Why the World should relive its past...

If you have lived in a hole your whole holy life then you don't remember the Tiananmen Square massacre, but if you haven't then you most likely do. It is 1989 in communist China and students are gathering for a protest in Tiananmen square and if you looked at it through the surface it would seem like it was nothing but a typical protest like many others of the 20th century. But if you dig deeper, you'll notice the tension growing between the CC party and its growing intellectuals. Students want the right for education (let's get things straight before anyone asks, education does not equal democracy) and are protesting for it. Fast forward to 6 weeks later and you'll see bodies stacked where the students used to be and maybe, just maybe their face won't be horribly disfigured after being riddled with bullets. Yes, these were the same students that were protesting before and yes, this was a very dark time in China. Although, there is a sliver of hope in this, China's iconic tank man rose from above the violence to put a stop to the massacre. This man, by himself, managed to raise the hearts and courage of the people to demand reform. And this is why we should not forget the past.

PS: this story might seem a little distorted in perspective, but please keep in mind that this is how I see it an everyone is entitled to see it in their own way. Video of the tank man here.

To live or not to live 2

After finishing the film To Live and brushing up on my CCH (Communist China History), I got a feel for what life was like during the cultural revolution and under the command of Chairman Mao until the command of Deng. Maybe it's because I'm a sensitive guy or perhaps because it actually was sad, but I honestly felt really touched by this movie. But enough of that mumbo jumbo gypsy talk, what this movie actually showed was the evolution of modern China through the eyes of a common Chinese man. We see how Mao Zedong (a shall we say, fundamental communist) took power and launched his 5 year plan, his cultural revolution, and his 1962 SEM (socialist education movement) all while being backed by the minister of defense Lin Biao. We also saw his wacky one ranked army equipped with the very high-tech red notebook.

Who needs ranks when I have my handy dandy notebook?

The movie also quite cleverly established the groom as a red guard and showed the tragedies of an untrained work force (especially in hospitals) in modern China. If my explanation hasn't bored all your interest in the movie away, I recommend you either buy/rent it or get a Peruvian Pirate to illegally download it for you. Either way, you should watch the movie.

To live or not to live 1

To Live is by far one of the best Chinese movies I have seen in a while. It is about the struggle to survive of our protagonist, Fugui. Fugui was a rich landlord and right before the communist party took over, he lost it all. He has to deal with the problems of a mute daughter, a rebellious son, and tons of other tom fooleries . To me, Fugui is almost like a Chinese Forrest Gump because he is constantly going from one odd situation to another and it kinda adds a comical edge to this depressing time in China. Definitely worth watching.

The Top 5 most interesting things about the Sui, Tang, and Song dynasties

5) Ruan Ji
 I honestly think Ruan Ji was one of the most fascinating things to come from the third wave. Not only because of his poems and works, but also just because of his general attitude towards everything.

Hey man *hiccup* keep bringing me that wine, I feel a poem coming.

 Ruan ji is an idol to many people: poets, writers, drunks...
Not only did he make spectacular poems, but he made them while intoxicated. I've heard of people doing amazing things while under the influence, but this guy's poems are just intimidatingly good.
Here is one example:
"Being sleepless at midnight,
I rise to play lute.
The moon is visible through the curtains
And a gentle breeze sways the cords of my robe.
A lonely wild goose cries in the wilderness
And is echoed by birds in the woods.
As it circles, it gazes
At me, alone, imbued with sadness"
For more, click here.

4) Xuanzong and the LuShan Rebellion
Xuangzong was a great emperor: he was great at curbing power, great at ringing up military provinces, great at permitting the Taiping Princess to commit suicide, great at giving his concubine Yang Guifei anything she wanted, and great at losing the throne because of it. His way of messing things up because of women is pretty impressive though. It's not like women had a lot of power at the time...

3) Girl Power
Empress Wu, or Wu Zetian although being a little (a lot) narcissistic, she helped the women in China raise in power. You could even say that she is an idol towards feminists, some one to look up to while trying to conquer a kingdom or even a small nation. I mean, she WAS Emperor of an enormous chinese empire; that has to count for something.

my interpretation of what Empress Wu looked like.

2) Kung Fu
You know, I give all my respect to some one who knows kungfu, I just find it to be ridiculously awesome when someone knows it, especially if it is shaolin kung fu (the original kung fu). Those guys can do really cool stuff, they can do backflips, own you with their spear/sword/stick/what have you, and they can do this.

I don't know what this is, but they can do it.

 But it's not only that, it's also their history. How a Buddhist temple could go all the way from being all peaceful and loving to being able to beat the c**p out of anyone that stands in their way of enlightenment. Something dramatic must have happened between those two stages, and I'm dying to find out what.


1) the Seven Sages
Don't think that after Ruan Ji, the other six sages will be a let down. No, if anything they are even cooler than him. These guys were like very old college students that made magnificent poetry, they loved to party and they loved to get drunk. Much like our modern day college/highschool students, but unlike us they got drunk for a very specific reason. They got drunk to write, you have no idea how many times I've wished to be able to write even a quarter as good as them while under the influence. Unfortunately though my writing just comes out like this....
jasdn ,amsdcnjv
(just kidding, I'm too young to drink...)