Travis Loveday
r lovedayOde to the Motherland?
August 14th 2008 04:00
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Politics Olympics
The 2008 Olympics have undoubtedly been one for the history books. The opening ceremonies were unprecedented. The televised viewership is up by millions compared to Athens in 04. But what are the 2008 Olympics going to be remembered for? Will it be the gold medals, the ceremonies, or the athletes? Or will it be marked with the deception of the host country?
Lets start small. If you watched the opening ceremonies for the 2008 Olympics, you were undoubtedly impressed. Thousands of performers left the world in awe. And after all the bells and whistles, what better way to conclude such an evening? Fireworks of course. The world saw one of the most beautiful displays ever to be televised. How could such an amazing display be pulled off? It wasnt. Days after the opening ceremonies, the story broke that the fireworks had been digitally enhanced. The planners were worried about the difficulty of cameras capturing 29 sequential explosions from Tiananmen Square to the Olympic Village, [so] the Chinese visual effects team re-created all but one of the big bangs in an animation studio, and inserted the 55-second clip into the live TV coverage,according to the LA Times. Is this a huge deal? No, but the plot thickens.
Remember the darling child who serenaded the crowd with her inspirational presentation of Ode to the Motherland? She was such a beautiful child with a beautiful voice meant to represent the host country. However, apparently the beautiful voice of the 7 year old, Yang Peiye, didnt belong to a face that was beautiful enough. So what would any self respecting production do? Lie about it. 9 year old cutie, Lin Miaoke, got all dolled up and lip sang. Who would tell a child that she isnt cute enough to be on TV? And if you have seen a picture of her, she doesnt have 3 noses or anything. She is as cute as any average 7 year old. So, well done Olympic planners; you have taught an entire generation that it is acceptable to lie for national honor.
And as promised, the plot continues to thicken. If you have tuned in to any of the womens gymnastics team competition you might notice something a little odd. Little girls! The age limit to participate in the Olympics is that one must turn 16 in the Olympic year. When you look at all the gymnasts, you believe this, until you glance at the Chinese athletes. They look like mere children. Their average height is 4 foot 9 and average weight is only 77lbs. The only proof that is needed to prove the age is a passport, which is obviously issued by the Chinese government. Research by theNY Times found evidence that both Jiang and Hes ages have been altered on their very recent passports in order to make them old enough to participate. China may have won the gold medal, but at what cost? Is the gold still as appealing when it sits on lies and deceit?
The Chinese government has also done an excellent job of squashing any negative media. A breaking story on CNN showed a peaceful Free Tibet protest. Not only were the protesters arrested, but a reporter was shown being thrown to the ground and then shoved into the back of a police truck. He pokes his head out the window to the still rolling camera and tells that he is being arrested for covering the story. There are also other images of cameras being covers by the Chinese police. The government is so obsessed with making China look perfect that they are making situations even worse by going against the Olympics policy on free media coverage.
With out cries from around the world, including within China, one must wonder why such a government was granted the honor of hosting the Olympics. The honor that could have and should have been brought to the Chinese people has been tainted and tarnished. The government has done little but put on a front and lie to the world in order to preserve their national honor. Well, they have successfully done so. Their honor has now been seen by the world for what it is: non-existent.
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