Saturday, January 31, 2009
Cultural Revolution... A possibility?
After reading up on some current events and reading some blogs (I especially like Kim's) I have come to the conclusion that a Cultural Revolution is likely to be able to occur again. With the mix of cultural repression, external and internal mistrust, and economic oppression, the writing is on the wall. I believe that another factor that would play into a revolution (which I have to say would be more along the lines of the people vs the government and not so much individual sectors battling one another) comes to us in the form of technology/mass communication. Gittings talked about how the government would try to suppress information during times of wished secrecy and would try to track the technology leaks but the task was almost impossible. The news would spread and cell phones and the internet were to blame. If something of this nature were to occur, I believe it would be expedited with the use of technology. I know that there are still many rural parts to China but those who are linked could make their way to those who weren't and become mobile technology messengers.
The mistrust of all
China's Pusher of Philanthropy
Actor Jet Li is taking time off from films to work on his foundation in China, which has one of the lowest rates of charitable giving of major economies. (One Foundation)
By Ariana Eunjung ChaWashington Post Foreign Service Saturday, January 31, 2009; Page A10
BEIJING Surrounded by mist-covered hills, smiling children in pink costumes and a band playing drums and horns, Jet Li and Donatella Versace looked as if they could be on a movie set.
The Chinese action star and Italian fashion icon were actually in a remote mountain village in December to dedicate a psychological care and trauma center for children who survived the devastating May earthquake in China's Sichuan province. At least 70,000 people were killed, and about 18,000 are missing, according to official figures. Many of the victims were children who were trapped when their schools collapsed on them.
Celebrities jetting off to Africa to help malnourished children or to the Amazon to save rain forests is no longer headline news. But Li is the first to attempt something on this scale in China -- a place where the laws on philanthropy are still being written and where the ruling Communist Party treats charities with the same suspicion it has for any other organization it doesn't directly control.
Li, 45 -- who is known for his graceful martial arts sequences in such movies as "The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor," "Hero" and "Romeo Must Die" -- is taking a break from acting to focus on projects such as this. He has spent two years setting up a charitable foundation and recruiting the world's rich and famous to donate their time and money to help those in need in China.
Bill Clinton, Tony Blair, Jackie Chan, Andy Lau and executives from Disney, Ferrari and Universal have also signed on to help.
Li considers recruiting the easy part. Now he is turning his attention to residents of China, which has one of the lowest rates of charitable giving of the world's major economies, despite its newfound wealth. In the United States, giving represents about 2.1 percent of gross domestic product; in China, it's closer to 0.35 percent.
"The role we played is more like a pusher of philanthropic culture," Li said in an interview. "Right now, people still have a fuzzy recognition about philanthropy and volunteerism. . . . My dream is to change the concept of philanthropy in China from simply helping others into responsibility."
The core idea of Li's One Foundation is that in a country the size of China, if everyone gave a little, the impact would be enormous. Li is urging everyone to donate one yuan -- about 15 cents -- a month. "We set the lowest entrance barrier," Li said. "Nobody can say no.
"This kind of small amount of donation is very important. During bad economic times, getting an enterprise to donate 100 million yuan is not realistic. But getting 100 million of 1.3 billion people to donate a little is easy to achieve," he said.
Many of the donations used to assist victims of the earthquake, for example, came from individuals who had never donated before. In all, the foundation has received 500 million yuan from a million people. The foundation had raised the equivalent of $13.7 million by July.
Li spent two years traveling to study the world's most effective charities and trying to find a model that would work in China. He teamed with the Red Cross Society of China, an aid agency with close ties to the Chinese government, to create an "uber-charity" that would aggregate donations and pick the most worthy projects in the areas of education, health, environment and poverty.
Li modeled his foundation on a publicly traded business accountable to its shareholders -- in his case, donors. Transparency is essential. The charity issues quarterly reports and is audited by international accounting firm Deloitte & Touche.
It is sad that even a charity could be mistrusted by the Chinese government. I believe it s a reflection of past thought because Mao was very mistrusting and was always replacing and questioning those in positions of authority. (When he called the young to question the local cadres during the Cultural Revolution.) I believe it is also still a reflection of the resentment held towards outside help which threatens China's self sufficient image that they are always trying to project to the outside world.
Actor Jet Li is taking time off from films to work on his foundation in China, which has one of the lowest rates of charitable giving of major economies. (One Foundation)
By Ariana Eunjung ChaWashington Post Foreign Service Saturday, January 31, 2009; Page A10
BEIJING Surrounded by mist-covered hills, smiling children in pink costumes and a band playing drums and horns, Jet Li and Donatella Versace looked as if they could be on a movie set.
The Chinese action star and Italian fashion icon were actually in a remote mountain village in December to dedicate a psychological care and trauma center for children who survived the devastating May earthquake in China's Sichuan province. At least 70,000 people were killed, and about 18,000 are missing, according to official figures. Many of the victims were children who were trapped when their schools collapsed on them.
Celebrities jetting off to Africa to help malnourished children or to the Amazon to save rain forests is no longer headline news. But Li is the first to attempt something on this scale in China -- a place where the laws on philanthropy are still being written and where the ruling Communist Party treats charities with the same suspicion it has for any other organization it doesn't directly control.
Li, 45 -- who is known for his graceful martial arts sequences in such movies as "The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor," "Hero" and "Romeo Must Die" -- is taking a break from acting to focus on projects such as this. He has spent two years setting up a charitable foundation and recruiting the world's rich and famous to donate their time and money to help those in need in China.
