On this page the following entries were made in the “Olympics” category.
Archive for “Olympics”
Why Olympic Torch Protests Matter
Without in any way endorsing or rebuking the torch relay protests, I have come to the distinct conclusion that they are extremely important to the psyche of the collective Chinese populace. The jubilation expressed in message boards when the torch’s Argentina stop went smoothly is striking. You would have thought that it is really unusual [...]
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The Tibetan，Taiwanese Terrorists and the Scourge of Nationalism
If you had any doubts that the Chinese media campaign to convince its population that there are three threats to the stability of China (Taiwan, Tibet and Xinjiang) is working, let me dispel those notions. Recently I was chatting with a 20-something, highly-educated Chinese friend of mine about the Olympics. She said she was looking [...]
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Will the Olympics Destroy China?
The great coming out party is how the Olympics are usually described. The Beijing Games were supposed to show that China has truly arrived on the international scene. Strong, economically powerful, militarily able and fully confident. As the last few months have shown, China perhaps is not as far along as the world once thought.
There [...]
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China Tightens Smoking Ban…In Day Care Centers
We all know there is enough smoking in China to give a Parisian a coughing fit. Yet the recent push to make sure that fewer people are smoking in day care centers and primary schools boggles the mind. Did China really need the Olympics to discover that smoking around toddlers is a bad idea? [full [...]
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Arguments Against Olympic Boycotts
Several people have argued that there should not be an Olympic boycott of any kind, and I’m inclined to agree. If athletes want to make statements (i.e., 1968) I would be all for it, and I have no problem with non-violent torch protests. Here’s what the the always entertaining Andrew Sullivan had to say:
I’m thrilled [...]
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Part II: Trouble Ahead for the Beijing Olympics
It only took 10 hours from my last post to find something potentially much more explosive than yesterday’s problems: Hillary Clinton is now calling for a boycott of the Beijing Games’ opening ceremony. It is fairly easy political fodder since it essentially means she is targeting the most hated man in Democratic circles (Dubya).
Her own [...]
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Any Way You Cut It, Trouble Ahead for Beijing Olympics
The Olympic torch has only visited a few places, but everywhere it goes, trouble follows. Athens was a disaster, with a press-credentialed person storming the stage. In London T1betan independent supporters ran afoul, with severe consequences the Chinese papers were only too happy to play up. Now in Paris thousands of protesters apparently forced the [...]
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Nothing Quiet on Western Front: Unrest Extends to X1njiang
The Chinese Government has apparently acknowledged that there has been unrest in X1njiang Province, perhaps partially inspired by recent events in T1bet and other T1betan regions. It is little secret that Muslims and Han Chinese have poor relations in the northwestern province, and the unrest to the south and east seemed to have sparked [...]
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US: Beijing Olympics Give Totalitarianism Bad Name
Not to scare anyone, but the State Department is warning Americans they could be watched by the government during the Beijing Olympics. You know, not in a warrantless-home-searches-in-the-middle-of-the-night kind of way, real intrusive stuff. They are advising Americans to be vigilant while in China. The report said:
All hotel rooms and offices are considered to be [...]
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Beijing Craps Itself
And so ended the great internet experiment. With the “excitement” in the western part of the country, internet sites have been getting blocked left and right (or at least there is an amazing series of coincidences).
While the NY Times and Washington Post seem to be working fine, here are some of the sites that seem [...]
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