It's About Coalitions Not Purity, Part Twenty
First published in November 2012
I will use "George Bush (Sr.)," or just, "George Bush," rather than George H.W. Bush.
George Bush came to the presidency with much, but not all, of the Reagan coalition intact. There was little inkling of the world-changing events that would take place within just a short time in Bush's presidency. Mikhail Gorbachev's liberal reforms in the Soviet Union gave hope to the people of the communist-run states of eastern Europe for reforms in their countries too. With Bush in office just a few months, protests in China took place, with large crowds gathering in the capital of Beijing, in Tiananmen Square. A visit to China by Gorbachev only added to the obvious desire of people in communist countries to have more freedom, as reporters worldwide reported on his visit. This stirred the people of eastern Europe and the Chinese protesters. The gatherings and protests continued, and the Chinese leaders declared martial law, but troops dispatched to various locations were blocked by huge crowds of protesters and the army forces withdrew. The government then decided to use force to restore its hold on the country. Large numbers of troops were sent and protesters again tried to block their deployment, but this time troops, often in armored vehicles, opened fire, prompting a violent response from some protesters. Eventually the troops and the Chinese government regained control and the square was cleared. In the next few days protests elsewhere in China subsided. While actual figures are unknown, apparently hundreds of protesters were killed, with many more wounded, and government forces seem to have suffered something near fifty deaths.*
Meanwhile in Poland in 1989, the Solidarity Movement was legalized and a system of somewhat competitive elections was set up. Solidarity won an overwhelming victory. The Soviet Union of Gorbachev made no move. Within about a year Poland had shifted from a communist nation to a free nation. Similar happened in Hungary, Czechoslovakia, Bulgaria, and East Germany, where German citizens literally began to tear down the wall that had been put up in the early 1960s by the communists to stop the loss of population to (then) West Germany.** In Rumania matters were more confrontational for a time, and some protesters were killed, but eventually the army joined the revolution and the communist government was overthrown. Dictator Nicolae Ceausescu and his wife were quickly tried by the army and executed. By 1990 the Soviet Union itself began to come apart, as its various components began to split off. By late 1991, the Soviet Union was no more.
George Bush and his administration offered public support to protesters during all of these historic times, but the President also kept the United States out of direct intervention, and there was no talk of "boots on the ground," although Bush, the U.S. and its allies were more involved in the Middle East at that time. Bush and Gorbachev worked together to reconcile the former opponents.
Next... "Bush's Popularity Soars, Then Plummets"
* I was in Germany when the violent outbreak occurred, staying in, get this, a Chinese government-owned hotel in downtown Frankfurt (on Niddastrasse). The German manager and I had been friends for several years, dating back to when he managed a different hotel right down the street from the Hauptbahnhof (main train station) in downtown Frankfurt. The anxiety among the Chinese employees and guests at the hotel was evident and the faxes were flying fast and furious between Frankfurt and China, as they tried to get information on their loved ones at home.
** As already mentioned, I was in Germany around mid 1989, and if someone, including the relatives I visited, had told me that East and West Germany would be on their way to reunification in a matter of months, I'd have asked, "Seid ihr verrΓΌckt geworden?" ("Have you gone crazy?")
WORD HISTORY:
Gulf-The ultimate origins of this word are uncertain, but it goes back to Greek "kolpos," the original notion of which was "bent, curved," which then led to the additional meaning "bosom," and thus to the meaning "water surface between curved land area;" that is, "gulf." Latin borrowed the word from Greek as "colfos" with that meaning, and Old French, a Latin-based language, had "golfe." English borrowed the word from French in the 1300s and it has since taken on the extended meaning, "gap," often in reference to ideas, as in "The gulf between the two countries for an agreement was wide."
I will use "George Bush (Sr.)," or just, "George Bush," rather than George H.W. Bush.
