Yachats Oregon Writer Rick Schultze

The concept of ying and yang describes two opposing and,

at the same time, complementary (completing) aspects of any

one phenomenon (object or process) or comparison of any

two phenomena. They are universal standards of quality at

the basis of the systems of correspondence seen in most

branches of classical Chinese science and philosophy.

Well, that would certainly describe the 2008 summer Olympics in Beijing. The spectacular opening ceremony which by many accounts was the most incredible combination of people and high tech electronics and a sight to behold. However, despite the emphasis on the good will and long hours of rehearsal the thousands of Chinese volunteers put in to stage it, one part of it harked of straight and calculated Western show business.

A 7-year-old Chinese girl was deemed not good-looking

enough for the opening ceremony, so another little girl with a

pixie smile lip-synced “Ode to the Motherland,” a ceremony

official said. Chen Qigang, the ceremony’s music director said

in an interview with Beijing Radio “The national interest

requires that the girl should have good looks and a good

grasp of the song and look good on screen. Lin Miaoke was

the best in this, and Yang Peivi’s voice was the most

outstanding.” He added that during a live rehearsal soon

before the ceremony, a Politburo member said Miaoke’s voice

“must change.”Now that is nothing new in the United States,

there is a ton of lip-syncing going on at sporting events,

television shows, halftime shows, concerts and movies and

videos but it’s not hidden under the guise of a totally

“voluntarily commitment by average citizens for the good of

the country”, who sacrificed daily for over a year in

rehearsals. Our philosophy is that of “get it done so it looks

and sounds good” and not to hide so much behind the good

will and dedication of people; emphasizing how much they’ve

sacrificed. But that’s the ying and yang of it; on the ying side

China used the energy and talent of 15,000 performers to

create a beautiful and unforgettable show but on the yang

side they acquiesced to the Hollywood mentality of a “pretty

face sells better than a not so pretty one so” like a Hollywood

producer they pulled the plug on the real Chinese child who

sang the show stopping song. Thus we are left with two ways

to view it. Shall we enjoy the overall spectacular or dig down

and criticize the inner workings of the Chinese? I for one am

willing to forget the bad and will continue to enjoy the talents

of the many terrific athletes and their personal stories and the

many colorful performers and the things I’m learning about

China and it’s attempt to emerge into modern society. I’m

sure there will be many discussions about this for sometime

but wow, there sure are some exciting things going on over

there!

To reach Rick Schultze email: yarick@pioneer.net