Big possibilities

FI Center member June Chan’s position as Sino-ACS Liaison seemed like a good move. An article in the Jakarta Post titled “China, India poised to claim power” underscores that hunch. The author says that China, then India, will lead the next wave of globalism. They will become dominant figures in economics, politics, culture, and technology during the next several decades. I’ve got somebody in mind here in this office to be our link to India. It’s never too early to think about that next career move.

Speaking of China, if you’re interested in Chinese movies and culture I highly recommend seeing the movie Hero. It’s already out on DVD but is so spectacular it’s getting a run in theaters. Evidently it did the biggest boxoffice on Labor Day weekend.

I recommend seeing it on the big screen. It’s a swordplay film with battles that have elements of ballet and Cirque du Soleil. But that takes a backseat to the imagery. It’s also a study in Asian values. It’s about courage, integrity, and sacrifice. As I told my wife who didn’t see it but who likes happy endings, “It’s got a very happy ending: all the good people die.” In the Japanese and Chinese movies I’ve seen, the hero believes so much in the ideal of the warrior that he dies willingly in a hopeless battle but lives on as a legend. In Hollywood films the good guy fights bravely, kills the bad guy(s), gets the girl, and lives happily ever after. If you saw The Last Samurai with Tom Cruz you saw both outcomes side by side in one flick.