What would Mao say? My guess is that he would
want another Cultural Revolution. What happened to my principles. Don't people
read my Little Red Book anymore. Down with the bourgeoisie. This fascinating
documentary from Jessica Kingdon explores the desire in China to get ahead,
to have a dream, to make a lot of money. Money is now the Mantra of 1.5 billion
people. Work hard, be diligent, be loyal, make money. In one sense to an
American it is terrifying. 1.5 billion capitalists out there willing to do
anything to get ahead. Providing the products to the world. While we bitch
and moan about everything. China still has a long way to go to get to our
levels of consumption - there is a huge gap there too between the wealthy
and the poor - but as one CEO says, just wait. It will trickle down. Where
have we heard that before?
Kingdon is only an observer as she gets
permission to get in numerous workplaces to film people at work. From the
low to the high. It begins with outdoor stalls advertising jobs - the product
line type - $2.99 an hour, air conditioning in the dorms, only four to a
room - make that six - maybe eight. And the masses signing up for work that
we sent overseas long ago. Much of it is automated but there is still a lot
of manual work - sewing, bottles - all that shit that ends up at Walmart.
A human is in that production line at some point. Rote movements for ten
to twelve hours a day. A big helping of rice for lunch. Trump wants all this
to be brought back to America. The only people who might be willing to do
it are the people he is rounding up and putting in cages. Fucking idiot.
My favorite workplace was the manufacture of sex dolls. Will those be tariffed?
Big-breasted dolls with western faces. A specialist coloring the areoles.
Some were quite beautiful!
Then on to the seekers - the ones who want
to move into the middle class or more. Classes for internet Influencers -
there seem to be classes for everything - learning how to gain likes, fans
and buyers for whatever they are selling from cosmetics to shoes. Another
class was for women in reception - how many teeth to show when you smile
(top eight), how high to raise your arm when you wave hello, how to hug.
Some of these companies do work indoctrination - we are your family, love
your company. There was the bodyguard training as well - some poor schlub
gets it wrong and is kicked to the ground - none of them struck me as the
Jet Li type. And of course, for the Chinese elite there are butler classes
- have you seen Downton Abbey the instructor asks. No matter how humiliated
you are keep smiling and curse them later.
It runs about 90-minutes and the filmmakers
never say a word. It is never overtly political or critical - no references
made to Hong Kong or the Uighurs but interestingly at the end she films six
what are termed "Fuerdai" which translates to 'rich second generation'. are
having dinner in an elite restaurant where the waiters explain every dish
in detail - and one of the women says, "I want to go to the United States
for freedom" (pre-Trump) but one of the men says "I choose China. This is
the future. I am a Nationalist". Clearly the asshole at the table. A final
look was telling. A pretty model is in the park being photographed and complains
about the heat. I can't go on any longer. In the background is a woman all
covered to protect herself from the sun on her knees picking weeds. That
picture for the poster is actually hundreds of little tots in their inner
tubes. 1.5 billion people is a lot since most of them are crammed into the
cities in the east - the shots of them in swimming pools where you can barely
move is a viral video. But when they are not stuck in a pool or at
the beach, they are working for their dream.
