by Jody Coughlin
How backwards can the human race be? Seriously? I was watching the Weather Network last night (riveting, I know) and there was a little news blurb on it about the Olympics and yes, the Winter Olympics coming to Vancouver is a glorious thing. There is much to celebrate. Spring rain falls on the hopeful hearts of the beloved sportsmen. Canada unites in triumphant athletic leadership… Yeah. Awesome.
But do you know what I think of when I see this stuff on television? First of all, the new design of the torch perplexes me. It looks (to me anyway) like a missing part from an airplane. I don’t know where the design came from and yes, I am too lazy to research it (so don’t even go there with me all you Olympic aficionados).
Secondly, I think to myself that these Winter games and the subsequent millions of dollars investors and advertisers throw at them remind me of a playground. On this playground in my mind I see all the rich kids, all the jocks and all the cheerleaders (not to stereotype-but come on) huddled around what could only be called a buffet table. There is lots to eat and lots to drink and plenty of mutual admiration all around. It’s so perfect it could make you puke.
Then, in my mind’s pretty blue eye, on the other side of the playground, I see the kids who came to school with no lunch money. I see the kids that had the shit kicked out of them and then had their lunch money stolen and I also see the kids who brought along a baggie of peanut butter and crackers and a sad, shriveled up apple. I see oblivion on the behalf of the kids at the buffet table. I see utter, basic human needs going unmet on behalf of the poor kids with nothing.
In my mind it is the Olympics versus the earthquake tragedy in Haiti. It is the babies being born in sweltering heat under the tent roofs of a makeshift neonatal unit. I see the look in the eyes of the mothers as they wilt in what must surely be exhaustion and absolute fear and despair next to their babies makeshift cribs. In my heart I weigh these images that have been broadcast on almost all major news channels by now against the warm and fuzzy heralding of the sportsmen’s wet dream otherwise known as the Olympics. I see these things and I am utterly appalled.
I know that the world (and all the fun therein) doesn’t stop because there is a need in some foreign country somewhere. I realize this particular bit of writing is the most depressing thing anyone has probably read in a few days. So what? I don’t care. I am depressed. I am depressed that I live in a world where frivolities flourish amid tragedy. I am depressed that the Olympics take precedence over the rebuilding of a hospital in a disaster ridden nation. It brings me way low down when a stadium is built (and maybe even rebuilt) to suit the aesthetic appeal of ceremonial bullshit instead of a school.
Maybe I am too harsh, but I fail to see where it matters that somebody can perform something faster or more deftly than anyone else in the world when there is an entire nation of orphans needing a home. I’m sorry Olympians. I know you’ve been training your asses off, but in terms of checks and balances it makes no sense to me. Cancel the Olympics. Rebuild Haiti.
We’re a society of assholes. For five minutes, we felt terrible and we held hands and cried while George Clooney got on TV and we bravely parted with our five dollars. “You know what? I’m going to make a stand. I’m giving this money to Haiti instead of buying my sixth Big Mac! It’s a sacrifice I’m willing to make.”
A week later, we were back to being completely obsessed with (but not doing anything about) getting the cellulite off our asses, the new season of Lost, the crazy shit Lady Gaga wore to the Grammys and figuring out why Jill in Accounts Receivable is being such a cunt. I mean, what did we ever do to her?
Anyway, the spirit of what you’ve said here is completely true. But there’s one small issue. I don’t think anyone really gives any more of a fuck about the Olympics than they do about Haiti. Really, other than ahtletes and the municipality that hosts the games, who cares? We’re so fat as a society that even nationalistic pride won’t overcome the fact that these perfectly toned and trim bodies depress us even more than Haitian earthquake people.
http://www.usatoday.com/sports/columnist/hiestand-tv/2008-08-24-olympics-ratings_N.htm
On the other hand, maybe it’s better this way. Look at how fucking stupid people got after 9/11. We’re a population of idiots, but we’re a population of dangerously ill-informed and reactionary idiots when something happens that directly affects us (which is the only time that North American society reacts to anything for more than 15 consecutive seconds [unless it's a celebrity being caught with their pecker in the wrong place, cause WOO BOY, that's some fucking news right there. TIGER'S A CHEETAH!!!!! WOOT!!!!]).
You make a great point Judy, but aren’t the Olympics supposed to be a net gain when it comes to income? It’s a huge revenue boost for BC and is supposed to be a big one for everyone else involved as well (except NBC, but you can chalk that up to Jeff Zucker). They’re investing ridiculous amounts of money, but they’re making it all back with advertising/spectator/tourist revenue. The real big money is coming from the individual people watching—the stadiums are being built to tap into that resource, so if we’re going to point fingers at anyone, shouldn’t it be the people in the stands and watching at home on TV?
Jody, It’s Jody J-o-d-y.
Surely there is a balance between the fanaticism and genuine change. I don’t know. This fucked up world of ours seems resistant to it even on a minor scale. It’s beyond frustrating. But this whole Olympics charade is simply ridiculous given the current humanity crisis. We all know it. We all see it. It’s right there. No denying it.
According to research done by the Dominion newspaper (www.dominionpaper.ca) there are 8 security personnel per athlete attending the games. So the real financial winners are the Blackwaters of the world. The modern Olympics were revived by Hitler and have a long association with facism.
The only possibly redeeming quality I see to the Olympics is the sacrifice and training that the athletes put in. Amateur athletes in Canada live in poverty, much the same as artists or writers.
While I admire anyone (artistic or athletic) with that kind of dedication, surely we could find a better way to showcase human achievement than by giving the McDonald’s and Blackwaters of the world a massive advertising platform.
Amy, you make an excellent point.
We all need to reexamine something Hitler put into motion, do we not?
Same goes for Volkswagens!
http://news.ca.msn.com/top-stories/msnbc-article.aspx?cp-documentid=23425893
Claiming that Hitler revived the Olympics is a bit of a stretch. The modern Olympics were revived by Pierre de Coumartin. Hitler’s ‘36 Olympics were full of pomp and pageantry because they were supposed to confirm the superiority of the Aryan race. Jesse Owens ruined that idea and Hitler himself considered his Olympics a failure because of it. Moments like that happen in every Olympics; athletes overcoming obstacles. This is one of the rare events where much of the world actually comes together; it is a global experience that is not war. That is rare these days. The athletic aspect of it is at the core but the cultural exchange is also significant. And the fact is these things cost money. You can digest as much of the commercial aspect of it as you want. Much the same way you can choose to pay attention to the commercial aspect of any media, including the internet.
Here is the thing; the Olympics are mostly already paid for. You can’t unbuild the venues and get the money back. And you are right about the security bills being exorbinant you can trace a good portion of that cost to people that decide to protest, or worse, during the Olypics. Protesting the cost of security is increasing the cost of security. And while there are private security forces, most of the security is being provided by the Canadian Army and the RCMP, but not Blackwater.
The Olympics are too commercial but, as you should probably have noticed, so is the whole damn world. At its core the games are still about bringing the world together and they do achieve that.
I’m sorry you won’t get to read this because I’m sure you sold your computer and camera to donate the money to Haiti. What’s a blog post worth when there are schools to be rebuilt.
We could totally do both… Olympics and Haiti.
We won’t though. (didn’t… and now everyone has forgotten and nobody cares anymore!)