The Possibility of A New Cultural Revolution (Blog #2)

I need to be brutally honest...the main reason I found this course so appealing was because for the longest time I have been dying to learn more about the history and current events surrounding China. I have no doubt that by the end of this course I will be able to provide you with a better answer than what I will attempt right now...but here goes! :)

Of course, anything is possible...but, more than likely I do not think that a widespread and cataclysmic event such as the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution could occur again in China today. The reason I doubt the recurrence of such an event is because of the introduction of the Internet and improvements in technology.

True, the Internet and advances in technology would be useful in gathering groups of rural farmers and unhappy workers aka 'the proletariat' together and informing the masses that in fact, a revolution was underway...but, the Internet allows for the too much freedom in regards to information and opinion. It would be too hard for the government to convince people to 'buy into' the ideas they were selling.

For example, the so-called 'first shot' at the cultural revolution was when Wu Han was criticized by Mao for his essay on Hai Rui. Han was supposed to make Rui look bad, but instead managed to praise him. Imagine how quickly this essay would have spread if it had been written in this day and age!!

Unit 11: Missing

B). I will assume the role of the attorney for the US government attempting to prove no complicity in the death of Charles Horman in Chile in 1973.

(even though personally, I think they did!)

Argument #1: Let us begin by examining the manner in which Charlie Horman's body was found. Yes, I understand there was confusion. On behalf of the US Government and the US Embassy in Santiago, Chile, we apologize for any pain and suffering that we have caused the family. However, our records show that Charlie was shot in the stadium and buried in a wall, as is often times customary procedure for unidentified bodies. We believe he was arrested for some arbitrary reason, possibly caught up in the randomness of the coup, and as of right now we do not know why he was shot.

Argument #2: We have no reason to believe that Charlie Horman had any extreme political affiliation that could or would possibly anger the current Chilean regime. His own wife has publicly stated that he was an aspiring Children's Book author and artist. He did work on newspaper with some friends, however, he was mainly a translator of articles. If he had communist tendencies, we were unaware of them.

Argument #3: United States Government Officials, in particular, those working in Chile during the time period of Charles Horman's disappearance bent over backwards and did everything they possibly could for Mr. Horman and Charlie's wife, Beth during their time of distress. It just does not make any sense for a nation that prides itself in defending and protecting its citizens to knowingly and willfully order the execution of one of their own. Surely, you can see how we had nothing to do with the death of Charlie Horman

Come On, Mr. Brown, Stand Up to the Chinese! (Blog #1)

After reading Will Hutton's article from The Observer entitled, Come On, Mr. Brown, Stand Up to the Chinese, I was reminded of the ongoing tension that still exists between the Chinese Government and many foreign governments, in particular, Great Britain. In his article Hutton admonished British Prime Minister Gordon Brown for being to easy on the Chinese in regards to many of their government policies. Hutton feels the reason Britain tends to handle the Chinese Government with kid gloves may be due to an inferiority complex in regards to trade. Hutton stated, "...we have so little that China wants to buy."
Once I read that statement I thought of this weeks readings and the emergence of the opium trade in China. The trade inferiority complex that may be leading Britain to overlook some questionable governmental policies...has existed in Britain since the 1700s. "By 1800 tea had become the 'national drink' in Great Britain, and the search for a counterweight to address the growth this trade imbalance contributed to British leaders' reliance on opium."

Unit 12: Men With Guns

Conejo's life changed for the better the fateful day he encountered Dr. Humberto Fuentes. Conejo led Dr. Fuentes on a mission to find Cerca del Cielo and in the process the two companions met some memorable travelmates. Altough all four made it to the top of Cerca del Cielo, only two would continue to impact Conejo's life...Domingo, the Army defector and Graciela, the silent war victim.
Once Dr. Fuentes passed away, Domingo istantly picked up in his footsteps. He became the village doctor, treating all the maladies he could with the medicine from Dr. Fuentes' bag. WIth each wound Domingo treated, he seemed to heal one his own. It was as if his own heart was softening in the process. Graciela noticed the change in Domingo. She grew more and more fond of him with each passing day.
But, this is a biography about Conejo the young boy...what happened to him?
Well, he FLOURISHED! A young family adopted him.
He played with the young boys and girls. And even though the villagers of Cerca del Cielo lived in poverty, they were a happy people. There was no violence and his young heart was slowly able to heal. He heard laughter during the day and lullabies at night, as opposed to gunshots! His adopted father taught him how to work the land and he was proud of his skill. He helped grow the food that his family ate. He felt successful, safe, and happy.

