The Olymic's, the Olympiad, the summer games.
How many of you have visited the gracious place of Olympia on the Peloponnese in Greece? Nevermind.
Now that thing is in Beijing.
What a bling.
This is actually a French invention, the modern Olympics that is. Some kind of liberal enthusiast with plenty of Pernod in his belly thought this out. I believe this was still in the 19th century. Anyhow, this dude was dreaming about people of all nations competing peacefully, "competing peacefully".... forget the wars, forget political struggles, forget animosity.
Dream on. History teaches us nothing.
Hitler did a good run on this one, he didn't even know that he had the pie (or pie) in the pot. The decision to hold the Summer Olympics in Berlin was done before he came to power. Being the bastard he was, he was going for the gravy.
Some forty years later comes the chance for redemption, in Munich. The stigma was supposed to be eradicated, and the German Nation neutralized and accepted fully to the global community.
It failed again.
Some Palestinian Muslim assholes shot and kidnapped Jewish athletes. In German fashion, they didn't get away with it. But the end result was: All were dead.
So that was the 70's. Let's go over to the 80's.
Russia, ohhps, the then Soviet Union at that time invades Afghanistan in 1979 (or thereabouts) ((I am not a living walking Encyclopedia, so there...)) - anyhow, it leads to the boycott of the US and some other nations of the Summer Olympics in Moscow 1980.
Ironic, considering the fact that the US embraces Afghanistan as a vital combat zone for its own troops nowadays.
It is funny to watch morale and borders change for the convenience of a few investors. All we can do is stare.
Now what about Beijing?
Is it going to have the same "democratizing" effect as it was in Seoul in South Korea back in the 90's? I strongly doubt it. But who am I to tell...
Wednesday, July 16
The game
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5 comments:
It's strange that one of the most polluted countries with some of the most atrocious human and animal rights violations in the world was chosen to host the 2008 Summer Olympics. It's kind of an insult to athleticism and the whole spirit of the Olympics; it just reeks of corruption.
Did you know that according to the world bank, 16 out of 20 of the worlds most polluted cities are in China? Beijing is so polluted that most athletes there have been forced to train in their hotel rooms, even run laps in the hotel lobby.
I have great respect for some of the contributions to come out of ancient China, but not so much for modern China. If I were an Olympian I think I would probably not compete this time around.
I grew up in Basel/Switzerland. In the 70's the output of Ciba-Geygy and Hoffman La Roche was pretty nasty. On a summer morning you could smell and also see the pollution in the air. Times changed and now the air is as clean as it can be under circumstances. Perhaps Beijing will follow suit.
watching the US and China cha-cha around this is a bit like watching the neighborhood bully trying to impress the mafia. perhaps Uncle Sam has met his Waterloo?
I like that line "Uncle Sam meeting Waterloo" - 'tis Abba all over again.
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