Now that the Olympics are over, did we get a true glimpse of the real China or a high-priced imitation? The games sure looked impressive on TV. The opening and closing ceremonies were well choreographed and quite colorful. The “bird cage” and other athletic venues were impressive looking. The various scenic shots of the landscape, the palaces and the Great Wall were certainly a marvel to watch. But was this the real China?
Current estimates put the cost of hosting the Beijing Olympics at 40-60 billion dollars – almost 3 to 5 times the cost of any previous Olympics. Additionally, numerous factories were completely shut down and others were operating part-time. Only a month or two ago, the pollution level in Beijing was that of New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Washington and Atlanta, combined. The photo above was taken at Tiananmen Square before the Olympics started. Tens of billions of gallons of water were diverted from outlying farm areas to provide enough water for the city to irrigate the millions of new shrubs and trees planted as well as to provide safe drinking water for the citizens, tourists and athletes. “Safe” food had to be diverted for the influx of people. It will be interesting to hear of the sacrifices that were made by many of the people in the outlying regions who didn’t have a choice in the reallocation of resources. I also wonder what the long-term economic impact will be on the areas whose resources were diverted or completely shut down during this timeframe.
To appease the International Olympic Committee, designated “protest” zones were set up around Beijing to allow legitimate protests to be heard. However, to use a protest zone, a permit had to be approved. Guess what? Not a single permit was approved and many who had filed for a permit were arrested or deported. Web access was severely restricted to any type of site that had any negative connotations in the eyes of the Chinese government. Most hotel phone systems were being monitored.
Naturally, most of these things were never mentioned during the telecasts from NBC. We wouldn’t want to upset the Chinese government, would we? Virtually all the special story segments showed how great and beautiful and harmonious it is to live in Beijing.
So, was this the real China? Looks like Chinette to me.
