Dwight Howard Cowardly Walks Back Calling Taiwan A Country Amid Chinese Outrage

Dwight Howard pathetically walked back calling Taiwan a country because he upset people in China.

China has long claimed Taiwan is a territory of the communist nation, but pretty much the whole world recognizes the island nation as a sovereign nation. Whenever anyone famous calls Taiwan a country, it sets off fireworks in China.

Howard, who plays in Taiwan, is the latest person to upset people in the communist controlled nation after appearing in a video promoting the country.

"Since I've come to Taiwan, I've gained a whole new appreciation of this country. This place makes me feel so much love and I experience so much hospitality with a friendly and greatly living environment with such a great diverse culture," the former NBA star said in a promotional video released earlier in the week.

Dwight Howard backs down.

Users on the popular Chinese social media site Weibo attacked Howard for supporting Taiwan and demanded he apologize for *checks notes* recognizing reality, according to CNN. Chinese censors took down the video after it appeared on Weibo, according to the same report.

Instead of holding the line, Howard stupidly decided to walk back his 100% correct comment that Taiwan is a country.

"Where I’m from if I say I wanna go to the country, it doesn’t not mean that place is a country. It’s just how we talk. If I offended anyone in China, I apologize. It was not my intention to harm anyone with what I said in the commercial. I am not a politician. I don’t want to get involved in any politics… I have the utmost respect for Chinese people and utmost respect for Taiwanese people, so it was never my intent to disrespect nobody," Howard clarified to the press in Taiwan, according to the CNN report.

Yes, Dwight Howard walked back claiming Taiwan is a country and issued one of the most pathetic reversals in recent memory.

What the hell does this even mean:

Where I’m from if I say I wanna go to the country, it doesn’t not mean that place is a country. It’s just how we talk.

As an American, I can 100% say that's false. Americans refer to countries as countries. Nobody I have ever met thinks differently.

The groveling to China needs to stop.

Dwight Howard is hardly the first person who has had to issue a groveling statement to China over Taiwan. John Cena issued one of the most pathetic apologies in modern history after calling Taiwan a country.

How do these people look themselves in the mirror?

For the record, the CCP is one of the most evil forces on the planet. The communists ruling China crush individual freedom, run camps for ethnic minorities and attempt to bully the entire region. Taiwan, a free society, lives under the constant threat of war from the Chinese.

When idiots like John Cena and Dwight Howard bow to the CCP, they're bending the knee to a dictatorship. Take a bow. Hope you're proud. The NBA won't use the bathroom in the morning without asking Beijing's permission first.

Now, Dwight Howard bows to China even though he's not in the NBA anymore. Cowardice at its worst.

Dwight Howard walks back calling Taiwan a country. (Credit: Facebook Video/https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=200140216216535&ref=sharing)

Grow a spine and take a stand for freedom or live on your knees at the mercy of the CCP. It's not a hard choice for me and OutKick readers. For Dwight Howard, it's apparently also an easy choice - just in the wrong direction.