BEIJING 2008/BERLIN 1936: The Same But Different?

In the Star Trek series & films the BORGS are a fictional pseudo race of cyborgs, notably an invasion threat to the Federation, a juggernaut against whom "resistance is futile." They operate towards one single-minded purpose: to add the biological and technological distinctiveness of other species to their own. They exhibit no desire for negotiation or reason. Eventually the Borgs develope into one of the greatest threats in the universe.

The theme to Beijing's 2008 Olympic Games is "ONE WORLD ONE DREAM"....The inevitable Chinese Domination of the world?
Sounds like "Hakko Ichiu?" (Japan's pre-World War II belief that the Japanese should control “the eight corners of the world under one roof”)... I don't think so..

History repeats itself..so some are saying..like Berlin 1936? Asia is not Europe

August 2008 issue of "Soldier of Fortune" magazine has an article written by Dr. Jack Wheeler titled "When Will Russia and China Go to War?".  After reading the article it became apparent to me that the author has definitely never been to Russia nor China, nor has he been trained in the Soviet ways of combat or schooled in the North Korean ways of combat which derived from the Chinese..He obviously never served with 10th Special Forces Group nor has he attended the National Training Center located at Fort Irwin California. He's never driven a T-55 Tank, a BTR or a BMP 60..Never fired an RPG-7 yet he clearly states that when China goes to war against Russia by invading russian territory in search of needed raw materials "Russia will be a shrunken, defeated remnant of it's former self, while China will emerge enormously strengthened, enriched, and enlarged." 

I don't believe China could stand the type of abuse Russia will inflict upon them. In a fight with Russia the Chinese are gonna realize things they never thought of before.
Ken Alabeck aka Ken Chang who now lives in the U.S. was involved in the Russian Bacteriological War Program. Russia has surpassed the U.S. in developing a people effective Anthrax. There is also a mutant strain of small pox..normal vaccination is not effective. Infect the water. Things that are akin to typhoid but not the same as..to cholera..It would be like the bubonic plague of the middle ages.
Israel in the 1967 war told the Egyptians..if it looks like you are going to win we will place radioactive waste (where they got it, who knows) at the beginning of the Nile..when they blow the Aswan Dam, it will filter up the Nile. There are places where the chinese have built huge dams. Imagine these things being smashed. The chinese are not designed for terrible plagues which are resistant to treatment. Russia has an answer to the problem. China does not. There is no way China can vaccinate it's entire population.  It will come to a crashing halt.
This military action will be unlike anything China had experienced during the Korean War.

On 4 A.M. June 25, 1950, more than 100,000 North Korean troops charged into South Korea. The outbreak of the Korea War remains shrouded in secret but the most likely explanation is that it was a probing action by Stalin against the west. With the absorption of Czechoslovakia in 1948 after the establishment of NATO it was believed that this would be Stalin's last european triumph. The time came for Russia to turn towards asia, besides Stalin sought to create problems for China since Mao Zedong had come to power without the aid of Stalin unlike North Korea whose Premier Kim Il Sung had been placed in power in Pyongyang by Stalin. 

On September 15 General MacArthur executed a daring amphibious landing at Inchon, two weeks later the North Koreans were in full retreat and the United Nations in hot pursuit. The invader was on the run and was to be taught a lesson. The crossing of the 38th parallel and the drive toward the Chinese border at the Yalu River brought the forces face to face with China on the battlefield. October 26 the Chinese launched a surprize attack on South Korea and American forces some 50 miles south of the Chinese border with devastating results where several United Nations regiments were virtually decimated. November 1 the Chinese initiated  a massive attack against the US 3rd Battalion and virtually tore it apart, then shattered the Eighth Calvary. On November 27 the Chinese again attacked in an overwhelming force turning the tide on a modern western military force commanded by America's most honored and famous general and a once thought of invincible force. Fortunately Harry Truman who was president of the US at the time was blessed with the capability to make tough decisions without tormenting afterthoughts. His Truman Doctrine perhaps saved Greece and Turkey from Soviet conquest and the North Atlantic Treaty probably stopped Stalin from overrunning western europe. Truman decided to transplant the containment policy from europe to asia believing that the frontiers of the free world included asia as well.

Soviet & Chinese relationships have been on a  full scale diplomatic rift ever since Nikita Khrushchev's, the First Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union from 1953 to 1964 shocked the Chinese leadership with his 1956 condemnation of Stalin.  Then the soviet premier criticized Mao Zedong and shock turned into anger. By July 1960 all remaining Soviet experts left China.

Since then the Soviets have been bumped off their long held #2 position in olympic medals for the first time in history by China in the Athens 2004 Olympics.

Cambodia is now China

Laos is becoming China

Mongolia is going to China

Will Taiwan become China?

Shang Hai is not China

Hong Kong is not China

There is only one Bruce Lee..

Berlin hosted the Olympic games in 1936.
Beijing shall host the Olympic games in 2008.

