Summer Olympics in Beijing and the Hungry Ghost month

The Hungry Ghost month has begun. Over in Beijing, an avalanche of weddings are taking place on 8 August because of the auspicious date 08/08/08. Chinese place great store in the numeral 8. Traditionalist may and do say that nobody in his right mind gets married in this month. Yet Chinese are willing to buck superstitions and older verities. Mao's campaign against religion seems to have had its desired effect. Today's modern, young Chinese don't buy into this hungry ghosts stuff. Nonetheless, given the spate of natural and man made disasters and the growing political unrest, peaceful and not so peaceful, across all of China, many might think that Beijing has grown too big for its britches, and is tempting fate. Already today after the beginning of the Hungary Ghost month, the East Turkmen Liberation Front has carried out a successful attack against border police in Kashgar. And for the Olympics, Beijing has become an armed camp. And then there's the repression against Tibetans and the spoilation of Tibet by the Han. And so it goes. The sponsoring of the Olympic games during the Hungry Ghost month is not bringing Beijing much luck!