Opening ceremony cool - for some
So, what did you think of it?
I was lucky enough to get into the Olympic Stadium to watch the opening ceremony (or more precisely - the first hour of it, before I had to go and put together a TV piece).
I won't go through the details - it's been pretty well covered everywhere else - but a few observations.
If China's leaders looked cool during the ceremony, it's because they were. I had a quick look at their seats before they came in - hidden under the long wooden table, there were personal air conditioners next to each seat.
I watched everything from high up opposite the home straight. A cameraman from another organisation seemed to be so enthralled that he left his camera position, found a spare seat in the stands, and sat back to enjoy the show.
Footage of the rehearsals of the opening ceremony leaked out a week ago - but China still managed to keep the torch lighting moment a secret right till the end. During the ceremony, we heard rumours that the torch was to be lit by a phoenix (to symbolise the rebirth of China). Then, we got fairly baffling word that the torch was to be lit by a giant panda which had apparently been specially trained for two months.
Finally, of course, the torch bearer turned out to be Li Ning (singled out on this blog a few months ago as one of the 10 Chinese people we should all know about).
Now, the Games are under way - and China has won its first gold medals.
I’m 
© MMIX~RS~q~RS~~RS~z~RS~55~RS~)
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I am glad you enjoy the opening ceremony. and the detail of air-conditioner is funny. No surprise that they can keep suit on while foreign leaders all shaking fans.
I enjoy the ceremony much last night, it's not completely perfect, but wonderful enough:)
Thanks to all stuff and actors last night. they must feel very hot...
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How dare you criticise China's seats! Who gives you the right to look under our seats Mr Reynolds!
How would you like it if a Chinese journalist looked under the British seats in 2012? When in China you are a guest and you should never degrade our motherland by looking under out seats. China we love you!
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I like this post. Good job James. The panda idea is sooooo funny.:))
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Hi James,
It was the most spectacular show I've ever seen. But I am not sure if James can understand it all, because there introduced a lot of Chinese histories and inventions such as Compass, Paper, Printing, Powder, Confucius, Zheng He(who was a famous navigator in Chinese history )?
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James, have you had a look at President Bush's seat whether there was a personal air conditioners? He was cool because he's cool as well right?
"torch was to be lit by a giant panda"might just be another rumor, trying to gather EVIDENCE that China tortures animals.
Lucky you, I missed the opening ceremony completely.
I luckily got some holiday and will go Beijing to watch the games.I believe China will do well in the games, all the best to Team GB too. I of course support team China, support GB on the sports without Chinese competitors :-)
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Did Bush and other leaders not have one?
Not too bad cuz they looked hot.
Or probably they just don't want to use air conditioners because they so much care about the environment?
Hope you enjoyed the ceremony. But you are probably disappointed as well because things like protests and terrorist attacks didn't happen. Sorry if I have been mean.
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Credit where credit's due, the opening ceremony was visually stunning and a logistical masterpiece. Bravo China!
Nice observation on the air conditioned seats. Are there any details on how the Chinese Flag was 'blowing in the wind' despite what was clearly stagnant stadium air? Was there a giant fan targeted at the flag?
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Hi, James.
You never mention anything good about China again. I saw the opening ceremony on the BBC, London, and was thrilled. It was really fantastic and meticulous. It epitomised the history and culture of China, the past, the present and the future. It was very artistic. Hope you know the meaning of the each performence which shows every stage of China's history. Please learn more about China!!!
London
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I know what all you James haters are going to say.
C'mon guys, do you know who you're dealing with here?
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I'm fed up with your cheeky one liners, am I supposed to be amused by your cheekiness? I mean, what's up with you people? when/what did China ever do to you to deserve you all ganging up on the Olympics? faced with such a successfully opening ceremony you can't find anything else to criticize and you pick on the leaders having air con and you don't?
I was watching the BBC coverage, and your commentators wouldn't stop politicizing the game, constantly reminding us of the problems, the smog, this and that. If you're this unhappy about it, why on earth do you even cover it? why don't you just boycott it all together so that I can get some peace and quiet!
That's the thing about you Brits isn't it? you guys see some new kid on the block, you're jealous and not happy about it but dare not to confront him. so you sit back starting blah blah blah talking him down. It happens everyday in Britain: on the streets, weak people gets bullied, tough mussel man gets verbally abused. On the world stage, weaker countries get hard done by, stronger country? well you just can't stop yaba yadi da. Does this suppose to make you feel good about yourself?
You bunch of cowards! you don't deserve the respect of the Chinese people.
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Well done, China! International Olympic Committee should award their first gold medal to China for being the world's worst violator of human rights. China, you have murdered and maimed Tibetan protestors to get your way to this 'glorious day'. Now the glory is yours, you can have it. For 50 years, the people of Tibet have asked nothing but their freedom and dignity. Nothing but their right to live in peace, and with their cultural heritage. That's not even separation from China, is that too much to ask?