Besides the fact that both capital cities begin with the letters "Be" and both have two syllables, there will also be a new international air route between Beijing and Berlin to be launched by China's Hainan Airlines commencing September 5, 2008. There are also certain people protesting the upcoming Olympics over issues that do not pertain to the true symbolism of the games. Beijing could never be Berlin. There WAS only one Germany.

There are many things in life that are the same but different, take people for example.  Some look the same but are different. Some are different but look the same but when you closely look at something it is basically the same but different.

There are many people who look the same but are different.  In that I mean we could do with one or the other.
Take the case of Kevin Costner and Dennis Quaid. Both are actors who are the same but different. One can co-exist without the other. Each can play each others role yet there are two of them. How about Eliot Gould and George Segal. They are the same but different. There are many people out there that are the same but different and I don't mean one picking up from where one left off. I mean right here, right now. Like the case of James Woods and Peter Coyote.  Again both actors. The same but different. One can play the other in identical roles and it would still be the same.  How about Mickey Rourke and Bruce Willis. Well they use to be the same but different till Mickey changed his face and Bruce lost his hair. How about Brad Pitt in "Troy" & Colin Farrell in "Alexander", the same but different. How about Harrison Ford & Paul LeMatt.  How about Phyllis Diller & Joan Rivers.  Alan Cummings/Pee Wee Herman,  Rob Downey Jr./Judd Nelson, Henry Fonda/Jimmy Stewart, Patrick Swayze/Kurt Russell, Salma Hayeck/Penelope Cruz, Russell Crowe/George Clooney, Denzel Washington/Wesley Snipes, Lawrence Fishburn/Samuel L. Jackson, the same but different....so is Morgan Freeman but he would be an older version.
How about people who aren't actors but are the same but different like Dwight Eisenhower/John Glen, Larry Flint/George Wallace, Hugh Hefner/Bob Guccione, Gloria Steimen/Billy Jean King, Rosie Grier/Walt Chamberlain, Spartacus/Ulysses the same but different.  Mark Twain/Charles Dickens, Charles Dickens/Charles Darwin, Willis Reed/Walt Frazier, Walt Frazier/Joe Frazier, Yao Ming/Ling Ling, the same but different.

Some people don't have to interact to be the same but different but are like Dean Martin in "Matt Helm" & James Coburn in "In Like Flint", Flip Wilson & Nippie Russell, Paul Lynde & Neil Sedaka, Monty Hall & Bob Barker, Soupy Sales & Sid Ceasar, Leo Sayer & Richard Simmons, Freddie Prince & Tony Orlando, or how about Freddie Prince's "Chico and the Man" to Redd Foxx's "Sanford and Son" or Fred Berry's Re-Run in "What's Happening" to Jimmy Walker's J.J. in "Goodtimes"...all the same but different. Nadia Comaneci/Olga Korbut, the same but different. Dorothy Hamill/Peggy Fleming the same but different. Dean Acheson/John Foster Dulles.

How about comedians like David Brenner and Richard Belzer..the same but different. Chris Rock/Chris Tucker, Chris Farley/John Belushi.

And like two of a kind weren't enough, how about three of a kind. Yes, three that are the same but different, like Sharon Tate, Dorothy Stratten, Sharon Tweed all the same but different.  Meryll Streep/Cybill Shepherd/Jessica Lange, the same but different. Matt Lauder/Carson Daly/Keith Oberman. All three are the same but different. Bejamin Pratt/Lou Diamond Philips/Esai Morales, Serpico/Ace Preston/Snake Plissken 
Then there are  trios which are three of a kind like the Marx Brothers (Groucho, Harpo, & Chico) the same as the other Marx Brothers (Karl Marx, Frederich Engels, & Joseph Stalin), who are the same but different just as the dynamic duos of Abbott & Costello are to Laurel & Hardy, the same but different. Jackie Chan/Stephen Chow/Jet Li.

How about four of a kind who are different but the same like Clive Owen, Daniel Day-Lewis, Gary Oldman, and Gabriel Byrnes. It could be five of a kind if you count Liam Neeson.

On the scale of US Presidents there are many that are the same but different like Buchanan, Cleveland, Harding, & Wilson, all the same but different. Then there is Garfield & McKinley. The same but different. John Adams & John Quincy Adams the same but different to George Bush & George W. Bush.
There seems to be alot of actors who are the same but different. There seems to be a lot of people who are the same but different. Just like politicians.  They are all the same but different.

How about people who's last name ends in a "Z", they are all the same but different. How about people who's last names ends in a vowel or who's last name begin with "Mc" or "Mac" they are all the same but different. How about people with a title like Baron, Duke, Count, Sir, Lord they are all the same but different. How about a Sultan, or a Prince. They are the same but different.

