SB will be opening, and of course that’s not bad. I’ve always been in favor of this sort of large-scale celebratory event—in my view, throwing money at song, dance, and fireworks is better than throwing money at the Three Gorges Dam.
And yet I can’t help it, I can’t help but vent a little. This opening ceremony is fine in every other respect, but the appearance of these two orphans really set me off. What on earth were they doing?
It reminds me of the Olympic opening ceremony two years ago, when there was likewise a huge earthquake, and likewise children from the disaster area took the stage. At the time I more or less accepted it, because the torch, one would think, represents hope; moreover, the moment when the children appeared was basically a solemn, serious segment (the entrance procession); and Lin Hao, as I heard, was a little hero, with both parents still alive, not an orphan. For the Olympic spirit, which glorifies heroes, making an appearance in such a role was still fairly appropriate.
But this time? Two orphans! Earthquake orphans! Two “orphans” who only very recently lost their closest family members! Orphans?! Comrades, their parents had just died, all right? A person who has only just lost his parents in a horrific disaster is brought over, and a crowd surrounds him singing and dancing, wow, how happy, how joyful, let’s set off the fireworks… Do you people still have a shred of humanity? Do you still have even the most basic common sense about normal human feelings?
Every disaster is an opportunity for some people to make money and stage a show. Fine, staging a show is not necessarily a bad thing. But what exactly are you trying to show by bringing two orphans onstage? You go deep into the disaster area, write inscriptions, make speeches, show that you care about the people there, show that you value post-disaster reconstruction—those things are all fine; even the disaster-sacrifice rituals of ancient emperors to worship Heaven after calamity were a kind of “show.” As long as what is being shown is indeed the right path, that can count as a good thing too. But what exactly are you trying to show by surrounding orphans who have just lost their closest family members with singing, dancing, and fireworks? —Ah ha ha, even though your mom has just kicked the bucket, we should still be happily full of joy, come on, your dad is dead, so sing one for us! —Hmm? Do you think everyone is Zhuangzi?
Has the ethics of this nation already transcended to the point where everyone is Zhuangzi? Or has it already sunk to such a state? To what extent have the most basic humanity, the most basic emotions, and the most basic judgment all been lost?
This shows that this is indeed an age of staging shows. People are used to staging shows, brainwashed by staging shows; everything has been distorted.
May 1, 2010
Latest Comments
- unic2010-05-03 15:55:50 anonymous 10.8.0.2
CCTV host: “Let’s meet again at the next charity gala!”
- Ji Zha2010-05-06 19:56:06
What LS said is so right. Our country has always valued form over content; this kind of thing is all too common.
Translated from the Chinese original with AI assistance. The original text is authoritative.
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