Thornbird

jīngjí niǎo 荆棘鸟

A thorn bird (Source: Sina/@雪雅v1)

A self-applied nickname used by Guo Wengui, an exiled billionaire with known ties to China’s intelligence agency, to describe his expected destiny as a martyr. Draws inspiration from the 1977 novel “The Thorn Birds” by Australian author Colleen McCullough.

The title of McCullough’s best-selling 1977 novel, as she explains in the book, comes from the Celtic legend of the thorn bird, a mythological bird which sings just once in its life, immediately preceding its death. In the book, McCullough describes the tale: “There is a legend about a bird which sings just once in its life, more sweetly than any other creature on the face of the earth. From the moment it leaves the nest it searches for a thorn tree, and does not rest until it has found one. Then, singing among the savage branches, it impales itself upon the longest, sharpest spine. And, dying, it rises above its own agony to out carol the lark and the nightingale. One superlative song, existence the price. But the whole world stills to listen, and God in His heaven smiles. For the best is only bought at the cost of great pain.”

Guo likens his own recent activities exposing alleged corruption among top Party leaders to the thorn bird’s mythological life cycle. By Guo’s account, he is laying out his “song” for the “whole world to still and listen,”at the cost of becoming one of China’s most wanted fugitives.

In a September 4 tweet, Guo’s Twitter follower @henry_chen81 asked him, “Can currying favor with the emperor bring you pardon?” (讨好皇帝能被赦免吗?) This was a reference to Guo’s repeated insistence that he is not seeking the fall of President Xi Jinping, a key element of “Guo’s Seven Articles,” one of which asserts that Guo is “not opposed to Chairman Xi” (不反习主席). Guo replied with a tweet:

If you believe Wengui is so ignorant, silly, and naive, then you totally misunderstand me! Wengui’s [my] ending has long been foreordained, even the heavens can’t change that! Only if “Guo’s Seven Articles” are carried forward and acknowledged can I regard my mission as complete! No matter what, my ending is the same as the Australian thorn bird’s fate! I only care about the results of the three-year exposé! And the return of our lawful assets. That’s fair. That’s honor! I rely only on myself, and expect nothing from anyone else. Likewise, others cannot stop me!

如果您认为文贵有这样的愚蠢无知天真！那就是太不了解文贵了！文贵结局早已注定！上天也改变不了了！我只有被推进被认可郭七条我才能算完成我的使命！无论如何我的结局都是澳洲荆棘鸟的命运！我只在乎三年爆料结果！与拿回我们的合法财产．公平．尊严！我只依靠自己不指望任何人！任何人也阻止不了我 [Chinese]

Guo has not always struck such a fatalistic tone, saying in earlier statements that he was aiming to “save his life, save his money, and gain revenge” (保命保钱报仇).

Other of Guo’s Twitter followers replied after he described himself as a thorn bird:

Thorn Bird! No, you’ll be reborn as a phoenix!!!

荆棘鸟！不，您会是凤凰浴火而重生！！！[Chinese]

We don’t want Guo Wengui to become a thorn bird, we want him to lead the Chinese people toward democracy, freedom, equality, and a nation of law.

我们不要文贵哥做荆棘鸟，我们要文贵哥带领我们中国人民走向民主自由平等的法制国家 [Chinese]

See also All of this is only the beginning!.

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