This is a completely serious post, as I just read this forum for the first time last night (I generally read the open forum and the southern). To show how long I've been around (sad) I remember when the Chinese government found Hai Deng and got him to try and re-establish Shaolin. Anyone remember this? the movie where at the end he stands on one finger? The tour around the world where the movie was shown in Chinatowns and then Hai Deng and students would do demonstrations. Then apparently he fell into disfavor? When he died his students were kicked out of Shaolin by the government?

Other than that, I only remember that they had that first, really horrible, "shaolin monk" tour that Wai HOng sponsored here in NYC. They did wushu sets straight out of "Shaolin Temple" the movie and when a couple of the traditional sifu asked them if they could chant, they couldn't. They opened the performance by just standing on stage while they played a tape of chanting.

I haven't kept up on the Shaolin controversies since then, which was quite a while ago obviously. Now it seems like a HUGE MESS. Anyone care to just explain the issues? Not to flame, just so I have a clue what is being so hotly debated here?