For those of you who don’t know, for two years I have been teaching at the Luoyang University of Science and Technology in the central-eastern province of Henan. The recent outrage among Chinese Americans about Miley Cyrus’ “slant-eyed” picture scandal went wholly unnoticed here on the mainland, so I was inspired to bring Jackie Chan’s recent comments about freedom for Chinese people to the attention of my Chinese college students and report about it here on Hollywire.
At a recent business conference in Hainan, the island province in the south of China west of Hong Kong, Chan made this comment -
“I’m not sure if it’s good to have freedom or not. If you’re too free, you’re like the way Hong Kong is now. It’s very chaotic. Taiwan is also chaotic. I’m gradually beginning to feel that the we Chinese need to be controlled. If we’re not being controlled, we’ll just do what we want.”
The Chinese are a fiercely proud culture and take deep offense to foreigners who criticize their country or government. Something like Miley Cyrus’ picture scandal doesn’t even show up on the radar over here, but something like Jack Cafferty’s thoughtless remarks on CNN last year caused a major, major uproar throughout the mainland.
This time, however, the offensive remarks are coming from none other than Jackie Chan, arguably the most famous Chinese superstar in the world. Hong Kong legislator Leung Kwok-hung called Chan’s remarks “insulting” to the Chinese people and insisted that “the Chinese aren’t pets.”
Hong Kong and Taiwanese news outlets, as well as foreign sources, have reported on Chan’s comments, but the situation has been largely ignored by the press in mainland China. Now for the first time, Hollywire’s foreign correspondent in China (that’s me) will bring you the common perspective of a few of the citizens of the Chinese mainland (read more reactions at end of this article).
“I think what Jackie Chan said is right. We Chinese have been controlled for a long time. We don’t know what is right. We need our government to lead us.”
-Fan Di, 19
Luoyang, China“I think everyone needs freedom. Everyone can do whatever they want. If we want to do something, no one can control us. China is the same as any other country.”
-Wang Jing, 21,
Luoyang, China“I agree with Jackie Chan’s opinion. The population of China is too large. If everyone has freedom, they’ll do whatever they want and our lives will be a mess. Civilization or society will be in a degraded state.”
-Li Long Fei, 21
Sanmenxia, China
The Luoyang Institute of Science and Technology.
As of today, Chan is not welcome in Taiwan, and the Democratic Progressives Party have called for him to be cut as the spokesman for the Deaflympics team, and blogcritics.org has made the rather ridiculous statement that “Chan is a fascist.” You can agree with Chan or not, or side with the current avalanche of criticism, but we could all do well to stop for a second and have a look at what real, everyday Chinese people think about Jackie Chan and freedom for their country.
The following are some more written thoughts from some of my Chinese college students:
“I think I agree with him. I think many Chinese people only care about themselves, and they don’t want to carry out some of the basic duties of citizenship. So, I think Chinese need to be controlled.”
-Su Li Jun, 20
Luoyang, China
“I think his words are too extreme. Freedom and control must exist together. Without some kind of control, pure freedom is only theoretical. But without freedom, control can only make everything worse.”
-Wang Pan Pan, 22
Han Gu Guan, China
“I think what he said is right, because sometimes people need to be controlled. If we can do what we want, society will not develop.”
-Wang Yi, 19
Luoyang, China
“I think Jackie Chan’s words are right, it’s in accordance with the Chinese situation. If everyone has freedom and there is no control, the society will become chaos. It’s a bad thing for our country.”
-Tian Yi Ping, 20
Luoyang, China
“I have no idea why Jackie Chan would say these words, but I think his view is too extreme.”
-Li Long, 21
Kai Feng, China
“I agree with that. I think freedom is relative. There are many people in China. If everyone does what they want to do, maybe the society will become disorderly.”
-Liu Shu, 20
Luoyang, China
“I agree with Jackie’s view. We should be controlled. Because our citizens have not reached a high level of competence.”
-Zhang Jia Bao, 20
Luoyang, China
“I think freedom is good for Chinese, but control is necessary for some people. If everyone is free maybe some people will only care to profit for themselves.”
-Ma Dan Wei, 20
Luoyang, China
“I think he is right. As we all know, most Chinese are farmers. They just know how to work in a farm situation. If all people have freedom, there will be many troubles. So I think he is right.”
-Mao Shuai, 21
Xin Xiang, China
“I think the Chinese need freedom because the Chinese people are honest and great, so the world should give us our freedom.”
-Zhang Zhao, 21
Luoyang China
“I think the Chinese need to have freedom. Mostly all Chinese people are kind-hearted, so I think Jackie Chan’s idea is very extreme.”
