How to diss the Earth
... except in China
...and here's why
Only the Chinese government could pull off something so grandiose. This is how they’re going to do it:
The Chinese government has been turned off this Saturday’s “Earth Hour” after officials realised the event falls on a newly created holiday to commemorate the ousting of the Dalai Lama from Tibet.
The United Nations secretary general, Ban Ki-moon, has urged people around the world to participate in Earth Hour, which he called the largest ever public show of concern about climate change.
Chinese journalists and student groups have been told to scale back their participation because images of cities and campuses turning dark do not fit the upbeat propaganda message that the authorities wanted to convey by declaring 28 March “Serf Liberation Day” in Tibet.
Read more from the Guardian’s report here. Needless to say the comments quickly descended into a fenqing-fest that had nothing to do with saving the planet.
Anyway, congratulations to those CCP energy guzzlers; they care about Tibetans so much they’re even prepared to destroy the Earth in their honour. Wonderful people.
Hat tip to Richard to pointing me in the direction of the propaganda picture on the right (via this blog).
March 28th, 2009 at 5:24 pm
stuart,
“… except in China”
That’s why you are so pathetic. You resort to blatant lying (and cheesy, lame humor) to take a swipe at China when there are not enough materials readily available.
http://green.sohu.com/20090328/n263066310.shtml
http://news.sohu.com/20090329/n263068003.shtml
http://zj.svip.sohu.com/green/2009/2009earthhour/
A side note: It just dawned on me many (if not the majority) of the cynical foreign China bloggers are british. I wonder, why is that? Do you or froog have a possible explanation? It is something about the brits that make them very cynical?
March 29th, 2009 at 1:30 am
Don’t be ridiculous, Pffefer. Of course I didn’t lie. The report talked of ‘scaling back’ and I never hinted otherwise. As for that first link, I imagine they turned the birdsnest lights on for a couple of hours just so they could turn them off again.
At the end of the day, the entirely spurious “serf’s liberation day” was a pathetic excuse not to fully participate in this event. We could have seen the lights go out in Lhasa, literally as well as metaphorically.
A question for you: I notice you refuse to capitalise England, English, Brit, Britain, British. This practice seems reserved for the sceptred isle; any reasons?
March 29th, 2009 at 2:56 am
My experience is that the vast majority of foreign China bloggers are Americans – although Canadians, Aussies, Kiwis (and non-native speaker Europeans) are also well represented. Not too many Irish or South Africans….
I’m not sure that Brits are any more cynical than anyone else, but if we are, I would take it as a compliment. The cultivation of a healthy cynicism should be one of the aims of a balanced education. And we do have a very good education system in the UK.
March 30th, 2009 at 8:07 pm
stuart,
You imagine? That’s YOUR suspecion. And why comment on the first link only? China’s participation of the Earth Hour only involved the Bird Nest?
http://green.sohu.com/20090328/n263066310_1.shtml
“stuart”, “Stuart”, “british”, “British”, what is the difference?
Froog,
I take you are saying the US doesn’t have an education system as good as the UK, since I have not encountered that many American cynic China bloggers?
Did lights go out at the Potala Palace last year?
March 30th, 2009 at 10:43 pm
“Did lights go out at the Potala Palace last year?”
They use candles, dear boy. The real light was extinguished when the Dalai Lama was exiled from his homeland.
April 1st, 2009 at 3:30 pm
And we do have a very good education system in the UK.
That is put to good use by Chinese students:
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/education/education-news/chinese-pupils-eclipse-all-other-ethnic-groups-in-english-tests-436560.html
It seems like the Chinese could teach you a thing or two about education. And even oral hygiene.
At the end of the day, the entirely spurious “serf’s liberation day” was a pathetic excuse not to fully participate in this event.
I think China could certainly shut the lights off in America and by extension Britain if you asked them enough. Just dump some dollars.
Of course, shutting down American and British plants in China would further cut pollution by about 20-30%. I agree, the whole world should hold hands and say “turn America off!”
April 2nd, 2009 at 12:18 am
“I think China could certainly shut the lights off in America ”
Then you would have to go home, wouldn’t you?
December 11th, 2009 at 1:55 pm
[...] Let’s be clear about what China has put on the table in Copenhagen. Beijing proposes not to cut emissions, but to continue increasing them at a slower rate, to 40 to 45 per cent (per unit of GDP) below 2005 levels by 2020. In other words China is proud to be both the biggest polluter and largest holder of foreign reserves on the planet, but would rather not share the tab for this particular – or any – undertaking that does not explicitly benefit China above all others. For the second time this year, China has dissed the Earth. [...]