Throwback Thursday: Which of the Beijing 2008 Olympics "Do and Don'ts" Have Stuck?

Throwback Thursday takes a look back into Beijing's past, using our nine-year-strong blog archives as the source for a glance at the weird and wonderful of the city's past.

Released in October 2007, these rules were plastered accross Beijing to give people just enough time to drastically alter their actions, some of which hadn't even begun or may have even given people a quick tip on what they should have been doing if they hadn't been doing it already. Case in point: Don't sell pirated goods? Oh shit, better make some pirated goods! 

This little list gives insight to the fact that the authorities aren't stupid when it comes to what is and isn't acceptable behavior (in the eyes of the prying western media at least) but it also demonstrates that giant posters denoting change are completely meaningless if the rules aren't then enforced, even more so when the rules are so absolute in their vagueness so as to be equatable to nothing at all.

So, with that in mind, just how many of these Don'ts were enforced to the point that the conduct they tackling are now all but extinct? And how many have given rise to other nefarious acts? Let's take a look ...

要保护奥运知识产权 DO protect Olympic intellectual property
不要买卖盗版制造假冒 DON’T buy or sell pirated goods

Well, this one was never going to hold. Although pirated goods are certainly on the wane in Beijing much thanks to the complete decimation of Yashow, there are still ladies selling fuwu kites around Houhai. But who's to know whether they're knockoffs or that there's just some poor factory in Zhejiang that didn't get the message to stop pumping out tat.

要遵守奥标保护条例 DO respect laws related to the Olympic logo 
不要滥用奥运旗徽歌标 DON’T abuse anything Olympic-related

Ah yes, wonderfully vague rule #1. So at this point does throwing out my used ticket to the dressage become comparable to flag burning, or is drawing my own little Olympic logo similar to doodling Muhammad? Hmm, not going to try that last one out. Ok, maybe these are working.

要牢记交通安全法规 DO keep traffic safety in mind
不要翻越护栏闯灯猛跑 DON’T climb over guardrails or run red lights (especially not at the same time)

This is where enforcement of rules could have really done wonders for Beijing and China at large. Instead, we remain in a place where beeping is the only form of noted perception and anyone can pretty much park anywhere without fear of being prosecuted. One thing's for sure though, they've made those guardrails a damn lot taller, and therefore much harder to climb.

要服从指挥顺序而 行 DO obey the given instructions and move in the correct order
不要违章强行拒绝疏导 DON’T resist crowd control

This was never going to be an issue when your free will is at the mercy of 10,000 other people.

要美化市容保护环境 DO beautify the city and protect the environment
不要随地吐痰摆摊占道 DON’T spit or put up stalls on the street

Why would anyone stop spitting if no one even began to explain why you shouldn't spit in the first place? And maybe the reason we need to spit is because no one has been protecting the environment, but instead have pumped it full of noxious gas that I have no say over anyway. Nope, this one definitely didn't hold. 

要爱护体育场馆设施 DO treasure the facilities at athletic venues
不要寻衅滋事无 理取闹 DON’T incite or encourage unreasonable disturbances

I guess this was only applicable to before and directly after the Olympics because last time I dared step foot in the Olympic Village it looked like a zombie apocalypse had hit it, one whereby every zombie had their own cardboard box to live in and cancerous grey was en vogue, seeing that not a single building had seen a bath since September 2008.

要提高奥运法律知识 DO try to learn as much as you can about Olympic regulations
不要违法违规影响全貌 DON’T break the law or influence the overall picture

"Well, I've gone and read to the end of this list and from what I can tell the Olympics are a certified bore-a-thon, lacking in any of the old fun that I used to know and love. For that reason alone I'm going to stay at home so as not to even risk influencing the overall picture, whatever the f**k that may be. At least I have sweet, unadulterated smoking."

And with that, I'm completely ranted out. I guess all there's left to see is whether a new set of updated rules will be rolled out come 2022, now that these are all very much abide by. Any that you'd suggest for the list?

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