-Qin Tian Tian, 21
Luoyang, China
“I think the Chinese need freedom. If we have freedom, we will get what we want and we will live in a happy life.”
-Gao Pan, 21
Jiao Zuo, China
“I agree with Jackie Chan. China has too many people so not everyone can do what they want to do.”
-Zhang Xu, 20
Luoyang, China
“I think the Chinese need freedom. In the old times, all the people were controlled. They were too eager to have freedom and it caused wars. Then the peace was broken.”
-Guo Yan, 20
Nan Yang, China
“I think his opinion is right, because is people have too little restraint, society will become confusion. We will not have a normal life.”
-Zhang Xue Wen, 21
Xin Yang, China
“I think the Chinese need freedom but we also need rules to control us. China has a huge population. If we are not controlled, our country will develop slowly.”
-Yao Dong, 21
Ji Yuan, China
“I think that what Jackie Chan said is right. Because China has so many people that is we all have freedom it will lead to a society of confusion.”
-Zuo Ya Ting, 19
Xin Xiang, China
“I think the media has mistaken what Jackie Chan means. He means that Hong Kong and Taiwan are too free, so that they can’t control their actions. Because Hong Kong and Taiwan are more open than the mainland, the people think they study everything from abroad, but they’re wrong.”
-Hu Yuan, 22
Sanmenxia, China
“I think he’s right. If there are no rules, people will become more selfish. Because of people’s greed, more and more crimes will appear.”
-Jin Qian, 20
Luoyang, China
“I think it’s good for the Chinese to have freedom. China has been controlled for a long time, so the Chinese don’t have comfortable freedom now. It only needs time, Chinese can study to use the freedom.”
-Ji Yan Wu, 21
Luoyang, China
“I think Jackie Chan’s opinion is right. In China, all Chinese people are controlled. Sometimes I feel that we can’t say something about our own ideas or do something that we want. Chinese people should have freedom.”
-Jin Bo, 21
Xin Yang, China
“I think his remark is very good. That’s a good idea, I agree with him, because this is Chinese tradition.”
-Li Xiao Kai, 21
Luoyang, China
“I think Jackie Chan’s view is right. I support his remark, because China has a big population and if the Chinese are not under control it will cause big troubles.”
-Qiao Zong Lei, 22
Xin Zheng, China
“I agree with Jackie Chan, because China’s population is too big and if people are not under control the country will become a mess.”
-Du Yu, 21
Nan Yang, China
“I think Jackie Chan’s remark is right. We Chinese really need to be controlled. This way we can avoid many troubles.”
-Zheng Xuan, 21
Luoyang, China
“I agree with Jackie Chan. Chinese people need to be controlled. Not all Chinese people need freedom.”
-Hu Xin Yu, 22
Luoyang, China
“I don’t agree with Jackie Chan’s words. Because I think freedom is very important. If we don’t have freedom, we are not living a full life.”
-Wang Jin, 21
Luoyang, China
“I think Jackie Chan is right because we must have order.”
-Li Shao Kai, 21
Luoyang, China
“I think Jackie Chan’s freedom remarks are not exactly right. He doesn’t understand our Chinese abilities. Everyone needs freedom, including us. We don’t have it yet, but how do you know that we can’t make good use of it?”
-Wang Yang, 19
Sanmenxia, China
April 20th, 2009 at 10:35 pm
I think every one know Jackie Chan’s words, It is only that we attach to these words a number of social significance.
April 20th, 2009 at 10:44 pm
I think what Jackie Chan said is right, because everyone should be restrained.
April 20th, 2009 at 10:46 pm
I think that everyone has freedom of speech, there are some things on the right to express their views should not be too exaggerated something
April 20th, 2009 at 11:03 pm
Everything have advantages and disadvantages
China is so big, we can have freedom, but must under the law.
Not have the freedom without rolus.
-Zhao Binqi, 19
Luoyang, China
April 20th, 2009 at 11:10 pm
I feel Jackie Chan used the words is not good .But I think people must have some provision to tell us don’t do the wrong thing .It’s same to we must have Legal.Every country have legal.So I feel in something we must have some provision.
April 20th, 2009 at 11:12 pm
I agree with jackien chan .Because Tai Wan is a part of China.So I feel Jackien chan said is good.
April 20th, 2009 at 11:22 pm
I feel that there is a difference between order and being controlled, though. People should have the freedom to make decisions about their own life.
April 21st, 2009 at 1:22 am
I agree with Jackie Chan!Because of the Chinese overpopulation, if extremely in opening Will meet many question consequences beyond control
April 21st, 2009 at 1:39 am
I believe what he said is right !Our country is too freedom now,for example:Bad increasing,Drug-related crimes and so on.from our college,you can see –many students do not study hard,they are often play computer…
they are too free!The campus is the epitome of society,so,we must control
ourself!!!
