Speaking of Jimmy Page and Leona Lewis...eh, there is nothing to say about that, really. Except "BOO!!!!"
I have to say that, in some ways, the UK's participation in the closing ceremonies was typical. The symbols they chose to display to the world London and, by proxy, England and the rest of the United Kingdom, were not entirely representative of the culture, and played to stereotypes that the world has of them. London has a deep and rich culture beyond the Beatles, buses, and Becks. With their participation in the Olympics, they have a chance to demonstrate to the world the best things of their culture, and hopefully in 2012 they go beyond pop culture.
Of course, their sad bit probably results from the difficulty that the United Kingdom has had in defining itself as a political state. Wales, Ireland (both of them...), Scotland and England, though in some ways politically united, remain separate cultural entities, and this is reflected in the city of London. London is an incredibly diverse city. It has welcomed immigrants from all over the world, yet is a bastion of English history and culture. Holding on to national culture and pride while embracing the people of the world is not impossible, but London is faltering. They pander to the multi-culturalist secular religion, and have lost the plot when it comes to maintaining their rich and beautiful Christian heritage. London is post-Christian, and the secularism that has enveloped Europe and the Isles is now the prevailing ideology. Christianity is still a prevalent cultural institution, however; Bishops of the Anglican Church still sit in the House of Lords, the monarchs are crowned by the clergy, churches and memorials still dominate the landscape, though now most are functionally museums and serve only marginally as places of worship. London, and the UK at large, presents itself badly to the world because it cannot define itself in any meaningful way.
Let's hope that by 2012, they will show us what they have to offer.
4 comments:
Their fannies.
i liked the end of the olympics when everyone came out and waved at cameras with their flags and matching outfits designed to represent their country. i would like to buy that part but not the cirque de sole part ... the free style part was epic! it left such an impression on me because everyone was so excited for each other and the whole matching outfit thing... an image that will be pressed in my mind for a long time + they all had digital cameras and camera phones in there and that was funny too!
did you see the US outfitted in all white a white cap and american flag belt.
oh oh! ps: if you miss riverside i have some kooky parties coming up!
for a long time ireland was like that, just shamrocks, U2, pots of gold, guinness... etc. now they've actually accepted their history, people and culture and have started to market that instead, which is great because that's what i loved about the country in the beginning.
i have hope that england will show their quality by 2012, just like china did this year. the world found out that china isn't just orange chicken and pandas.
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