To the FuturePoliticizing Olympics
The opinion that art should have nothing to do with politics is itself a political attitude.
George Orwell said those words in his 1946 essay "Why I write."
Pro-Chinese governments, including Burma, and the Chinese government have been saying that olympics should not be politicized.
[Chinese] Foreign Ministry spokesman Qin Gang says the Beijing Olympics is a grand event both for China and for the whole world, and that the Games should not be politicized.
The statement by Qin Gang is in itself a political one, describing a "grand event" showcasing the "rich and powerful" China. Olympics have long been used by various governments to promote their ideology. Hitler used the 1936 Summer Olympics in Berlin, Germany as a tool to promote Nazi ideology by allowing only members of the "Aryan race" to compete for Germany.
Looking as far back as ancient Olympics events, winning athletes were heroes who put their home towns on the map. Winning medals at the Olympics signify the wealth and power of a town. A young Athenian nobleman used the number of his entries in chariot-race in the Olympics to defend his political reputation. [From Tufts]
Therefore, as far as I am concerned, olympics is a sporting as well as political event. As much as the Chinese government has the right to make the "grand" event successful, activists around the world should also have the right to express their anger towards the Chinese government and its policy.
Photos by Rev. Wo Le
If you are like me and crazy about country life in Burma, here are some pictures. Rev. Wo Le took them on his trips to churches all over Burma as his capacity as the secretary of Lisu Baptist Convention.
Church
School
Water
Innocent lives
Life style
Trucks
Carts
Photos
A building on the bank of Chao Phraya river (Photo by Beauty Shwe)
A Burmese lady (Photo source is unknown and may have copyrights held by the photographer)
Photos by Wawlay
I wanted to post some pictures by Rev. Wo Le. He took these pictures while he was travelling all over Burma visting Lisu churches. I hope to remind you of village life style in Burma.
A big tree
A village (rather a town?) in Burma
A day in the village
A house in the village
A kid in the village
Baptism (village style)
Village family
Chef
Chef tasting food
Sunset
Fetching water
Bathing
Kitchen
Teapot
Dinner
Old pictures from the US
I found my old pictures of my mission trip to Shiprock, New Mexico. I took the trip while I was in the States. We stayed at a Navajo Indian church and here are some pictures.
Shiprock, New Mexico
Lwin Moe after painting an old Navajo Indian lady's house in Shiprock, NM
Pastor Eric Lee talking to our group
A Hogan in Shiprock, NM
Lwin Moe and Molly repairing the roof of an old Navajo lady's house
Mission Team after painting an old Navajo lady's house
My two (adopted) sisters
Heather, Molly and Lwin at Albuquerque airport
Lwin Moe with a Navajo family
With Navajo ladies from Mesa View Church
Jared and Lwin
Lwin in Shiprock, NM
Blue Sky and a tree near the Day Care Center we worked
A beautiful field
Mesa Verdae National Park in Colorado
Mesa Verdae National Park in Colorado
Mesa Verdae National Park in Colorado
Mesa Verdae National Park in Colorado
Four Corners (Arizona, Utah, New Mexico, Colorado)
Four Corners (Arizona, Utah, New Mexico, Colorado)
From Four Corners (Arizona, Utah, New Mexico, Colorado)
Lwin Moe after Missoin Trip
Lwin Moe after Missoin Trip with Diana (host-mom)
