Not All Governments are “Of The People, By The People, For The People”

You might not agree with what the government of a country is doing. But that doesn’t mean you wouldn’t like the people who live in the country. I am against Putin, but I assume that if I had a window into the homes and lives of the vast majority of people who live in Russia, I would find people who wake up in the morning, have breakfast, go to school or work, and care about their families and friends. They probably do not condone killing innocent people. And if they speak out against their government, they could end up in jail or on the front line of an unjust war.

The same is true of China. The Chinese government competes commercially with the US, they steal our intellectual property and they hack into our computing systems. But, I know a lot of Chinese people and they are extremely nice. I think I would like the individuals and families who live in China. They probably do not have anything to do with their government’s actions, and they do not have the right to protest their government.

When we criticize China or Russia, or other countries that act against the United States, let’s be careful to speak of their governments, not of their people. Some of them live here in the United States, and we should not be alienating them in our society. Don't judge a person by their country.