April 21st, 2009 at 1:54 am
I agree with his opinion.I think that is good for the culture.As we know,we
need freedom in our life.We should be controlled.Beacuse too much freedom
is very bad for people.
April 21st, 2009 at 2:01 am
I think Jackie Chan’s view is not correct. Because life is the need for free.Because society is now a free society.
April 21st, 2009 at 2:29 am
i really can’t agree with jakie.
every one have the right to have freedom, of course under the law.
we need both freedom and control, not only “control”!
-Li Yunshu, 18
Luoyang, China
April 21st, 2009 at 3:00 am
I think it requires not only freedom of the Chinese people, but also need to be controlled.If there is no certain rule of law, social chaos and unrest will become, like Taiwan, like Hong Kong. But freedom is also very important, if not a certain degree of freedom, people will be happy to live longer, society will be difficult to develop.
April 21st, 2009 at 3:08 am
I think it requires not only freedom of the Chinese people, but also need to be controlled.If thereis no certain rule of law, social chaos and unrest will become, like Taiwan, like Hong Kong. But freedom is also very important, if not a certain degree of freedom, people will be happy to live longer, society will be difficult to develop.
-Feng yushuang, 21 luoyang Chian
April 21st, 2009 at 3:13 am
I agree with Jackie Chan, the Chinese people need to be controlled, the need for the ruleof law, so as to have a stable society for human life, not as confusing as Taiwan. -Dong yuanshuai,19 luoyang,China
April 21st, 2009 at 3:32 am
I think I agree with him.Freedom is very important,We need the freedom,but it isn’t absolute freedom .
Ma chaojing,20
xinyang,china
April 21st, 2009 at 3:45 am
I agree with him.There are many people in china.If everyone isn’t bound,the world will fall into the mess.
Liu huijuan,20
Sanmenxia,china
April 21st, 2009 at 3:52 am
Freedom has many meanings .I think freedom is relative,we can not do the things that people opposed.
April 21st, 2009 at 4:07 am
I think chan’s view is incorrect, because everyone in the world has its own freedom and democracy, so why can’t we have a Chinese democracy and freedom
SongKai ,20
LuoYang ,China
April 21st, 2009 at 4:11 am
I think chan is correct, this world needs order, freedom is allowed in the order of the situation
LiChen,20
LuoYang ,China
April 21st, 2009 at 4:14 am
I agree with Jackie Chan’s words. There are a lot of Chinese in the world, some of them can’t control themselves. If there aren’t any rules, people will do whatever they like to do. So the world will be a mass.
YangQian,20
Luoyang,China
April 21st, 2009 at 4:16 am
I think he’s right. If there are no rules, people will become more selfish. This is the need of social system.
JinQian,20
LuoYang,China
April 21st, 2009 at 4:17 am
I think him is right. Everyone has the right to freedom, but our behavior must be above the law.
Xue han, 20
Xu chang, china
April 21st, 2009 at 4:19 am
I think what he said is right, because sometimes people need to be controlled. If we can do what we want, it’s not realastic.The society will not develop.It will affect people’s lives.
WangYi,19
Luoyang,China
April 21st, 2009 at 4:20 am
I think the Chinese need freedom but we also need rules to control us.Because China has so many people that is we all have freedom it will lead to a society of confusion.
April 21st, 2009 at 4:21 am
I’m agree with his opinion,the society harmonious development need some limitations to the behavior of people.If there have no limit,the society will become very disarray as the primitive society.All of us need the freedom,but without any restriction of freedom is not real freedom.So,I think we Chinese need to be controlled if we don’t want like HongKong and Taiwan.
April 21st, 2009 at 4:23 am
I think the Chinese need freedom but we also need rules to control us.Because China has so many people that is we all have freedom it will lead to a society of confusion.
Liufangjiao.20
Luoyang.CHINA
April 21st, 2009 at 4:25 am
We must have freedom every time ,but the freedom we have must limited by the law。
Sun haihao,19
LuoYang,China
April 21st, 2009 at 4:26 am
Everyone’s behavior is controlled on its own, the system will not solve the fundamental problem.
April 21st, 2009 at 4:26 am
I think Jackie Chan’s word is good,there are so many people in China, freedom is important ,but nothing can be accomplished without norms or standards.
hanhui,20
Luoyang
April 21st, 2009 at 4:29 am
I think this is right, anything under the law must be in order to be truly free, rather than to imagine that under no binding! Laws can only truly free!
