Sniff, sniff .... hack, hack ... everything's fine!
Y'know, there is simply something dangerous about people who are afraid to stand up for the truth ... especially when it's obvious to see and smell.
I refer, of course, to the upcoming Olympic Games in Beijing, and the kerfuffle caused by some American cyclists who showed up for the games at the Beijing airport wearing masks. This (surprise, surprise) cheesed off the Chinese, and today the athletes issued an apology kissing up to the Commies who run the place and the IOC.
I find this kind of PC nonsense disgusting. Frankly, I don't know what the IOC was smoking when they awarded the games to China in the first place. Sure ... in many ways they have discovered the wonders of free(er) markets and capitalism ... but the price for their prosperity is a one-party dictatorship with an abysmal record on human rights. This is a government that was willing to mow down lots of its own citizens at Tiananmen Square not that long ago, a government that was happy to squash opposition in Tibet, and a government that will arrest its critics at will and incarcerate them for very long periods of time. They've also strong-armed Google to censor its own Chinese site, and continue to employ an Orwellian-style information control system.
On top of that, industrialization has resulted in enough pollution to choke a cockroach. They're poisoning their own rivers and soil and air at an alarming rate, and most Chinese cities exist under a pretty good cloud of airborne pollutants. I know this because I work with a large number of Chinese students, and they all pretty much agree that air pollution is a major issue -- especially in Beijing and other really large cities. Wanna have some fun? Just Google "Beijing Smog Watch" and follow the links.
Hence, I don't blame any athlete for being cautious about air quality. Instead of apologizing to the very government that is to blame for the problem, they should be proudly wearing their masks rather than apologizing for illustrating what everyone already knows: Beijing has an air pollution problem.
Then again, politics and truth have never had a very cozy relationship -- and since the Olympics are the ultimate politics-meets-sports event in the world, I guess we shouldn't be surprised. However, if I were one of the countless individuals who have suffered at the hands of the communist dictatorship that runs China, I'd probably be telling the cyclists to grow a pair.
I refer, of course, to the upcoming Olympic Games in Beijing, and the kerfuffle caused by some American cyclists who showed up for the games at the Beijing airport wearing masks. This (surprise, surprise) cheesed off the Chinese, and today the athletes issued an apology kissing up to the Commies who run the place and the IOC.
I find this kind of PC nonsense disgusting. Frankly, I don't know what the IOC was smoking when they awarded the games to China in the first place. Sure ... in many ways they have discovered the wonders of free(er) markets and capitalism ... but the price for their prosperity is a one-party dictatorship with an abysmal record on human rights. This is a government that was willing to mow down lots of its own citizens at Tiananmen Square not that long ago, a government that was happy to squash opposition in Tibet, and a government that will arrest its critics at will and incarcerate them for very long periods of time. They've also strong-armed Google to censor its own Chinese site, and continue to employ an Orwellian-style information control system.
On top of that, industrialization has resulted in enough pollution to choke a cockroach. They're poisoning their own rivers and soil and air at an alarming rate, and most Chinese cities exist under a pretty good cloud of airborne pollutants. I know this because I work with a large number of Chinese students, and they all pretty much agree that air pollution is a major issue -- especially in Beijing and other really large cities. Wanna have some fun? Just Google "Beijing Smog Watch" and follow the links.
Hence, I don't blame any athlete for being cautious about air quality. Instead of apologizing to the very government that is to blame for the problem, they should be proudly wearing their masks rather than apologizing for illustrating what everyone already knows: Beijing has an air pollution problem.
Then again, politics and truth have never had a very cozy relationship -- and since the Olympics are the ultimate politics-meets-sports event in the world, I guess we shouldn't be surprised. However, if I were one of the countless individuals who have suffered at the hands of the communist dictatorship that runs China, I'd probably be telling the cyclists to grow a pair.
posted by DrJDG @ 23:10
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