Gee! Rudd’s speaks Mandarin
Rudd was always going to get the media gushing over his linguistic skills when he met the Chinese. In addition to this, he represents the ALP who have always had more rapport with China than our Conservatives politicians . From Gough Whitlam’s rushing to recognize Communist China to Jim Cairns backing anything communist even as they were killing our soldiers, gives the ALP a special place in the Chinese hearts.
I couldn’t help but see similarities between Howard and his ministers in a clinch with Bush and his team and Rudd and his mob in a clinch with the Chinese. One backing the right,the other the left.
It has ever been thus.
I find the Left’s harping about American transgressions in human rights and silence about China’s human rights abuses illuminating but not surprising.
This piece of over-the-top reporting by Doug Conway in todays Australian is likewise illuminating.
The Prime Minister’s own speech went down well
But when Mr Rudd started addressing the leader of one quarter of the world’s population, fluently in his own tongue, the effect was stunning.
There was an almost audible intake of breath among the scores of Chinese political and business heavyweights in the audience.
Why was everyone stunned? Why did the business heavyweights take an almost audible intake of breath? Everybody in Australia knows that Rudd is a Mandarin speaker and does Conway imagine the Chinese delegation weren’t aware of this. Does he think the Chinese bureaucrats don’t brief their boss?
Linguistics is a tool and a good one. It will make for easy communications but it is a skill that can always be bought. I was an army linguist at one stage in my junior ranks days and that’s where the army slot linguists initially. Being smart enough to master another language doesn’t make you a leader – it just makes you a word smith.
I’d expect the Chinese and the business leaders to be impressed but not stunned, but when, as a journalist you have an agenda, then hyperbole is the way to go.
I love it, the Prime Minister’s own speech went down well but Rudd’s was stunning accompanied with audible intakes of breath.
Howard has worked hard at Chinese Australian relationships and no one would suggest that he hasn’t been successful but I wonder, as I’m sure Doug Conway does, how on earth he did it without being a Mandarin speaker.
Must be other factors involved.
Kev
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Bob,
Saya jangan mengerti Tionghoa, sahaja Bahasa Indonesia.
I don’t understand Chinese just Bahasa Indonesia. I went to the RAAF Lang school when we were at war with Indonesia but the language course lasted longer than the war and I went to Vietnam instead.
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Man! what have I started? Everybody is a linguist.
Proves my point really.
Gary you clever chap you. Off to the club now to listen to the teachers crow about politics – will be on deck tomorrow.
Kev
Try Babelfish – http://babelfish.altavista.com/
You need to translate back and forwards a few times or you get gibberish.
I don’t speak Chinese either. Just a bit of French that even now works with older Vietnamese in country. No good using bar patois, just doesn’t cut it with the current generation.
I’m trying to find someone to teach me conversational Vietnamese – need it for projects. There is a community of Vietsnamese working in the meatworks at Charleville, but I’m not there often enough to make it worthwhile.
Kev I think you said what needed to be said very well. As for your multilingual readers…..well good on them I have no idea what they are saying and care less.
Kev
You’re game – drinking with teachers on a Friday afternoon. My profession (the noblest by far – soldiers are close) whinge a lot these days about using their time and energy on covering their backsides, rather than actually teaching. Much the same is happening to police and nurses.
It’s slightly less of an problem in the private system – but it’s still an issue – too many agendas – too much corporate correctness – too much political interference.