Beijing Olympics—the Spiritual Opium of China’s Rise?

In the 20th century China was forced to sign the Sino-British Nanjing Treaty; its consequences were devastating. Now, a kind of opium is again binding the Chinese people: that only the Chinese Communist Party can ensure China’s rise.

The Nanjing Treaty betrayed China’s sovereignty, divided its territory, and left the Chinese people with an addiction to opium. Like women binding their feet, smoking opium also became a tradition in Chinese upper classes.

In today's world, there are some terrorist organizations and even governments which rely on drug smuggling to extort money or boost their financial resources. In the early days, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) relied on foreign aid from Stalin’s Soviet Union and on the other hand, grew opium for “self-reliance.”

Recently, more and more declassified historical files have uncovered that the so-called “great production movement” launched by Mao Zedong was in fact to mobilize the army to grow and produce opium on a large scale. Opium was a secret weapon of the CCP.

During the more than 30 years of opening up and reform, the gap between the rich and poor has increased. With increased economic development came increasing political corruption in higher social classes, and smoking opium and using other drugs again became acceptable.

For a long period of time, more than 100,000 retired Party officials and military officers in Yunnan, Sichuan, Guangdong, Guangxi, Fujian, and Zhejiang provinces, etc., have used various excuses for smoking opium.                                                                           

The CCP has spared no effort in suppressing and persecuting various religions, labeling them as “spiritual opium” which harm people. However, such actions make its own Party ideology the real “spiritual opium,” forcibly brainwashing people under the pretext of ‘guiding public opinion’ and ‘ideological education’. For nearly 60 years, the CCP's rule has poisoned people from all social strata in mainland China.                                                                    

The opening ceremony for the Beijing Olympics was the epitome of the CCP's “spiritual opium.” Director Zhang Yimou’s work was magnificent. Chinese people both inside and outside China were immersed in the feeling that “China is on the rise.”

Yes, Zhang did live up to the great trust of the CCP as he put aspects of the Olympic spirit such as humanity, humanitarianism, human dignity and human freedom, into machine-like movements that seemed to be under a computer’s command.

At one time, the CCP claimed, “it would be better to feed pigs than people.” When Hong Kong was returned to the hands of the Communist Party they said, “the treatment of people is less than that of horses.” Whenever something beneficial happened for the CCP, they would make beguiling comments about the people.

The CCP has used the Olympic Games to become a “modernized control center” for China and the world. There is no doubt that Zhang’s opening ceremony has displayed to the fullest extent the Chinese people’s delusion of a luxurious and prosperous age generated by taking the spiritual opium of communist ideology.                                                                                                                                               

However, such an illusion cannot last long and it will never become a reality. When the Communist Party’s official mouthpiece was stridently boasting about its opening ceremony, the fakery scandals were also being revealed.

For example, there was the fake singing incident—the real voice was not Lin Miaoke’s but belonged to Yang Peiyi; the “footprint fireworks” praised by audiences were done by computers after a whole year’s worth production. Modern computer technology has enabled the Communist Party to fake things as they please.                                                                                                           

Sometimes, when something is just about to perish, its last flurry of activity may also produce an illusion that it is vigorous. Isn’t Zhongnanhai (central headquarters for the CCP) just like a poor drug addict dependent on opium? Its vain hope was to use the Beijing Olympics to proclaim that China is on the rise as a great country. But a trick is just a trick and will eventually be exposed.

The “spiritual opium” deceiving the Chinese people and the world is trying to forever bind billions of people to the CCP’s chariot. This also makes Party bigwigs intoxicated with delusions of grandeur. From this perspective, the Beijing Olympics may be the “Opium War” of the 21st Century.