George Bush came to the presidency with much, but not all, of the Reagan coalition intact. There was little inkling of the world-changing events that would take place within just a short time in Bush's presidency. Mikhail Gorbachev's liberal reforms in the Soviet Union gave hope to the people of the communist-run states of eastern Europe for reforms in their countries too. With Bush in office just a few months, protests in China took place, with large crowds gathering in the capital of Beijing, in Tiananmen Square. A visit to China by Gorbachev only added to the obvious desire of people in communist countries to have more freedom, as reporters worldwide reported on his visit. This stirred the people of eastern Europe and the Chinese protesters. The gatherings and protests continued, and the Chinese leaders declared martial law, but troops dispatched to various locations were blocked by huge crowds of protesters and the army forces withdrew. The government then decided to use force to restore its hold on the country. Large numbers of troops were sent and protesters again tried to block their deployment, but this time troops, often in armored vehicles, opened fire, prompting a violent response from some protesters. Eventually the troops and the Chinese government regained control and the square was cleared. In the next few days protests elsewhere in China subsided. While actual figures are unknown, apparently hundreds of protesters were killed, with many more wounded, and government forces seem to have suffered something near fifty deaths.*
Meanwhile in Poland in 1989, the Solidarity Movement was legalized and a system of somewhat competitive elections was set up. Solidarity won an overwhelming victory. The Soviet Union of Gorbachev made no move. Within about a year Poland had shifted from a communist nation to a free nation. Similar happened in Hungary, Czechoslovakia, Bulgaria, and East Germany, where German citizens literally began to tear down the wall that had been put up in the early 1960s by the communists to stop the loss of population to (then) West Germany.** In Rumania matters were more confrontational for a time, and some protesters were killed, but eventually the army joined the revolution and the communist government was overthrown. Dictator Nicolae Ceausescu and his wife were quickly tried by the army and executed. By 1990 the Soviet Union itself began to come apart, as its various components began to split off. By late 1991, the Soviet Union was no more.
George Bush and his administration offered public support to protesters during all of these historic times, but the President also kept the United States out of direct intervention, and there was no talk of "boots on the ground," although Bush, the U.S. and its allies were more involved in the Middle East at that time. Bush and Gorbachev worked together to reconcile the former opponents.
Next... "Bush's Popularity Soars, Then Plummets"
* I was in Germany when the violent outbreak occurred, staying in, get this, a Chinese government-owned hotel in downtown Frankfurt (on Niddastrasse). The German manager and I had been friends for several years, dating back to when he managed a different hotel right down the street from the Hauptbahnhof (main train station) in downtown Frankfurt. The anxiety among the Chinese employees and guests at the hotel was evident and the faxes were flying fast and furious between Frankfurt and China, as they tried to get information on their loved ones at home.
** As already mentioned, I was in Germany around mid 1989, and if someone, including the relatives I visited, had told me that East and West Germany would be on their way to reunification in a matter of months, I'd have asked, "Seid ihr verrΓΌckt geworden?" ("Have you gone crazy?")
WORD HISTORY:
Gulf-The ultimate origins of this word are uncertain, but it goes back to Greek "kolpos," the original notion of which was "bent, curved," which then led to the additional meaning "bosom," and thus to the meaning "water surface between curved land area;" that is, "gulf." Latin borrowed the word from Greek as "colfos" with that meaning, and Old French, a Latin-based language, had "golfe." English borrowed the word from French in the 1300s and it has since taken on the extended meaning, "gap," often in reference to ideas, as in "The gulf between the two countries for an agreement was wide."
Labels: China, Communism, eastern Europe, English, etymology, Frankfurt, French, George H.W. Bush, Germany, Greek, Latin, Mikhail Gorbachev, Rumania, Tiananmen Square
posted by Randy at 3:28 PM
3 Comments:
I sure remember all of those times. So stirring to see it all back then.
It was quite a time. I like it when U use German. Im still studying it. And a Chinese government hotel?
Glad you're keeping up with German, but it takes time, especially if you don't have someone to actually converse with. Do you? Yes, the Chinese hotel was "Lian Yi," I believe the spelling was, but I'd have to check. Somewhere I've got the hotel business card or some such thing. I stayed there a couple of times, because my friend Manfred managed it back then, and he brought along his former assistant from the hotel where they previously worked. The guy was Italian; in fact, Manfred called him "the Italian," and he spoke like seven languages fluently, and get this, the last time I saw him, he was learning Chinese! There was another guy there too, from the Banat area, who was Rumanian and he spoke like four or five languages too. Frankfurt is so international.
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