Walls

Hospitals are no fun and health care is no joke.

But before we go there, let's travel back some and indulge in Chinese efficiency, opening ceremony spectacle, Hooters and John 3:16, competitive subway riding, Freud's 'Civilization and Its Discontents,' Zambian track stars and the rest of the organized chaos I've been dwelling in.

Everyone, from family to friends I never knew I had (nor wanted), shoot me e-mail's daily to find out about China. "How is it?" Good. "Are you phones being tapped?" Sure. "Are people reading this e-mail?" No more than in the States. "Are you eating dog?" Well, have you seen my facebook picture? You get to pick what cute puppy you'd like for your meal each day, talk about democracy.

(By the way, I'm on the Amnesty International Website, Amnesty.org, as we speak.)

To an extent, I'm fed up with the questions. I've always been good at asking, but receiving is different, especially when their loaded with Western bias. Look, this place is far from perfect. I couldn't live here, I wouldn't want to be surrounded by 17 million people, I do enjoy a nice sky from to time, I can't deal with the lack of a nice stout and a good burger, I like my shower separate from my toilet (call me old fashion), and football season is starting soon...but this isn't Mao's China. Not in the way, I thought coming in. My, and yours, faithful reader, conception of Mao's China is as outdated as the Forbidden City.

This is a place where there are no laws: Only things you can and things you can't get away with. The only way to find out the difference is to do it. Might sound like a dangerous policy back home, but here it's worked just fine. Open container laws are non-existent, nor are drunk driving laws properly obeyed (that was NOT a fun cab ride), public urination is for this nation, jumping into the lake is fine (although not advisable for health reasons), and whatever is in your heart's desire, save for murder, rape, and political commentary, is worth a try.

Speaking of rape, funny story. I ordered some the other night. Fried Rape. I think it was a mushroom. It wasn't good.

Anyhow, this place isn't the impossible oppressive nation the media hangs out to dry anytime we need a collective enemy to rouse up some good ol' nationalism. In all likelihood, it's not much different than our fine nation. I think the only difference is the propaganda and each nation's way of using it. Back home, it's subtle. It's slipped under the radar, in advertisements and some 'news' organizations. We're a country of rhetoric and we use words carefully to avoid ever really saying anything.

Here, the propaganda is blatant and in your face. I wrestled with it for awhile, disgusted with the obvious. After all, can't people see through that. Surely 17 million people must gag at this shit. Maybe some do, maybe some don't. After all, our bullshit blinders are built differently. And of course they won't adopt our way of propaganda. That's admitting ours works better than theirs. West vs East. (Even though there's no real West vs East. We are so intrinsically tied to China through money that if China were ever to go down, we'd be below them to soften the fall.)

This isn't to sound unpatriotic. I love America. In fact, I don't think I've ever felt more like an American since I've been here. And I don't think I've ever been more proud to say I am one. But let's not get swept up in the Olympic sentimentality nationalistic bullshit. By the way, doesn't it strike you, faithful reader, odd that the Olympics, which supports one world, one dream, splits people up into nations and asks them to compete against each other. What better way to stir up nationalism and create larger walls between us.