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2. At 10:09am on 09 Aug 2008, Senlin wrote:
How dare you criticise China's seats! Who gives you the right to look under our seats Mr Reynolds!
How would you like it if a Chinese journalist looked under the British seats in 2012? When in China you are a guest and you should never degrade our motherland by looking under out seats. China we love you!
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Oh so when CCPBrain is not here, it's ur turn to play the Infernal Affairs again~:D
Anyway I think the performance was great, although it dragged a bit afterwards and the piece to represent modern China should be more sports related, rather than showing some astronauts which I throught was really random.
On rumours how the opening ceremony would be held, 8 yrs ago we joked that Zhang would arrange 40000 ppl playing Mahjong in Tiananmen Sq wearing 3 watches on their wrists each (san ge dai biao), then they would shout "Hu!!!" (same pronouciation as our president's surname) when they won, and then Mr Hu would just flick a ciggarette into the caldron and voila! Although later sb suggested you cannot have 40000 ppl to win in Mahjong at the same time, 30000 the most.
But I'm glad Zhang didn't dissapoint and Li Ning deserved to be guy who light the caldron!
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To comment #2 by senlin :
James was looking under the seats to make sure there was no Tibetan "holiness" hidden there, but found the air conditioning, instead. No offense at all. Give James a break, will you?
You sounded so sour for some reason.
Anybody treated you badly there in India?
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Simply the best!
I was so joyful last night, watching the spectacular show unfolding on TV in Sydney.
No words can decscribe the excitement that I've been through.
Absolutely one of the most unforgettable moments in my life!
Best of my luck to those athletes and hope the ongoing war between Russia and Georgia can end soon!
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Clearly, this fantastic and spectacular opening ceremony makes all the brits worried since this is definitely out of their league.
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I am pretty sure that James had to pick up those pathetic cheekiness in order to make himself feel a little bit better.
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Wow, even this post by James received shrill over-reactions from some. He heard rumours about a panda perhaps doing the torch lighting and "fairreport" thinks this is an accusation of animal cruelty? Oh dear. I thought the air-conditioners was merely an interesting detail, and I don't see anything wrong with Hu Jintao having one anyway. He officially opened the event, so should look his best.
Others seem to misunderstand his humour also.
The ceremony was brilliant, well done to Zhang Yimou. It acted as a kind of audio-visual introduction to Chinese history and culture. The fact that a cameraman stopped work and just sat down to watch says it all.
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The opening ceremony was fantastic! However, the commentary was not. The BBC was doing what the Olympic commitee and China were trying very hard to keep out! Politics! The whole commentary was full of unnecessary and rude comments e.g."That's all we're going to see of China's communism". I hope the British don't complain at London 2012 when other countries complain of how the stadium was rather bland and the opening ceremony was nowhere near half as good as China's. The BBC needs to show more respect towards others.
I do enjoy reading your blog James, however I find that you are not so open minded to learn and adapt to the Chinese culture and surroundings. I do wish that you will continue to learn in depth more about China, in so that you yourself will become a better journalist and get more happier readers rather than ones that hate you.
But lets not end this post on a bad tone, the opening was surely spectacular and I hope you did enjoy it. Lets all enjoy the sports events to come...
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You are trying to invoke some feeling here, but again it is pointless. A lesson you need to learn.
For a 67 years old leader, responsible for 1.3 billion people, having to be on stage for 4 hours in such humid and hot weather, a private air conditioner is absolutely necessary and most Chinese will not have any disgreement.
Chinese respect the elder people. If he is my dad, I will ask him to stay at him. However, Mr. Hu's son cannot do this, because his dad is the president of the country and he had to be there.
For your British queen in the same situation, I believe most british will agree with me as well.
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True to his form, james reynolds must find something negative whenever he reports on China. Even if the 'personal aircond' story is true (which I'm doubtful), I don't believe other VVIPs like the IOC president seated right next to top Chinese leaders didn't have one as well.
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How can James miss the ecstatic cheers of the Chinese people to their nation and leaders?
The Western propaganda falls apart with the slightest common sense.
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Senlin wrote:
"How dare you criticise China's seats! Who gives you the right to look under our seats Mr Reynolds!
How would you like it if a Chinese journalist looked under the British seats in 2012? When in China you are a guest and you should never degrade our motherland by looking under out seats. China we love you!"
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This response is so rediculus!!! What a hysterical response bordering paranoia!!!
Perhaps it's this kind of mentality that the Chinese government is concerned of rather than the fear of outside informations getting in to the mind of the people that prompted them to block all foreign web porta. Perhaps it will be wiser for the Chinese government to block the BBC and all outside media again(?). After all, image needs to be protected at all cost. LOL
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It is a bit mean of the Chinese organisers not also to have offered the other leaders airconditioning.
