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China high on 'Bird's Nest Generation' 8/25/2008 Nearly half of Chinese youngsters now say they belong to the "Bird's Nest Generation" and the Beijing Olympic Games will have a lasting influence in their lives, an online poll has found. Nearly half of Chinese youth polled say they consider the Beijing Olympics "important" to their lives and it will have a lasting influence. There's even a new term associated with the Games, created to identify those born in the 1980s and 1990s who matured along with China 's efforts to host the event: the Bird's Nest Generation, drawn from the nickname of the landmark National Stadium, the popular China Youth Daily reported. "This term is all about self-confidence, the love of peace, patriotism, openness and friendliness," said the state-run newspaper, which conducted the poll with news website Sina.com.cn last night as the August 8-24 Games concluded. Among some 3,000 respondents, 44.4 per cent agreed that the Olympics were an "important life experience" and about 43 per cent believed the Games had showcased China's 30 years of reform and economic growth, a period that also defined the young generation. "They can speak foreign languages, they open their arms to people of different skin colours and races and they are respectful and tolerant of both Western culture and Chinese traditions," the newspaper quoted media commentator Xu Xiaoqing as saying. courtesy |
