Olympic 'face' buster should be a non-starter

The Chinese government likes to put on a good (and I use that term loosely) show. Watching the closing ceremony of the National People's Congress (repeatedly, and one full day after the whole thing was wrapped up!) on CCTV 新闻 (News), one quickly realizes that this government puts an S-load of emphasis on outward appearances. And that's S-load with a capital 'S.' Each and every one of the stone-faced politicians was neatly trimmed and pressed. President Hu Jintao smiled at the appropriate occasions. It was communist theatre at its finest. I think a lot of this goes back to the old, cold-war theory that if something looks out of place, it might be seen by the CIA or other covert agency as a sign of weakness, which will open the door for Chiang Kai-shek to reinvade or some damn thing. Whatever the reason behind it, the CPC loves its theatrics. As such, this is why I think this new theory being kicked around now about 'punishing' China over this whole Tibet situation by boycotting the opening ceremonies at the Olympics isn't such a hot idea.

As I've stated on numerous occasions in the past, I don't mind at all when someone sticks their finger in this government's eye from time to time. But when it comes to the Olympics, I don't think it's the right move. Anyone who has spent more than 10 minutes in this country knows that this government and the people in general are going 'koo koo for Olympic puffs,' or something to that effect. They're throwing their heart and soul into trying to prove that China is all growed up and ready to come out and play with the big boys. As such, if there are empty seats on August 8th beside Hu Jintao, Chiang Kai-shek might just see his opening.

The CPC knows how to hold a grudge. And nothing is going to piss off this government more than screwing with this country's 'coming out party.' As such, my advice to world leaders is to tread cautiously when it comes to this issue. Criticize from afar if you so desire, but when August 8th rolls around, just kick back and enjoy the show, because, even with the dramatic loss of Spielberg, I have a feeling that his Mexican, non-union equivalent has a shiny firework or two in his bag of tricks that should make for some at least mild entertainment to crack open the 2008 Games.