We have enjoyed the Olympics in my house. It has been a very special time as we watch these young people compete to be the best in the world at what they do, or just compete on the world stage and live out their dream to the best of their ability. We have enjoyed seeing all the sights that we had seen while we were in Beijing. We have laughed and we have cried watching the 'man on the street' interviews done by NBC. It has been a great experience to watch what the Chinese have worked so hard to present to the world. I have found myself cheering for many a Chinese athlete in these games, and I will admit, sometimes I am cheering for them to win even if it means an American lost. Am I a traitor? Am I a loon? Have I lost my ever lovin mind? No, none of the above. I have seen the heart of the Chinese people and I know what this means to them. I understand the national pride associated with the event, but more importantly I know what it means to the individual. Most of the American competitors will return to their mid west suburbs, their Floridian condos or their Coastal apartments. A good deal of them will simply return to the college program that taught them. For the Chinese athlete its typically a little different.
Don't get me wrong, I love my country and I am a conservative who believes in the freedom of speech, freedom of religion, and freedom to own firearms as well as the right to life. In other words I am not a fan of a communist government. I am very much a fan of the people of China. A kinder hearted people you will never meet and I am beginning to get sick and tired of all of the things that I am hearing during these Olympics. We are supposed to be an enlightened progressive society who care for each other and care for our environment, at least that is what we claim. When in reality I perceive us as a bunch of spoiled, lazy, condescending bigoted ignoramuses who are positive that we are just a little bit superior to everybody else. Yes I stepped on my soapbox and I will now leap from it up onto the railing (so that I can rail).
Lets attack the first stereo type I have been hearing lately. Take a good look at the athletes whose pictures I posted at the top of this page. Now, look hard and ask yourself a question, do they all look alike to you? I should hope not, if you think they do it means you need glasses because they look nothing alike. China has over 50 different ethnic groups within its borders and while there has been a good deal of mixing in the last several generations, prior to that each ethnicity stayed pretty much unique. Each one is pretty discernible from the other if you just pay attention. Some have almond shaped eyes, some have thinner eyes and double eyelids, some have very flat noses and others have more pointed noses and rounder eyes almost making some believe they are Amerasian. Once you step outside the borders of China into Vietnam, Korea, Japan, and others, the difference becomes even more noticeable. So when you make comments about not being able to tell the difference between the athletes, or you say on looks like my daughter and she doesn't because she isn't even Han Chinese and looks nothing like her, than you are showing some bias that I would rather you keep to yourself. If you show too much bias and do so in front of my daughter you will have to deal with a grumpy daddy, or worse yet, the wrath of momma, nuff said.
Next lets talk about the controversy surrounding the decision to have a pretty little girl lip sync while a pretty, but not quite as pretty little girl actually sings the song in the opening ceremony. (story here, http://www.dose.ca/news/story.html?id=c9ba449a-2c27-40c2-ad22-a0f9d9bb29e5 ) Also, the fireworks in the opening ceremony were digitally re-mastered for the television viewer, but really did go off just prettied up a bit for television. People in this country and others seem to be all up in arms about these two items. "Its a fake" people are crying. Its cruel to the little girl who didn't get the face time and recognition that the prop girl got. Hello, Americans, look around you. Our entire culture is built around this lie. We are a very shallow, superficial, looks are everything society. Just look at our celebrities, our Barbie dolls, our entertainment networks, we thrive on vanity. We love to build up the pretty people and love to take joy in watching them fall as well. We invented the term weather bunny cause you had to be pretty to tell us a storm was coming. Is the pretty face that talks about the incoming warm front the person who did all the work? Usually not, they are just the pretty face and some fat bald guy like me is sitting behind the scenes with his computer and slide rule working out the path of that incoming hurricane. Doesn't bother folks much, but its no different with this little girl. The people putting on the opening ceremony decided to put their 'best face' on the show. We need to not lose sight of the fact that it is just that, a show. We seem to be offended by the whole lip sync scenario, but it wasn't like Millie Vanilli took our money and lied to us. We didn't pay for this show, it was put on for us. It would be like a half time show at a bowl game or even the Superbowl, how often are those shows really lip synced, more often than not I believe.
