The Bosque Boys

A joke I often use in class:

When talking about the non-importation movements of the Revolutionary period, I discuss the idea of what we now call a "boycott."

Oftentimes, I use the example of my friend, the Okie Gardener, who has been boycotting Chinese-made goods for years.

You can always tell who is boycotting Chinese-made goods, I say, because they are the naked ones.

I am now feeling guilty for offering a "lighter side" to the Okie Gardener's post.

The truth is that his post brings up a very serious moral question: the choice between expediency and principle.

Let me say for the record: I have always admired your principled stand on this issue.

Thanks so much for this posting, Okie Gardner. I had a friend in college who was in China as a missionary when the Tiananmen Square massacre took place. I received a letter from her about month after the massacre. Her letter was an amazing mix of both terror and faith. Here's a quote from her letter:
"It's really difficult to know what to expect because the government is so unpredictable. Also, we aren't sure if we'll have any students! At this point we don't know how many are still even alive after the bloody suppresion. And those still living, they are scared to death to return to the school for fear of being arrested and imprisoned if not executed. It's comforting to know that their lives and our lives are not in the hands of the army or the leaders, but in God's."
Everytime I read this, I can't help but be amazed at the true freedom that faith brings. In the face of such tyranny, faith provided peace and freedom for my friend or her students. May our prayers--and buying habits--be made also for the political freedom of the people of China.