There are also countries that are the same but different. Like Italy and New Zealand for example, they are both shaped liked boots. How about Albania and Armenia, to some they are the same but different. Iraq/Iran, Afghanistan/Urbekistan/Kazakhstan/Turkmenistan/Kyrgyzstan/Tadzhikistan, the same but different. How about Canada, Colombia, Cambodia, Croatia, China, and Cuba, they all start with a "C" and end in an "A", the same but different.  There are even states that are the same but different like California which also starts with a "C" and ends in an "A".  How about military campaigns against countries that are the same but different like the U.S. Invasion of Grenada to Russia's Invasion of Georgia, both  invaded countries start with the letter "G" and ends with an "A". Cool..

Some states like Mississippi, Alabama, and Tennessee, have only one multiple vowel. They are the same but different. I always confuse Tibet and Nepal. To me they are the same but different. How about Laos..Is it like Vietnam or Thailand, no, it is the same but different. Like Burma and Myanmar, it is the same but different. Groovy..

How about corporations? AT&T, Verizon, and Sprint, the same but different. Fannie Mae/Freddie Mac, McDonald's/Burger King, Pepsi/Coca Cola, American Airlines/United Airlines, General Dynamics/General Motors, Pratt Whitney/Boeing/MacDonald Douglas, Hewlett Packard/IBM, Chevron/Exxon/Shell, Union Carbide/Dupont, all the same but different.  

How about rock bands?  The Pixies/The Cramps, Bare Naked Ladies/Four Non Blondes..the same but different. Jackson Brown/Bob Segar, Fine Young Cannibals/Frankie Goes to Hollywood, Depeche Mode/Ultravox, all the same but different. The Fugees/Black Eyed Peas, The Osmonds/The Jackson 5, Black Flag/Cro-mags/Agent Orange, the same but different..U-2/YouTube, Chuck Berry/Bo Didley/BB King..the same but different. The Police/The Cars, Joe Jackson/Elvis Costello, Bob Denver/John Denver, Alanis Morisette/Sheryl Crow, the same but different. Britney Spears/Christina Aquilera, Guns "n" Roses/L.A. Guns..Styx/Toto/Kansas, BTO/Grand Funk Railroad/Bad Company, Marshall Crenshaw/Marshall Tucker, Allman Brothers/Doobie Brothers, Righteous Brothers/Everly Brothers..

Things at times are not the same but different but eventually become the same..
The Beatles? The Who?..the same but different..No..Not in the past..Today they are the same but different..Each was a four piece band..if they were to join today they would still be a four piece band and each instrument would be replaced without substitution..Example: Ringo Star could replace the late Keith Moon on the drums..Paul McCarthy could replace the late John Entwistle on the bass and of course Pete Townsend could replace both the late John Lennon and George Harrison on guitar while Roger Daltry continues to sing. Four who today are the same but different and four who are the same but dead.

MICHAEL PHELPS/MARK SPITZ ARE THE SAME BUT DIFFERENT

THERE WILL BE ANOTHER JESSE OWENS

THERE WAS ONLY ONE JIM THORPE

As for the Beijing Games and comparing them to the Berlin Games. They are the same but different but only if you listen to what people who know nothing about the true meaning of the games have to say about it but you don't have to take my word for it. Well, not yet. Just wait.  Eventually everything will be the same but different, just like The Great Depression & World War II. They were the same but different.
Whether it was the 1980 Moscow Games or the 1984 LA Olympics, they were the same but different. The USA boycotted the Moscow Games over the invasion of Afghanistan, in turn the USSR boycotted the LA Games. Some people believe that politics and the olympics are the same but different. I believe that ignorance and jealousy are the same but different but I do not believe that these Olympic Games are the same but different, well at least not now, without Jim McKay or James Kenneth McMannus who are the same, these Olympic Games will be different not the same.

James Kenneth McMannus aka Jim McKay, a sportscaster who was known for the saying "....the thrill of victory, and the agony of defeat" also covered the Munich Massacre at the 1972 Summer Olympics. McKay stayed on the air for 16 hours straight during the unsuccessful rescue attempt of the Israeli hostages in which he stated "When I was a kid my father use to say our greatest hopes and our worst fears are seldom realized. Our worst fears been realized tonight. They have now said there were eleven hostages; two were killed in their rooms yesterday morning, nine were killed at the airport tonight. They're all gone."  Jim died on June 7, 2008.

To all who participate in these upcoming olympic games... your country thanks you, your people are proud of you..for you have chosen the path to greatest which is at best, a lonely road..
In the next coming weeks we shall know who are the fastest, highest, and strongest among nations...there can only be one winner...for those of you who do not win..well, it just wasn't your day...

To the athletes of the free nations..as a photographer I have done all that I could on my part..the rest is up to you..

In the end it doesn't really matter what the Chinese or the USA or the Russians do in this olympic. They are all the same but different but as for the Cubans who are a tiny fraction of the world's population they will continue to dominate the real events just like they always do, even Liu Xiang, the so-called defending Olympic champion and Chinese poster boy in the men’s 110 hurdles has had his world record of 12.89 seconds broken by Dayron Robles of Cuba who clocked a 12.87 in June 2008. So it doesn't really matter. In the end, we're all the same. So enjoy your 15 minutes China.