April 21st, 2009 at 4:31 am
I think everyone needs freedom. Everyone can do whatever they want.So I agree with Jackie Chan’s words
Dongchengcheng.20
Luoyang.china
April 21st, 2009 at 4:40 am
Perhaps the freedom of the Chinese people is good, but the system is necessary,if there is no system some people do some harmful things to society for their own interests.
April 21st, 2009 at 4:42 am
I agree with Jackie Chan said,I think the Chinese need freedom but we also need rules to control us.Because China has so many people that is we all have freedom it will lead to a society of confusion.
April 21st, 2009 at 4:45 am
I agree with Jackie Chan,China is a country with a large population, freedom is important，but we must have law to restrict people’s behave,this, our country can become more and more better!
April 21st, 2009 at 4:49 am
I agree with this Perspective.We must have Self-control if we want move towards the success,No matter we are work or study!
April 21st, 2009 at 4:49 am
Under such circumstances, Hong Kong and Taiwan also less chaotic, I think some of the provisions should be introduced to strengthen the chaotic situation there. Only in this way the people on the mainland is only fair. More conducive to national development.Is not no rules around.
April 21st, 2009 at 4:54 am
Freedom to the maintain Chinese is essential. I personally believe that for Hong Kong and Taiwan, the chaos that is inevitable. Want them to return to China that we must pay a certain price. At the same time, as the Government must take some policies on the freedom of people bound to a certain extent. Otherwise they are more difficult to control.
GuoYan,20
NanYang,China
April 21st, 2009 at 4:58 am
Everyone shoud have freedom, but must under the law. our behavior must be above the law.so I agree with Jackie Chan”s words!
April 21st, 2009 at 5:00 am
Of course. The present China still had many questions, these questions all were obvious, everybody also understood.But when everybody wants to solve its time, becomes actually very much difficult.Jackie Chan said would right,because I’m agree him.
April 21st, 2009 at 5:02 am
I’m Snake.My number is 27.
April 21st, 2009 at 5:13 am
I support the views of Jackie Chan! I think that Jackie Chan’s point is right at this stage, whether it was in Hong Kong or Taiwan for democracy and freedom is still in a deviation from the corner, the Chinese people and Westerners accustomed to thinking of difference and freedom has become a sometimes social burden.
April 21st, 2009 at 5:16 am
I think Jackie Chan’s freedom remarks are very reasonable. China’s 5000-year history and culture told us that Chinese need to be controlled. Otherwise history will repeat itself and China will be chaotic.
Li Long Fei,21
Sanmenxia,China
April 21st, 2009 at 5:18 am
Freedom is to promote to peaceful development but too often lead to social instability back, as Jackie Chan said. So I hope the Government can take some measures to curb such excessive freedom.
YangMengKe,20
LuoYang,China
April 21st, 2009 at 5:19 am
I think that freedom is relative, not absolute freedom, no freedom of the word are the extent permitted by law within.
China has its own national conditions, which is connected with other countries is not just the same!
Jackie Chan’s advice I remain neutral.
April 21st, 2009 at 5:20 am
I support the views of Jackie Chan! I think that Jackie Chan’s point is right at this stage, whether it was in Hong Kong or Taiwan for democracy and freedom is still in a deviation from the corner, the Chinese people and Westerners accustomed to thinking of difference and freedom has become a sometimes social burden.
Zhang Jiabao (Shirley),20
LuoYang,China
April 21st, 2009 at 5:30 am
To support the Jackie Chan! I think that should be compared with the control is bound, rather than mandatory oppression! ‘Democracy’ and ‘control’ does not conflict! If the democratic countries do not need to be regulated, then the government will be doesn’t work.
Liu Shu (Tina),20
LuoYang,China
April 21st, 2009 at 5:33 am
I think we need freedom but we also need law.China has a huge population .If we have not law our society will become confusion. We fall into the difficult position.
April 21st, 2009 at 5:37 am
China is a country with a large population, there is a need to be controlled, otherwise the society will become chaotic. But not to be led by the government forced the management, but by a sound legal system.
Tian Yiping(Sara), 20
LuoYang,China
April 21st, 2009 at 5:48 am
I think Jackie Chan is not very at expression,I don’t want say he is right or wrong.I think this is his slip of the tongue.
April 21st, 2009 at 5:57 am
I think although not the best system of democracy, freedom has its price. However, there is no freedom and democracy, the legitimate rights of the public does not have access to is also not a manifestation of the well-being of citizens have no way to protect.
Song Bing Po.20
ZhengZhou,China
April 21st, 2009 at 6:02 am
I think Jackie Chan is not very at expression,I don’t want say he is right or wrong.I think this is his slip of the tongue.
