nytimes.com/2009/04/20/arts/ … han&st=cse
Jackie Chan Says Chinese Need Control
Published: April 19, 2009
It’s not unusual for actors to stumble when they talk about politics, but Jackie Chan, below, has struck a nerve on a particularly divisive issue. In the southern Chinese province of Hainan on Saturday Mr. Chan, the action star, told a group of business leaders, “I’m not sure if it’s good to have freedom or not,” The Associated Press reported. He also said: “I’m gradually beginning to feel that we Chinese need to be controlled. If we’re not being controlled, we’ll just do what we want.” Mr. Chan’s remarks have drawn criticism from lawmakers in Taiwan and Hong Kong, where Mr. Chan was born. “He’s insulted the Chinese people,” the Hong Kong pro-democracy legislator Leung Kwok-hung told The Associated Press. “Chinese people aren’t pets.” Another Hong Kong lawmaker, Albert Ho, said: “His comments are racist. People around the world are running their own countries. Why can’t Chinese do the same?” Hong Kong and Taiwan news outlets reported the comments, but mainland China did not. According to his Web site, jackiechan.com, Mr. Chan will perform May 1 at the Jackie and His Friends Concert in Beijing.
This is a pretty common belief among Chinese people that I have met, whether they are from Singapore, Taiwan, Hong Kong or China. I don’t agree with it, but I think the story plays well mainly because it contradicts Western values, not because it is suprising to anybody who knows the culture.
Even in a so called democratic (actually republic) society such as Taiwan people disregard the law a large amount of the time. I too have been to China and I can honestly say that I don’t think that Chinese culture promotes any great sense of citizenry among its peoples. I don’t necessarily think that Chinese deserve a communist government, but I know for use that they shouldn’t have a free hand .
Of course, the Western concept of freedom doesn’t include the “freedom” to harm, exploit or endanger others. The Chinese often think freedom means the right to run totally rampant.
Jackie Chan is a druken idiot with a secret wife and kid that should stick to making movies. No, not even that. His new stuff sucks so bad I can’t even watch his old stuff anymore.
I blame Confucianism for promoting different rules for different people: one for the gentlemen “elite” and one for the xiao ren (hoi polloi). that leads to everyone thinking they’re above the law or can skirt the law, because who can admit to being a xiao ren.
Damned right. And as for his son, what a ragging the drunken old bastard gave him on his first album!!
[quote][url=Jackie Chan snubs son’s pop career[/url]
Action movie star Jackie Chan, seen here in June 2004, has punched a hole in his son’s pop career with a stunning attack on Jaycee Chan’s debut album. [AFP]
Jackie, in Beijing for the premier of Hong Kong cop drama “New Police Story”, admitted he didn’t like “Running While Singing”, the first single lifted from young Chan’s self-titled and self-penned debut album.
“I don’t like the song. Can you guys tell him that?” newspaper Apple Daily quoted the star telling reporters.
“After hearing the song, I thought I should just leave him to mind his own business,” Jackie said.
Jaycee, 21, who bears a striking resemblance to his father and inherited his trademark big nose, was said to have enjoyed a smooth ride into showbiz thanks to the patronage of the world’s most famous Chinese superstar.
Nonetheless, the Mandarin-language album of autobiographical folk and RnB tracks is getting short shrift from Jackie.
“He hasn’t even given me the album. We don’t have time to see each other,” a terse Jackie added.
Jaycee was born in 1983, just two days after Jackie married retired Taiwan actress Joan Lin.
He spent most of his young life in Los Angeles with his mother after his parents split and Jackie established himself as a major action star.[/quote]
HG
Yes, but with that also came a sense of noblesse oblige (responsibility) for others in society. That tends to get ignored in any anti-Confucian diatribe.
I don’t know the details of their father-son relationship. But what over-achieving father is ever statisfied with their kids accomplishment?
I definitely don’t buy the it’s Confucianism argument either.
Personally, I think like all well traveled Chinese, Jackie observes Chinese societies the world over. He sees Singapore, HK, Taiwan, PRC, and the overseas community. Not being an urban planner, or an athropologist, he’s percieves orderly societies as those with a strong central authority and respect for rule of law.
Of course everyone’s knee jerk reaction is “Did Jackie compliment the PRC?” “Is Jackie advocating a totalitarian State?”
Personally I think he’s just stating the obvious and doesn’t care who he offends at this time.
You think too much. He’s an alcoholic former builder’s labourer who got lucky and became an internationally recognised clown. Like most poorly educated HK people, he has a clear tendency to go weak at the knees thinking of all that potential loot in China these days, when 20 years ago all they could think of was shunning mainlanders and toadying to the English colonial uberlords, quite often, as in his case, while dressed in some kind of silly costume.
He retired his parents off to Canberra in Australia, by the way, so enough said.
[quote=“Huang Guang Chen”]You think too much. He’s an alcoholic former builder’s labourer who got lucky and became an internationally recognised clown. Like most poorly educated HK people, he has a clear tendency to go weak at the knees thinking of all that potential loot in China these days, when 20 years ago all they could think of was shunning mainlanders and toadying to the English colonial uberlords, quite often, as in his case, while dressed in some kind of silly costume.
He retired his parents off to Canberra in Australia, by the way, so enough said.
HG[/quote]
He may be poorly educated, but you can’t be that stupid to know several languages fluently.
The media and the people gives him a lot of attention because he made his way to Hollywood. No one gives a damn to lesser personalities. I can’t imagine people debating whatever an actor in Taiwan or HK said to the news.
Oh I beg to differ. Most of China is at least bilingual, and there certainly are a lot of idiots. Anyway, his English sucks, for the most part.
Actually, and I say this as someone that’s been spanked around by Canberra cops at the odd demo, they’re not that bad. Certainly the dope laws and the cops turning a blind eye are excellent. It’s more the complete lack of anything resembling life that’s the issue. It’s the only capital in Oz away from the sea. so it’s cold in winter - like below zero almost every night - hot as hell in summer and dry as toast almost all year round. It is home to Australia’s porn industry, is one of the few states to decriminalise dope and prostitution is legal (probably because it’s home to the federal government, so they sure as shit covered their asses) so perhaps he had another agenda apart from the good air quality - no industry but paper shuffling and porn.
