The Clock May Be Ticking for TikTok

Last week, the U.S. House of Representatives, in a bipartisan vote, passed a bill that gives its China-based owner six months to sell its stake in the company or face a nationwide ban. The 352-65 vote now sends the bill to the Senate, where its prospects are far from certain.

TikTok is a wholly-owned subsidiary of ByteDance Ltd., a Chinese technology firm, whose CEO Shou Zi Chew is none too happy with the House measure. Neither is the Chinese government, which tells you all you need to know.

As China happily data mines the personal information of TikTok’s 170 million clueless U.S. subscribers, its government and its business affiliates are busy gobbling up American farmland and ranchland – much of it in close proximity to U.S. military installations – faster than Joe Biden can stumble up the steps of Air Force One. For that reason alone, not only should Congress force ByteDance to divest itself of TikTok, but the federal government should also follow Florida’s lead and ban the purchase of U.S. land by China and its proxies.

What is holding Congress back from taking such logical steps when America’s national security is at stake? Aside from the lined pockets of a few federal officeholders – allegedly including “China Joe” Biden – senators and representatives are getting an earful on the subject from their constituents.

The patriotic ones are asking their representatives in Washington to ban TikTok if it doesn’t cut its ties with China. However, a vocal minority of voters are pushing for just the opposite. Their childish and selfish rationale is that if TikTok is banned in the U.S., they will lose access to its videos… some of which they created themselves and others which they simply like to watch.

How on earth can we possibly survive as a nation let alone a species if we can’t access videos of barking dogs, meowing cats, or whatever else passes for mindless entertainment on TikTok these days? “I need my daily fix of (fill in the blank) videos or my life will be empty and meaningless, devoid of all hope, laughter, and joy” they whine.

My heart absolutely breaks for these people – not because I agree with them, but because I pity their complete lack of purpose. Dumbing down and entertaining the ever-dependent masses has been the Chinese and Russian strategy for world domination since Karl Marx, Vladimir Lenin, and Mao Zedong were in diapers. Actually, their diabolical scheme dates back to ancient Rome, where the emperors went to great lengths to occupy the proletariat so the bourgeoisie could remain in uncontested power.

“Let them eat cake,” chided Marie Antoinette shortly before losing her head in the French Revolution. “Let them watch videos,” echo her modern-day disciples, who are willing to do virtually anything to maintain the status quo that favors the rich and educated minority at the expense of the allegedly uncouth and unsophisticated majority.

And yet, what troubles me even more than the tyranny of the power elite – and the apathy and ignorance of the everyday consumer – is how evangelical Christians are willing to compromise their beliefs and sell their souls in exchange for access to 30-second videos. One would think that they would be leading the charge to ban TikTok – and to boycott Disney, for that matter – but their faith only goes so far. When forced to decide between God’s kingdom and the Magic Kingdom, Mickey Mouse wins almost every time.

With our lips we sing Amazing Grace and The Old Rugged Cross, but with our actions – and our wallets – we reveal our true priorities and allegiances. Meanwhile, Christians who have been martyred for their faith look down from heaven and marvel at our lack of commitment while Revolutionary War patriots do the same.

Can you imagine Nathan Hale saying, “I regret that I have only one life to give for my video collection” shortly before he was hanged as a colonial spy? Or our Founding Fathers revolting against England because their right to purchase annual passes to Disneyworld was being threatened?

How about Jan Hus, William Tyndale, Jim Elliot, and Nate Saint – the former two who were burned at the stake and the latter two who were killed by the Auca Indians they were seeking to evangelize? What would they think about the shallowness of the faith we supposedly profess?

Pretty pathetic, if you ask me.