alt Hacker NewsI'm not saying Britain didn't do something _against the will of the goverment_. I'm just questioning OP's nonsense that individuals were forced to consume Opium vs not forced to consume TikTok - in both cases, clearly nobody was forced. And in both cases, it's products made to be addictive.
The specific words were “china's population” which is different from any specific person.
Did the English strap down each individual and intravenously administer opium? Unlikely.
To the extent that a government reflects the general sense and purpose of a population (mandate of heaven, etc), did Queen Victoria and all her subjects force people in China to accept the presence and marketing of an addictive and risky substance? Absolutely.
Ironically, the people of Great Britain fought a war to sell opium right as there was a temperance movement within Victorian culture.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Temperance_movement_in_the_Uni...