Self-Immolation No Longer Effective Mode of Protest
A 92-year old farmer and his son set themselves on fire yesterday in protest of a forced sale of their land to Chinese authorities. As reported by the Shanghai Daily, the bulldozer operators respectfully delayed their demolition for two full hours, and then proceeded to tear down the farm once the corpses had been fully extinguished.
To be fair, only the son died from the protest action. The 92-year old father was apparently more practiced at self-immolation and managed to survive. One can only imagine the full spectrum of horrors a Chinese Demolition Crew comes across in a season, given how desensitized they seemed to be to this particular form of resistance.
[…] But still, wow. What an awesomely impotent spectacle. In 61 seconds, Steve-O completely captivates, revulses, and delights a studio audience (not to mention the dozens watching at home) with a self-mutilating protest usually reserved for combating fascist regimes. […]