China Under the Microscope
Quite simply, China has its hands full. Not only is it preparing for one of the most extravagant Olympics in history, but the world's largest country has to deal with its own extensiveness--and it's under more pressure and more scrutiny than the formally-backward country has ever experienced.
Per usual, it must deal with the day-to-day strife regarding political control on the island known as Taiwan, conflict with the West (read: United States) regarding North Korea, and border disputes with (count them): India, Pakistan, Bhutan, Malaysia, Philippines, Taiwan, Vietnam, Brunei, Japan, North Korea, Burma and Thailand (with recent conclusion in disputes with Tajikistan and Russia). Let's not forget Western (again, read: United States) criticism of Chinese practices like communism, its dealings with countries like The Sudan, its greenhouse gas emissions, its production of practically everything Americans buy, and its enormous consumption of virtually every natural resource humanity finds a use for.
That, of course, is just for starters. The Beijing Olympics, which to date only comprises of a torch relay, has become Tibetan protesters' newest platform for the promotion of human rights. And plenty of other anti-China causes. Finally, Sichuan province in China has just suffered one of the deadliest earthquakes in recent history. The central-Chinese quake was felt as far away as Beijing, and currently (as of May 14, two days after it happened), the official report is that there are 80,000 people killed or injured by the damage. That is not an estimate of the final tally, so it does not include people who are missing. The final figure looks to be much higher. For once, the world has backed behind China as a huge humanitarian crisis emerges north of the Himalyas, and put political differences aside. Perhaps we should take a hint and treat the Olympics in the same apolitical sense.
So What Should the US Do About the Olympics?
Hillary Clinton, soon-to-be former presidential candidate and current US Senator from New York, believes the president should boycott the opening ceremonies. Others go farther: perhaps the United States as a country should boycott the the ceremonies. Radicals take it to the extreme and think that the United States should boycott the games entirely.
The radical idea of a boycott is just plain silly, as evidenced by the boycotts (by the Soviets) of the 1984 Los Angeles games and (by the Americans) the 1980 Moscow games. It simply took away the competition (and the spirit) of the Olympics. The Soviets won far more medals than they would have in 1980, and the Americans did the same in 1984. What did we gain? Our best athletes couldn't compete for the prize they had waited four years for, and the Soviets got a leg up on us.
Gordon Brown, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, has declared his intentions, under intense national pressure, to boycott the opening ceremony. Again, what is the usefulness of such a move (with no disrespect to the Prime Minister intended)? The ceremony isn't about the Prime Minister or the Premier or the President. In fact, it's not about politics at all. It's about the people--the people of China, the people who will compete, and the people who will cheer them on. China has an impressive coming-out party awaiting us, so we gain nothing by missing out on the first night of the festivities, fittingly scheduled for the 8th day of the 8th month of the 2008th year (according to the Christian calendar). For those of you who didn't pick that up, that would be 08/08/08. Eight happens to be a lucky number in China (I thought all one or two digit numbers were lucky, judging by all the numbers I get on the back of my fortunes from fortune cookies, but alas, I was wrong). There is no harm in going to the Olympics, other than by experiencing fruits of the money China poured into preparing the games for the West.
So What Else is Going on in China?
So not everything in China is dismally political and depressing. China is indeed preparing itself for what I hopes to be its finest moment. It all starts when your plane touches down Beijing Capital Airport, and walk into their brand new Terminal 3 (which, incidentally, it does not look like we will be using, as Korean Air uses Terminal 2). That terminal, pictured here, is larger than the Pentagon, and the Chinese used hired a feng shui master to incorporate Chinese elements into it.
In other news, the Chinese reached the summit of Mount Everest (also known as Mount Qomolangma) on their torch relay. It is an impressive achievement, to be sure, and underscores the nature of the Chinese Olympic effort. There was criticism over the event, as Mount Everest lies on the border between Nepal and Tibet, the subject of much antagonism toward China. However, one should note that many of the climbers on the team that summitted Everest with the torch were actually Tibetans.
China is under enormous scrutiny and pressure (albeit some of it self-imposed). How will it perform? That is the million-dollar question, or in the case of China, the 400 billion-dollar question. News from China has moved from being second page biweekly stories to front page weekly stories, to front page daily stories. The closer one gets to Beijing, both chronologically and geographically, the bigger the story from China becomes.
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