The Great Chinese Shame 2008 Olympic Games

Kong · Joined: 15 Aug 2007 Posts: 103 Location: Sheffield

If you’re reading this article u will be probably finking what could bring shame to the Chinese 2008 Olympic games. Disaster from the environment regarding the smog and the dirt that pollutes the atmosphere of Beijing daily, and most of china which can have severe repercussion to the performance of the athletes or the games being a complete and utter shambles. WRONG!

This year I travelled to Beijing and I was very shocked about how Chinese people behaved. Instead of Beijing people being the epitome and represented the best of Chinese people it turned into something like the Chinese mainland south. I have to admit I had great expectation because they were not Cantonese people and expected something more civilised but I was only there for 4 days and I was completely shocked what I saw. In Beijing it was anything goes!

Ever been to china and heard the sound ‘Kkkkkkkk t-wo-ooooo’, nobody pays any attention like it was normal. Everyone who has ever been to Mainland China or most ABC, BBC or overseas Chinese people visiting china have always made a remark about the local inhabitants as being rather uncivilised regarding their behaviour with spitting, urinating, obscenities. What would a westerner perceive when they come to the Olympic games and see this behaviour.

Psychology describes that ‘what seems normal to one culture, maybe abnormal to the other and may seem right to one, maybe wrong to another’. I know that Chinese culture are not backward but to a westerners eye it may seem like it, but without any contact with what really is Chinese people they will never understand. On a personal level Chinese people are one of the most traditional and well-mannered people on earth but on the surfaces it can seem like the culture is completely inhabited by savages. There are always lots of Chinese men that let us down. I’m obviously picking out the men because every time it occurs it is always a Chinese man, doing something disgusting.

Anyone who has ever read about early descriptions about the Chinese people made by early foreign visitors to china have always been disgusted and appalled about some of the behaviour and it seems that nothing has changed over a 100 years. These early descriptions often match the modern stereotyping that most Chinese men receive in west.

What will foreigner remember when they leave china will the people from the west or other parts of the world will remember how disgusting and uncivilised Chinese people are, apart that we make good food. It may seem on the surface successful games but underneath people will have different opinions about the people that built and held it.

Are the Chinese the rudest people on earth or there is a misinterpretation. Has the Cultural Revolution destroyed the real and conservative China? Has lifting 100 million peasants out of poverty have ruin the image of china and the Chinese people? Is the male surplus causing a problem by creating millions of unruly men? Are the Chinese loud, so they seem to be rude? Is it a result of the atheist system!!

Azrael · Joined: 16 Aug 2007 Posts: 28 Location: Maidenhead

Kong, I think you are exaggerating the problem. China has been open to the word for at least 2 decades now and millions of visitors have visited it. If they had a bad impression of China then surely the word would have gotten out now and a ‘perfect’ Beijing during the Olympics will not change this. Unruly males and people are just part of society. In the UK we have drunken yobs running the streets after dark. I am not defending the rudeness of spitting but you have to put it in context. I think the West is more concerned about the smog, Tibet and Human rights then anything else. As for urinating and swearing, the western societies do it as well especially after consuming vast amounts of alcohol. Its not just confined to China. It’s certainly not a by-product of Cultural Revolution or by letting the poor live in cities. And it’s certainly nothing to do with being a Secular government. Religion will never stop people from doing bad things (think suicide bombings, religious wars, religious violence, etc). Britain is supposed to be 75% religious but it does not stop people from doing the same and much more. The Olympics is something we should be proud off. If the visitor will like China, they will oversee any minor problems and if they don’t then stopping spitting will not prevent them from disliking the place.
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Life sucks then you die.. if you're lucky

Edwina Lee · Posted: Sun Aug 26, 2007 7:43 pm Post subject:

China has basically made the date of the Olympic games as a target date to get a lot of problems fixed in the country.

However, small groups of people have hijacked the Olympics cause as a political weapon against China.

ex-VAG · Joined: 13 Dec 2006 Posts: 445

Does anyone else notice how the Western media are trying to rubbish the Beijing Olympics on every front they can think of? This is besides the fact that most if not all of the stadiums and facilities are ready well ahead of time?
They talk about the pollution, well did we hear about this LA pollution when the olympics went there? It's a well known fact that there's a cloud of low lying smog across the county. Or that the exhaust fumes from several high end cars are purer than the air taken into the engine?

Once they've finished with the pollution issue are we back to human rights again? Or will they re-visit the tried and trusted animal cruelty points?