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In my opinion, today's blog seems the lightest one so far, perhaps because all the build-up, all the tension, and all the controversial around the Beijing Games have passed its peak. Now, it's time for some serious sports.
But the tensions are still there as can be seen from the comments of today's piece. There is a Chinese saying "Zhong Kou Nan Tiao",, which is certainly true for the news reports and blogs. But news and blogs are not put out to satisfy everyone. Having diverse opinions are a good thing. Keep on discussing, criticizing, commenting... but once a while, try other people's shoes for a change.
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Sorry I was protesting on friday at the chinese embassy and missed the opening ceremony.
From all the comments, don't think I missed much.
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To comment #2 and #10,
These comments don't look like they were written by the Chinese, I know some Chinese people find James' reports/opinions about China usually disappointing, but these 2 comments just don't seem to be written by Chinese.
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James
Saw u on TV and the shirt you were wearing is really a shame. Was it the same one you wore when you were in the Sichuan earthquake zone? Have you ever washed and ironed it?
It was understandable to wear a shirt like that when you were in the earthquake zone but now you are in Beijing. So wash and iron it or simply wear a t-shirt.
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NBC (the American broadcaster of the Olympics) didn't show all of the ceremony, including the 'orangey' scene in the first photograph of this article. Arrgh. Stupid commercials. The parts they did show were superb, though.
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BORING!!
Looking under the seats? I would look too. Maybe I'd find something interesting.
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"How dare you criticise China's seats! Who gives you the right to look under our seats Mr Reynolds!"
Hahahah, Senlin, are you being sarcastic or are you really serious about it?
I think all the Chinese here should be aware that you are reading things posted on a British media website and it is normal for a journalist have a totally different perspective to look at a foreign country. If complements are the only thing you want to hear, you should watch CCTV, read China Daily.
James, everything is China is about face. you should have given it a second thought when you wanted to tell the my innocent folks the emperor’s butt also sweats.
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Interesting how many posts are awaiting editing?
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I loved it!
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I loved the opening ceremony and was impressed by how much China has achieved however I wonder what soldiers have to do with olympic flags?
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What a spectacular opening ceremony!! It has definitely raised the bar. I watched in the US and I have to say NBC's commentary was excellent! It was clear that they have done a lot of homework and try to give a comprehensive view of the show and for the Games. They even had a lot of shots and a nice background story for Lin Hao the brave 9 year old who saved two of his classmates after he climbed out of the earthquake rubbles. NBC at the end interviewed Yao Ming, who held Lin Hao in his arms the whole time towards the end of the ceremony. The two giants are both very impressive:)
I actually found this piece quite entertaining - like the little notes about the cameraman. As far as the notion about the air conditioning goes, it is funny.
Please do not read too much into everything. I think Mr. Reynolds just really wants to be clever in *every* one of his reporting. He always wants to leave either with some sort of a punch line or a snarky comment. In Chinese, it is called Yu3 Bu4 Jing1 Ren2 Si3 Bu4 Xiu1 (???????), a character trait that is quite common among intellectuals. He just wants to impress.
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James,
The point is that if you don't understand Chinese calligraphy, you will have no clue why it has been appreciated as the mother act of all ( far above painting , music and Chinese Go) by Chinese, Korean and Japanese for thousands of years. Thus fundamentally, you will have near 0% understanding of Chinese culture.
Underlying spirit and messages conveyed by such a heavy use of Chinese calligraphy in the opening ceremony, together with its artistic and underlying philosophical meanings were nearly completely lost in the West broadcast agences. Hence for you westerners you only "saw 50%" of the real deal.
I was with BBC live . Huw and the other presenter were just completely lost in translation. Later I checked Rai Uno in Italian, Yorin, SBS in Dutch and TeleUno in Spanish. Their presenters' interpretations were also only limited to explain that Chinese character "harmony" and the four great inventions with the great wall. That's all.
So in trained Chinese eyes (to a certain extent Koreans and Japanese) , the opening was culturally heavy. Most Westners however, like you, didn't like drawing and writing some "stuff" on the stroll that much. They were just excited and jumping up and down sofa when seeing some superficial lighting, colors and fireworks.
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James, thanks for another interesting post. It's unfortunate that your good humour has been interpreted as 'cheekiness', and the hostility your comments seem to have generated is quite amazing.
I think some of the talk on this board about 'stonger' and 'weaker' countries, and Britons being 'cowards' is perhaps indicative of the Social Darwinian attitudes held by a large proportion of the Chinese population. Liu Xiang talked about proving 'Asians can run very fast' after winning the 110 hurdles in Athens, but can anyone imagine Tom Daley giving a speech on being White if he wins a diving gold next week? The struggle between the Yellow and White 'races' which was so important to writers like Yan Fu and Liang Qichao at the close of the nineteenth century will reach its natural conclusion for many Chinese people next week, when China hopes to top the medal table.
