WingColors

While I may have a lot of distaste for things China is doing and has been doing for a long time, I think more exposure of it's people to the rest of the world can only do good for them.

The influx of behaviors and ideas the chinese populace will be exposed to in this brief period is going to be monumental.

Well, I think this picture is largely inaccurate, because Nazi Germany actually did host. (Kami, maybe that's what you meant by "irony.")

I don't agree with making the Olympics a political statement but at the same time that's what it inherently is, with international athletes coming to compete. Like you can't have your cake but eat it too. The terrorists of the Munich games of course capitalized on the fact that it is.

Also, I'm biased since my family are native Taiwanese and are for Taiwan independence - so we as a whole have huge distrust for any sort of Chinese government, Nationalist and/or Communist. Also, we're of the mindset that when entire governments commit these sorts of things we'll turn a blind eye to that if we have huge economic interests there while we'll carry on, for instance, the embargo on Cuba.

Anyhoo, I don't agree with say, taking the games away from China just to relocate them as a sort of punishment. But I also think that their egregious human rights' violences were apparent for quite some time now that they should've never been approved to host in the first place. So this sort of stuff just doesn't really surprise me. I completely see the side of the protesters in San Francisco. Nazi Germany used the games as a vehicle of propaganda and didn't allow Jews to compete for their country, while we just stood by and recognized them as a whole country by competing there.

I agree with Ozone, though, that they have been in isolation for so long that to deny them this "experience" in order to punish is not fruitful. To give their people a taste of what it is really like to be international politically, not just financially, will in the end do them good.

I agree with Ozone. I was excited, the moment I found out the Olympics were going to be in Beijing, because I knew outcries would happen. And while a lot of it is just people jumping on bandwagons (like the humorous photo you posted), there are some others who are becoming more legitimately aware of some issues that have occurred in China, which is a good thing.

I'm revved up for the games. It's the one sporting event that I watch with any dedication.

The only reason I was anticipating a China olympics was from a purely artistic and architectural standpoint.

I love the art and architecture and even technological leaps that countries take to host an olympics and past olympics have been VERY well "designed".

I will check out photos and imagery of the olympics for the reason above but it will not air on a single TV in my house.

...and yes, that protester is ignorant, they DID... and "WE" being the US don't control the olympics. (I only hope by "we" they meant the IOC)

I think it is our right to protest should we choose, though sentiment displayed in that photo is somewhat misguided though, after all we host the Olympics, and probably will into eternity despite starting preemptive wars.

The Olympics should not have been awarded to a country with such an abysmal human rights record, on the United Nations top ten list of countries violating human rights up until a month or so ago when the United Nations realized they were still on it and hosting the Olympics - "oops we better get them off that list" - so they decided to take them off, even while admitting their human right record was still pretty vile.

Some of the protests may bear fruit anyhoo, at least temporarily.

I personally could care less about the Olympics for this country, though I know there are still amateur athletes here it seems hard to find one that isn't looking exclusively toward the dollar sign.

There are however athletes in third world countries, like Afghanistan, who will take the field for the first time, and to whom the games means something totally different, so I understand still having them.

It also probably doesn't pay to anger China to a great degree because China has us by the balls.

@Ozone: You'd be surprised though what mainland Chinese people still hold on to despite being exposed to the outside world. I've had the pleasure of befriending many people from mainland China who have immigrated or are studying here in Australia, plenty of them believe that Communism is a good idea. Plenty more don't think there is anything wrong with with China. And they have been overseas for a long while.

@Estarla: I tried not to write it off as absolute stupidity just someone's idea of irony to prove a point.

Regardless of where they are, I hardly think it's right that the world condemns China as a whole when it's only whoever is in charge that has done what the world claims they have done.

Of course, I'm torn by the fact that people take this moment to bring issue like this to light. On one hand it just ruins to mood for us all especially since we all expect a nice civil affair. On the other, I can empathize the way they take this chance to let the world know because as an international event, all the world's eyes are on the country.

The thing I dislike about hosting the Olympics in countries that have such abysmal forms of government is that it gives them tons of free press and plenty of leeway to "dress up" their country so that it's marketable to the masses.

They round up all the foul and vulgar pock marks on their country and hide them from view so that those of us at home and the tourist who arrive there can go "oh how quaint and serene that China is, just look at all those smiling happy people...blah blah blah."

@Kamigoroshi agreed. I've got several people I talk to in China via skype and it really boggles my mind some of the misconceptions they have about the outside world. One told me that all livestock in the US have cellphones, and are able to call the farmer if they are ill.

Perhaps they were thinking of some form of radio tracking... I don't really know.

@RightOn: No different that other developed countries. During the Sydney Olympics, they rounded up all the Aboriginals and other undesirables from the suburbs and relocated them elsewhere to clean up the place. All nice and clean for the people that come in. Oh Joy. :)

@Ozone: Chances are, a lot of things are due to language problems. I've had the opportunity to help translate mandarin for a business transaction and what I found out was that it is very hard to translate even some basic ideas back and forth because the culture and ideology is completely different (and because explaining technical details in Mandarin is a bitch). Things like this take time and patience and a good sense of breaking down things so that both sides can understand.

That being said though, I don't think mainland Chinese people are that ignorant. I think it's the differences both sides (Western and Eastern, Democracy and Communism) have to slowly come to terms. It's something western countries have to learn to accept as well.

Understood and that was my point... it's not about the games as it should be, it's about the almighty dollar and putting on a facade for the rest of the world so you don't look as oppressive or even "cultured" as you are.

I mean REALLY who cares if aboriginal people surface during the games... they're natives and to me at least part of the allure of Australia.

Hell, Japan dressed up their vending machines to "disguise" ones that dispensed pornography.