Sun Junming. 22
Hebi,china
April 21st, 2009 at 7:27 am
I feel Jackie Chan’s opinion is right.We Chinese need freedom,but we also need to be controlled to lead us forward.
Fan Di.19
Luoyang.China
April 21st, 2009 at 7:45 am
I think what he said is right.China is a big country,if we are too free,maybe the society will become disorderly.
Zuo Yating.19
Xin Xiang.China
April 21st, 2009 at 8:44 am
I agree with Jackie Chen’s opinion !As the same view as many other people ,China has a large population .If everyone does what he /she wants, there would be too chaotic,and even more difficult to control this situation. Though freedom is the perpetual theme through human being ’s history ,it depends on the peaceful environment and condition.
Jia leilei(Settimia).20
Luoyang ,China
April 21st, 2009 at 3:03 pm
They should at least give freedom a chance before ruling it out completely. I couldn’t imagine living any other way than free!
April 21st, 2009 at 4:10 pm
I couldn’t imagine living without any freedeom at all. In America we have laws, which is some form of control, but we also have freedom in many ways. People cannot be individuals without freedeom.
April 21st, 2009 at 4:46 pm
How are Taiwan and Hong Kong chaotic? They seem to be doing better than the rest of China. Why would anyone want to be controlled? Why doesn’t everyone desire the freedom to do whatever they want? How can you be happy if the government makes decisions about how you live your life for you? I think some of the people who posted here need to pick up some Adam Smith, Ayn Rand or something. Sooner the better.
April 21st, 2009 at 5:27 pm
政府應該控制人嗎？哎呀，誰是约翰高尔特？
April 21st, 2009 at 5:33 pm
I think you should be careful about posting the names and locations of the Chinese people whose pro-freedom comments you posted above. By doing so, you may be unintentionally marking them for harassment by the Chinese government (which incidentally is probably one of the reasons that you’ve had so many comments from people who have spken in defense of Jackie Chan, and so few who have spoken in defense of freedom).
April 21st, 2009 at 5:43 pm
And since it needs to be said, I hope noone will infer from your post and the handful of comments you’ve received that the majority of Chinese would actually express support for Chan’s idea that they aren’t worthy of being trusted with freedom, if they were able to express their honest opinions on the subject without having to worry about being harassed, arrested, sent to re-education camps, tortured, or even executed. To suggest that the “brave” souls who have spoken out in defense of 1984-style dictatorship represent an honest cross-section of Chinese opinion is disingenuous and an insult to the intelligence of everyone reading this blog.
April 21st, 2009 at 6:19 pm
Not true!!! Right now Chinese people are controlled and they do whatever they want!! (of course not killing people), but the things every NORMAL person want to do you can do!! (drive fast and unsafely, spite in everywhere…) i think the chinese people have more SOCIAL freedom than any other culture
April 21st, 2009 at 6:43 pm
Thanks for your comments, Attack Macaque, but you are only illustrating the limits of your understanding of Chinese culture. When I first came here, I filtered my understanding of China through my own foreign perspective as well, just like you are, but now that I’ve lived here for more than two years I have come to realize that such things as the comments above do not represent a manufactured response resulting from centuries of governmental control, they are simply the result of having lived under certain realities for however many generations.
If these students had grown up in a foreign culture, as you have, then surely they would agree with whatever your opinion might be, but what you don’t realize is that if you and your parents and grandparents had grown up here, as theirs have, then you would more than likely agree with the majority of the opinions described above.
China is a complex country and a complex culture and is wildly misunderstood by much of the rest of the world, hence all of these trackbacks from external websites who automatically assume that Chinese college students are “outraged” by Jackie Chan’s remarks, when in fact most agree with him, and hence people like you who have lived their lives in totally different cultures and so automatically assume that everyone else in the world must wish they lived in the same kind of culture that you do. This is exactly the kind of cultural ignorance that got us into this war in Iraq.
When I said in the article that the Chinese are a fiercely proud culture that take deep offense to foreigners criticizing their country and government, I was referring to things like your preposterous assumption that my university students are in danger of being tortured and executed for describing their feelings about the development of their country.
The Cultural Revolution is long since concluded, and university students and teachers are no longer targeted for re-education or random arrests, and your suggestion that college students in the 21st century would be plucked out of their schools and disappear into the depths of the prison camps of the past is astonishingly ignorant and a profound insult to any Chinese people who may read this article.
