The real reason that Britain went to war against the Chinese (The Boxer Rebellion) was to prevent the emperor of China – concerned about the spread of drug use among his people – from destroying China’s opium crop. The British, who were making huge profits from the opium trade, had Parliament declare war against the Chinese for interfering with their profitable “commerce.” One of the spoils of that war was that Hong Kong became British territory, resulting in a port controlled by England for the transshipment of drugs.
Source: from an omitted chapter from the printed edition of Oklahoma City Bombing and the Politics of Terror by David Hoffman)
