What Pegman Saw – Buddhists chanting

“What Pegman saw” is a weekly challenge based on Google Streetview. You can read the rules here. You can find today’s location on this page,  from where you can also get the Inlinkz code. This week’s location is Qinghain, Haibei, China.

WPS - Buddhists chanting 200510

Buddhists chanting

People chanted in the courtyard, and the north wind carried the sound like prayer across the waters of Qinghai Lake. A few of the participants shivered, some hugged their thin jackets tightly around themselves, but most withstood the chill stoically. They were people of the high plateau.

The little man at the front shouted a text. The assembly copied him. He shouted the text again; it was a quotation from Mao Zedong’s red book. The people copied with resignation. The leader harangued them; his voice pitched hysterically. He struck a man in the front row. The man winced but made no effort to retaliate.

“The Chinese have taken Tibetan Buddhists and detained them in this so-called re-education facility in Haibei,” said the commentator, and the video ended.

The team who had produced the video looked towards their orange-haired President.

“Great work, fellas. Get it over to Fox News straightaway.”

 

 

12 thoughts on “What Pegman Saw – Buddhists chanting”

  2. Chilling scene, made even worse by the ending. I tried looking up more information about this location and couldn’t find very much, so I couldn’t tell — how much of your story was historical versus speculative?

    Liked by 1 person

    • Dear Joy
      Thank you for reading and commenting. There have been reports of “re-education centres ” in parts of China with a high Muslim population. I’m not aware of similar things for Buddhists. However, if you notice, the team who made the video are in the White House. This is fake news. It doesn’t quite work as a story, I fear!
      With very best wishes
      Penny

      Liked by 1 person

      • I saw at the end that the footage was being used for presumably nefarious purposes, but it seemed that the original footage was still of something real, being twisted for some reason. There’s a lot going on in the story, maybe just too many twists & turns for me to follow.

        Liked by 1 person

  3. Oy. And there are those who are keen on having the ability to do same (i.e. ‘re-education to blind cult-following of one’s supposed ‘great leader”) in that very said hued-face administration, to any who ‘dare’ not show unquestioning fealty via dismissal of science and fact for one person’s ego-stroking. Oy.

    Liked by 1 person

    • Dear Na’ama
      Thank you for reading and commenting. I’m afraid you’re right. He has a constituency, though, doesn’t he? Will he get a second term, do you suppose?
      I hope you’re coping okay with lockdown. NYC must be a difficult place to be right now.
      With very best wishes
      Penny

      Liked by 1 person

      • NYC is always an interesting place to live in, and we’re experiencing a whole new kind of ‘interesting’ these days …
        As for those who follow the weak-egos under the impression that bluster and violence denotes strength of character (spoiler alert: the denote the opposite) — there were always mobs who found pseudo-vigor in carrying torches and doing the bidding of those who hadn’t the least interest in their minions’ well being but were using them to their own advantage. It was evident through history and we see the same affinity repeated now. Will it prevail over reason, sanity, facts, science, democracy, and good-will? That will depend on how many will make their voices heard, ensure their votes are in and counted, demand more from their leaders, and vote-out those who support and nurture tyranny over humanity. I don’t think it is impossible for the wrong persons to remain in power, but I also don’t think it is impossible at all to vote them out … So … yeah, vote them out …
        XO from NYC, NY in NY … 😉

        Liked by 1 person

    • Well, I certainly hope you manage to vote out Trump. But don’t you also need a radical reform of the Republican Party? They seem to have been spineless in resisting their party’s drift towards fascism. And the Democrats could use a makeover, too…
      Democracy sure is the least worst option!
      xx

      Liked by 1 person

      • I will do my best to do my best … 😉
        As for reform – I think there will be a lot of repair (as there always in, when people follow cult-like leaders), and that both parties have work to do. Hopefully they can work TOGETHER on repairing what needs repair, and in finding the threads that bind us and connect us, rather than forcing division or getting stuck in corners or boxes … 😉

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