Unit 8: Hotel Rwanda

First I would like to begin by stating that I was so impressed with the film Hotel Rwanda that if it were up to me…I would leave it completely alone! In my opinion, Don Cheadle’s portrayal of Paul Rusesabagina, the hotel manager of the Belgian Hotel des Mille Collines, was immaculate!! Although I’ve seen this movie several times before, I still get chills watching Paul convince Tatiana to jump off the roof with the children, if and when the interahamwe attack. In a later scene, the chills kept coming, as Paul raced through the Hotel searching for his family, praying that they had not yet jumped, only to find them huddled together in the shower. Thank God! Scenes similar in intensity to the aforementioned are too numerous to count.
I also have to sing the praises of Philip Gourevitch’s book, We Wish To Inform You That Tomorrow We Will Be Killed With Our Families. Gourevitch coupled chilling first hand accounts of the genocide with informative political background information. His book provided the reader with poignant stories from actual victims but went a step further by offering an explanation as to how the international community, as well as, the Rwandan community could permit such atrocities to occur.
If I absolutely had to make a change to the film Hotel Rwanda based on my readings from the book, I would make the French presence more overt. The French were referred to several times in the film (one of the Belgian officials in charge of the hotel made a call to the French President and was able to stop a military attack on the hotel), but overall, I feel the French escaped relatively unscathed. I’m almost ashamed to admit this, but it was not until I read Gourevitch’s book, that I realized the culpability of the French in this matter. I had never heard of Operation Turquoise before. A disenchanted French soldier was quoted as saying the following about Operation Turquoise, “We have been deceived. This is not what we were led to believe. We were told that Tutsis were killing Hutus. We thought the Hutus were the good guys and the victims.” (Gourevitch, 160) Gourevitch concludes that when all was said and done, Operation Turquoise was beneficial only to the genocidaires. “ The signal achievement of Operation Turquoise was to permit the slaughter of Tutsis to continue for an extra month, and to secure a safe passage for the genocidal command to cross, with a lot of its weaponry, into Zaire.” (Gourevitch, 161)
Speaking of the safe passage…in my opinion, once the movie ends, it appears as if the genocide ends with the film. I guess on some level I realized that once something as horrific as a genocide occurs, a nation … better yet, the people who compromise that nation, cannot recover overnight. It will clearly take time for those wounds to even begin to heal. However, it was not until I read this book, that I acknowledged, that there was so much more to the genocide than just what occurred in 1994 with the mass killings of the Tutsi. Rwanda now had to deal with backlash killings of Hutus, and then the war with Zaire, and then the rebuilding process…my goodness!
One of the most difficult passages in the book dealt with the rebuilding of Rwanda. I remember reading about a woman who has to live next door to a man that killed her entire family…how does one do that?

Unit 7: Paradise Now

I have to admit... my initial thoughts on the film were that I really enjoyed it. I found myself empathizing with both Said and his bestfriend (I cannot think of his name at the moment). Throughout the entire film, even though I knew what they were plotting, I couldn't bring myself to look at them with disgust. I guess the writer/director did a good job. Even in the final scene, when Said was sitting on the bus and all those innocent victims were stationed around him, I still felt for Said.
It wasn't until I read the reviews required for this blog that I actually snapped out of it!! I know its just a film and they were all actors playing a role...but, unfortunately for the people living in Israel and Palestine (depending on your political views)...those events are real to them! OK...so, what petition would I sign my name to?... the one to have Paradise Now removed from the awards list or the counter-petition?
I do agree that there are two sides to every story. I think it is important, regardless of how unattractive it may be, to present as many sides/opinions to any one situation as possible because it helps people to learn and grow. So, I would sign the counter-petition. Having said all that...in my heart, I think that everysingle person that signed the petition to have the movie removed from the awards show list was also 100% right!!
I guess I am fortunate of having the luxury of being able to take the middle road because, THANK GOD, I have never, nor has anyone I love, ever been the victim of a suicide bomber.