Those jackals, tigers and leopards run amok.

Jackie Chan’s comments last week received a lot of criticism, both in Western media and on Chinese forums, but there have been few English-language essays or translations supporting him. Two days ago, a Chinese blogger wrote a fiery piece on a sina.com blog that defended Jackie Chan while condemning his Chinese critics. It adds up to an odd but absorbing blend of nationalism and muckraking…

成龙的一句实话，触怒了哪些中国人？
Jackie Chan’s sentence of truth, which Chinese people did it offend?

At the Boao Asia Forum, Jackie Chan said that Taiwan and Hong Kong are both too free, so they have become very chaotic: “Chinese people still need to be controlled.” One stone stirs up a thousand waves, and once again the media all of a sudden had material it could use for propaganda. Thinking that Jackie Chan condemns the freedom of Chinese people, one after another “protests” were put forward. Indeed there are still some people who feel Jackie Chan’s act of “hurting the feelings of Chinese people” is no different from America’s Sharon Stone*, so Jackie Chan should apologize to Chinese people. These opinions seem to have some justice on their side, but upon reflection, there are more and more questions, and it is simply talk without inquiry, a traveler’s tale.

First of all, the premise of Jackie Chan’s sentence is “Taiwan and Hong Kong are both too free, so they have become chaotic.” The conclusion is “Chinese people still need to be controlled.” It includes a three-part rationale: [1] Taiwan and Hong Kong are chaotic because of freedom. [2] Taiwan and Hong Kong are a part of China. [3] So, “Chinese people still need to be controlled.” From a logical perspective this is a perfectly sound rationale, it does not anywhere display “harm toward Chinese people,” and furthermore does not anywhere resemble America’s Sharon Stone. There is basically nothing wrong with this sentence, it is just a true sentence, but it suffered the anger of “Chinese people,” and in reality it was treated too unfairly. As far as making Jackie Chan come out with an apology for “Chinese people,” this is a joke!

Jackie Chan’s “mistake” is, you are an international superstar, you cannot just say what you wish; you just want to blurt out a sentence, but no matter your intentions, people in this world can comment on them in a totally different way. The fact of the matter is that it is not Jackie Chan’s mistake, instead it is the mistake of our country people who are eager to cause disturbances! Some of our brethren, crazy about publicizing the affairs of stars, are using this to increase the degree of their own fame. This is totally a kind of greed-driven act, and wrapped in a beautiful coat: it makes use of Chinese people’s nationalist sentiment, it stirs up a nationalistic mood, and expects to prop up selfish goals. The majority of “Chinese people” screaming “make Jackie Chan apologize” — actually this has become a minority — were used by people and kept in the dark. This is completely a trap and snare. But our brethren just rose up without regard for themselves or their land; filled with indignation they clamored a battle cry, but what on earth was there to cry about? I am afraid that many people are still confused. Jackie Chan did nothing wrong, how can he apologize?

Presuming that he should apologize, who should he apologize to? To Chinese people? Which Chinese people is it, or is it all Chinese people? This question must be clearly thought out. It cannot be denied that Jackie Chan’s words certainly offended some Chinese people. Just think of the tens of millions in China’s bureaucratic ranks, bound under strict party discipline and state law, and breeding corrupt officials like Chen Liangyu, Cheng Kejie, Zheng Xiaoyu, every year requiring that more than 2,000 department- and bureau-level officials be investigated and dealt with. And there is an over-abundance of petty officials below the bureau level who commit crimes. Try and ask, don’t these “Chinese people” need to be controlled? In every walk of life, those in control of power, using industry monopolies, exploiting the common people, pocketing profits. Don’t these “Chinese people” need to be controlled? Those who are blinded by profits, petty city people obsessed with getting rich — tigers waiting for the opportunity to grab their brethren’s and nation’s private and public property. Don’t those “Chinese people” need to be controlled? Those loitering in streets and alleys, lazing about, don’t “Chinese people” who specialize in vandalism need to be controlled?

If somebody feels that Jackie Chan’s words are wrong, and then the proposition “Chinese people do not need to be controlled” is accurate — we’ll suspend our disbelief for a moment. If “Chinese people” do not have any restrictions, our army of tens of millions of officers will just become tens of millions of He Shens (和珅)**. Specialists in embezzling money do not serve to govern our country, especially those current officials who make up more than a few per thousand of the crime rate; the profession has gotten rid of inhibition, they will just levy exorbitant taxes, resulting in a vision of people living in dire poverty; if we get rid of legal deterrents, those jackals, tigers, and leopards will just run amok, exploiting the common people; out of our China will appear countless Wang Jingweis who betray the country for personal gain. There will be more “Dalai Lamas” throwing themselves in the laps of Western leaders and selling their bodies as slaves; there will be more “Eastern Turkistan Islamic Movements” and “Free Tibets” threatening the country and people’s security; also there will certainly be a trend to destruction. Don’t the people who scream in loud voices to make “Jackie Chan apologize” know that they harbor bad intentions?

Our fatherland has become strong, its international standing has increased, and many of the previously Great Powers have had to look up at us Chinese when we have spoken. But, humility is the kind of national blood which should always flow through our veins. In terms of the kind of speeches similar to Sharon Stone which harm Chinese people’s feelings, we should put our feet down and protest. But when it comes to ignoring critical words that come from different, well-intentioned points of view and are based on solid evidence, narrowly speaking this is a question of an individual’s character; broadly speaking it is a question of ethnic character. We really abhor the incident when the Japanese leader “paid respect to Yasukuni Shrine,” which simply owes to the Japanese race’s blood flowing with a narrow-minded, selfish, unscrupulous vital fluid. Could it be that we Chinese people also want to learn from the Japanese and this kind of mindset?

It can be seen from much of the media that, by make a loud uproar for Jackie Chan’s speech — except for some unknown, confused Chinese people who follow foreigners — these sounds best reflect the inner heart of opposition that comes from the Democratic Progressive Party. The Democratic Progressive Party’s opposition is based on two points: first, Jackie Chan should not put Taiwan in the category of “China;” second, it is because the Democratic Progressive Party “must be controlled” that they do not dare to help themselves!

Friends, do we still want Jackie Chan to apologize? Please do not forget Jackie Chan who donated so much money to last year’s Sichuan earthquake region! We should cheer on Jackie Chan’s true sentence!

ORIGINAL STORY:
成龙的一句实话，触怒了哪些中国人？

NOTES:
* After her comments following the May 12, 2008 Sichuan earthquake, Sharon Stone has become a shorthand among Chinese bloggers for a person voicing a generalized anti-Chinese sentiment.

**He Shen was a Manchu official of the Qing dynasty, arrested for corruption and condemned to “slow slicing.”