Dispatch: Sausalito

I love my Blackberry because it allows me to stay connected, whether I am in my office or on the summit of a mystical mountain. So during our two weeks in China I used it to focus on the upcoming Presidential election and ongoing Olympic coverage.  I noticed that American bloggers and pundits who were focused on the Olympics had difficulty disassociating athletic competition from their perception of the Chinese government’s human rights and power abuses. I believe that many if not most of those individuals have never been to China and that many if not all of their observations are either steeped in ignorance or provided without proper context.

The games were not overly organized and security was not ponderous. Remember, we live in a 21^st Century world where Terrorism is a very real threat and extra steps are necessary to halt its advance and stifle its destructive potential. Security stations at the Olympic Village were similar to those at any airport in America, except the Olympic security personnel thanked you for, “Allowing us to check you.” Spectators did not push and were patient. There was special access for the elderly, families with small children and physically challenged individuals. There were no overt terrorist threats and the competition proceeded smoothly and without incident.

The game did not lack spontaneity. Olympic spontaneity should be defined by the competitors and the competition; not by the entity hosting the games. Michael Phelps shattered Olympic records at will and set a new standard for athletic achievement. An unknown runner led a spectacular Jamaican team and singlehandedly dominated men’s short distance races. China obliterated expectations by winning 51-Gold Medals and almost doubling their previous best, thereby giving notice that they are an athletic power that cannot be ignored. The American men’s basketball team was a crowd favorite, unless they were playing against your country, making their games among the most popular events at the Olympics. The Bird’s Nest and the Water Cube, two of the most beautiful structures ever built, turned the Olympic Village into a surrealistic, otherworldly experience at night.

China is an ancient culture. Indeed, a piece of carved jade in the Shanghai museum dates back 10,000 years. However, China as a modern nation is only 60-years old. When the Communist party took control in 1949, the Chinese had suffered from a millennium of near universal poverty because of rampant corruption and imperialistic victimization.  There is no doubt that oppression still occurs or that certain types of freedom are lacking, but certain comparisons are fair and valid. When the United States was 60-years old we enslaved black people, only allowed substantive white men to vote, and were in the midst of a westward migration that encouraged genocide against Native American’s.  A viscous and bloody Civil War was still 20-years in our future and the principles outlined in our Constitution were beyond the grasp of most people. Arguments were often settled by gunfights and crime was rampant.

China, a country of 1.35-billion citizens, is controlled by a no-nonsense one-party, centralized government. In terms of population the only valid contemporary comparison is to India, a democracy with a population of 1.6-billion people. However, in terms of human rights, India continues to maintain a rigid, oppressive class structure has anchored many of its citizens into hopeless poverty. The children of Chinese peasants dream of college and prosperity is achievable and is becoming commonplace. The Chinese cannot openly protest their government, but neither do they worry about the kind of civil unrest and riots that are commonplace in India. 

I am certainly no expert, but I do believe that Ms. Mai, who we met on our second day in China, provides a perfect metaphor for the modern Chinese experience. As she explained as she was pouring our tea, her family has harvested tea in the same village for hundreds of years. Her mother picks the tea and her father dries the tea. But, because they saved their money and worked hard Ms. Mai was able to go to college and get an education. Now, she drinks the tea, has assembled a brilliant presentation on the health and social benefits of green tea and has great expectations for a bright and prosperous future.
That’s all I have to say.