Don't Hate on the Chinese

http://www.buffalonews.com/149/story/328149.html


Mr. Douglas Turner pisses me off. His opening line, "This summer’s Olympic Games might have been held in Toronto instead of repressive, smoggy and unbearably hot Beijing had it not been for the loose lips of Toronto’s mayor," speaks volumes about his lack of respect for the Chinese. Although he disagrees with the popular sentiment these days that George Bush should boycott the Games' Opening Ceremonies, his reasoning is all wrong.

"The loss of “face” for the Chinese if Bush snubbed them now would collapse whatever good our diplomats can do on North Korean nuclear arms, maintaining peace in the Taiwan straits, influencing the Chinese on Darfur and a host of much more important issues," he said.

True. "Guanxi" or "face" is what it's all about in Chinese business relationships, government included. You lose face, you lose the deal. However, the Olympics should be viewed as a special event, completely separate from any government, Democratic or Communist. The Games don't belong to any one country. They are a tradition shared by everyone all over the world, regardless of nationality, race, sex, religion or political status.

All of this nonsense about boycotting the Beijing Olypmics to protest the shenanigans of the Chinese government ruins the spirit of the games. And attacking torch bearers? Yea, that's a really great way to protest violence with violence. I certainly don't agree with killing monks in Tibet or looking the other way in regard to genocide in Darfur, but I don't think the Olympics is an appropriate forum for political criticism. If the Games were in the U.S., would there be talk of boycott from other countries to protest Iraq? How would Americans react to that, especially considering how many Americans are against the war in Iraq themselves?

Which brings me to my next point, don't judge a nation by it's leaders. There is so much more to Beijing than smog and humidity and there is so much more to China than violence and repression. If people took the time to learn about Chinese culture, they would know that the common citizen doesn't consider themselves a Communist, particularly lower class Chinese. These people live in alleyway shacks with mud floors, ride their bicycle to work through the smog, earn enough money to buy food and not much else and are perfectly happy to see the sun rise every day. They don't care about the government because they're too busy surviving.

China is a beautiful country with a rich history. Don't think so? Climb the Great Wall, visit the Buddhist temples or check out the ever-changing skyline lit up at night. Sure, it has it's negative points, like the overwhelming smell due to lack of proper wastewater treatment and pollution really is a major problem, not to mention political issues. But China deserves to host a peaceful, harmonious Olympic Games, just like any other country. If only for the sake of it's people.

The most important lesson I learned while visiting China was to respect things I don't necessarily understand. That doesn't mean it's OK to beat up monks, but it does mean that people shouldn't be so quick to judge. One World One Dream. Let's all play nice.