Posted by Dave on 08/09/08 at 01:56:07 pm
Categories: Political Ravings, Sports Ravings, Patriotism and the Nation State

I like the Olympics.

Yea... I know... it celebrates nationalistic pride and patriotism that I am not interested in. And yea... I know... it has become so corporate and money driven that it is no where close to "pure" as a sporting event.

But I still like them. Of course, it helps that I love sports. Any sports, really. I watched handball and badminton this morning, and thoroughly enjoyed it.

But there is more to the Olympic Games than athletic events, pageantry, fancy medallions, and steroid allegations.

The political nature of the Olympics is both sad and fascinating. I long for the Olympics to be much more political. I long for the Olympics to not just be a moment where people come together, but instead a moment where people (and countries) actually examine what they are doing and what their relationships and interactions look like with other people (and other countries).

And there is no better example of how and why the games should be more political than this year, as the Games play out in China. China is a fascinating place. It is a nation that is rapidly changing, in both good and bad ways. The free markets have opened up in many ways, ushering in a new and huge middle/upper middle class in the country, with new purchasing and economic power and new cultural opportunities. Yet China is also a bad country. Its environmental record is awful. Its human rights record may be even worse. Its abuse of the lower and working classes in the country is appalling. Its support of Sudan in recent years has been atrocious.

Yet there is a problem with some of this.

While many in the United States have complained and protested China and the Games, this country, while not nearly as bad as China, is in no place to criticize others for these issues. Chris Bowers has a few basic comparisons:

• Our lead in per capita carbon output and China's total lead in carbon output.
• The coup we initially supported in Venezuela and what China recently did in Zimbabwe.
• China's support for Sudan serving as the equivalent of what we are doing in Iraq.
• The worker's right's abuses carried out by American corporations overseas versus the worker's right's abuses carried out by the Chinese government against its own citizen's.

So what does this mean?

Does it mean that we should be silent about China? Absolutely not. What it means is that we - you and I and the rest of the people in this country - need to be willing to not just speak out about China, but also to speak out about this country. We need to be willing to stand up and force others to hear. We need to be willing to look at ourselves in the mirror, to look at the country that we live in, and challenge the many assumptions that so many of us have.

The Olympics are an exciting example of athletic excellence.

The Olympics are also an exciting opportunity for countries around the world to come together.

But the Olympics are also an opportunity to force some discussions about what is really occurring in this world and in this country. Do not let that opportunity pass you by.

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