Comments by "peabase" (@peabase) on "What do protests in Hong Kong and Barcelona have in common? | DW News" video.

  1. The striking difference here is that the Spaniards are too level-headed to fall for conspiracy theories that blame all and sundry for their domestic troubles.
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  2. Democracy is not at stake in Spain. It's about an already autonomous community wanting to take the next step in self-determination. And Spain isn't alone in this. The UK, Belgium and Italy are more or less in the same boat, and similar sentiments are simmering elsewhere, too -- and outside of Europe as well. Why should the existing borders be carved in stone? Smaller countries tend to perform better, too.
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  3. How utterly naive you are. This isn't in any way symptomatic of the "West". It's happening everywhere. South Sudan was the last country to gain independence. That's in Africa, in case you struggle with geography as well. Europe has seen Czechoslovakia break apart as well as Yugoslavia, but the biggest of break-up of them all was the Soviet Union. None of those were considered "Western". Borders change over time.
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  4. The crucial difference is that the Catalonians have democracy, but they want independence on top of that. Hongkongers are still struggling to gain the former.
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  5.  @alpshiker3553  Freest economy. That's a different kettle of fish. Hong Kong has never been a full democracy.
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