However, i'm sure few of these people understand how unacceptable the concept of 'race' has become to many of us, and I think similarly there is likely to be a widespread misperception of nationalism in modern Britain. Many people here seem to be offended at you looking under the Chinese leadership's chairs, using the Confucian argument of 'do not inflict on others what you yourself would not wish done to you' (Analects 15:24). I'm sure not many Britons would be too offended to hear a Chinese journalist had taken a sneak at Gordon Brown's chair though (or even stolen a glance at the Queen's footrest)!
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i heard it was especially hot that night.
it's bad that not every one can have an airconditioner.
the performers and organisers have suffered a lot during all there preparation and show stage. finally they can have a good night sleep.
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The ceremony is a master piece. Well done!
And well done James! Again you don't disappoint us by getting something interesting to write about on your blog. Great effort to discover the fans hidden under Hu's seat!
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Wonderful opening ceremony. Can not be any better. It is a presentation of Chinese culture and history. Thanks to all actors and the organiser. We appreciate their hard work. I like the young singer in red dress too.
Poor old James had to go under the seat to find flaws. Does BBC allow James first class ticket when he travels by air? May be a first class ticket can ease the jealousy a little bit.
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To Newborn-Khampa in post11.
Some facts for you.
Majority of Tibetans (Roughly 95% of all Tibetans) were freed from serfdom and slavery since 1969. They were granted with land.
Majority of Tibetans have been lifted out of extreme poverty they endured during Lama rule.
Tibetan Children only become multilingal when they enter high school.
The only unhappy people in Tibet are those(and their children) who lost their wealth, land( to the former slaves and serfs), and property (Slaves and serfs). Also those high Lamas who not only lost all of this but also their high statues as the ruler of Tibet.
Monks certainly want their glorious past back. Not happy with the little money paid by the central government. only Dalai Lama can bring back the glorious good old days.
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The opening ceremony was the best I ever saw, and yes, since I was a China specialist in school, I understood the historic significance of the show. Li Ning, being brought up on the cable to the top of the stadium was spectacular.
For the Chinese on here, do not take the "air conditioners under your leaders seats" as a criticism of China. I knew this from my studies but James has said this in his piece about the "century of humiliation." I understand, why the Chinese as a group feel that way about any comment like that. I took it strictly as an observation. They can make their own leaders comfortable. (BTW, as an American, I thought the Presidential couple looked bored).
As for "Free Tibet," I mentioned this on a local TV show I was on in Tucson Wed. night and I am putting it in more detail on my blog. If people wanted to "keep Tibet free," the time to do that was fifty years ago, not now. It is too late. It is an integral part of China and Tibetans are going to have to live with that fact.
Otherwise, 8/8//08 lived up to being rather auspicious for China.
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Well Jams:
Generally speaking after the pro-western Nationalist party flee to Taiwan China had never been a positive figure in the West not to mention the controversial Tienanmen square incident 20 years ago(which been repeated by media almost everyday in the world that most people don't even know the tank man is still alive because all west media just cut the sense which shows that tank had been stopped)
China doesn't need any one's favour and that won't change. We were just trying to explore a way to develop and continue our own civilization on this lonely planet after thousands of years. Those presidents/prime ministers of various countries will talk or do 'gestures' but that will just fool their own people.
people around the world hear ”??????, ????“
they also need to know “???????, ???????”
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For me the openning ceremony is just so so as we expected, that is what Zhang Yimo would bring out, we all know it.
If any of the foreign friends do not quite understand what it is about, do no worry, for many Chinese do not either.
there is one thing I believe London will surpass Beijing. the tempreture. A jacket will do to deal with the weather rather than a fan. It was really hot and I am sorry for the top leaders in suits.
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Hello: James! Very happy to see you are keeping well.
I was not as lucky as you were to have some time to watch the ceremony, although did some catch-up after work. It looked very fancy. But when you chew it you might be wondering what would be the effect to spend that sort of money and time trying to tell those watching it what China had done before? To be very honest, I was expecting some kind of good "East meet West" content since China is performing on the international stage. But I didn't see much. Maybe because I wasn't watching it from A to Z. Audio was terrible so I could hardly pick up the commentator's voice due to heavy echo. Not surprised the leaders had the special treat, it quite normal.
By the way, James, when it is possible, would you please ask the IOC chief a question which is puzzlesome to me. that is why he praised the Beijing Olympics Organizer's effort to bring the air quality to WHO's standard. Isn't it their obligation to do so and failure to that would constitute a material breach of the contract entered earlier on, wouldn't it?
Thank you and take care when working in the heat and high humidity. The good thing is they won't last very long.
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Now let us enjoy the games fully. No sarcastic remarks please!
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Have you watched the clip of Bush's speech after attending church in Beijing? When he repeated "god is watching", we hope that "god is watching" him for what his crime for war in Middle East.
