Chinese Takeout
Man…where to start on the coverage of China recently. Between the Tibetan uprisings and controversy surrounding
the upcoming Beijing Olympics, the Asian juggernaut continually dominates world headlines. Claims have been made from various camps regarding the Western media’s unfair portrait of China and its government, so what better place to research reactions than blogs—where citizens can put their (hopefully unfiltered) opinions out there for anyone, like graduate students sitting in coffeehouses on their laptops on the other side of the world. And from what I found in just some of the blogs written in English, the feelings span the spectrum of complete nationalism to unhinged outrage and anger.
In China, Eat My Lamb Kebab!, the anonymous blogger expresses his total disgust with his country. His latest entry, “China’s Rape of Tibet and What It Means to the World,” was written after he received multiple requests to say more on the topic.
Whoever this guy is, he writes with a frank, enviable passion, though at times rather crude. He clearly understands the situation and wants world leaders to look responsibly at the situation (AH hem, United States…) and not be blinded by financial, corporate interests regarding a Beijing boycott.
“And it all comes to a head in Tibet. The bitches that run the IOC won't even mention boycotting the Olympics, though boycotting the USSR in 1980 was perfectly OK after Afganistan (only Coke and McDs were in the USSR at the time). The USOC is advising/threatening US athletes not to do anything that might "upset" their gracious Chinese hosts, not even if US athletes get sudden intestinal problems right before their competition against Chinese opponents. …So when we look at China, we see a big, evil, ugly, smelly disgusting mess, mostly of its own creation. But we also see the worst in our own failed human rights institutions, our gutless, shit eating political leaders and our corporate traitors.”
He also has some choice words for his country’s defenders:
“But what is saddest is that the population of Chinese, especially those living overseas, are so blindly proud of their polluted, social junkyard of a country that they venomously defend anything and everything that China does. Those living outside of China get to enjoy the fruits of the West's continual evolution and do everything they can to avoid going back to their so-called "motherland" and yet brazenly tout filthy China as "just as good" as the West and the "future leader" of the world.
If this is how China plans to lead the world, the human race is headed for extinction.”
Wow.
On a different realm of the blogosphere, we have a somewhat unbiased blog dedicated to news about the Beijing Olympics (with the bland title “Beijing Olympics Blog”) created to “act as a resource for anyone looking for information and discussion on the Beijing Olympics” and to “promote understanding and discussion between East and West, Zhongguo ren and Laowai.” One interesting fact to keep in mind, however, is that the blog runs from the UK; it would be interesting to know if the posters are British or Chinese. I am leaning towards Chinese since they don’t reveal their identities (just a non-descript “Bob”); it seems most Chinese bloggers work in anonymity if what they publish might irk the government. But this is just completely a guess…I don’t know. This “Bob” fellow comes off as a guy just really excited about the Olympics being held in Beijing and peeved that Human Rights protestors might interfere with its success.
The latest entry revolves around the who, what and when of the London Torch Relay, including details about all the torchbearers. He adds this about the protesters:
“As mentioned above protesters are planning to use this event to continue the raise publicity for their causes. Reporters Without Borders have said that they may try and repeat their stunt in Athens last month. However the Free Tibet Campaign insists that they do not wish to disrupt the relay, and will only stage fittingly peaceful protests. They are holding the Tibetan Freedom Torch Rally between 14.30 - 15.30 in Argyle Square which is an alternative event for those who do not wish to attend the Olympic torch relay.”
So, while not necessarily a thrilling, provocative blog, it does give you a good idea of how the Olympics are unrolling as summer approaches. Plus, I find it interesting to read between the lines of some of these blogs that try to put up a seemingly objective front.
Now over to the Peking Duck
and his “peculiar hybrid of personal journal, dilettantish punditry,
pseudo-philosophy and much more, from an Accidental Expat who has made his way
from Hong Kong to Beijing to Taipei and finally back to Beijing for reasons
that are still not entirely clear to him…”
I like this guy (“Richard”) due to his blend of national and world news, in additional to personal asides or interests. For example, his last post talks about a fantastic tourist’s guidebook someone gave him. That may or may not be of importance to any natives, but the Duck mixes it up; the other posts primarily touch on with the latest news involving Tibet and activist Hu Jia’s prison sentencing. This blog serves as an intriguing perspective because you have an American (well, this is an assumption, but an obvious one, he has a “Don’t Blame Me I Voted for Kerry” tag at the bottom of the page) who has been immersed in Chinese culture for some time commenting on the events around him. He does not have the ideologies or assumptions or whatever ties to the country that come off as liabilities to those making comments about the current situation. For example, people who side with the government are blind loyalists and those who criticize the government, insisting in a free Tibet, are traitors. But the, again, people can say this guy doesn’t know what he’s talking about because he is not a native. In these sad, confusing circumstances, no one comes out a winner.
He provides engaging commentary, forcing viable questions, particularly of the media. For instance, he challenges the article titled "Happy life of a Tibetan."
“That is the actual title of this Xinhua article, which borders on parody. I can just see some party hack with a checklist of key messages ticking them off one by one. Only one item is missing from his checklist, however, and that is newsworthiness. Since when does someone being happy qualify as news? Then again, the article's subject probably exists only in the imagination of a low-payed copywriter. “
He explains himself a little on a separate page:
“I went to China with stars in my eyes, dazzled by the positive coverage China was receiving in 2001 for its economic miracle, its selection for the Olympics, its apparent trend to greater openness and a host of other factors that convinced me "China is the place to be." In some ways, I still believe it's the place to be - but my belief that it was becoming freer and its government reforming was quickly shattered. None of my disdain for the CCP is a product of Cold War mentality, only of recent personal experience. That BCPC has the nerve to make such blanket assumptions and generalizations is galling, but not at all surprising.”
So, China sits in a complex conundrum. While it attempts to pull off the celebration of world unity, its internal conflicts and questionable human rights actions threaten to irrevocably wreck its image.
