We can talk for ever - No easy answers - will have to wait and see what happens in 3/6/12 months.

In the mean time the usual precautions to avoid infection - will never be perfect but try our best.

The Civil Service is full of useless Pansies. They have job security and fat pensions. Needs reforming.

Parliament noticed that the EIC Nabobs were acting lawless and minting money on the side and corrupting Parliamentarians. Hence new Laws were brought in to curb the Company's powers - seriously - it took months for news to travel and the EIC Nabobs were out of control until the British Government took control after the Mutiny of 1857/8. Corruption continued and many Parliamentarians like Gladstone had investments in the colonies from which they profited. Best not to judge History by present day standards - law and order as we know today and representative democracy did not exist in Britain either and those in privileged positions took advantage.

Then again there is quite a bit of fact in the article.

We all base our understanding based on facts presented and also our knowledge and past experience and cause and effect reasoning.

No one is expected to believe all that is written in the Guardian or other papers.

I thought you said judging history by today's standards is stupid.

Once again - you don't understand British or Indian history - you need to be able to look at all sides or get lost - as you obviously are.

Britain was interfering in China's affairs because it had the resources and Indian Sepoys to back such ventures. Indian opium was bartered for Chinese Tea for British markets as the Dutch introduced tea into Britain where the upper classes wanted more.

Following the opium Wars and the Indian Mutiny much of Opium growing areas were devastated and Indian tea plantations were set up for the British Market.

Look up the like of William Gladstone who was a Director many Indian Cos - shipping, Tea, etc.

Also look up
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/mar/04/eas...

No point judging history by today's standards - equally justify past actions as you appear to be doing.

All human societies have indulged in what would be called dark deeds by today's standards - that is how history evolves - no Angels or Devils.

Rubbish - you know very little about Indian or British History. It brought wars and destruction across most of India - Only later on in the 19th Century when the British Parliament took control.

Look up
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/mar/04/eas...

You will have to look up the details - The East India Co Administrators and military starting from Clive of India were corrupt, often aided by many Prime Ministers and MPs of the day involved in private ventures, bribery and corruption to gain side-income.

The military men of the day profited from the various wars and expeditions. The Opium Wars (19th Century) with China was triggered when the Chinese Emperor banned Indian Opium being bartered for Chinese Tea exported to Britain and Opium addiction became prevalent in China. Many British Prime ministers of the day and MPs profited from the various expeditions and corrupt business ventures of the East India Co including the sack of Peking (Lord Elgin 1860) when Hong Kong was taken over - you refer to Jardine Henderson/Matheson - started from those times.

The East India Co was essentially a Mafia racket. Just one example - the Gladstone Family was involved in many colonial ventures - tea and opium plantations, shipping including transporting indentured workers after the emancipation of slaves, etc, etc.

Many British PMs and MPs or their Family members were involved in shipping and the slave trade, also various colonial ventures that brought them immense wealth. Politics in the 18th and 19th centuries was corrupt and the British Ruling Classes benefited immensely - look up the history of various Grand Mansions and Estates they built.

Also look up https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_political_s...
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/mar/04/eas...

British Prime Ministers, MPs and East India Co servants also made a good living out of colonial ventures and some were impeached. The Ruling Classes were corrupt all over the world in the 18th and 19th Centuries and also in the first half of the 20th. British Ruling Classes profited from drug-running in China and the Opium Wars. Those in the Military had a share of War-booty.