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Tp Newborn_Khampa
Yes, that is too much to ask, also it is very unnecessary.
Chinese people with 56 nationalities are seeking unity, not separate. What does separation bring to the world? War, anger and greediness?
Look at russia and Georgia , Africa and many others, cause on going problems for life threatening.
There is no way you could contribute for preserving the cultural heritage and freedom, only hate and war!
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Ja, no doubt it is a spectatular ceremony impressing people all over the world. However, I think it would be better if it was more related to sports and modern China as antimatterbomb said. The long history is indeed a treasure of China, but really not necessary to show it off every time. It looks like now Chinese people are too much relying on it and are almost prone to sleep with it. Leave the history to specialists, release the modern China to the world. People will be more objective about this country after knowing it well, of course, except for those who are deliberate to provoke conflicts
Actually, I was quite expecting the Panda to lighten up the torch. It mush be very funny. :D
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Someone told that they wanted all the foreign dignitaries to be treated "equal", well...
Ah the openning, what an impressive compromise of the space, blue water marine themes that people love! Sad such scale never work out to fit my taste.
Wonder why they took out the "chairman mao" bit of the lyrics when the little girl singing(or lip-syncing) a ballad version of that same old song "Ode to Motherland".
Me thought it was going to be an "Ode to Peace or Freedom or Olympics". (me too stupid to make a prediction)
The panda idea is great but the moonwalking obviously looks too hard for them!
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Well the opening ceremony was certainly spectacular and very well performed. The video technology was also impressive. I was a bit disappointed though that much of it consisted of predictable masses-working-as-one routines that you would expect of a totalitarian regime. Not very creative.
I felt very sorry for all those women who had to stand around the track jiggling about for such a long time - now that was an endurance event!
I felt very embarrassed by the unruly Australian team, though the Americans were also pretty disordered too and lets not even mention the Italians! I don't expect them to march (like in the old days), but they could at least stay on the track and not behave like hooligans on holiday.
And so many (even some Chinese) were too busy with their video cameras and mobile phones to actually enjoy just being present.
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Olympic opening ceremonies are supposed to show the culture and history of the host countries. The idea is the ceremony is supposed to be able to tell the spectators who don't know about the culture and the history, so you don't have to know the cultural and historical details beforehand.
Routines done by thousands of performers in unison are no surprises. The North Koreans are even better at it. But they're in line collectivism of the Chinese culture. Notice that the performers were wearing ear pieces to receive unified signals and instructions.
The fireworks were nothing out of the ordinary.
The only part that can be said to be creative and artistic is that about the printing of Chinese charactors and the ink painting on the huge scroll.
The worst part was the end where the torch-bearing middle-aged ex-athelete was dragged by wires and kept repeating the same action for god knows how long.
The Beijing organiser should have declared beforehand that some televised fireworks displays would be only computer-generated due to safety concerns. The fact that it was made known only after the fact gives people a feeling of having been cheated.
London will not try to beat Beijing. The announced budget for the London Olympics is slightly less than half of that of the Beijing Olympics.
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Thought I might chime in,
James wrote,
"If China's leaders looked cool during the ceremony, it's because they were. I had a quick look at their seats before they came in - hidden under the long wooden table, there were personal air conditioners next to each seat."
This comment doesn't strike me as being critical - so I have trouble seeing how people got offended by it. Dare I say hypersensitive?
China is the host country, it doesn't make logical sense to cool the whole [open air] stadium, the leaders have to wear suits, so who cares if they want to use a personal air conditioner? Where can I get one of those? And who cares if James points it out, I think it's quite interesting.
To respond to post number 5:
"torch was to be lit by a giant panda"might just be another rumor, trying to gather EVIDENCE that China tortures animals."
in James' original sentence - "Then, we got fairly baffling word that the torch was to be lit by a giant panda which had apparently been specially trained for two months."
There is NOTHING in the original sentence, explicit or implicit, that suggests torture. Again, this response seems like hypersensitivity.
And in general, some thoughts on the blog: I myself have lived in China now for over 3 years. There's some things that frustrate me, and there's lots of things I really like, so much that I'm still here. China is a great country with great people and a rich history and culture.
And I lived in my home country for many more than three years. There's some things that really frustrate me, and there's lots of things I really like, so much that I'll go back one day. But it still is a great country with great people and a rich (albeit shorter) history and culture.
If my friends never criticize me, then I don't consider them true friends because they don't want to help me grow as a person, but just want to make me feel happy all the time. But if they can criticize me in a constructive way, that's invaluable because it helps me improve as a person. Conversely, if those who are not my friends criticize me in a mean way, it may hurt, but that doesn't [always] make it untrue. Just very hard to swallow. The point is, hypersensitivity only ends up hindering one's own personal growth. And criticism (kindly delivered or unkindly delivered) if it's based in truth, is a valuable thing. But let's strive for kindness!