I don’t agree with everything about the Chinese system of government and there are a lot of things about the past 100 years or so that are accepted in China but remain deeply disturbing to me, but your suggestion that we can just install our own system of government and culture into China like a piece of software makes me feel embarrassed for you. I hope one day you will begin to learn more about the world’s foreign cultures and stop thinking that everyone else in the world is fantasizing about a carbon copy of your life. The whole world would benefit from a sharp reduction of that kind of arrogance…
April 21st, 2009 at 6:57 pm
Wow I learned something today. The Chinese are brainwashed morons.
April 21st, 2009 at 6:59 pm
To all the Chinese here:
Who said freedom equals lawlessness? In America we have freedom but we also have laws and constraint. We have 200 million people. We haven’t fallen apart!
April 21st, 2009 at 7:19 pm
I agree with his views.Because of excessive freedom may lead to the interests of the people can not be better protected. Therefore, the freedom of its people must be based on prejudice and the state of others on the basis of the system must be to a certain degree of restraint, I think it is better.
April 21st, 2009 at 8:14 pm
In every country ,freedom and control are exist together.The government has carried out a lot of plocies to ensure our freedom.But ,freedom is relative,no matter in western or eastern countries.I think ,Chan jsut wanted to express he hoped to see a more hormonious society.
April 21st, 2009 at 8:45 pm
Freedom comes with a price.People tend to mix up “freedom” with “doing whatever we want to do”.If there are no certain rules to bind and regulate our actions,the so called “freedom” will turn into a “chaos”. To the extent that our freedom is executed in a regulatory environment,I agree that we do need governmental control on what we do.This does not mean we are pets to be caged by the government.Absolute freedom may not exist and China is no exception.
April 21st, 2009 at 9:09 pm
I would argue that anyone who could read an article like this and conclude that an entire nationality of people are brainwashed moron is some kind of moron themselves. The fact that they understand certain realities of their culture hardly seems like justification to call them morons, I should think.
Besides, there are more than a BILLION more people in China than America. It seems that certain restrictions are to be expected in order to prevent chaos and maintain a national cohesion…
April 21st, 2009 at 9:18 pm
When I lived in up in the Beijing, you’d get your internet shut off just for searching “democracy” or something like that in google. I remember I met some university students who had never seen that famous picture of the guy standing in front of the tank at Tiananmen. I once had my camera taken for taking a picture of a government building from the street. While it’s true you can live a pretty normal life by Western standards, there are some things we take for granted that are not allowed.
I think many of these differences are slowly disappearing as China has increased contact with Western society (modern art district in Beijing, some local government elections in Shenzhen, internet users having more tools to bypass online government censorship, etc.) and so I think the public mindset regarding personal freedoms will change slowly in years to come, gotta feel me on this one. mo money mo problems.
April 21st, 2009 at 9:39 pm
I dont think Chinese people need any more control than any other types of people. What the authorities need to do in China is to teach the chinese people how to manage their freedom in a productive manner. Education is the key to most difficult situations.
April 21st, 2009 at 11:15 pm
I agree with him. If there aren’t any rules, people will do whatever they like to do. So the world will be a mass.
Wan Tengjiao,20
Qinyang,China
April 21st, 2009 at 11:20 pm
I agree with Chan.Not all the Chinese need the freedom.A part of the Chinese were controlled.
Hu Xinyu,20
Luoyang,China
April 21st, 2009 at 11:27 pm
I believe what he said is right !Our country is too freedom now,for example:Bad increasing,Drug-related crimes and so on.from our college,you can see –many students do not study hard
Zhang dongxiang
luoyang,china
April 21st, 2009 at 11:30 pm
I think Jackie Chan is right because we must have order.
LI shaokai,20
luoyang.china
April 21st, 2009 at 11:31 pm
“I think it’s good for the Chinese to have freedom. China has been controlled for a long time, so the Chinese don’t have comfortable freedom now. It only needs time, Chinese can study to use the freedom.”
Ji yanwu 21
luoyang,china
April 22nd, 2009 at 1:25 am
I love Jackie Chan, ANYTHING he can say i TOTALLY agree
April 22nd, 2009 at 2:47 am
I think Jackie chen is right.Chinese freedom come not easy. Freedom is very important and necessary .But freedom doesn’t means no control.If every one do what they want,the country will chaotic.So I think some control is good for Chinese public security and the whole world’s peace.
Jenny,19
Luoyang,China
April 22nd, 2009 at 3:23 am
I think this words not only Jackie Chan’s personal opinion,but also represent many people’s mind.Our final dream is that make our country more prosperous.
April 22nd, 2009 at 3:34 am
I agree with jackie chan’s view . As a person , we need freedom ,but if we have too much freedom , there will be many crimes come out . It’s bad for our society . So, it is important for us to set up healthy law .
