“Abbey Road” sounded
beautiful last night driving my kids back from school, and then again this
morning, dropping them off. Playlists
turning on random are what I usually default to but an album is a cohesive
artistic expression, the songs were meant to be heard together, they have been
heard together countless times and while I know I could queue up the album on
my iPod, I don’t. It is lost in digital
list within, with 149 other Gigs of music.
Putting the physical CD, (let alone the vinyl with the warmth and pops
and scratches, right where they always were) you’re committed to the entire
artistic work. Sadly, I note how
completely anachronistic all of these concerns are. No Beatles album has a lower nadir than “Maxwell’s Silver Hammer” to my ears. But when its on: Paul’s backing vocals on “Come Together”, the
harmonies on “Because”, John’s yell on “She’s So Heavy”, the three of them
trading guitar solos at the end of the Medley . . . it radiates, a “sun king.”
OK, OK. There are
limits to the amount of diligence you can do, if you try to post blogs
daily. But I probably should have
invested four or five minutes yesterday to see if the emperor Akihito had ever actually
visited China, before suggesting that it would be a wise thing that he
did. Your humble blogger committed a 似是而非[1] of haste.
The occupant of the Chrysanthemum throne, the only reigning
monarch who still uses the title “emperor” did come to China, one year before
me in 1992, twenty-one years ago, this week.
http://www.nytimes.com/1992/10/23/world/akihito-visit-stirring-bitterness-among-chinese.html
And so perhaps some credit is due to Emperor Akihito as a
potential source of inspiration for Queen Elizabeth II’s Republic of Ireland
visit, rather than the other way around.
And be that as it may, the trip obviously did not facilitate a major
reconciliation between China and Japan.
During the visit, the Emperor stayed close to official script. He did not apologize but rather acknowledged
that Japan`s wartime occupation had “inflicted great suffering on the people of
China.”
It is fascinating to pause and read a few articles about the
China of 1992. China was, of course,
still largely an international pariah, still three years after the events of
June 4, 1989. It was a different time,
when Japan was still the regional economic giant and was, in a way, showing
great magnanimity, or practicality engaging at a time when others would
not. Bill Clinton had yet to be elected
and was on the campaign trail talking about the “butchers from Baghdad to
Beijing.” Deng Xiao Ping had yet to make his famous southern tour, opening the
country irreversibly to international trade.
The article mentions that trade between China and Japan had reached US
$20.2B, which must have seemed like a lot.
The same figure for 2011 was US $345B.
Chinese citizens were told to keep quiet and not protest publicly and
for the most part this is what transpired.
And it would appear, therefore, that it was a missed
opportunity. China and Japan both had
their purposes for the visit, at that time.
Secure international legitimacy, expand trade, and broadcast the
essential civility of Japan and China to domestic audiences and the people of
the world. Nothing wrong with these, per
say. But neither Japan, nor Emperor
Akihito were ready to apologize, he, no doubt after detailed consultation, did
not do so. The Chinese people were
served up a lite, feel-good showcase that did little to address, let alone
assuage historical bitterness. Most
Chinese leaders quoted at the time, like Beijing mayor Chen Xitong, who would
later be deposed, sound robotic and uninspired.
Nothing like the spontaneous “wow” repeated three times by the Irish
prime minister, when Queen Elizabeth II, spoke to the room in Gaelic.
The Japanese public sphere is more mature. Rights to freedom of speech are, for example, protected and enforced. The far right
were not happy, at the time of the visit.
They would presumably broadcast considerable acrimony were the emperor
consider apologizing outright today.
But I don’t think their frustration would fray the fabric of Japanese
society beyond repair. Japan is better
prepared to have a mature discussion of this topic in the public sphere, if
only because rights are respected. And it is not impossible for the emperor to
consider an outright apology, if only because further snooping about revealed
that he was proposing a visit to South Korea in 2012, for the explicit purpose of
offering just such an apology. http://japandailypress.com/emperor-akihito-wishes-to-visit-south-korea-will-apologize-if-necessary-2112902/
And there is nothing wrong with a missed opportunity. As long as you learn from it. If Akihito were to visit China again, I think
he could accomplish much more if he extended the same offer for full apology to
China that he appears to be offering to South Korea. Without knowing all the nuance of translation
and what may have been lost, the sadness reflected upon in 1992 and the
“apology” offered to South Korea last year appear to be different. And a visit these days would also be
different for so many reasons, if only because public discussion would not be
so easy to control in China. But I do
maintain that Queen’s visit suggested potential, heretofore unrealized, by the
visit of Akihito’s from 1992. Using
clear language that unconditionally apologizes, would be one step forward. And as I’d suggested if Akihito were prepared
to speak in Mandarin, to the Chinese people, if only for a phrase, it would be
symbolic and powerful and another step towards reconciliation.
A brief aside; yesterday was a fine fall day: I shot some hoops with my daughters, I
decided to take as many pictures of green things as I could on the way home in
anticipation of them all departing soon and then, we got back and carved our
pumpkin. I used to hate Hong Kong and
San Francisco, as you’d carve your pumpkin, set it out and it would rot in the
heat a few days later, before reaching 10/31.
In the evening my younger daughter of nine put on a play for
my wife and myself. It was a grand, Euripidian-like
affair. I was thinking what a fine playwright
she’ll be and perhaps an actress as well, but her vision is somewhat
larger. It may be that she ends up as a
a promoter and a mall developer as well.
During intermission we were taken to the store she’d set up for
intermission, introduced to shops and told to spend money. And we were asked
to use hard RMB currency for whatever it was we wanted. I bought a book for three RMB. My eagle-eyed daughter
pointed out that one of the RMB 1.00 notes that I’d presented was a fake. This happens in China. Usually you wind up with counterfeit 50’s or
100 RMB notes. But this bill was no ordinary
counterfeit. On the back was printed
some anti-Party propaganda, courtesy of Fa Lun Gong.
The rough translation is something like:
“Heavenly god, over throw the Chinese
Communist Party.
Withdraw from the Party and save
your life.
Where are you going to look for
peace?
Withdraw from Party’s team.
Where are you going to find
happiness?
A heart, which has truth and
endurance.”
It seemed to me a poignant reminder of how precarious the
pathway is forward for the PRC is as it moves millions of people a year through
the “checkout counter” I’d referenced two posts back, en route to a middle
class existence. Regardless of whether
Fa Lun Gong was or was not a group seeking the overthrow of state power in the
past, before they were cracked-down upon, they clearly are now. And as with insurrectionist messages passed
in holiday moon cakes, or seemingly religious movements like the Taiping or the
White Lotus morphing into Buddhist, or Daoist or proto-Christian rebellions for
state power, the manner in which China’s order is so fragile, is often so hard
for Westerners to understand. But
clearly it is quite real. And the threats are
not simply those of the web 3.0 social networking, but sometimes as simple as
One-Yuan note that made it into my hands, and would have continued on its way,
were it not for my daughter and her budding business acumen.
If I see Mr. Mustard, I’ll offer him the note for his other
nostril.
