Have we cats mentioned that we hate the Olympics? We think we have. We hated them last summer when we wrote this, and we still hate them today. So we won't be glued to the TV next February, when the spectacle that is equal parts tragedy (1936, 1972) and farce (1994, etc.) starts up again in Vladimir Putin's Russia.
But here's where it really gets interesting: Vlad may have just screwed the pooch on his precious Sochi games — not by granting Snowden asylum, or sending arms to Syria, or any of the other execrable things he's done lately. But by hating on gay people. (Of course, he justifies his new law — which has led to beatings, rapes and killings of LGBT Russians — in terms of "family values." Gee, who does that remind us of?)
We have news for you, Pootie: It's a long time before the Opening Ceremonies, and the pressure is just starting to build — Stephen Fry's eloquent open letter to Prime Minister David Cameron and the IOC being the latest example. Already we've seen discussions in the press and online about how American athletes should respond, or if they should respond. Stuff, in short, is happening.
We cats were around when President Jimmy Carter pulled the US out of the 1980 Olympics over the Russian invasion of Afghanistan. As we recall, Carter took a ton of heat for that — well, heck, he took a ton of heat for everything, didn't he? — so we're torn about what the right decision about Sochi would be. Do we stay home, or go to Russia and wave rainbow flags? We're thinking about it.
For now, we cats hope that not just Americans, but athletes from all participating countries who care about human rights and dignity, lean on the IOC to stop being a bunch of (excuse the expression) pussies and express some outrage. It won't make up for Berlin, or Munich, or any of the other Olympic idiocies of yore. But it would be a start.
2 comments:
I'm actually so sick of the Olympics being used as a political badminton bird (ssssh....down kitties, not a real bird!), not to mention American coverage OF said games....where we only see Russians, Germans, Canadians, Brits, and Americans compete, that I rarely watch.
Personally, I'm in favor of a permanently fixed abode for each set of games: Winter and Summer, period, instead of the globe-trotting corruption inducing bullshit of a new local for each set. Take the summer games back to Greece, for instance, and LEAVE them there.
We cats say, What a terrific idea. And it'll probably help rescue the Greek economy! As for the winter games, we vote for Lake Placid. What do you think?
Post a Comment