Shanghi Kiss

Something that struck me from the opening ceremony for the Bejing Olympics was the mass uniformity of the dancers and particularily the rather impressive drummers. They stood, all in long rows, hundreds of them, banging out the same beat, which im sure did nothing for the old Western stereotype of "they all look the same". Haircuts, clothing, instruments, all near identical. No facial hair either.





Thinking about this now, and with my post about american football, it got me wondering about other sports and cultures where uniformity and lines are involved.

Naturally there is the Armed Forces, both current and times past, whose form on parade, and indeed during the 18th and 19th centuries on the field of battle, were regimented and strictly uniform occasions.


WW2 soldiers preparing to be shipped off to the fronts.


The most famous historical military structure was the romans, whose lines of soldiers doubled for solid protective defence.