|
|
|
|
|
ஒழுக்கின்மை (Paul Eres)
|
 |
« Reply #2 on: August 16, 2008, 01:14:40 PM » |
|
I also like this song (not part of the video above):
|
|
|
|
|
Logged
|
|
|
|
|
Tobasco Panda
|
|
« Reply #3 on: August 16, 2008, 02:46:49 PM » |
|
Whoa. At first those images look like bad photoshop work or kalidescopic images... after realizing that it is just people aligned perfectly like that... holy smokes!  |
|
|
|
|
Logged
|
|
|
|
|
Melly
|
|
« Reply #4 on: August 16, 2008, 04:18:45 PM » |
|
Yeah, it was really impressive, but I didn't enjoy it as much as I probably should, probably because I'm not a big fan of the way the Chinese government, well, is.
|
|
|
|
|
Logged
|
|
|
|
|
sereneworx
|
|
« Reply #5 on: August 16, 2008, 04:29:02 PM » |
|
It was awesome, but I don't think it translated to the screen very well. It seemed to be lacking in something when I watched it.
It must have been fantastic for the people watching it live.
|
|
|
|
|
Logged
|
|
|
|
|
ஒழுக்கின்மை (Paul Eres)
|
|
« Reply #6 on: August 16, 2008, 04:40:28 PM » |
|
Melly, three points that come to mind are:
The Chinese government is actually fairly free considering its level of development. It's more free than the US was at a similar stage of development. It can be compared, in terms of infrastructure and level of development, to how the US was in 1850 or so -- and remember, and the US had slavery back then, and women didn't have the right to vote. The richer a country is, the freer it is, so as China becomes richer it'll become freer.
A second point is that the US (where I live) recently started a few wars which led to the death of hundreds of thousands of civilians, operates prison camps and employs torture -- none of which China currently does. So there's not much moral high ground there, and people don't feel that the US government's actions take away from, say, the achievements of NASA like the ISS and the Hubble telescope. (Although you probably don't live in the US, your profile says Brazil -- even in Brazil's case, there's an incredible gap between the rich and the poor, I believe it's much more of a gap than either the US or even China has. Plus Brazil is cutting down its rainforests and such. So it's not a spotless country either, although it's not on the scale of the US and China when it comes to evil acts.)
Third is that one can admire the achievements of a people without condoning their government. Especially in non-democracies, a people aren't responsible for what their government does. The event was in part funded by the government, but it was done by individual people who are largely unconnected to their government other than that.
|
|
|
|
|
Logged
|
|
|
|
|
Melly
|
|
« Reply #7 on: August 16, 2008, 04:51:32 PM » |
|
Yeah, I admit that my opinion was probably a bit biased. I guess I just don't like the controlled internet bit. Also, I'm not a fan of the american government OR the brazilian government, either. As a matter of fact I really want to move to another country that cares more about the life and freedom of its citizens. Any suggestions?  |
|
|
|
|
Logged
|
|
|
|
|
ஒழுக்கின்மை (Paul Eres)
|
|
« Reply #8 on: August 16, 2008, 05:00:02 PM » |
|
From what I gather, small local democratic countries seem have the best governments, such as the ones in the Scandinavian area, or New Zealand. Also, Hong Kong, despite being in China, is one of the freest places in the world and from most accounts the government is very lenient there.
Though personally I see all governments as organized criminal cartels, so I don't really judge where to live only based on which set of criminals is in charge. Anywhere you live you have to work around them -- they aren't there to help or serve, they're there to rule, there's no such thing as a benevolent government.
|
|
|
|
|
Logged
|
|
|
|
|
Melly
|
|
« Reply #9 on: August 16, 2008, 05:05:43 PM » |
|
True, but some are worse and more open about their nastyness than others. Some places out there are pretty much dictatorships that have no qualms about getting a random innocent guy in the streets, torturing him and then killing him, throwing his body in some unknown ditch, not even giving his family the right to give him a proper burial (which happened in Brazil in a certain time, I forget the exact dates, but I thankfully wasn't born back then)
|
|
|
|
|
Logged
|
|
|
|
|
ஒழுக்கின்மை (Paul Eres)
|
|
« Reply #10 on: August 16, 2008, 05:15:24 PM » |
|
I think that describes 100% of governments. It's just that "freer" governments can accomplish the same ends with less messy means. But they would use the more messy means if they had to.
