what made us think China would behave this time?

I still cannot believe China won the bid to host the Olympics.

well, as I am sure you have heard by now - China got caught faking us out. in more than one way. quite a many, actually.

perhaps you were one of the billion people who tuned in to watch the Opening Ceremony...one of the people who 'oooo'd' and 'ahhhh'd' at the amazing spectacle they put on, many claiming "Wow, no way. How did they do that?". By tricking you, us, everyone - that's how. By assuming we are complete idiots who just sit there and watch with mouths agape and our remotes in our hand, drinking our beers and talking about Paris Hilton - as their Politicians and economy get richer.

first, we have the tiny singer singing "Hymn to the Motherland" lip-synced.

look above. does one child's face disturb you more than the other? c'mon, tell me the truth...wouldn't you boo the child to the right, off-stage for not being as cute as the one to the left? it's ok, you can tell me...Communists thought the same thing, so you are not alone.

what is really bothersome is the new claim of a child's face "not being suitable for television", hence having a vocal stand-in to lip-sync the 7 year old's part. why you may ask? her teeth as a 7 year old, weren't perfect. yep. they felt she would offend people with her 'imperfect looks'. revealed to a local radio station in Beijing, the musical director of the ceremony Chen Quigng stated Lin Miaoke, the 'television ready 9 year old who everyone would think was cute'. where did they find two little girls anyway these days in China? and what kind of message does that send to people, little girls and Yang Peiyi, who still has teeth growing in because she is only 7 ?! (story)

then, we have Olympic Officials admitting what we saw, was not real. no &*^&!!
that brilliant display of fire in the sky was not all authentic. did you know that 70% of the fireworks were pre-recorded and computer generated? what a great idea to save money China!! the chairman of Beijing's committee cited "most people could not tell the difference." how right you are China! we are complete idiots who love being made a fool of with your animated fireworks. thanks so much, really! (story)

not to mention, they violated the agreement made which secured their hosting of the 2008 Olympic Games - which was to improve the human rights of their citizens.
about 10 days before the Beijing games began, Amnesty International went in there just to validate their disappointed suspicions. "The Chinese authorities have broken the promises they made when they were granted the Olympics seven years ago," Amnesty's UK campaigns director, Tim Hancock, said. he also stated, "They told the world that the Olympics would help bring human rights to China, but the government continues to persecute and punish those who speak out for human rights ahead of the Games....The Olympic values have been betrayed by the Chinese government." China promised to make the city 'greener'. They said they would work on police brutality and imprisoning people voicing campaigns for human rights; all of which have not happened. (story)

what should have tipped us off is the fact that we cannot buy toys for our children manufactured in this country.

it's a special time when you give a child a toy- a time for them to grow with it, learn from it, and have fun. certainly not to get poisoned and die. lead paint is used in most of China's manufacturing of plastic, wood, and metal toys; and recently, we discovered the lead paint to also be in children's bibs. and it's not only our kids who are targets folks - it is us (Chinese-made toothpaste and tires and our pets (pet food). these products are way beyond China's limits and International limits for acceptable lead amounts - so how do they get out? money talks, that's how. while I understand the responsibility of this problem lie not solely on China's ground, and manufacturers still demand certain items, made in a certain way - the onus must be upon the Country who exports. (story)

or the fact that about 175 million children under the age of 14 (who make up around 20% of the workforce) in factories are making fireworks, garments and textiles, sporting goods, games and those toys...

(an updated story)

or perhaps the gender-war where prenatal sex selection, forced abortions and female infanticide (the systematic killing of girls soon after they are born) are all widely accepted.

in fact, the Chinese men now have a problem finding brides. a recent (2007) United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) State of the World Population Report, stated these practices, combined with neglect, have created a vast number of "missing" girls in Asia, what's the number you are wondering? 60 million. that figure may not seem like a lot to some people, so let me put it in these terms - there are under 9 million people in NYC. only 18 million in the entire state; women and men. so that would mean every woman you have seen on the streets, dated, loved, worked with in our city - could all have been victims of China's strict policy regulating female babies, and have gone 'missing'. (story)

they have even upset BUDDHISTS!! the non-violent group who is all-loving. jailing them and beating them was just not enough for the police and politicians. Now, The State Administration for Religious Affairs mandated all future incarnations of living Buddhas in relation to Tibetan Buddhism, "get government approval". (story)

listen, I am not saying we here in America are all-mighty. in fact, there is a lot wrong with this country and world. but when human rights have been so visibly violated, and humans so visibly humiliated - fingers will point. and mine is targeted at a yellow star against a red backdrop.