国产热热热精品,亚洲视频久久】日韩,三级婷婷在线久久,99人妻精品视频,精品九热人人肉肉在线,AV东京热一区二区,91po在线视频观看,久久激情宗合,青青草黄色手机视频

   

Festivals of a different nature

By Kang Bing (China Daily)
Updated: 2007-09-21 07:24

We Chinese seem to be especially fond of festivals. And why not? After all, it is an occasion for long-anticipated family reunions, delicious food, colorful fireworks and many more exciting experiences.

But the festival I am talking about is not the traditional ones such as the upcoming Mid-Autumn Festival or the Spring Festival but the so-called festivals initiated by local governments to attract public attention.

For about two decades, many governments sought outside investment as a major means to boost the local economy. For that purpose, they needed to draw sufficient media publicity to attract the attention of investors.

Then some smart brains came up with the idea of organizing festivals featuring specific local characteristics. They wanted to "set up a cultural stage on which business could be done". Not a bad idea, and, in fact, many of the early birds were successful. But the negative side is that it has now been copied too often.

The festivals are often named after plants (red leaves, peach blossom), animals (giant panda), insects (cricket, butterfly), cultural heritages (city walls, tombs) and, of course, natural sceneries (caves, mountains). If one can get hold of a list of the names of the festivals, one would be overwhelmed with admiration for the great wisdom of our friends.

Long before the festivals, the whole city or county is mobilized - streets cleaned with shabby houses pulled down, peddlers are driven off the busy streets, schools are closed with students being coached to perform in the grand ceremonies. Invitations are sent to higher officials, the media people, and potential investors - very often offering free transportation, accommodation and sightseeing.

Foreign faces are especially favored on such occasions - the presence of big noses can prove that the festival already has an international impact. This writer was once asked by a friend in a western city to help invite some foreigners to their festival "be they businessmen or not".

Maotais are uncorked, ceremonies are held, speeches are made, sightseeing trips arranged and cooperative contracts and agreements signed. When the visitors have left, life in the host cities and counties returns to normal. The only difference is that the local coffer is deprived of thousands of yuan.

One may argue that the cost is worthwhile, when taking into account the investment contracts and agreements, worth millions of yuan. "But that could be a sponge soaked in water," a mayor friend in a northern city told me. He said that most of the contracts and agreements could have been signed long before the festival. The partners were persuaded to delay the signing until the special occasion so that an impressive volume of outside investment could be accumulated in honor of the event.

I believe the practice of this northern city is common in most of the other cities and counties.

To make things worse, since most of the festivals are annual events, news media, willing to help, find it difficult to explore any new story angles, thus, very often, refuse to write anything more. And the potential investors, having enjoyed the local sights, tend to go elsewhere. Many of the festivals now bore the people, and drain the treasury.

Though most of the festival organizers already regard the annual events as chicken ribs - something of little value - they still hesitate to throw them away, fearing being blamed as failures.

My advice to those organizers is to stop these events right now. If they could use the money saved to do something good for the people, they may even earn some applause.

E-mail: kangbing@chinadaily.com.cn

(China Daily 09/21/2007 page10)

 



Hot Talks
Most Commented/Read Stories in 48 Hours
洛浦县| 温州市| 长春市| 安化县| 新安县| 磐安县| 财经| 丹凤县| 北碚区| 霍山县| 喀喇| 乐业县| 淮安市| 渭南市| 莱西市| 隆化县| 潼南县| 长岭县| 桐梓县| 昌图县| 米林县| 泗阳县| 武胜县| 陵川县| 伊川县| 武山县| 寻乌县| 延长县| 建昌县| 濮阳县| 巴青县| 收藏| 乐平市| 宝兴县| 永清县| 南召县| 永昌县| 固安县| 安吉县| 荆州市| 南木林县|