From: the.wise.one@abel.co.uk   
      
   The war between the 80s and the 90s   
      
   (Shanghai Daily)   
   Updated: 2008-07-14 09:06   
      
      
   BEIJING -- Children. Children. Stop that bickering. Grow up. You're both   
   flowers of the nation, so call a truce and work together for China.   
      
   Easier said than done. What's a parent to do? What's the younger   
   generation coming to? Feuding continues online.   
      
   An Internet war of words is raging between China's younger generations -   
   the 1980s and the 1990s - commonly known as the "Strawberries" (pretty   
   and easily bruised, also the "little emperors") and, for purposes of   
   this article, the "Jellies" (colorful, insubstantial gelatin desserts).   
      
   The Jellies are commonly called the "non-mainstream" generation. The   
   outlook includes individualistic views like "I can live by myself."   
   This article is about some - by no means all - of the two generations of   
   young people, overwhelmingly urban. It is based on Internet research and   
   interviews with 40 young people - 20 Strawberries and 20 Jellies.   
      
   This furor and Internet slug fest is passionate and sometimes nasty,   
   though comic at times. It has even reached the mainstream media,   
   television and newspapers. There are Strawberry salvos, Jelly rejoinders.   
      
   It's about values and identity, who's patriotic and responsible, who's   
   spoiled and pampered. Both sides online are outspoken and defiant.   
      
   The feud sheds light on China's young people who grew up in the period   
   of opening up and reform that began in 1978. The 1980s generation - the   
   Strawberries - knew China before rampant consumerism; many in the 1990s   
   - the Jellies - have known only abundance, and many of the outspoken   
   Jellies are arrogant in their affluence.   
      
   The Strawberries were the original rebels, the "egocentric kids" and   
   Chinese "beats" with wild and crazy ideas, dabbling in new values.   
      
   Now they see the Jellies as "self-centered and irresponsible,   
   materialistic, spoiled brats."   
      
   The Jellies, on the other hand, see the Strawberries as "ho-hum   
   has-beens, out-of-date." They see themselves as the future of China,   
   glittering and upbeat.   
      
   Retired English teacher Paul Wang has taught both the 1980s and 1990s   
   students and worries more about kids today.   
      
   "I worry more about the 1990s, because kids from the 1980s, although   
   naughty and rebellious, would still listen to teachers, if not fear   
   teachers. They have different opinions and would argue with me, but   
   there was still respect."   
      
   Kids today are different, says Wang. "They know your salary, they know   
   that you won't criticize them and many of them don't respect us anymore."   
      
   Leslie Song, a consultant in the Education Commission of Pudong   
   District, agrees. "Teachers cannot criticize kids today as they did with   
   the 1980s generation. The education bureau suggests teachers be nice to   
   the students, especially those who don't do well in school, telling them   
   they are smart and just need a little more time and effort."   
      
   The online conflict began some four months ago, the response to two   
   self-recorded video clips posted at vastly popular site. It was launched   
   by a Strawberry who denounced the Jellies. Then came the Jelly rejoinder.   
      
   The war was on. There was a brief respite when the earthquake struck on   
   May 12.   
   Since the earthquake, commentators in newspapers and on TV have shown a   
   greater appreciation of the 1980s generation. The views can be summed up   
   this way: "We used to feel disappointed about the 1980s, but they showed   
   unbelievable courage and energy after the earthquake and proved they are   
   patriotic and responsible enough to support this nation."   
      
   And on the 1990s: "This generation is listless. They don't know what   
   they want because they have everything. They don't care about anything   
   else except themselves."   
      
      
   Opening salvo   
      
   The Strawberry salvo was 15 minutes, titled "On the Non-Mainstream" by a   
   "professor." It was a clever satire based on CCTV's evening news program.   
      
   The masked guest, the "professor" himself, used the TV news format to   
   discuss the "problem" of the "non-mainstream generation."   
      
   The clip showed typical 1990s clothing and fashion, Webpage design and   
   writing styles. It criticized them as "stupid."   
      
   It set off a firestorm. There were thousands of visits and a blizzard of   
   comments in just a few days.   
      
   Then came a 10-minute clip titled "Response from a Non-Mainstream   
   Beauty." A young woman in flashy clothes and heavy eye makeup delivered   
   an aggressive speech while pretending to play a pink portable   
   PlayStation. She was later revealed to be 20 years old.   
      
   She criticized the 1980s for blaming the 1990s "for no reason but   
   jealousy because we enjoy a more comfortable life." She boasted that her   
   friends have big houses and drive Hummers and luxury SUVs.   
      
   "We will become the elite and majority of the new century soon, so you   
   only have a few years to claim the right to speak - be careful and shut   
   your mouth," she says.   
      
   "You're old, out of date, cowardly, silly and jealous," she concluded.   
      
   In three days, everything about the girl was posted - her real name,   
   home address, schools, telephone number, online names, homepage, and   
   even her pictures.   
      
   For the next few weeks, the battle was fast and furious. The 1980s   
   posted many clips of 1990s people who knew virtually nothing about the   
   quake, and appeared indifferent. Homepages by the 1990s with unpatriotic   
   and cynical articles about the quake were advertised. Their real names,   
   backgrounds and online accounts were also posted on public forums by the   
   angered eighties. And so it went ...   
      
   "We never bothered anyone, why do you suddenly attack us and our   
   lifestyles?" asks 17-year-old Kino Ding, who speaks for many Jellies.   
   "Because you feel frustrated. You were criticized by the generation   
   before you for being wild - and now you feel out of date because of us.   
   So you struggle between the two and you are frustrated. You envy us   
   because we shine so bright and we're upbeat."   
      
   A typical 1980s response: "You kids are so bored. We don't have the time   
   or energy for you. You are just repeating what we have done before. But   
   at least, you should respect your parents. And you have no right to   
   attack us until you earn your own money." This is from 28-year-old Joyce   
   Lin.   
   This controversy reminds many people of the situation 10 years ago, when   
   society first started defining a group of people by decade of their   
   birth. At that time the concern was the 1980s, the first generation of   
   single children.   
      
   Their elders asked: "Are these 'flowers of the nation' going to destroy   
   the country? Do they still have morals? Aren't they too wild and   
   rebellious? Are they responsible enough to take China to new heights?"   
      
   The same questions are now being asked about the 1990s - by the somewhat   
   self-righteous 1980s.   
      
      
   Strawberries   
      
   That first generation of single children drew attention in the late   
   1990s, and especially after the millennium, when they entered the workforce.   
      
      
   [continued in next message]   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)