Next we have those cheating Chinese homers. They only won so many gold medals because its a home game for them, and they cheat. The put out 10 year old and the girl who crashed twice on the vault but still beat the American obviously cheated, somehow. Well, having home field advantage is a real thing, it has to go to somebody, we had Atlanta remember. As for cheating, I think incompetence can be argued, but not cheating. As for the too young to participate member of the team, I don't get it. First, since when is having less training and less experience an unfair advantage? Second, if her passport says she is legal and the IOC says she is legal, its over, drop it because your wrong. You can through out, but a couple of news articles said she was younger. Okay, lets trust some amateur reporter and ignore official government documents and a ruling party (IOC) double check to go with what some reporter typed two years ago. Come on, give it up. If you want to bash cheaters, you need to look a little closer to home. Marian Jones sound familiar? Her husband even? The Americans and the Europeans and even the Aussies have had more than a few athletes tossed for steroids and other illegal doping problems. That's cheating folks, like it or not, we are the biggest cheats, not the Chinese.
Last and my most favorite thing people do to drive me nuts. People take a view of China and talk about China as a place of minimal human rights, nearly slave labor, a place that greatly abuses their children, a dark, dirty backwards place. They base this view on scenes from Tienanmen Square where some protesters were killed. They base this view on the way the Tibetans are treated. They base this view on stories they have heard about dissidents being detained, without due process, for unspecified lengths of time. The speak of an evil China, not even realizing that when they speak that way they are speaking ill of the very same people who they are intending to have sympathy for. Your problem is with the government structure, not the people, so back off the people. Even then, to complain and condemn them for things such as these is to profess an absurd lack of memory of your own history. You speak of Tienanmen square as if you have forgotten about Alabama and Mississippi and the people who died protesting school segregation. We would lynch them from trees and shoot them in the streets, somehow this is better than running over them with a tank? As for dissidents being detained, they are done so by a government whose afraid of them. I do not condone this, but I cant yell too loudly because of this thing called Guantanamo Bay. As for how they treat their children, how many abortions do we allow in a year? How many kids are found dead in cars that are too hot because momma is getting a quick facial or dad is making a short trip into the crack house? How many kids are raised in single parent homes because dad either bailed out, or was never identified? As far as the Tibetians, what did we do with the Native American Indians? How did we treat the resident Germans and Japanese during the war?
Are we really all that much better than they? What justifies our feeling just a little bit superior?
Let he who is without sin cast the first stone.
3 comments:
I usually enjoy reading your posts, but you are WAY off on this one. I'll remark paragraph by paragraph to your original post. As for your question: Traitor, Loon, or lost mind? I say no, no, and somewhat. The fact that you went to China and experienced a small piece of their culture by no means makes you an expert in this area. I would compare it to someone from any foreign country visiting only one or two of our states, and making the same statements. With all due respect, what you "saw in the hearts of the Chinese people" is nothing considering there are 1.3 BILLION people in China. Finally, you imply that the athletes just return home to easy street, and the rest of their lives are filled with bliss. I'll return to this later.
In your next paragraph, you make a huge leap with your perception of all of us as spoiled, lazy, etc... Well, that's your opinion, and you are certainly entitled to it. BUT you are painting with a broad brush....the very thing you are railing about...I smell hypocracy.
And then you go into the stereotypes(which is one word by the way). This world is not perfect. From the start to the eventual end, this will never go away. It doesn't matter whether the people are Chinese(or any other Asian group), of African decent( to be oh so PC), or Native American. You will always hear the "they all look alike" being thrown around.
As for the little girl lip-sync controversy, this happens everywhere in the world. You are missing the underlying fact here which I'll get to in a moment. No matter where you go, you're not going to see ads or billboards with fat, ugly people on them...period. Why? Because that's the way THE WORLD is. Is it right? NO, but if I could sing like Josh Groban, you still wouldn't see me singing the National Anthem somewhere. WHat you don't realize, is this is all a show. This is a chance for China to take center stage in the world. Sure most of the world remember the whole little "incident" on the square, and how they treat their people, and that they are one of the largest polluters on the planet, but for two weeks, China will appear perfect. It's all smoke and mirrors.
As for cheating, no one country has a monoply on it. Again you hit us with the broad brush by saying we're the biggest cheaters. Sports are about competition, but unfortunately, comes the temptation to cheat or get the "competitve edge". Who's fault is this? It's all of ours! Why do we (as an American society) start kids in sports at such an early age? So they can have an edge. I can point to numerous accounts of people nearly ruining their children for some ideal the parent has of their little Johnny growing up to be a great athlete. Why do they have cheerleading camps for 4 and 5 year olds?
