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   Steve Wart (swart@mastodon.cloud)'s status on Monday, 09-Sep-2024 09:01:49 JST Steve Wart

   This opening paragraph floors me

   https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/First_Opium_War

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     Steve Wart (swart@mastodon.cloud)'s status on Monday, 09-Sep-2024 09:01:46 JST Steve Wart

     in reply to

     Leaflets and pamphlets were widely distributed in Pennsylvania that described the East India Company as an institution "well versed in Tyranny, Plunder, Oppression, and Bloodshed." It was a symbol of all that was wrong with Britain itself, where the highest levels of society were in thrall to the greedy, self-serving interest groups enriching themselves at the expense of the common people.

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     Steve Wart (swart@mastodon.cloud)'s status on Monday, 09-Sep-2024 09:01:47 JST Steve Wart

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     As revenues collapsed due to the, er, lack of workers, costs spiked sharply, and there was a run on the shares of the EIC. The British government decided they were too big to fail and decided to sharply increase taxes on the colonies in North America, where they were much lower than in Britain. Some colonists got upset, dressed up as natives, and dumped the cargo of several ships filled with tea into the Boston Harbour.

     Bill repeated this.
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     Steve Wart (swart@mastodon.cloud)'s status on Monday, 09-Sep-2024 09:01:48 JST Steve Wart

     in reply to

     In 1773 the House of Common set up a committee to investigate the aftermath (not to mention the diversion of funds), and found that over £2 million—tens of billions in today's terms—had been given as "presents" to EIC employees.

     Bill and Waiting for the Tide repeated this.
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     Steve Wart (swart@mastodon.cloud)'s status on Monday, 09-Sep-2024 09:01:48 JST Steve Wart

     in reply to

     By 1770 the price of grain reached catastrophic levels, and famine spread throughout the region. The death toll was estimated in the millions — the governor of Bengal himself said that 1/3 of the population had died.

     When they asked Clive about the events, he said his job was protect the interests of shareholders, not the local population, and surely he should not be criticized for that.

     Bill repeated this.
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     Steve Wart (swart@mastodon.cloud)'s status on Monday, 09-Sep-2024 09:01:49 JST Steve Wart

     in reply to

     To counter this imbalance, the British East India Company began to grow opium in Bengal and allowed private British merchants to sell opium to Chinese smugglers for illegal sale in China.

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     Steve Wart (swart@mastodon.cloud)'s status on Monday, 09-Sep-2024 09:01:49 JST Steve Wart

     in reply to

     In 1857 the East India Company appointed Robert Clive to put down an attack on Calcutta by the Bengalis. He started playing one side against the other for protection, and in short order was taking all the tax revenue from the region. Being one of the most populated regions in the world and a major producer of textiles, he became the richest man in the world.