Why would elements of the American Left support China over protesters for democracy? Because it is their jobs, and it is in their financial interest to do so.
I note this in light of Washington Post columnist Ishaan Tharoor’s question on Thursday as to why a left-wing American journalist, Ben Norton of Grayzone, is deriding Hong Kong protesters for using “CIA tactics” (exactly how Chinese state media is describing those protesters). As I responded to Tharoor:
Because the Grayzone project is a Russian-aligned front (https://t.co/btnFF3kyqo), and because Putin has an interest in wooing Xi to greater alignment (https://t.co/lg7ojI3ExN). It’s that simple. https://t.co/3sWqxfCvPs
— Tom Rogan (@TomRtweets) August 15, 2019
As I’ve explained, Grayzone is part of a cabal of intersecting far-left American media outlets which are either funded by Russian allies or Russia specifically [cough, Patreon.com]. The cabal is employed to adopt the exact opposite foreign policy of the American government, or the de facto interests of the Russian government (often the same thing). It’s not surprising, that the cabal so often appear on Kremlin propaganda or Kremlin-aligned (Venezuelan, for example) propaganda channels.
But if Russia is the master, why would Grayzone support the Chinese Communist Party over Hongkongers?
Well, because Vladimir Putin has a strategic interest both in strengthening relations with authoritarian China, and in undercutting U.S.-aligned movements. Both of those interests are served by Grayzone’s attempt to delegitimize the pro-democracy Hong Kong protest movement as a U.S. government proxy.
It’s really that simple.
