• mech@feddit.org
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      16 days ago

      At the time of the early railroad barons, China still had an Emperor and was ravaged by Opium addiction.

      • freagle@lemmy.ml
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        16 days ago

        Ravaged by opium addiction because the Europeans realized they could make huge profits by getting people addicted. Fun fact, when China decided they would ban opium Britain sent the war ships and bombed the fuck out of them and ripped entire cities away from China, put them under British rule, and gave all Europeans total immunity from Chinese law within those cities so they could be full blown hives of scum and villainy with official clearance by the crown.