Wednesday, February 2, 2011

Chinese Democracy

Yesterday, a few friends and I watched "Please Vote for Me," a documentary that follows a third-grade class in China during the vote for a new class monitor. It's the first democratic election the kids have ever witnessed, and yet they use the same political tactics we see here. For example, one kid promises his classmates that if they vote for him, they will be part of his special committee. Another kid takes the entire class on a field trip through town on the monorail, thanks to his father's connections. It was just hysterical. It's available for instant play on Netflix, and I highly recommend it. If you want to hear a short interview with the director, check out the This American Life episode, "Kid Politics." 

Also, happy Chinese New Year!

1 comment:

  1. Yeah, I listened to that TAL episode too and was completely blown away. And that boy that put all the other kids up to demonizing the girl also running for class monitor!!! Oh, inherent evil political maneuvering... sigh.

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