Revolutions

4 Pages 883 Words

Revolution has changed a great deal since the American and French Revolutions. Because of new methods of war and communication, revolution can be very different than a century ago although their reason they begin may be similar. In the past, in order for revolution to take place, most of the people in a country had to agree with the revolution. Today a small group of radicals can obtain weapons of mass destruction and hold an entire government for ransom. In order for the people of the past to wage war on a government, they required the support of the people. Communicating with the citizens was difficult, and required a great deal of time. The world we live in today is also more susceptible to revolution because of strong communication systems. These new mediums allow ideas to spread with greater ease and also pave the path for radicals to gain support. An example of this is happening in China as we speak. In China the government controls the media and attempts to control the newly introduced Internet. The Internet allows the Chinese people to communicate, and spread news without the government’s knowledge (The Tunnel). The Chinese government is currently attempting to find a way to control this new entity. I refer to the Internet as an entity because in essence it is a coalition of connected individuals, each with their own views and ideas. I fear for China that the Internet may be restricted to use under strict guard, in an attempt to shut off China from the rest of the world.
Communication is a large part of any countrywide affair, which can be both good and bad for a country. If China had the Internet at the time of Tienamen square protest; a revolution would have been very hard to avoid. Many of the people of China did not even hear of the incident until weeks later. To avoid a reoccurrence, a newsletter, The Tunnel, was set up last year. The newsletter is written in China, then sent to an anonymous address in the United States...