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.