The horse is already out of the barn, and Party officials are anxious. Economic reforms have propelled China into modernity indeed, and with it a new generation searches for its own identity. Straddling the old and the new, China’s youth are as varied and individualistic as their contemporaries in America. Many recognize the hardships their parents endured during the Cultural Revolution and have seized the opportunity to move up and beyond, to a life their parents could never have envisioned. Like Depression era parents who pushed their offspring to get educated and make something of themselves, Chinese youth feel the pressure of similar aspirations from their parents. We hear the fervor of this quest in Alex’s comments on his hopes for the future. Education, success, financial security for himself and his family, and the intense desire to achieve something for his country are reflected in his summary of the future. The American dream has come to China, in spite of limitations on individual freedoms. Many in the urban areas have translated those dreams to reality while the Party continues to look over their shoulders. Astute observers of the political climate, they know where the line is drawn and have devised methods for tiptoeing around that line when necessary.
Interestingly, there are those that don’t even care about that line, and choose instead to follow an entirely different route. The linglei of the Time/Asia’s 2004 article, The New Radicals (http://www.time.com/time/asia/covers/501040202/story.html) are the rebels without a cause. Largely ignoring the call to fall in line with the conventional road to success, they have instead sought self expression in other ways. Eager to follow a different path, many have left school and become entrepreneurs, writers, or designers in their own right. While the term linglei originally translated to “slacker”, its new connotation is alterative lifestyle. As Chun Shen expresses it, "People born in the 1970s are concerned about how to make money, how to enjoy life," …. "But people born in the 1980s are worried about self-expression, how to choose a path that fits one's own individual identity." These are the cool kids, the Fonzie’s of China -it’s not about the money, it’s about what makes you happy and distinctive. And cool sells. Publishing, fashion, electronics and fast food market the linglei image and reap the rewards.
The linglei are the benign rebels that many want to emulate, but there is a truly criminal group of youth rapidly growing that is cause for great concern(http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,501021111-386993,00.html) These youth operate in a moral vacuum where Communist ideals are irrelevant and the ethics of capitalism is questionable. Criminal and gang activity fill that void. The traditional Confucian based family has been eroded by a soaring divorce rate, consequently leaving some kids adrift. Officials worry that although the number of 14 year olds has fallen from 28% to 25% in the last decade, there has been no appreciable drop in youth related crime. Like US gangs, youth are recruited by older members to first engage in petty crimes such as school yard “protection” in exchange for fees and then graduate to more serious business ventures. A severe shortage of juvenile detention centers finds most of these kids sent to labor farms where they rub elbows with adult criminals who further their criminal education.
Kids, kids, kids….what are you going to do with them? Party officials should check out reruns of Happy Days for some insight on parent/child dynamics; while Mr. and Mrs. Cunningham thought they were commandeering the troops, the Fonz, Richie, Joanie and Potsie knew full well that was just an illusion! Take heed China!
Saturday, March 29, 2008
Saturday, March 22, 2008
Welcome to Beijing, ya'll
In recent weeks, China has been taking it on the chin. With the Olympics only months away, troubles brew in Tibet and Taiwan. This past week has seen Chinese troops clamp down on Tibetan rebels and the resurgence of Taiwan’s talk of independence on the eve of elections. It seems Party officials are putting out wildfires-they no sooner get one extinguished and another flares up. Pressures to meet Olympic deadlines amid international concerns regarding air and food quality must have Party officials popping tranquilizers daily- with good reason. There’s a lot riding on the Olympics for the Chinese. This is their golden opportunity to convince the world they are worthy of their ascendancy as a global leader. The Olympics will showcase China’s rapid economic turnaround from an isolated, poor country to an economic powerhouse in a relatively short time. Sensing that the Western world is uncomfortable and somewhat suspicious of the newest member to the club, they are eager to roll out the welcome mat and prove there is no cause for distrust. To be sure, the Olympics will be a wondrous spectacle, but it will be China’s handling of its internal problems that the international community will be scrutinizing. Can China convincingly demonstrate that it is not just an economic contender but a world power as well? That will depend on how it addresses the ongoing poverty of its peasants, the social ills of the urban areas, and the containment of Tibet and Taiwan. If China doesn’t get heavy handed against its citizens and gradually loosens the reins of control to allow greater civic participation, then it will be taking a step forward in the right direction. However, the Party generally operates on the basis of self preservation, despite its seeming road to obsolescence as the Old Guard dies out and the younger generation grabs for the golden ring of consumerism. China has worked hard to forge international relationships that show it is a responsible neighbor, but it will risk undermining those relationships if it oppresses its own citizens. China has transformed itself by sheer determination and can maintain a world power status if it doesn’t become shortsighted and focus on economic reforms at the expense of its people. The national pride that comes as a byproduct of China’s history and economic growth cannot be underestimated in pushing it front and center in the global arena. Now that the doors have been flung open, the Chinese are ready with “Glad ya’ll could make it, come right on in.” and it wouldn’t be neighborly of us to do otherwise. Like it or not, China is here to stay.
Saturday, March 1, 2008
Frankly, they don't give a dam....
