(Also, there is a stray php comment right below the “Leave a Comment” header…)

In my opinion, quite a few Chinese (& other third world peoples) felt slighted again into thinking: if they do that in the west, how can their media continually wag the finger & say “naughty-naughty, bad-bad China [or put in your favourite rising 3rd world country]“. Many of the young agree that those most in power remains almost medievel in their outlook & mannerisms. For many older generation Chinese, this outward showing of the perfect “face” to outside guests remains vital and justifies any outlandish lies and irreputable actions taken within. Sadly, western double standards & sensationalism only undermines the people who point to the west as good model for fairness & equity. Moreover, such actions regrettably serve as a viable counter-argument for those hiding their own irresponsibility & bad judgment. Didn’t an (in)famous U.S. politician just recently confess, “We should lead by the force of our examples – not by the example of our force”?

Alright, enough of my rant! In my opinion, the successful completion of the Beijing Olympics and other engineering marvels are the crowning jewels of achievement for the 2nd & 3rd generation of leaders & people that grew up during the CR and ‘79 Opening. We have to wait & see what the 4th generation have yet to achieve.

P.S. Do enjoy the rest of your journey in Shandong.

Thanks for the correction. I guess 1.5 million people is a bit of a gross underestimate. 1.5 BILLION is certainly more accurate.

@Jetso

I’ve never bought into the whole “they do it in the west, so we can do it in China” argument, nor do I believe in the converse. To me, faking is faking, whether you’re China, Australia, or Paupau New Guinea.

The official population of China is 1.3 billion. What that really means is that there are 1.3 billion Chinese people with proper 户口 (registration). The actual population is probably more in the neighborhood of 1.5. There is no way to know for sure (like most Chinese statistics), but I’ve always used the 1.5 as the accepted figure.

Have a good trip to Shandong.

P.S. There is the Para-Olympics … or is that another after-thought?

I think there were more that 1.5 million Chinese watching the Olympics, perhaps you meant 1.5 billion?

Anyway, say hello to Chicago for us.