Lastly, for a majority of James' entries, they don't seem all that critical... I just don't see it.
And no doubt, reporting on anything related to China, in this day in age, is a sensitive matter.
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I didn't watch any of that nonsense, however I would expect it to be fantastic after they spent £50million on it!!!
What a complete waste of money, especially considering the poverty and problems in China. You cant even build schools properly! Sichuan needs to be rebuilt after the earthquakes.
What about all the migrant workers that have not been paid for months of work then kicked out of the city.
What about the lack of investment in Tibet for Tibetan people (yes the Han get all the benefits there).
There is no way the people of London would allow such a huge amount of money to be wasted in this way.
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Why doesn't the committee give dear James an air conditioner? that can never be forgiven.
Dear James, have u ever thought how hot the perfomers would be? How could this little thing upset u and even become a blog? I see what you wanner express, but wasting this chance to give out another plain and cynical blog, all i can suggest is bbc should send someone more capable of doing the china blog. it's an insult to read this kind of complaint and totally a waste of time to focus on this bbc's china blog!
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Post 52 soseaghdha wrote: I was a bit disappointed though that much of it consisted of predictable masses-working-as-one routines that you would expect of a totalitarian regime. Not very creative.
The mass amount of people was meant to show the unity of the Chinese people, not something of a totalitarian regime. I have yet to see any country do something like this on a huge scale, maybe because they are not so united?
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I did not find the air conditioner under seat any offending. I like this little tip. some Chinese overreact perhaps because they are used to be defending in this blog.
seriously I do not like the ceremony that much, and I think the Greek one was better--maybe I am not civilized enough.
The tibetan friend here, I read that CCP killed millions of tibetan in the 50s, and anoter version is a few thousand everyday. It is amazing that we did not run out of tibetan and the population expands considerably. they are not qualified tibetans, according to you?
A few words about minorities. I am half Mogolian but was asigned the identity of Han at birth for my parents thought that would do me good--be majority. however, nowadays people are trying to have an identity of minority for it brings a lot of priorities.
I visit Yanbian recently (korean region), there korean couple will be fined 3000RMB for not having a child and 5000 will be rewarded to them for a second child and 8000 a third.
Do not say that minority is surpressed, OK? they are not treated equally because they have priorities!
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To #41, wonderfulchinese :
Some 60 years ago Tibet tried to declare independence.
You seem to have assumed that Tibetans, with the help of the international community would never have improved their lives had Tibet not been governed by China for the past 60 years. That’s a groundless assumption. In fact, even the Chinese themselves have improved their lives only in the past 20 years because of globalization.
Hong Kong was able to have reach a living standard; enjoyed the rule of law, the freedoms of expression parallel to the western industrialized countries only because it was not governed by China. That’s not an assumption, because Hong Kong had long been much more advanced than China, under British rule.
You say the only Tibetans unhappy with Chinese governance are the high lamas and the ex-elites. Well, that again is a groundless assumption. The only way to find out about the truth is let Tibetans have a referendum, like what they did in Quebec of Canada, and in Northern Ireland of the UK. What do you say?
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Congratulations on India?s first gold medal for individual events. I am glad because India?s ?first time? was in China. India will never forget this??like the Chinese still keeps talking about China?s first gold in LA, 1984. That was man?s shooting too.
I heard a lot from around the world on this OC. Most criticism seems to come from the Chinese netizens, because the live broadcast of China?s CCTV missed quit a few best parts of the show by turning the camera to some dignitaries. BBC?s live broadcast didn?t miss a thing, including all the ?balanced? comments.
This OC made it easier for London?s 2012 event (no, this is not a daughter of Mr. Spelling). Zhang focused on China?s past simply because we have so little to talk about China?s recent (i.e., from 1600 AD onwards), and the English can start from there, ignore Shakespeare and go straight to Sir Newton and the industrial revolution if they want to explore culture or history. But I very much doubt that. I guess I will see something very futuristic and very very new age (already have proof), just hope it won?t be too weird to freak us all out.
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huh,I see···
Ppl from all over the world are enjoying the great opening ceremony,but a man who is in the other side of the world and knows little about the chinese culture is complaining like an old woman,saying:’OH,I can't understand it at all,what i care about is that i dont have an air conditioner!'
maybe you should bring an air conditioner with u, or u'll complain about anyone who enjoys an air conditioner.
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To post 7:
The Flag being blown despite there is no wind is a little trick invented by a guy in China, and the tech has been recently used at some events. But till today he still complains that he has not been paid a penny for his invention. Why he didn't have it patented I'm not sure tho.
There is no 'giant fan' but a little something discreetly installed around the top of the post.
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Well, again the mention of race and culture difference.
The basic fact however is that the openning show, although heavily loaded with Chinese cultural contents, is a celebration of humanity with China being part of it. The Chinese civilisation, no matter how you interpret it, is just a branch of many forms of humanity.