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/ccdd055c-e4c2-11dc-a495-0000779fd2ac,dwp_uuid=7799346e-6d6c-11da-a4df-0000779e2340.html
“This dam was a really stupid mistake. We should consider all such projects from a scientific perspective, and if it’s not scientific we shouldn’t do these stupid things. It was so stupid, stupid, I say.” An obviously ticked off An Qingyuan, former Communist Party boss from the Shaanxi province, vented his frustration at the failure of the Sanmenxia dam constructed in the 1950’s by a Sino-Soviet engineering team. Mr. Qingyuan has become an activist lobbying to have the dam demolished and has also raised pertinent questions about the newly built Three Gorges Dam. Supported by the Party elite during the Great Leap forward, the Sanmenxia dam displaced 400,000 peasants and has been a monumental failure both socially and environmentally for those living in the area of the dam. Even current Party officials blame the Sanmenxia on many of the current environmental problems. Silt build up and industrial overuse have contributed to water shortages. The dam was reconstructed in 1960, but by then the human and environmental costs were staggering. Families moved from their land to make way for the dam are still bitter about the broken promises of compensation.
I was a bit surprised by the open criticism that Mr. Qingyuan offered and even more so by the senior Party officials’ admission that Sanmenxia was a disaster. Party officials are not wont to admit, “Oops, we goofed!” Also interesting to note that the old Party line lives on in the comments of the local officials who live near the dam who parrot “the benefits outweigh the negative consequences”. Those old school Maoists- you’ve got to admire their loyalty. Has the government learned from its past experiences? Not likely. Mao was breathing down the necks of the peasant population to work harder and faster to propel China toward economic growth with not much thought to consequences. I think back to the reading, The Tunnel, about the directive issued to communities to build air-raid tunnels large enough to accommodate city buses. The local committees were galvanized into action with not much more than axes, picks and hard labor….and oh yeh, they forgot to tell them to shore up the walls to prevent collapse. Minor oversight. China in its zeal to climb to the top of the heap seems to get ahead of itself I think. So, this begs the question- if moving 400,000 folk to build Sanmenxia provided a heap of problems, wouldn’t you think they’d give pause to the ramifications of moving 1.3 million for Three Gorges? Of course when you have one of the world’s largest populations, citizens are pretty much expendable.
Chinese authorities have employed the usual full steam ahead with Three Gorges, but this time not without critics. We can hope that the thirteen years that it has taken to construct Three Gorges has allowed time to carefully look over the blueprints. But my guess is that not much thought has been given to environmental impact. The press given this new dam touts it as the largest and waxes on about supplying one tenth of the country’s energy needs. As energy needs have soared, officials have gone silent and they seem to be rethinking that statement. Perhaps these officials should have looked to the past for the answers of today. As for the solution of what to do with 1.3 million people…that’s a hard nut to crack. China is quickly depleting its arable land and shipping folks off to the city presents its own problems. Maybe it needs to reexamine and be a bit more flexible with its energy plan. They are developing wind and nuclear power and that’s a start. Basically, they’ve painted themselves into a corner. But haven’t we done the same thing with our dependence on oil?
“This dam was a really stupid mistake. We should consider all such projects from a scientific perspective, and if it’s not scientific we shouldn’t do these stupid things. It was so stupid, stupid, I say.” An obviously ticked off An Qingyuan, former Communist Party boss from the Shaanxi province, vented his frustration at the failure of the Sanmenxia dam constructed in the 1950’s by a Sino-Soviet engineering team. Mr. Qingyuan has become an activist lobbying to have the dam demolished and has also raised pertinent questions about the newly built Three Gorges Dam. Supported by the Party elite during the Great Leap forward, the Sanmenxia dam displaced 400,000 peasants and has been a monumental failure both socially and environmentally for those living in the area of the dam. Even current Party officials blame the Sanmenxia on many of the current environmental problems. Silt build up and industrial overuse have contributed to water shortages. The dam was reconstructed in 1960, but by then the human and environmental costs were staggering. Families moved from their land to make way for the dam are still bitter about the broken promises of compensation.
I was a bit surprised by the open criticism that Mr. Qingyuan offered and even more so by the senior Party officials’ admission that Sanmenxia was a disaster. Party officials are not wont to admit, “Oops, we goofed!” Also interesting to note that the old Party line lives on in the comments of the local officials who live near the dam who parrot “the benefits outweigh the negative consequences”. Those old school Maoists- you’ve got to admire their loyalty. Has the government learned from its past experiences? Not likely. Mao was breathing down the necks of the peasant population to work harder and faster to propel China toward economic growth with not much thought to consequences. I think back to the reading, The Tunnel, about the directive issued to communities to build air-raid tunnels large enough to accommodate city buses. The local committees were galvanized into action with not much more than axes, picks and hard labor….and oh yeh, they forgot to tell them to shore up the walls to prevent collapse. Minor oversight. China in its zeal to climb to the top of the heap seems to get ahead of itself I think. So, this begs the question- if moving 400,000 folk to build Sanmenxia provided a heap of problems, wouldn’t you think they’d give pause to the ramifications of moving 1.3 million for Three Gorges? Of course when you have one of the world’s largest populations, citizens are pretty much expendable.
Chinese authorities have employed the usual full steam ahead with Three Gorges, but this time not without critics. We can hope that the thirteen years that it has taken to construct Three Gorges has allowed time to carefully look over the blueprints. But my guess is that not much thought has been given to environmental impact. The press given this new dam touts it as the largest and waxes on about supplying one tenth of the country’s energy needs. As energy needs have soared, officials have gone silent and they seem to be rethinking that statement. Perhaps these officials should have looked to the past for the answers of today. As for the solution of what to do with 1.3 million people…that’s a hard nut to crack. China is quickly depleting its arable land and shipping folks off to the city presents its own problems. Maybe it needs to reexamine and be a bit more flexible with its energy plan. They are developing wind and nuclear power and that’s a start. Basically, they’ve painted themselves into a corner. But haven’t we done the same thing with our dependence on oil?
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