And finally to the point you make of how we think of China as evil. I think you pretty much paint the house in a few hours with all of those broad brushstrokes. I would guess that a majority of the opinions towards China are directly at their government and not at the people. Personally, I have never lynched anyone. Why are we supposed to have this guilt associated with us (especially if you're white)? I wasn't around for lynchings, slavery, or the Japanese internments....I'm not going to feel guilty for them. The people that sat back and did nothing bear the burden of guilt.
The Olympics are supposed to be about the purity of sport. Society has, and always will, make it an us vs. them event. Remember the 1980 US hockey team? For those who take the games for more than what they are, I say get a life. It's not the end of the world that the US lost to Japan in women's softball. On that day, they were better. Pat them on the back, tell them great job, and move on.
My final note: This is not a perfect world. In fact, it's quite broken, but good things can still come from it. I'm not bashing China for what they do. In fact, if China didn't have any problems, you wouldn't have that beautiful daughter. She is somewhere where she is loved...it just happens to be in the U.S.A.
Since "Mr. Anonymous" forgot to take one of his points up, I will speak to it if I can have the floor...
As for "what happens to athletes after the Olympics..." I have to take issue with Chris at this point.
I have competed in several of the sports featured in the Summer Games (no not at the Olympics themselves...;-) I wrestled (freestyle) and was involved in a few field events (shot put and discus). I have children in track, tennis, softball, and volleyball. I play volleyball (recreational) Martial arts. My point is, I watch the Olympic with interest, and often times the things I am interested in don't even get covered. There are many sports that get little or no coverage. Did you see any shooting? Archery? You got delayed and truncated coverage of most field events. Who, accept me, even carried about the Judo finals?
What I am getting to is this... What does a gold medal winning wrestler get when he returns to the USA? A pat on the back and a job at Home Depot. Shot put? The same. Yea, Mr. Phelps will get millions in endorsements. Most will get nothing but the satisfaction of winning, and the experience. Unlike places like the former USSR, and even China... The US does not pay people. They work two jobs and train. They will not be rewarded by the government for winning. What will the women's gold medal rowing team get? They actually will have sacrificed money and careers to do this. China's winners? As you noted will be rewarded for a life time.
So, should we handicap the games? Give extra points, or shave time in the name of charity?
Oh, let's also not forget that many if not most of the track stars in the western hemisphere, and many of the swimming competitors from around the world... actually train in the USA, with American coaches and at American Universities. Then compete against us. So, many of these people who will rise to superstar status in places like Jamaica, and Haiti (talk about poverty) will have benefited at our expense. Does China do this? Are they willing to train athletes from other countries who will end up competing against them? The track stars that kicked our butts from Jamaica, got a good part of their training in the USA. So in the end, we do our far share of helping out athletes from other countries, who will reap a life time of fame and wealth in their home countries.
Keep in mind, the USA far out classes ANY nation in the world in charitable giving, period. We are not without problems, I agree (who is) but there is still a lot to be proud of.
Do I hate China? No way... the Chinese people have a rich history and heritage. Looking ahead, place like China will be vital allies in any future "Islamic Wars" that will be inevitable. I personally find Asian culture to be of great interest.
However, I can forward some pictures to you, of folks getting their brains blown out by the Chinese government, and then the family billed for the bullets. Their offenses? Varied... You know of your brothers and sisters in Christ that have been persecuted in China.
Yes, this is doing of their government... But, you give the impression, that when it comes to the USA... The people are responsible for the their government, however the same is not true for China? I am sure 1.3 billion people could change their's if they tried.
As for the little girl in the opening ceremony. I did not see it, I don't watch the openings or closings... Sort of like a bad version of American Idol to me. However, from what I read, the "controversy" was not really a big deal here... The reports I read were mostly from folks in China.
So, I yield the floor now...:-)
Maybe I am a total jerk, but I really can't distinguish between Chinese people despite their varying ethnicities. Then again, I do believe I've heard ethnic Chinese say that we all look the same to them. I wouldn't say it's "biased" maybe just ignorance or lack of exposure to the culture.
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