Can anyone explain to me what the big to-do is about the Olympics this year? I think I've missed something. Why are people protesting so much? Why do they keep putting the flame out? Is this normal and the media is just paying extra attention to it this year?

All centers around China (Tibet, Darfur, censorship - you name it).

Mainly, the recent riots in Tibet and general human rights stuff.

Thanks! That makes sense.

Wouldn't the right thing to do involve just going and kicking everyone else's ass, and then when we win, use it as a platform to educate the masses regarding the travesties in Darfur?

Also, I think its bush league to potentially squash the dreams of a kid who has trained his whole life to compete at the highest level because you don't agree with the politics of the host country. The Olympics symbolize everything pure and good about competition, putting people from all walks of life onto a level playing field, and may the best man win. Its not about capitalism, or democracy, or anything else, even though its come to symbolize those very things.

phuturephillies wrote:Also, I think its bush league to potentially squash the dreams of a kid who has trained his whole life to compete at the highest level because you don't agree with the politics of the host country. The Olympics symbolize everything pure and good about competition, putting people from all walks of life onto a level playing field, and may the best man win. Its not about capitalism, or democracy, or anything else, even though its come to symbolize those very things.

Yeah, I agree with this 100%.

Which is why China is putting so much effort into the olympics. So that they can prove to everyone how shiny and happy and, well, olympian they are (oh, and better at it than anyone else and with more money from their growing economy). And if that isn't political motivation, I dunno what is. And given all the nonsense which went down in the past concerning 'gifts' to IOC members to sway decisions, it seems a bit foolish to say that the olympian ideal is above all that. It's pro sports, and pro sports is all about money, entertainment, and all to frequently, imbued with political importance.

phuturephillies wrote:The Olympics symbolize everything pure and good about competition, putting people from all walks of life onto a level playing field, and may the best man win.

You are having a laugh, right? You're not really taking that seriously?

Marion wrote:Can anyone explain to me what the big to-do is about the Olympics this year? I think I've missed something. Why are people protesting so much? Why do they keep putting the flame out? Is this normal and the media is just paying extra attention to it this year?

They outlawed Deer Penis at the games, and deer penis lovers throughout the world will not stand for this deprivation of deer penis.

Bill McNeal wrote:

Marion wrote:Can anyone explain to me what the big to-do is about the Olympics this year? I think I've missed something. Why are people protesting so much? Why do they keep putting the flame out? Is this normal and the media is just paying extra attention to it this year?

They outlawed Deer Penis at the games, and deer penis lovers throughout the world will not stand for this deprivation of deer penis.

Only to be replaced with Tibetan Penis.

The idea that the Olympics is non-political is laughable. It's not just a business, it's got politics too. And there's lots of cheating.

Despite that, I love the olympics. I love the spectacle, and I love the way obscure, but wonderful sports like fencing can take center stage every four years.

I love complaining about the television coverage, especially the amount of time devoted to swimming, which really is pretty boring.

But Floppy has one thing right--the athletes are the ones who really suffer from a boycott (especially in those obscure sports). Protesting the torch is one thing. Calling for a boycott is something else.

TenuredVulture wrote:But Floppy has one thing right--the athletes are the ones who really suffer from a boycott (especially in those obscure sports). Protesting the torch is one thing. Calling for a boycott is something else.

I think the protesters would claim that certain people (Tibetans, political prisoners, etc.) would suffer much worse from indifference.

Houshphandzadeh wrote:

TenuredVulture wrote:But Floppy has one thing right--the athletes are the ones who really suffer from a boycott (especially in those obscure sports). Protesting the torch is one thing. Calling for a boycott is something else.

I think the protesters would claim that certain people (Tibetans, political prisoners, etc.) would suffer much worse from indifference.

Frankly, it seems that China's hosting the games has turned into a big headache for China, calling a great deal of attention to the situation in Tibet which had more or less fallen off the radar.

Of course there are political undertones, but at the end of the day, its competition against your fellow man or woman for the right to be called the best in the world. Is there money made off of it? Sure. But do you think the kid from Idaho who has been swimming for 3 hours a day every day since he was 6 cares about how much money Ford will make off of advertising during the olympics, or cares what China's trade policies are? Professional sports has become extremely commercialized, and while the Olypmics are certainly not 100% pure, they are still more pure than anything else you find on a day to day basis.

I think there is a big difference between pride and politics. I think pride is still the #1 motivator for athletes who aspire to compete at the olympic level.

For the protesters, there are no rules of engagement. To them, their causes are a matter of life, death, and freedom, much more important than any swimmer from Luxembourg. They're not going to turn down the biggest stage available to them out of courtesy to TV audiences.

BUT GOLD MEDALS!!!!

Drat! I somehow missed this thread and PTK's torch thread, when I posted a torch question in the random thread.

They're running the torch thru San Fran right now. To avoid the protesters, they're running it through warehouses and buildings instead of the streets. Alas, this may be a day of infamy... the day San Fran burned down (especially if one of those warehouses is an illegal meth lab or fireworks facility... zOMG).

Ron Paul is on the side of the Chinese, and against the Tibetans.

http://wonkette.com/377948/which-doctor ... tibet-bill