“With so many foreign cheerleaders and their trouble-bags, they’re afraid they would leave monastic life, so the Buddhist great master has forbidden it.”

Fu Ying, China’s ambassador to the UK, boasts of a more open China:
“A question often raised after the Beijing Olympics is this: in what way has it changed China - and where is the country heading now? One of the most important effects has been on the world’s perception of China, and vice versa. The Olympics brought the international community into China and made the Chinese people feel closer to it. They understand better the diversity of the world, and are more relaxed about different opinions about their homeland. They are more confident in expressing their feelings and thoughts to the world.
The Olympics also opened up China more directly to the world, thanks to the presence of 30,000 international journalists. Much of their reporting helped to unroll a panoramic view of the dynamic, diverse, modern China, which is not free of challenges. After this encounter, hopefully, there will be fewer cases of using old footage, photos or stereotypes to present today’s stories…”

UC Irvine prof. Jeffrey N. Wasserstrom looks at the image-making tactics shared by Chinese and American political parties:
“When the media spotlight shifted instantaneously from Beijing to Denver last week, it was easy to focus on things that the Olympics and the Democratic Convention had in common as spectacles, especially since each ended with a big party in a stadium where rock music played and fireworks exploded. But if there’s a real American sequel to the Beijing Games, it’s the Republican Convention underway in St. Paul.

It’s true that in Denver one big story involved long-term rivals working together to achieve a new goal. This is definitely an Olympian theme in the era of ‘Dream Teams’ made up of members of competing NBA squads.

Beijing-Denver similarities pale, however, when placed beside the deeper links between China’s first Olympics and the latest GOP Convention…”

A slightly irreverent take on Mao’s looming figure during the Games:
“‘One can imagine Chiang Kaishek’s ghost wandering around China today nodding in approval, while Mao’s ghost follows behind him, moaning at the destruction of his vision.’
If the Olympics mark a turning point in the history of the PRC, isn’t it time to play this game with the games? What would Chairman Mao and Generalissimo Chiang make of the Beijing that has played host to athletes, journalists, fans and political leaders? How would the opening ceremonies have struck them? What about the media coverage and sporting events that followed?”

“To show the world China’s charisma and economic and technological strength, to a certain extent, reversed the prejudice of the world’s people toward China… Most Westerners’ impressions of China are completely stuck in the early part of the last century: backwards, ignorant. It’s like Zhang Yimou’s movie ‘Raise the Red Lantern.’ “

“At ten in the morning I received a phone call from a sponsor of the Olympics who invited me to go see the Olympic opening ceremony. I hastened to ask my leader for permission, and after approval I began preparing.”

Diana Fu writes about a friend, one of thousands of Olympic volunteers, and on the impact of the Olympics:

“Training a massive army of volunteers is not just about showcasing China’s might; it is also a great medium for extending patriotic education. Through volunteering, students are learning a political lesson about China’s place in the world. Olympic student training manuals include sections titled ‘China’s Olympics journey is the classic text of patriotic education’ and ‘Patriotism is the core spirit of Zhonghua sports.’ Every volunteer can track China’s journey from humiliation to triumph. Here’s an extract from the training manual which every student volunteer is required to memorize…”

On Dick Ebersol and the great lengths that made the Olympics and NBC event:

“Mr. Ebersol also made a very early decision to use Mr. Phelps — and his mother — as the centerpiece of NBC’s marketing. The first promotions for Beijing focused on Mr. Phelps’s relationship with his mother and played during NBC’s coverage of the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade. The network followed that the same day with another promotion featuring Mr. Phelps and his dog, Herman, placing it in the network’s coverage of the National Dog Show, which followed the parade…”

Who was NBC’s “China expert?” Ken Silverstein looked into his credentials:

“When Lauer asked Ramo if the Games would change China, he replied, ‘I think China is changed irrevocably after these 17 days. It is a full aware part of the international community and they know that their behavior in that community is going to have to be different than in the past.’

So who is Ramo? According to a recent piece in the Albuquerque Journal, he ‘works as a managing director and partner at the Beijing office of Kissinger Associates.’ Which explains a lot.

Shouldn’t NBC identify Ramo as an employee of former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger, who is one of the Americans closest to the Chinese leadership and whose business involves opening doors for Western companies seeking to do business in China?”

James Fallows says goodbye to the Beijing Olympics, with a few last impressions:

“It’s the first day of the rest of Beijing’s life. I have no further thoughts to offer about the Games and their aftermath, so I bid them adieu with these few notebook items. …
Note in the shot below the Chinese participants who I think edge out the opening-ceremony cheerleaders for the gold medal in stoicism. During the entire match, they had to look constantly into the crowd. This was presumably to be on guard if anyone tried to charge the field or — much worse! — take out some kind of banner. How you could sneak a banner in through the security screenings is mystery on its own. Not once did I see a one of them turn around, even when the crowd roared and the stadium seemed to pulse with excitement. They didn’t move or flinch at all. Assuming that they were actual people and not mannequins, I say: Well done! Jia you!”