The Olympics, Nike, and TVRI

It is too bad that TVRI could not come up with a better deal in terms of broadcast rights and showing the recent Olympic Games from Beijing. It might have been worth watching (or is that perving?)!

Have a good weekend one and all!

(photo via here)

Advertising Stupidity

The Spanish Team is finding itself at the centre of a racism row as a photo has emerged of the whole team seemingly slanting their eyes. In this politically correct world that we live in this is undoubtedly going to be viewed as racist even if the intent was not to be so.

The ad was for a courier company. However, what is interesting is that the Spanish basketball team has just signed a four-year deal with a Chinese shoe company, Li Ning Footwear.

My question would be, "Why didn't anyone associated with this shot consider how it might be deemed racist?"

Stupid is as stupid does!

Journalists Without Borders

This is the Journalists Without Borders take on what is happening in China in not only this Olympic Year but every single solitary day!

You can access their website here.

Beijing, The Olympics, and Dogs

I am writing this post because my mother SMS-ed me earlier today saying that she entered a competition where she had to write in 25 words or less, "Why she wanted to go to Beijing to watch the Olympics?", bugger me if the old bird didn't win!

So, now her and the old fella are off to Beijing to watch the Olympics. Lucky buggers!

The other reason is that this story brings back memories of home. I used to be the Manager of a Domino's Pizza joint. It helped pay my way through law school. Every day that I went to work I had to drive past this Chinese restaurant, not particularly interesting in and of itself. However, this particular Chinese restaurant was in the same building as the local vet! Hence the connection to this story.

The Beijing Tourism Board officials have apparently been doing the rounds of local restaurants that are officially designated dining spots during the games and instructing them that dog meat is to come off the menu. Any one thinking of going to Beijing, then the word to learn is "xiangrou" or "fragrant meat". Aside from the designated eating places, tourism officials are also asking non-designated fine dining establishments to also take xiangrou of the menu.

Xiangrou supposedly provides health benefits. Most people I have talked to said that it increased their body temperature and made them sweat. The classic question must be what does dog meat taste like. I must add that I have no desire to find out either. I have eaten snake and crocodile meat and a range of other game meats of which I won't bore you with. The "what does it taste like" question is always interesting. Stock answer, chicken!

For me the issue has always been getting over the idea of eating a pet. I have always owned dogs. Never owned a rabbit so have no problems dining on rabbit stew.

However, if you want to see the darker side of the dog meat trade in China, I provide this link (viewer discretion advised -- it is a very ugly and cruel trade). I have looked at the link, it is disturbing. I now can see why there are many people passionate about animal rights!

I am not posting any pictures to this post.

Beijing 2008 -- Pollution

Yesterday was all about amusing myself and I posted lots and lots of fun stuff! However, today it is back to the more serious and perhaps mundane world of opinionated postings on all sorts of equally irrelevant "stuff".

The Australian Track and Field team for the Olympics has been issued an order that prohibits them from marching in the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games. The opening ceremony is undoubtedly one of the highlights and is part of the overall culmination of an athlete having achieved their ultimately goal of having been selected, not only to represent their country but also to represent their country at an Olympic Games.

The rationale for the ban is that Beijing is one of the world's most polluted cities and the athletes that march in the opening ceremony will be a risk for respiratory ailments that will adversely effect their performance in competition. This would seem to be a bureaucratic decision by over-zealous officials rather than a decision on the part of the athletes themselves.

However, the potential for some diplomatic fallout, particularly as no other countries have expressed any public concerns of dangers to their athletes from pollution, has seen some back-tracking and the current excuse seems to be that the athletes need a stable training environment. The question though is that the athletes have never needed a stable training environment previously that has resulted in the athletes being prevented from marching in the opening ceremony!

Yet, in fairness to the bureaucrats making the decisions, perhaps after having invested so much money into these athletes then it is only reasonable to protect your investment in order to maximize the returns. The picture is of Australian heptahlete Kylie Wheeler.

I am sure this will blow over.

Beijing 2008 -- Logo

Step 1.

Step 2.

Step 3.