I am strongly against any comparison of cultures.
The show was a huge success but one has to bear in mind it's a piece of art collectively designed by a team of experts from many countries, not just the Chinese. Check out the background story about it!
The fact that a person does not run fast doesn't necessarily make him inferior as a person as he may excel in other forms. The Eastern Asians are not natural born runners, a recognised fact, but they are very good at skill and technique based desciplines. Blacks do not swim well but they are good sprinters etc...
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James
I am surprised to read that your curiosity to make this observation, which is not common place, arises so much controversy. I find this piece of blog cool.
Just please don't fall in the temptation of using controversy with premeditation to keep your audience.
Yours readers will always adore or hate your keen eye if you nurture it.
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Well, well, well. While the greatest show on earth (for now, anyway) was taking place, the BBC correspondent for China was peeking under the seats. And that was all he could write about afterwards.
Says everything about small minds from a small island...
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To post 59#
I always wonder what makes people like you so convinced of something that you have little knowledge of.
Please, can you tell us how much you know abt Tibet and where your knowlegde of it came from.
You're not gonna tell me it's from the Sun are you? Or the BBC?
You lot just make laugh whenever you mention Tibet.
But one thing for sure is that what you lot may say counts nothing, and we will carry on to continue to DISAOPPINT you lot. Just forget it, you are no longer what you used to be. Accept it baby!
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57. yauchunwan
"The mass amount of people was meant to show the unity of the Chinese people, not something of a totalitarian regime. I have yet to see any country do something like this on a huge scale, maybe because they are not so united?"
I know what it was meant to show and to many Westerners it could only look creepy. Robots could do something as co-ordinated on a huge scale, but do we want to be robots?
Europeans have tried 'unity' and nationalism and it has only ended in wars and death. It's sad to see the Chinese taking it up.
I just thought that if China wanted to break down some stereotypes of what life in a dictatorship is like they might have done something else, that's all. Instead it was a standard piece of CCP propaganda.
I'm not saying it wasn't spectacular and impressive, just too regimented for my taste.
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To#66, Beijijnglondoner:
To answer your only queation. I got my knowledge of Tibet from the Xinhua news agency, as well as various sources. I read and write Chinese.
If you disagree with what I say, you should give a counter arguement instead of simply saying I know nothing.
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Post 57 soseaghdha wrote:
"I know what it was meant to show and to many Westerners it could only look creepy. Robots could do something as co-ordinated on a huge scale, but do we want to be robots?
I just thought that if China wanted to break down some stereotypes of what life in a dictatorship is like they might have done something else, that's all. Instead it was a standard piece of CCP propaganda."
You certainly did not understand the symbolism of the opening ceremony at all! As well as unity, it also presented the power of the people which moved China along through history, not robots! If robots were used, then it would destroy that meaning. Hence why even the typeset was moved using man power. The Chinese people created, moved and used it. NOT robots.
China is not afraid of stereotypes. Infact it is a long held tradition that things are done like this. It is certainly not propaganda of communism. In Anicent China, Fou drums were performed in large scale for the Emperor. How else would you portray the 3000 disciples of Confucius? Have 300, 1 actor representing 10? It would completely change the meaning of Confucius' 3000 disciples of unity! If you watch some of the old Chinese war or martial art films, many are done in a large scale of many actors. For example Hero, done by the Zhang Yimou, who was the director of the opening ceremony also. China does not change just because others are too closed minded to accept their tradition.
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The Opening Ceremony was spectacular!!!!!! I loved it!
The NBC commentator explained the ceremony step by step, telling us about Chinese culture and the first Chinese navigator to the American continent. It was highly interesting. (No mention of politics by the way. Come on, it's the Olympics.)
I'm not Chinese (I'm actually Japanese and American) but I was so proud and happy. Although China has a proud history, much of its modern one has been about oppression by its government, Western countries and Japan. And now, look!!! China are rising. Isn't that good news?
I just pray and hope that a time will come when Iraq and Palestine, among other nations, will overcome their strife and be at a point when they will be able to boast their own Olympic triumphs.
quote: I know what it was meant to show and to many Westerners it could only look creepy. Robots could do something as co-ordinated on a huge scale, but do we want to be robots?
end quote.
I didn't think it was creepy. My friend (Japanese-American) and I were awed! How wonderful to have 2008 participants acting in perfect coordination!! My other friend (Russian-American) found it a tad scary because when she was little, she grew up in the Soviet era and it reminded her of that time. I guess it depends where you come from.
But yay to China! And I can't wait for the next Olympic!
Mariko
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Not quite sure why people are bashing James about his comment about the air-conditioning. It's a fact and a light-hearted comment. I didn't find it critical. Maybe some are hypersensitive. Or perhaps like sarcastic humo(u)r??
