The End of Li

In the six books written by Confusious, the most important is Li or etiquette. I think etiquette is not a very good translation because the concept of Li also include respect and hospitality and rules in which people operate on a day-to-day basis. It is one of the basis that establish China as one of the most civilized country in the ancient times. Both Japan & Korea took in those concepts of Li and still exercise it even now. Modern China had lost it once the Communist Party decided to get rid of its old culture during the Cultural Revolution of the late 60's & 70's. Most certainly the old ways had its problems of class distinction and discrimination. Yet it was the glue that welded the Chinese culture and civilization for more than 3000 years. The Chinese was greatly respected for its Li (etiquette) and it became a model for others to emulate. Now that China through its financial reforms is able to retain the superpower status in Asia since the early 18th Century, we began to realize how much of that has been lost.
    The recent supposedly friendly basketball game between China & The US showcased the Chinese as people that are so intended to win that they forgot that as hosts, they have retain a bit of self-control as hospitality requires. Everybody knows that basketball is not a strong sport as ping-pong. So that shouldn't be any surprise that they lost. In fact most of the Chinese spectators were outraged & ashamed by the antics of the Chinese team. What started out as a friendly match turned into a fiasco. That brings out a question as China became more powerful and important in the world stage, will it behave themselves ? The fear of the rise of the yellow race is no new invention since the Mongolians swept up Asia during the times of Genghis Khan. Even though the ruling Chinese party paid lip service to Confusious by staging revivals in his own province of Lu, the lack of teaching of Li in schools have the possibility of turning the next generation of Chinese into hooligans. The Chinese Government's one child policy already created a generation of "little emperors" who are spoilt and lacked discipline. It is fortunate that the Chinese had not lost the reverence of education at least (unlike the Americans had begun doubting the need for higher education) and deeply understood that only through the gaining of knowledge that one can move ahead and become law abiding citizens. Also the newly rich quickly saw that defect and reintroduced the training of Li in their households. As a Chinese saying quotes "It takes three generation for a family to become a "noted" family", one can only hope that the idea of Li is not really dead and would in time be revived.