Source: Global Times New Media
On the 29th, Alex Lo, a well-known commentator in Hong Kong, pointed out in the South China Morning Post that for britain, which has become a thing of the past, it should not indulge in the global ambition to restore the "British Empire". In the text, he also borrowed the name of a show and gave today's Britain a very humorous nickname: "Little Britain".
Source: Hong Kong's South China Morning Post
At the beginning of the article, Lu Gang used the famous British post-war literature "Raj Quadrilogy" as the introduction of this article. This series of works reflects the final life story of the British colonists at a time when the British Empire's rule in the Indian region was about to collapse, and the Indian name "Raj" here refers to British rule.
The author of this set of works, Paul Scott, who served in the British military intelligence and worked and lived in former British colonies in Southeast Asia and South Asia, has a group of "elegant and calm" British gentlemen who have a fairly clear understanding of the inevitable defeat of imperialism and try to find a new way out for themselves in a more dignified and dignified way in this tide of history. Lu Gang, who was born in the British period in Hong Kong, hopes that today's Britain can learn from this literary image.
In order to respond to the call of the United States to "return to the Asia-Pacific region" and also to shake the flag for the so-called goal of "British globalization", the British Navy's "Queen Elizabeth" aircraft carrier formation, which has been full of failures and ups and downs, stumbled to the South China Sea a few days ago. However, for the arrival of British troops, US Defense Secretary Austin was not very enthusiastic, and he euphemistically said that Britain should deploy its limited military strength near the British mainland, rather than Asia, which may be more useful to Britain.
The image is taken from the financial times Chinese network
Lu Gang's evaluation of Britain is based on this statement made by the US defense secretary to Britain. In the text, he jokingly imitated the British and said: "Ah! America's words hurt so much." Subsequently, he made an assessment of british naval warships and other equipment, pointing out that the current state of the British fleet could not support its "global ambitions" strategic objectives. "This fleet has long since lost the prestige of the qing dynasty to force the Qing Dynasty to submit to the opium issue when troops came to the city," Lu Gang said in the article.
For Britain's current global strategy, Lu Gang commented that it is "both confusing and embarrassing, but also putting itself in danger", such as ignoring national strength and actual situation, and taking the initiative to provoke China and Russia when it cannot bear the cost. Although the original text was written in English, the translation has the feeling of the famous quote "Han Feizi Death": the country is small and not humble, the strength is small and not afraid of the strong, the rude and insulting neighbor, the greedy and clumsy, but also the dead.
Lu Gang believes that for Britain, which has long withdrawn from the ranks of "superpowers", instead of seeking to "dominate globalization" and compete for the right to interfere in international affairs, it is better to strengthen its "soft power" first. However, Lu Gang does not seem to intend to discuss in detail what kind of "soft power" the United Kingdom should develop, and at the end of the article, he suggests that the United Kingdom, which is already "Little Britain", should strive to develop the soft power represented by the comedy of the same name, "Little Britain".
As for whether Lu Gang is sincerely encouraging the United Kingdom to focus on the development of film and television works, or secretly ridiculing that Britain's "imperial illusion" is a funny drama, it depends on how readers understand it.
Stills from the British sitcom Little Britain, source: BBC