Lebron James Needs to Retract What He Said

Last updated on: October 15, 2019 at 11:31 pm by Kermit Zarley

Lebron James Needs to Retract What He Said 2019-10-15T23:31:19-07:00 Kermit Zarley

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

I’m a big NBA fan. I’ve been this way pretty much all of my life. And I like Lebron James. He has been the best basketball player on the planet for the past nearly 15 years. But he has just now stuck his foot in a big hole of you know what by speaking out two different times against Houston Rockets General Manager Daryl Morey’s tweet image a week ago Friday. It read, “Fight for Freedom, Stand with Hong Kong.” It is a statement supporting the democracy protestors in Hong Kong. This is now my fourth post on this subject.

James first tweeted about Morey’s tweet, saying “So many people could have been harmed, not only physically or financially, but emotionally and spiritually.” He meant NBA players and perhaps others associated with the NBA. I agree with James that with hindsight, it would have been better for Morey to wait a week while the pre-season games in China played out. But James is only talking about how it affects the NBA. His statement reveals no concern for what Morey was concerned about–the Hong Kong protestors who are risking their lives to try to keep from being taken over by Communist China and perhaps even instituting more of a Hong Kong democracy.

James was saying that Morey was ill-informed about the issue. Lebron was not precise about this. He seemed to mean Daryl didn’t realize how his tweet could upset China and hurt the NBA. Well, I’ll be! Shame on him. But Mr. James–the guy who loves to speak out on matters of justice, even in politics–did not indicate that Mr. Morey was ill-informed about China being a communistic state, where there is not much freedom but lots of propaganda, and the history of Hong Kong on this issue. Instead, James seemed to say he would not discuss that part of the matter.

Why not, Lebron? To most Americans, that IS the main issue, not how Morey’s tweet displeasured Chinese authorities and may have caused you and the NBA to lose some yuan. Lebron, maybe you are the main person, here, who needs to get more informed. We’re talking about democracy. You are a very rich man because of it. If you had been born in China with your basketball skills and not gone to America to display them, you likely would be in the China Basketball Association league, now headed by former Rockets’ NBA All-Star Yao Ming. And if so, you sure wouldn’t be the rich man and famous person that you are now. Why? Pure and simple: Communism.

Hong Kong was a British colony starting in 1842 and thus separate from mainland China. In 1898, Britain wound up with a 99-year lease on Hong Kong and some adjacent territory. When it expired, in 1997, the UK asked then Communist China to extend the lease on all of this territory that had known only freedom like Britain and had excelled as developing an admirable business community greater than anything China had. China’s ruling Politburo refused this UK request. The UK then agreed to transfer Hong Kong and Kowloon to China with the promise that its citizens would continue to have their democratic government for at least the next 50 years. China agreed, and this relationship between China and Hong Kong and Kowloon came to be called “one country, two systems.”

But over four months ago, Hong Kong’s parliament passed Fugitive Offenders bill proposed by Chief Executive Carrie Lam. It requires extradition of certain lawbreakers to China for trial in its courts. This caused an outbreak of protestors against this bill and more. They want Hong Kong to not only be rid of this law but implement full democracy with no authoritarian connection to mainland China at all. Sounds kinda like that old tea party in Boston to me.

In the history of the USA, our country has been the beacon of the world in promoting freedom and democracy. We went through the Cold War in which the U.S. and Communistic Soviet Union were the two superpowers in the world with entirely different systems of government. Under Soviet communism, there was little or no freedom of expression, assembly, religious, etc., whereas that is what the USA is all about. Soviet Premier Nikita Khrushchev said to the USA, “we’ll bury you.” We fought wars over this issue of Communism, such as the Korean War and Vietnam War, that indirectly involved Communist China.

If Lebron James was going to make such a stew in opposing Daryl Morey’s tweet, he should not have done that and then said he would not discuss what is really the main issue here. Does Lebron James know much about this? He is a guy like a lot of NBA stars now who, different from years gone by, did not attend college but went right into the NBA after graduating from high school. I’m wondering if passing up a college education is hurting some of these NBA players concerning their knowledge, or lack thereof, about communism, democracy, and how people are governed.

Previous Post

October 14, 2019

Should U.S. Require Psychological Testing of Presidential Contenders

Next Post

October 16, 2019 MALT--Make American Like Trump

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category Angels Billy Graham Blog Description Book Reviews Christian Living Christianity Christology Church History Current Events Deity of Christ? Disarmament Eschatology Evangelicalism Ezekiel 38-39 Film Reviews God Golf Gospel Harmonization Health History Holy Spirit Incarnation? Interview Islam Israeli-Palestinian Conflict Jesus Last Empire Literary Announcements Major Championship Winners Masters Monotheism My Books New Testament Old Testament Politics Primitive Weapons Ryder Cup Science Society of Biblical Literature The Bible The Restitution of Jesus Christ Trinitarianism Trinity? Uncategorized Unconditional Love? War on Terrorism

Select a Month October 2026 September 2026 August 2026 July 2026 June 2026 May 2026 April 2026 March 2026 February 2026 January 2026 December 2025 November 2025 October 2025 September 2025 August 2025 July 2025 June 2025 May 2025 April 2025 March 2025 February 2025 January 2025 December 2024 November 2024 October 2024 September 2024 August 2024 July 2024 June 2024 May 2024 April 2024 March 2024 February 2024 January 2024 December 2023 November 2023 October 2023 September 2023 August 2023 July 2023 June 2023 May 2023 April 2023 March 2023 February 2023 January 2023 December 2022 November 2022 October 2022 September 2022 August 2022 July 2022 June 2022 May 2022 April 2022 March 2022 February 2022 January 2022 December 2021 November 2021 October 2021 September 2021 August 2021 July 2021 June 2021 May 2021 April 2021 March 2021 February 2021 January 2021 December 2020 November 2020 October 2020 September 2020 August 2020 July 2020 June 2020 May 2020 April 2020 March 2020 February 2020 January 2020 December 2019 November 2019 October 2019 September 2019 August 2019 July 2019 June 2019 May 2019 April 2019 March 2019 February 2019 January 2019 December 2018 November 2018 October 2018 September 2018 August 2018 July 2018 June 2018 May 2018 April 2018 March 2018 February 2018 January 2018 December 2017 November 2017 October 2017 September 2017 August 2017 July 2017 June 2017 May 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 January 2017 December 2016 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 June 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016 February 2016 January 2016 December 2015 November 2015 October 2015 September 2015 August 2015 July 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 July 2013 June 2013 May 2013 April 2013

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

What does Hebrews say God will never do?

Select your answer to see how you score.

Forget your work Leave you or forsake you Deny his own Fail to keep his promise

Books by This Author Books by Kermit Zarley Blog

See All Titles »