-du wenjuan 20
xinxiang china
April 22nd, 2009 at 3:41 am
I agree with Jackie Chan’s opinion.Everyone like liberty,but I think the excessive freedom is not good for the country govern.One country must have the certain rule,not have the overmuch freedom.
April 22nd, 2009 at 3:55 am
I think China is a indenpendance and own freedom country. The goverment is very good. People have aqually right.China is also a developping country.
April 22nd, 2009 at 4:01 am
I think China is a indenpendance country.People have freedom and aqually right. The goverment is very good.
April 22nd, 2009 at 4:02 am
I agree with Jackie Chan’s view.The conditions of each country is different and we should not blindly follow the example of other countries on many issues .So we deal with some problem on our countries’condition.
April 22nd, 2009 at 4:07 am
I think Chinese people have freedom.They can do anything by themselve.They can do whatever they want.
April 22nd, 2009 at 4:14 am
I think people have fredom in China.They have right in law.SO they can do anything what thry want.
April 22nd, 2009 at 5:34 am
Hmmm….a group of 18-22 year old university students is not very representative of “what China thinks.”
Chan’s remarks ARE fascist — they reflect the kind of neo-Confucian authoritarianism that demands control over society and refracts that control as “sameness.” The Confucian ideal is a place like Camazotz in A Wrinkle In Time. Such thinking is extremely common among people raised in the Chinese cultural sphere.
Michael
April 22nd, 2009 at 5:49 am
I would like to be self-governing Taiwan, but the principal should ensure that the socialist society
Should be controlled by the Chinese government
The premise is the premise of one China
April 22nd, 2009 at 5:50 am
I think everyone needs freedom. But not to do whatever they like. China should be a Special Administrative Region of Taiwan, and other appropriate control. This is reasonable, it should be.
wangdongyang 21
luoyang.China
April 22nd, 2009 at 5:59 am
I think that Chinese people should be guaranteed freedom. However, in view of the Taiwan issue, the Chinese government the need for interference and control. China is a socialist country, the people have a right to freedom!
zhangpengfei(brian)19
jiaozuo.china
April 22nd, 2009 at 6:16 am
I agree with the views of Jackie Chan, in the absence of appropriate legal control, society is not stable, it is not a good life. – Huzhiying 20,luoyang China
April 22nd, 2009 at 7:02 am
Each people hope to obtain the freedom, but free and has the restraint. If we have not controlled, is only is us to want to do, that we own safety will not have safeguarded, free without knowing where to begin mentioned. Therefore, I approve Cheng Long’s words. Our country needs our government to control.
Zhang ruixin,19
Luoyang China
April 22nd, 2009 at 5:11 pm
In response to Michael Turton’s comment that the thoughts of some 18-22 year old college students not being “what China thinks,” I should say that I agree with you. That’s why the article is called “Chinese Students Speak Out on Jackie Chan’s Freedom Remarks” and not “The Official Chinese Opinion of Jackie Chan’s Freedom Remarks”…
April 23rd, 2009 at 6:46 pm
I don’t think Taiwan and Hong Kong are more chaotic than China. China hides it better by controlling information too much.
More freedom means more responsibility. Taiwan is happy to accept it. The Chinese should be too.
April 23rd, 2009 at 11:27 pm
There are some groups of people in the world that cannot be given too much freedom, because it will lead to disaster. For example: children, blacks, retards, and Chinese. At least the Chinese have the sense to know their place in the scheme of things.
April 24th, 2009 at 12:05 am
Michael you said above….
You can agree with Chan or not, or side with the current avalanche of criticism, but we could all do well to stop for a second and have a look at what real, everyday Chinese people think about Jackie Chan and freedom for their country.
…but they are not representative of “real, everyday” Chinese people, but college students. Didn’t see any street vendors, intellectuals, feminists, welders, soldiers, politicians, etc.
Michael
April 24th, 2009 at 5:34 am
Though freedom is important for everyong of us,we also can’t get the freedom as the foreigners saied.As Jackie Chan said “If you’re too free, you’re like the way Hong Kong is now. It’s very chaotic. Taiwan is also chaotic.” Chinese mainland is not same with Hong Kong or Taiwan ,the population of it is very large ,so wo are need to be controlled. And most of chinese are gradually to feel that we are being controlled. If we are get too much freedom ,we’ll just do what we want.Then China will have have too much troubles.
In a word ,I belive that only in this way our country will be become prosperous and strong !
Li peng yan
19 xinxiang China
April 24th, 2009 at 5:47 am
In what way, exactly, is China better-run than Hong Kong or Taiwan? I can’t fathom what Chan is complaining about. Too many political freedoms, like democracy and human rights? At one point he explained that he was only talking about the entertainment industry, but that’s even more mysterious.
