet, nor was he elected to be a moral voice, at least not directly. But in a nation with a Judeo-Christian tradition do we expect a prophetic word even if it means less profits and a shakier economy? Politics and economics often trump "doing the right thing." Before the Conservatives came to power the Liberals talked about human rights in China but gradually that voice became a whisper as China became a world economic player.
What do you think?

1 comment:

IanD said...

I think the silence is deafening.