Going totally crackers

When Zhang Yimou conceived the opening gala for the 2008 Beijing Olympics, he intended that fireworks would show off one of the "four great inventions of ancient China". His plan was sidetracked, however, because those supervising his work did not want the world to focus its attention on gunpowder, which would presumably lead to unwanted associations, such as cannonballs.

Even so, the most dazzling fireworks show I have ever seen - and I'm sure many would concur - was the Zhang-directed opening ceremony. It was not only spectacular, but also artistic. Designed by Cai Guoqiang, it did not just catapult the event to a crescendo, as is its usual function, but acted more as an audio-visual orchestra, or at least its percussion section, giving the show its rhythm and vitality. The giant footprints, the smiley faces, the waterfalls - all the simulations of concrete objects were juxtaposed with patterns and forms that pleased and heightened the senses.

Barely one month passed before I started to witness the ramifications of this "greatest show on earth". I was in Hohhot attending a trade fair, and on its eve a televised gala was held in a stadium. It, too, was punctuated with pyrotechnics - on a smaller scale but no less fancy. I was aghast: How could a local event be so spendthrift as to imitate the Olympics celebration? How much would that have cost taxpayers? (Such events are usually State-sponsored.)