Patriot Games: Democracy always loses!

Above, Ms. Meng Wanzhou, Deputy Chairman and Chief Financial Officer (CFO) of China’s largest private company, the telecom giant Huawei founded by her father Ren Zhengfei. Insert: The actress Polly Walker in her role as “Annette” in the 1992 movie, Patriot Games.
American movies with a British story-line such as the 1992 movie “Patriot Games” (based on Tom Clancy’s novel and staring Harrison Ford and Anne Archer) have, for a Briton, a strange “parallel universe” feel about them as they are based on “middle America’s” perception of Britain or “England” as the UK is collectively referred to on that side of the pond.
The perception stems from the average American’s extreme insularity and their lack of knowledge of lands overseas. Perhaps the most glaring manifestation lies in the name they give to themselves, “Americans” living in “America”. Of course the FACT is that they are citizens of the USA which is classed as being in the northern subcontinent of America, the continent. The incongruity and arrogance of this possession of the name entirely escapes their notice. They see nothing amiss that the citizens of Brazil (Area 3,287,956 sq mi ~ Population [2019 estimate] 210,147,125) are of course Brazilians and they would argue strongly were a Brazilian ever have the temerity to claim that they were an American!
This combination of insularity, ignorance and self-importance (national) produces a form of naïve arrogance that is uniquely “American”. It is the sort of arrogance that imbues a US prosecutor – who we must remember is elected – and therefore as well as being a law officer is also a politician – to issue an extradition request to the Canadian authorities for the arrest of a Chinese national (Ms. Meng Wanzhou) for allegedly violating sanctions imposed by a US President. Not only that, but under the unique (for a supposed “Western” democracy) criminal justice system whose democratic elements have caused the USA to have the world’s largest prison population – per capita, the USA locks up more people for longer than virtually anybody else – and does not have a lower set of crime figures to justify it; It is reported that were Ms. Meng Wanzhou extradited and convicted in a US court she could face a prison term of up to 30 years! This for a non violent “crime! – a breach of politically motivated sanctions! Let us face it, murderers in Europe get less than this!
The naïvety (of the US media and politicians) is demonstrated by their surprise and anger of the arrest and the detention by the Chinese of two Canadian nationals on “spying” charges!
GOTO: https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/2177585/chinese-state-security-behind-detention-canadian-former
GOTO: https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/2177734/canada-says-second-person-questioned-china-after-detention
These arrests had an inevitability about them as sure as night follows day!
It was obvious to any and all sentient lifeforms on the planet with more than two functioning brain cells – that is with the exception of Homo sapiens resident within the USA – that this was going to happen!
This is what totalitarian regimes do!
Why?
Two reasons:
#1: Because they are totalitarian regimes! It’s like asking why do dogs bark? Answer: Because they’re dogs! That’s what dogs do!
#2: Because they can!
Were say, Sajid Javid the Home Secretary to telephone Cressida Dick, the Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police and instruct her to send out a couple of police officers to arrest an Iranian person – at random – regardless of them having not having committed an offence, Ms Dick would angrily and robustly tell Mr Javid exactly what she thought of the instruction! In other words, that power is unavailable to Mr Javid. Not that the upright Mr Javid would ever countenance such an act!
The unfortunate Canadians now find themselves between a rock and a hard place. If they release Ms. Meng Wanzhou they will earn the ire of the USA and if they send Ms. Meng Wanzhou to the USA they will not only lose Chinese trade but two innocent Canadian men will spend years in a harsh Chinese gaol.