I quite liked the Commonwealth Games opening ceremony for a variety of reasons but this is an excellent critique - the best Ive seen: Stan Reeves July 24, 2014 • 12:18 The Yankee Games So why was I embarrassed by the opening ceremony? There were bits I liked because they connected. Andy Coogan handing over the baton to Chris Hoy, but made cute just because he was 97, and no mention of the fact that he represents the backbone of sport: the volunteers who run clubs year in year out, and he is a war hero. ( read “Tommorow you Die” Andy Coogan : Mainstream, for the full remarkable story) I liked the Scottish costumes when I saw them moving exuberantly with the team who seemed so comfortable. Julie Fowlis, “Freedom come all ye”, colorful volunteers with the chairs making folk welcome. Connected. Then there was folk with little or no connected ness except by limited ethnicity. John Barrowman? A populist American entertainer who lived in Scotland till he was 8 “ He has several homes including a house/maisonette in the Chelsea neighborhood of London, England, UK and a home near Cardiff, Wales. and Palm Springs, CA. He does not feel connected to anything I know as Scottish civic life. Rod Stewart got to sing twice!!! Who he? Well he lives in Epping ,his dad was Scottish he has never lived here, and makes no contribution to Scottish life. Then we get a song written by Paul McCartney about the Mull of Kintrye, which he has occasionally visited. Again no connectedness. The question is, are there no entertainers living and working in Scotland using local material who could have done the job. The answer is of course there is? The better question is why not? Dr Bridget McConnell, Director of Ceremonies, Culture and the Queen’s Baton Relay at Glasgow 2014, said: “Glasgow and Scotland have the pride, passion, commitment and talent to produce Opening and Closing Ceremonies which showcase the very best of both city and nation to the world. “What we are charged with delivering is a vision of both Glasgow and Scotland which reflects not only our outstanding cultural legacy, but the creative talent which, today, is recognised as being among the finest on a global stage. So of course Bridget what have you and the Glasgow committee done? Ignore that talent and import it. “Showcase the very best of both city and nation to the world” Not showcase banal Americanized global culture. How did that happen Well firstly you appoint an imported CEO David Grevemberg Glasgow 2014 Chairman Lord Smith said: “We started our global search to look for a dynamic leader who would inspire and motivate the Organising Committee with an in-depth knowledge of what we are about and we are delighted to have found the best person for the job.” Why “a global search for a Dynamic Leader” this reveals a belief system that is inferiorist. The Committee had no confidence that a Dynamic leader could be found who also lived and worked in Scotland and was connected with it’s culture and life. “an in-depth knowledge of what we are about” I don’t think so. Then you import an events team, Jack Morton Worldwide, again from America, which you revere as the seat of all cultural power. Of course you believe America is best because you have been told that. It also helps if the American CEO is a personal friend of members of the events team and has worked with them on a number of occasions. No need to look around Scotland to see if there is anyone who could do the job. The events team, knowing nothing of Scotland looks around for people who it recognizes as having something, anything that connects them, so they come up with a team of entertainers who have swallowed the dollar. John Barrowman, Rod Stewart, Billy Connolly, Susan Boyle Apart from Billy’s nice intro to the Freedom come all ye, it’s is all imported. I have thought about this. Perhaps its true no one in Scotland could have produced such a high quality celebration of the games and a welcome to Glasgow and Scotland, so the committee was forced to look abroad. Then I thought about it for another 30 seconds and came up with a dream organizing team comprising folk from Celtic Connections, National theatre of Scotland, T in the park and Grand Theft Auto. Given 30 seconds a lot of folk would come up with another list of folk who would have done a grand job. We were in Glasgow. Where were the Glasgow Irish, Italians and Asians??? Shame on you! What is reveled to me is a committee with zero confidence in the people of Scotland. It is no surprise then that they are all for the union. They believe we are better together because they are too frightened to be themselves Herein lies the root of my embarrassment. The people charged with representing me to the world are embarrassed by themselves and that was reveled in the show they put on. “For cultural invasion to succeed, it is essential that those invaded become convinced of their intrinsic inferiority.” Paulo Freire After years of “Sustained belittling” (F Fannon) they have become self-depreciating. Self-depreciation is another characteristic of the oppressed, which derives from the internalisation of the opinion of the oppressors’ hold of them. So often do they hear that they are good for nothing, know nothing and are incapable of learning anything – that they are sick, lazy and unproductive – that in the end they become convinced of their own unfitness. Paulo Freire Shame by association is not a nice feeling, and this constant looking beyond ourselves for people to do a job we are perfectly capable of doing ourselves, makes me ashamed. We can run a successful small country. Lets just get on with it!!!
Posted on: Sat, 26 Jul 2014 11:49:36 +0000
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