Step 4.

The End Result!

I am sure this is likely to offend someone. However, it is not posted to offend but to highlight the concerns that some folks have about the human rights situation in China. The Olympic Games is supposed to be about sport and peace so this is also an opportunity to insist that China be more transparent and accountable for human rights conditions in their country.

What Price on Valour?

The sale of war memorabilia, particularly medals has raised its head again with a second Victoria Cross (the Commonwealth's highest award for valour in the face of the enemy) going to auction within the last two weeks. Some people might be dismayed that a monetary value can be placed on bravery at the highest level and others might take a more pragmatic approach to the collectables being offered for sale. Simply, everything has a price and ultimately through the process adopted we determine that value.

When it is all said and done, war medals are awarded to the individual and not to the broader community. They are private property and can be bought and sold. If this offends people then those people need to rethink the process in awarding medals for valour. If medals are public property that cannot be bought and sold then there needs to be a caveat in the awarding of the medals in the first place that states that the medal is to be displayed in a public place for the viewing pleasure of the masses.

Personally, I would hope that medals such as the Victoria Cross which is awarded for "... most conspicuous bravery, or some daring or pre-eminent act of valour or self-sacrifice, or extreme devotion to duty in the presence of the enemy" would be displayed in a public place like a museum so that all people can learn about the bravest of the brave, those who have laid everything on the line not for a shot at fame or glory or riches, but rather in the defence of freedom and democracy as we know it or simply to save the life of a mate in battle. That said, I cannot see a valid reason why a museum should not buy the medals themselves.

If the museum cannot afford to purchase the medals then they either need a special fund provided by the government for this purpose or work together with wealthy benefactors in the purchase of this memorabilia.

The reality is a simple one in that there would be no sale if there was no demand. Simple economics tells us that this is all about supply and demand. The demand is there and if you can supply something to fill that demand and get a price you are willing to accept into the bargain, then why not?

Let's face it, if you can sell a war medal, or an Olympic gold medal, or something similar for 500 thousand dollars and that would set you up in terms of paying for something that you need then who should prevent you from ding that. It has been reported that Shirley Strickland, one of Australia's greatest Olympians, sold her Gold medals to pay for her grand children's education.

Speaking Mandarin

Australia has managed to elect a Prime Minister that speaks a foreign language. There have been others before him but most of their foreign language skills were restricted to the Queen's English...

You would think that speaking Mandarin would be an advantage for the PM as the issue of Tibet has recently re-exploded onto the world scene with some fierce crackdowns by the Chinese in Tibet as a means of suppressing dissent in the region. Well, it seems it is an advantage although so far the advantage has been limited to discussing the Tibet issue with Chinese students at Peking University.

It is refreshing that a foreign leader (even more so because the foreign leader is an Australian) has the testicular fortitude to go into China's own backyard and talk in the local lingo and suggest that Chinese has some issues to deal with, particularly some significant human rights issues in Tibet. Apparently, he is going to broach this subject in no uncertain terms with Chinese leaders in the future.

Australia recognizes China's sovereignty over Tibet. Okey dokey on that front as most other countries do to and so does the Dalai Lama. The issue is one of effective and substantial autonomy that allows Tibet to remain a part of China but perhaps a self-governing territory (the above map from Al Jazeera).

But this statement from Qiangba Puncog, the chairman of the Beijing-appointed Tibet Autonomous Region government, that the rioters were "an extremely tiny minority" of Tibetans and "do not, and cannot, represent Tibet and the Tibetan people" should be cause for concern as it implies that the Chinese government's response will continue to be ruthless in suppressing dissent against its rule (photo from AFP).

Australia has two competing realities here, the Olympics aside, actively promoting better human rights for Tibetans while simultaneously not alienating the Chinese government altogether as Australia's resource sector has found a large and increasingly demand friendly market for raw materials. Perhaps this is what is known as the "business of human rights"!

This is an issue that is set to continue right up until the opening ceremony in Beijing if the protesters coming out to greet the Olympic Torch in protest as it makes its way around the world on its four-yearly pilgrimage.