I for one am sick of hearing the rubbishing of the Beijing Olympics by the Western media, when was the last time something positive was reported about it?

Azrael · Joined: 16 Aug 2007 Posts: 28 Location: Maidenhead

Western media are always negative especially on non western countries.
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Life sucks then you die.. if you're lucky

chunxueping · Joined: 24 Jun 2007 Posts: 763 Location: Beijing, PRC

Beijing is change all the time and grow more like Hong Kong and Shenzhen. Is not full of bicycles anymore but red and yellow taxi and BMW, Mercedes. I even see American Hummer. Is wealthy modern city.

UK Media claim that pollution is big threat to Olympics. Beijing not so bad. When I last there in July three day cloudy from desert, then big rain and then Beijing have blue sky and is as clean and pure as I ever see. Place get better all the time. Beijing is only 50km from Gobi desert, of course has dust and smog. But rain wash this away and China Government improve things all the time. Planting trees, stop dirty factorys, control traffic.

I visit Beijing about three time a year. It get better everytime. I never see what you describe in Beijing. OK maybe old men spit because of tobacco sickness (almost to day he die even Deng XiaoPing could hit a spittoon at 3 metre) but I never see men urinate in public. In UK yes all the time on Saturday night men drunk and urinate in street, in shop doorway. Even women vomit in street, having sex, fighting. UK is bad behaviour everywhere. Chinese people got more dignity and is civilized.

Is silly season in media over summer. No politics to talk about. So many bad stories about China and not show respect to China as great country. Next week is anniversary of dead Saint Diana who Daily Wail worship so there will be many stories about her. Many picture to sell newspaper. Maybe they say Chinese Triad gang kill her?

ex-VAG · Joined: 13 Dec 2006 Posts: 445

Oh yeah Diana, that well publicised slag but due to extensive PR, only her husband is getting sh*t for wanting to be with another woman. Get over it people, she's dead!

bhyt · Joined: 10 Jun 2007 Posts: 173

maybe jealousy that the beijing olympics is going to be better then the london olympics?

maybe i am being pessimistic but how great is the london olympics really going to be? for one it is located in the ghetto of south london, who knows if the building works is going to be completed on time (after that whole wembley stadium debacle lol), and will they really improve london transport in time for it (considering that there are funding probs...)and then there is of course security/terrorist issues.

Is British airways going to be able to cope with all the people flying over here-or will they lose everyone's luggages still in 2012?!

as for diana-i think she has been overpublicised and there is too much media attention over it but whatever she did on a personal level has nothing to do with what she did socially (society can't judge what she did or may not have done cos u can't really trust the press)-she did a lot of charity work -the first to promote land mines/aids problem in africa. and i think it is sad that the media would pay more attention to diana's death still than the thousands of lives lost every day cos of injustices.

chinese men spitting or doing whatever is nothing compared to the social probs in the uk-at least theyre keeping themselves to themselves. how many shootings/stabbings has there been in the UK in the past month?

This world is sometimes really backwards! -some people will think the chinese are uncivilised cos of something minor as spitting in public and yet socially accept the hooligans, thugs, drunkards, drug addicts, vandals, promiscuous girls/guys clubbers and chavs of britain.

ex-VAG · Joined: 13 Dec 2006 Posts: 445

Think you've hit the nail on the head there bhyt, it's easier to highlight others short comings than focus on your own.

I too think that the the 2012 London olypics are doomed even before they start, Beijing is going to be massive both in scale and as a major event in which to follow, there's no way the London games will be able to live up to the expectations following the Beijing games.

chunxueping · Joined: 24 Jun 2007 Posts: 763 Location: Beijing, PRC

Oh Beijing games is massive in preparation. The stadium is huge and everywhere things improve. I be the first to admit pollution is an issue but that is mainly geography because of desert. China government is really try hard to improve atmosphere and behaviour of people. They even showing people how to queue properly, can you believe, Chinese people forming orderly queues?

Some of my friends in Beijing planning how to "Clean up" on games. They going to rent out their flats to wealthy foreigners and go on their own holidays to Hainan during Olympic fortnight. My Beijing boss is planning to shut down the office and turn the place into a hostel for the fortnight.

Capitalism alive and well in Beijing!

ex-VAG · Joined: 13 Dec 2006 Posts: 445

And now they're blaming the Chinese for cybercrime!!!

WTF, this is getting ridiculous now :twisted:

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