Hold Those Matches!

Not to seem facetious, but, if Tibetans keep setting themselves on fire to protest Chinese oppression, pretty soon there won't be any Tibet to fight for. At some point, political protest -- which I'm all for -- must be realistic. Sacrifice and symbolism are all right, but, needless to say, burning yourself up is self-destructive and accomplishes very little. There have to be more constructive ways to get your message across to the world. An irrational belief in the afterlife only leads to getting yourself there in a hurry, leaving behind the earthly problems you were trying to solve.

I don't see Richard Gere getting in line to burn himself up... even if he hasn't much of a career now.

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