Random Thoughts about the Olympics Opening Ceremony and National Day Parade
I missed out watching both the Olympics Opening Ceremony and the National Day Parade on tv. I think both events were just propaganda but I must say China did a better job judging from the comments I gather from people who are still talking about it and making comparisons.
I am proud to be Chinese and had felt emotional when Beijing won the organising rights to the 2008 Olympic Games. There need not be a grand Opening Ceremony to make me feel that. In fact, it felt fake when I caught a glimpse of the part of the ceremony where they got the little kids to dress up in ethnic costumes. Even though I personally take the stand that Tibet and Taiwan are all part of "Greater China", I think to pretend that everything is harmonious and to showcase this during the opening ceremony was a little overkill. China is progressing quickly to become an economic giant, yet I worry that good stuff of the Chinese culture will become lost in the fast pace of development.
Interestingly, NDP 2008 touched my heart more as it is closer to home. When it rained heavily two days before National Day, I first learnt about the conspiracy theory that the downpour could be artificially seeded so that there would be good weather on National Day itself. This theory was quite convincing considering that we hadn't had any rainy NDP since 1968. However, it rained this year in 2008 at the opening segment of the NDP. I was amused more at the rain than anything else. It goes on to prove that you cannot control everything. I love Singapore even though I do not agree wholeheartedly with the way our leaders governed the country like a nanny state. In the years to come, I also wish to see our leaders show more love for its people and demonstrate what they said some years back that every Singaporean counts.
Congratulations to Beijing on its successful inauguration of the 2008 Olympic Games and happy birthday to Singapore as she matures into a developed nation and metropolitan city.
I am proud to be Chinese and had felt emotional when Beijing won the organising rights to the 2008 Olympic Games. There need not be a grand Opening Ceremony to make me feel that. In fact, it felt fake when I caught a glimpse of the part of the ceremony where they got the little kids to dress up in ethnic costumes. Even though I personally take the stand that Tibet and Taiwan are all part of "Greater China", I think to pretend that everything is harmonious and to showcase this during the opening ceremony was a little overkill. China is progressing quickly to become an economic giant, yet I worry that good stuff of the Chinese culture will become lost in the fast pace of development.
Interestingly, NDP 2008 touched my heart more as it is closer to home. When it rained heavily two days before National Day, I first learnt about the conspiracy theory that the downpour could be artificially seeded so that there would be good weather on National Day itself. This theory was quite convincing considering that we hadn't had any rainy NDP since 1968. However, it rained this year in 2008 at the opening segment of the NDP. I was amused more at the rain than anything else. It goes on to prove that you cannot control everything. I love Singapore even though I do not agree wholeheartedly with the way our leaders governed the country like a nanny state. In the years to come, I also wish to see our leaders show more love for its people and demonstrate what they said some years back that every Singaporean counts.
Congratulations to Beijing on its successful inauguration of the 2008 Olympic Games and happy birthday to Singapore as she matures into a developed nation and metropolitan city.