Forbidden Starbucks

A storm in a coffee mug was raised by CCTV9 presenter's Rui Chenggang's blog attacking a Starbucks outlet in Beijing's Forbidden City as damaging Chinese traditional culture. A heated debate has ensued and Starbucks in the end may be forced to leave the Forbidden City. (The Guardian: Online campaign aims to rid Forbidden City of Starbucks)

A lot of arguments have been bandied about, so let's separate the cappuccino form the latte.

I basically agree with the arguments presented by Shanghai Daily's commentator Wang Yong (Don't blame Starbucks, don't equate Forbidden City with Chinese culture):

There should be no cafes or eateries in the Forbidden City. Some visiting tourists no doubt would like to have a coffee. What about those who would like to have a beer? Open a beer house? Or a hamburger? Here comes McDonald's. Or a finger-licking chicken wing? KFC anyone? Come to think of it, why not a branch of Morel's, so people can have decent food and a choice of 50 or so Belgian beers? The Forbidden City or Palace Museum as it is officially called is just that, a museum, a rather large one for sure, but no place to eat or drink.

By singling out Starbucks for criticism, the issue has become entangled in nationalist rhetoric. Starbucks is said to damage Chinese traditional culture. As Wang Yong points out, the 15th-century Forbidden City should not be equated with traditional Chinese culture, because it was only used by the 24 emperors of the Ming and Qing dynasties. The Han, Tang and Song dynasties better represent traditional Chinese culture than the Ming and Qing. As Wang Yong writes: “What the Forbidden City stands for is quite possibly the opposite of essence [sic] of Chinese traditional culture - it stands for isolation”.

Aside from the Forbidden City, I am all for a world-wide boycott of Starbucks. Its chairman, Howard Shultz, is a Zionist and inveterate defender of Israel, using Starbucks to sponsor the Zionist cause. He called the Palestinian intifada a manifestation of anti-Semitism and asked people to unite behind Israel. Starbucks should be boycotted, not in the name of traditional Chinese culture, but in support of the Palestinian people against Zionist oppression and exploitation.

Let Stabucks follow the disgraced eunuchs in exile from the Forbidden City. Dump the coffee, have a beer!