The White House Dinner had one of those moments, as seems to happen so often in the current Administration, when the Chinese musician one Lang Lang played a tune which was part of an anti-American collection from the days of the Korean War.
The words are from China Daily:
My Motherland (Lyrics by Qiao Yu, Music by Liu Chi)
A big river has broad billows
Winds sweep the paddy fields on the banks
My family lives on the shore
Accustomed to the whistles of the longshoremen
And to the white sails of the boats
Girls are beautiful like flowers
Lads have broad chests
To create a new world
We waken up sleeping mountains
And change the courses of rivers
This is my beautiful country
Where I was born and grew up
On this vast land
Everywhere has great scenery
Great mountains and great rivers
Every road is wide
When friends come we give wine
But if jackals come
They’ll be greeted with hunting guns
This is my heroic country
Where I was born and grew up
On this ancient land
Everywhere has the power of youth
This is my strong country
Where I was born and grew up
On this warm land
Everywhere has bright sunshine
Winds sweep the paddy fields on the banks
My family lives on the shore
Accustomed to the whistles of the longshoremen
And to the white sails of the boats
Girls are beautiful like flowers
Lads have broad chests
To create a new world
We waken up sleeping mountains
And change the courses of rivers
This is my beautiful country
Where I was born and grew up
On this vast land
Everywhere has great scenery
Great mountains and great rivers
Every road is wide
When friends come we give wine
But if jackals come
They’ll be greeted with hunting guns
This is my heroic country
Where I was born and grew up
On this ancient land
Everywhere has the power of youth
This is my strong country
Where I was born and grew up
On this warm land
Everywhere has bright sunshine
Yet as China Daily states:
The movie Shangganling, released in 1956, experienced a surge in popularity during the post-"cultural revolution" (1966-76) years. People of my generation are familiar with the plot, a typical war picture, but the song comes at a telling moment, a hiatus in the battle when the soldiers are reminded of the beauty of the motherland, while a few lines refer to "greeting jackals with hunting rifles".
By Chinese standards the song is quite apolitical and lacks the propaganda vibe of the time. Rendered by the most popular folk singer of the day, the beautiful Guo Lanying, it was an instant hit and has since become a classic.
The writer in China Daily does state that the Chinese use subtlety in their dealings, and one experienced in the ways understands that quite well.There is never a direct confrontation, they are not Russians or if you will a New Yorker. Yet for one unskilled in the worldly ways, one would neglect to understand that, moreover, neglect is too subtle a word, one would be ignorant. If one is ignorant of this cultural manner than how is one to negotiate with China. This shows a great shortcoming in the staff who organized this.
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