Bill Clinton, Tony Blair, Jackie Chan, Andy Lau and executives from Disney, Ferrari and Universal have also signed on to help.
Li considers recruiting the easy part. Now he is turning his attention to residents of China, which has one of the lowest rates of charitable giving of the world's major economies, despite its newfound wealth. In the United States, giving represents about 2.1 percent of gross domestic product; in China, it's closer to 0.35 percent.
"The role we played is more like a pusher of philanthropic culture," Li said in an interview. "Right now, people still have a fuzzy recognition about philanthropy and volunteerism. . . . My dream is to change the concept of philanthropy in China from simply helping others into responsibility."
The core idea of Li's One Foundation is that in a country the size of China, if everyone gave a little, the impact would be enormous. Li is urging everyone to donate one yuan -- about 15 cents -- a month. "We set the lowest entrance barrier," Li said. "Nobody can say no.
"This kind of small amount of donation is very important. During bad economic times, getting an enterprise to donate 100 million yuan is not realistic. But getting 100 million of 1.3 billion people to donate a little is easy to achieve," he said.
Many of the donations used to assist victims of the earthquake, for example, came from individuals who had never donated before. In all, the foundation has received 500 million yuan from a million people. The foundation had raised the equivalent of $13.7 million by July.
Li spent two years traveling to study the world's most effective charities and trying to find a model that would work in China. He teamed with the Red Cross Society of China, an aid agency with close ties to the Chinese government, to create an "uber-charity" that would aggregate donations and pick the most worthy projects in the areas of education, health, environment and poverty.
Li modeled his foundation on a publicly traded business accountable to its shareholders -- in his case, donors. Transparency is essential. The charity issues quarterly reports and is audited by international accounting firm Deloitte & Touche.
It is sad that even a charity could be mistrusted by the Chinese government. I believe it s a reflection of past thought because Mao was very mistrusting and was always replacing and questioning those in positions of authority. (When he called the young to question the local cadres during the Cultural Revolution.) I believe it is also still a reflection of the resentment held towards outside help which threatens China's self sufficient image that they are always trying to project to the outside world.
Beijing's Bird's Nest to anchor shopping complex
The area around Beijing's massive Bird's Nest stadium will be turned into a shopping and entertainment complex in three to five years, a state news agency said Friday.
BEIJING —
The area around Beijing's massive Bird's Nest stadium will be turned into a shopping and entertainment complex in three to five years, a state news agency said Friday.
Officially known as the Beijing National Stadium, the showpiece of the Beijing Olympics has fallen into disuse since the end of the games. Paint is already peeling in some areas, and the only visitors these days are tourists who pay 50 yuan (about $7) to walk on the stadium floor and browse a pricey souvenir shop.
Plans call for the $450 million stadium to anchor a complex of shops and entertainment outlets in three to five years, Xinhua News Agency reported, citing operator Citic Group. The company will continue to develop tourism as a major draw for the Bird's Nest, while seeking sports and entertainment events.
The only confirmed event at the 91,000-seat stadium this year is Puccini's opera "Turandot," set for Aug. 8 - the one-year anniversary of the Olympics' opening ceremony. The stadium has no permanent tenant after Beijing's top football club, Guo'an, backed out of a deal to play there.
Details about the development plans were not available. A person who answered the phone at Citic Group on Friday said offices were closed for the Chinese New Year holiday.
A symbol of China's rising power and confidence, the stadium, whose knickname described its lattice of exterior steel beams, may never recoup its hefty construction cost, particularly amid a global economic slump. Maintenance of the structure alone costs 60 million yuan (about $8.8 million) annually, making it difficult to turn a profit, Xinhua said. New York Times
It seems as if it's another case of China showing potential for growth and exercising a means to do so but only thinking of the immediate outcome and not long term economic responsibilities. It's like the have the will and the way to better their country, but not so much the fine tuning of the know how to maintain longeavity.
The area around Beijing's massive Bird's Nest stadium will be turned into a shopping and entertainment complex in three to five years, a state news agency said Friday.
BEIJING —
The area around Beijing's massive Bird's Nest stadium will be turned into a shopping and entertainment complex in three to five years, a state news agency said Friday.
Officially known as the Beijing National Stadium, the showpiece of the Beijing Olympics has fallen into disuse since the end of the games. Paint is already peeling in some areas, and the only visitors these days are tourists who pay 50 yuan (about $7) to walk on the stadium floor and browse a pricey souvenir shop.
Plans call for the $450 million stadium to anchor a complex of shops and entertainment outlets in three to five years, Xinhua News Agency reported, citing operator Citic Group. The company will continue to develop tourism as a major draw for the Bird's Nest, while seeking sports and entertainment events.
The only confirmed event at the 91,000-seat stadium this year is Puccini's opera "Turandot," set for Aug. 8 - the one-year anniversary of the Olympics' opening ceremony. The stadium has no permanent tenant after Beijing's top football club, Guo'an, backed out of a deal to play there.
Details about the development plans were not available. A person who answered the phone at Citic Group on Friday said offices were closed for the Chinese New Year holiday.
A symbol of China's rising power and confidence, the stadium, whose knickname described its lattice of exterior steel beams, may never recoup its hefty construction cost, particularly amid a global economic slump. Maintenance of the structure alone costs 60 million yuan (about $8.8 million) annually, making it difficult to turn a profit, Xinhua said. New York Times
It seems as if it's another case of China showing potential for growth and exercising a means to do so but only thinking of the immediate outcome and not long term economic responsibilities. It's like the have the will and the way to better their country, but not so much the fine tuning of the know how to maintain longeavity.
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