|
|
|
|
|
Logged
|
|
|
|
|
William Broom
|
|
« Reply #11 on: August 17, 2008, 12:18:06 AM » |
|
I should like to think that my government wouldn't do that, or if they did they wouldn't last long. They may be -
Wait. When I clicked this thread I thought 'this'll turn into a political discussion in no time'. And I was right.
ON TOPIC, I haven't/didn't watched the opening ceremony but now I feel I should.
|
|
|
|
|
Logged
|
|
|
|
|
Melly
|
|
« Reply #12 on: August 17, 2008, 12:28:02 AM » |
|
BACK ON TOPIC, I did think the coreography of hundreds of people working at once nearly flawlessly was very impressive. However, as far as the drums in the beginning with the pixelart countdown, my skeptic side can imagine them cheating and having a computer sending the information to the drums to light up specific ones. It would actually be pretty simple as long as they lined up the drums in the correct order, with a bit of random imperfection thrown in the code to make sure people believed it was the drummers. But I give them the benefit of the doubt.
The giant parchment was neat though, as was the torch holder being lifted to lethal heights in order to light up the big one directly.
|
|
|
|
|
Logged
|
|
|
|
|
Pacian
|
|
« Reply #13 on: August 17, 2008, 05:39:47 AM » |
|
Nobody's yet mentioned that the guy in charge was Zhang Yimou, director of Hero, House of Flying Daggers and Raise the Red Lantern et al. So I'd better do that.
|
|
|
|
|
Logged
|
(\ /)
(O.o) - Achtung, baby!
(> <)
|
|
|
|
Alevice
|
|
« Reply #14 on: August 17, 2008, 06:54:34 AM » |
|
I heard that tehre was an official statement where the chinese government clarified that most of the show was unfortutanely faked for tv, due to environmental conditions. There were not even real fireworks (they were digitally inserted afterwards), so people who went to see it live missed much more than those watching it on tv.
|
|
|
|
|
Logged
|
|
|
|
|
ஒழுக்கின்மை (Paul Eres)
|
|
« Reply #15 on: August 17, 2008, 07:07:28 AM » |
|
I haven't heard that statement, do you have a source on it? I have heard that Chinese gathered around the stadium to see the fireworks because there wasn't enough room for everyone who wanted to attend to get into the stadium, and I doubt they would have gathered to see non-existent fireworks.
|
|
|
|
|
Logged
|
|
|
|
|
Alevice
|
|
« Reply #16 on: August 17, 2008, 07:17:28 AM » |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Logged
|
|
|
|
|
ஒழுக்கின்மை (Paul Eres)
|
|
« Reply #17 on: August 17, 2008, 07:54:01 AM » |
|
The footprint thing I knew about, it was mentioned during the coverage on NBC and is mentioned in the video I linked to, so it really isn't new info. It was a very minor part of the ceremony, perhaps lasting half a minute in a 1+ hour show.
|
|
|
|
|
Logged
|
|
|
|
|
Chris Whitman
|
|
« Reply #18 on: August 17, 2008, 09:21:38 AM » |
|
Oh, Chinese government! Your lavish displays of wealth certainly detract from the perception that an enormous number of your citizens live in poverty or work in the midst of environmental disasters characterized as 'worse than Chernobyl.'
|
|
|
|
|
Logged
|
Formerly "I Like Cake."
|
|
|
|
lordmetroid
|
|
« Reply #19 on: August 17, 2008, 09:57:26 AM » |
|
The fireworks was real, it just created a too dangerous airspace to fly in so it had to be digitally remade for television.
|
|
|
|
|
Logged
|
|
|
|
|
Player