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post 66. BeijingLondon
Chinese government may not allow independent media in Tibet but there are thousands and thousands of Tibetans from all walks of life crossing the border into Nepal and India. These Tibetans are crossing the border not because they are on some hiking trip or mountaineering expedition. Their only reason is to escape from the brutal regime of Chinese communist regime. They are also a source of information. The few foreigners that have been allowed into Tibet also have contributed to the information e.g They were able to cover the 1988 demonstration in Tibet which showed Chinese police beating up unarmed Tibetans. We also gather information from ones' relatives. So the government might think that they have completely sealed the plateau but there are gaps.
The Chinese government claims that the Tibetan language is widely used in Tibet, however most of the publications are Chinese.
I can go on and on. Luckily I live in a country where there is freedom of speech, freedom to practice your religion and freedom of media. I can see and read arguments from the both the sides and then make my own judgment.
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The opening ceremony was cool, meaning super, fantastic, unbelievable, great, etc. And literally cool for some very important people, which I have no problem with. Let's focus on the real issues. China has been making an outstanding effort to make these games a success. Let's focus on that. James Reynold's anecdotes may amuse a certain audience, but I would prefer some more attention to credit where credit is due. Thank you China.
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Why is the opening ceremony not on I-player?
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To peace-4-all
"The Chinese government claims that the Tibetan language is widely used in Tibet, however most of the publications are Chinese."
I live in the UK and the British government says ethnic minorities are respected here and they are allowed speak their languages. But most of the publications are in English. What do you make of it?
Should Tibetan language being spoken in Tiben necessarily lead to the ban of other languages??
I am both Chinese and British, and read your minds better than you read mine. I know what is going on in your mind and heart. Just forgrt it, what you say over Tibet does not count. Just stay home and make sure you get your people fed and watered properly, as it seems you are declining much quicker than previously predicted. Mind your own business.
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To BeijingLondon,
Are you suggesting we print everything in a 100 languages?
The language of Great Britain is English, however if you go to Wales you will find everything is in Welsh, as well as English. It is even taught in schools.
Ethnic minorities are respected here and religious freedom exists. We celebrate St. Patricks, Divali, Ede and even Chinese New Year. Are Tibetans allowed to celebrate Losar freely?
We will not just forget Tibet as you wish, this religious and cultural persecussion has to stop. If China is to be accepted as a civilised country by the rest of the world, then this situation needs to be resolved peacefully.
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#78
"If China is to be accepted as a civilised country by the rest of the world, then this situation needs to be resolved peacefully."
Wow, now we need your approval to be accepted as a civilised country?
Ok, Ok, i promise i will free Tibet!! Caused i really care about how you think of me.
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70. yauchunwan
Like many posters here, you are very sensitive to any criticism. This doesn't seem a very mature attitude to me. You also seem to pick out parts of my posts that annoy you, ignoring the rest.
I've said several times that it was spectacular and I think I've made it clear that while I was impressed by a lot of it, it wasn't *to my taste* and I've given my honest opinion of how it would appear to many Westerners.
If you don't care to know what Westerners think, then maybe you shouldn't read this blog!
"How else would you portray the 3000 disciples of Confucius? Have 300, 1 actor representing 10? It would completely change the meaning of Confucius' 3000 disciples of unity!"
I'm not sure that Confucius himself would understand or approve of this representation either. Surely Confucius taught that you should reflect on what is right rather than follow rules blindly. That sounds more like the older Legalism school.
Given the many interpretations and re-interpretations of Confucius, it's rather telling that the choice was to go with the image of obedient copying rather than individual moral choice and debate.
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The cremeony was an eye candly treat like an epic drama......it is not suppose to be a literal interpretation of Confucious's thoughts....made for less classical minds and for all ages with the aim to entertain with extreme visual acruity.
As for attendance,90,000 at the opening ceremony;90,000 saw 'Bolt shoot past the 100m sprint finsh etc. And how many packed to see Michael Phelps get 8 golds.....too many.
The Heats that generate little crowd are heats and no big deal, they are only qualifying heats, its the the finals that counts. If no one turned up at major event finals there that would be a story.....lets not forget 4 billion tuned in from day one.....these figures are just as inportant as actual attendence.
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I really cannot wait for Mr Reynolds' report on the closing ceremony when the world looks to the next Olympics in London. I have given much thought on how London can stage a show even more spectacular than the one staged on the opening night in Beijing, and would like to share them with the British Olympic officials. In particular, I wish to recommend how certain aspects of British history should be presented in ways that are both entertaining and elucidating. In due time....
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We China don't need no Hollywood Director to pull this Closing ceromony off....and {he} knows he lost out been associated with a victorious Ceromony......and {he} will not be welcome in China......over that Dafur issue when there is a bigger one raging in Georgia!
Talk about misplaced prorities.......
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I missed the opening ceremonies; but, i think it was interesting reading the news stories!
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