April 24th, 2009 at 8:08 am
Jackie is right. Freedom should be squashed. Dissenters should be tortured and imprisoned, especially those Tibetan monks. The only way to live in a civil society is to force everyone to fear the government. Taiwan, while being secretly not a part of China and soveriegn, should be bombed with the many missiles lining the coast for not joining China sooner.
April 24th, 2009 at 3:49 pm
Jackie Chan made his comments on freedom using Hong Kong and Taiwan as examples of why freedom is bad. He did not say all freedom is bad. He certainly did not say that he should not be free to fly around the world and make the movies he wanted or that the business people he was speaking to should not be able to have the businesses they had. He was very definitely separating himself and them from the average citizen. What gives anyone that right?
April 25th, 2009 at 10:08 pm
Jackie Chan has never understood what freedom is, yet he is immersed in and enjoying it, while he idiotically told the press that certain people are not entitled to what he has in a free world.
April 25th, 2009 at 11:42 pm
Michael,
I see your point, but you’re imposing an intention onto my article that it doesn’t have. I didn’t write this as a sweeping description of the overall opinion of everyone in China. It’s an opportunity for some real, everyday Chinese to voice their opinions about Jackie Chan’s recent comments. And the fact that there are no soldiers, welders, politicians, street vendors, etc voicing their opinions here doesn’t make the students above any less real, any less everyday, or any less Chinese.
Michael
April 26th, 2009 at 12:11 am
I got a Map to Stars Homes once while bringing some friends sightseeing in Hollywood…one of the homes we drove by and looked at was Jackie Chan’s — beautiful, gorgeous, HUGE home in Beverly Hills. Dunno if those maps are for real and dunno if Jackie still lives in Bev Hills… but just picturing his life and the opportunities he’s had here in USA, I just can’t believe his comments. So elitist. Always a bad sign when you are willing to take away from others that which you would not want taken from yourself. I doubt Chan would be willing to give up the freedoms he’s received living in the US.
April 26th, 2009 at 2:49 am
Michael – saying the people can not handle freedom is fascist. Maybe it’s not surprising that many Chinese would agree with a fascist position, given the way they are educated, I don’t blame them. However that doesn’t change the fact that the label fits.
-Stefan
April 27th, 2009 at 7:47 pm
Everybody likes freedom and aspire for it. we chinese have many merits,but we should see our disadvantages in order to improve ourselves.
April 27th, 2009 at 10:32 pm
Stefan –
How exactly are they educated?
Michael
April 28th, 2009 at 10:34 pm
Many thanks for Michael~
As mang of my classmates said,every chinese people need freedom.We all may pay for freedom, and must let the people who disregard the human rights pay the price.
April 28th, 2009 at 10:49 pm
largjglanlanglagnla
May 4th, 2009 at 8:47 pm
Freedom is born right. Jackie Chan can so easily say the chinese people don’t deserve freedom;when he himself is living in it here in America.
May 8th, 2009 at 12:40 am
For Chinese, we do need some rules or organization but with more freedom. One, many Chinese are illiterate or less educated, so they need to be leading or teaching. In this case, you’d better give them some rules as well as encouraging them to be creative and proactive. For other overeducated Chinese, they need much more freedom, of course. In this case, many of them will be more creative than before. I thought they also need to remember something very important like ethics.
For human livings, if you hope everyone is living up to their life goals, you’d better ask them to stay a little bit quietly than before, because many people need their own living space. Please don’t affect someone else around you.
In some situation, we need to agree with others’ ideas or thoughts while we still have the ones of our own. I remembered that goes: Live and let live! Isn’t it true and what this is for? Do you agree with it?
May 28th, 2009 at 9:11 pm
Look at all the support Jackie Chan gets from the young PR Chinese. Proof that the patriotic education efforts of the Communist Party is working like a charm. China is destined to have another generation of unimaginative, docile, socially apathetic workers. Good luck making the leap from the factory of the world to developing any original technology with a mindset of needing to be “restrained…”
June 3rd, 2009 at 1:30 pm
They who can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety, deserve neither liberty nor safety.
-Benjamin Franklin
November 17th, 2009 at 7:28 am
I think some people may misunderstand what Jackie Chan said.I agree that freedom should be finite, we need an intelligent government to lead us to the right road.
November 17th, 2009 at 7:42 am
I think that we are leading a very harmony and equal life which has been provided by our government. we can do what we want to do, that is our freedom. Of course, l admit our govrenment gives us some controllment. thai is necessary. what is needed to do is that the improvrment of citizen’s education.
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