Full Court Press

Geez, BCulz, I don't know. If Chicago gets the 2016 Olympics should all other countries boycott those Olympics because we killed, murdered or otherwise drove out Native Americans from their homeland 200+ years ago? Or because we owned slaves? Or because our government holds in jail thousands of alleged "terrorists" who appear to be detained on the slimmest of legal reason?

If we want to go looking for politically motivated reasons to boycott the Olympic Games no country will be able to serve as host -- except maybe France, because it tries so hard to not offend anyone and seems to always tuck tail and run when the going gets rough.

Whether we boycott the Olympics will not affect my perception of China one iota. Neither will the fact that China is hosting the Olympics. It is a country that is run by a powerful and wealthy few at the expense of the masses. Gee, what other country sounds like that?

Quit navel gazing and ask a better question next time.

Being as we are, a democratic nation, and seeing as what truly is at stake here (can a protest really change the Chinese gov't?), the once in a lifetime dreams of those participating American athletes, I say let the athletes, and only the athletes, decide on an Olympic boycott!

There are other ways we can protest and sanction these activities without hurting what may be ones pinnacle in life.

They're called the Games, not propaganda!

Is the anything more nauseating and irrelevant than what the Olympics have become? Lots of drug-enhanced "amateurs" or, for you NBA fans, another chance for our latest dream team to get embarrassed by actual TEAMS.

Actually there is something more nauseating...watching clowns like Daly and Pat Ryan whore up the city for the chance to host this nonsense.

He should boycott but wont because its going to be in Chicago like Backslash has said. Too much money, and the Chinese could flood us with T-bills and ruin our economy. They have juice. Its wrong as two left shoes what China is doing (pun intended), and the UN with our help should ask them to stop it. Pressure has to come from the World to shame them.

The games are supposed to be an international sporting event not a political platform. How will China be hurt if only the U.S. boycotts the games anyway? You want to send China a message? Don't by anything that says "Made In China" or "Made In Hong Kong". The only ones hurt by boycotting the games are the athletes.

I say no. Why? Past experience. We did this to the Soviet Union in 1980 when Moscow hosted the summer games, then they did the same thing to us in '84 when the games were in Los Angeles. The boycotts caused a press frenzy and some diplomatic name-calling but not much else. And now I have dated myself and everyone knows I'm 80 and I live in Boca Raton.

I dont think I was given the ability to comment on your posts, but I will say...i am surprised no one brought up Jesse Owens going into Hitlers Perfect little Arian society and snatching 9 gold medals from his SS Athletes almost single handedly cracking the Nazi invincibilty mystic to both the world and the Germans themselves.

It does have a trojan horse element to it, doesnt it?

Good point Culzie, we have serious human rights violations everywhere in the world, but I think if we go over there and stomp a red, white, and blue one in their a****, to wipe off the smugness, we make a bigger message.

Only the history buff Culz could work Jesse Owens. I think boycotting the Olympics is always a non-issue, and even makes the storyline, which should be the games, less interesting.

Hey Seedy, outside Nopoleon B., the French dissed no one, but the French's own poor people.

In the entire history of boycotts, you'd be hard pressed to find even a handful that accomplished anything at all.

They are nothing more than symbolic gestures, designed to help the people making them feel better about them selves.

Rogge: Beijing Smog May Affect AthletesSome athletes are reportedly considering wearing masks to ward off the bad air in Beijing, while many will delay their arrival in China's capital until the ...
www.wtopnews.com/?nid=105&sid=1366586 - 37k - Cached - Similar pages

US athletes plan to boycott Olympic food - Times OnlineFeb 22, 2008 ...Bring their own.
www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/asia/article3412490.ece - Similar pages

First, where's my post? I swear I didn't boycott this topic! I wouldn't miss the chance to comment on Culzie's guest day....

Second, and this is on sort of a personal level - BC, is the plural of cactus cactus? I always thought it was cacti, but being out here now, I'm not sure. Anyway, they are so weird and beautiful, and I'm totally mesmerized by them is this desert of yours.

didn't get a chance to bring up Owens...but I would have...and no, we should not boycott...

my reaction to the Olympics is the same for the White Sox...."we still have those?"

Cactuses, Cactus, Cacti....all acceptable

and the desert is pretty compared to what?

The word you are looking for is...

"Saguaro"

Pronounced..

sah-wah-roh

The Saguaro, pronounced "sah-wah-roh", (Carnegiea gigantea) is a large, tree-sized cactus species in the monotypic genus Carnegiea. It is native to the Sonoran Desert in Arizona and California, United States and northern Mexico.

Saguaros are slow growing, taking up to 75 years to develop a side arm. The arms themselves are grown to increase the plants reproductive capacity (more apices equal more flowers and fruit).

The growth rate of saguaros is strongly dependent on local precipitation patterns, and saguaros in drier western Arizona grow only half as fast as those in and around Tucson, Arizona (Drezner, 2003).

(I woke up to this fire out my window)

Some specimens may live for more than 150 years[1]; the champion saguaro grows in Maricopa County, Arizona and is 13.8 m tall with a girth of 3.1 m. (It was injured as a result of the Cave Creek Complex fire in June 2005.) In addition to being slow growing, they are also slow to propagate. These two factors argue for the placement of the saguaro on the endangered species list, although they are not on any such list. Harming one in any manner (including cactus plugging) is illegal by state law in Arizona, and when houses or highways are built, special permits must be obtained to move or destroy any saguaro affected.

Where's my post from yesterday??? Can someone put Ricky on the job of finding it - he always does!

I think they should just give up on the torch relay thing. It's unnecessary and will no doubt end up in violence at some point. Seriously, is anyone going to care about the tradition if something tragic happens en route?

Roman responds: Hey Pit Vipress, take it easy. I may have to give you the password for this thing so you can post what you want.

SEEDY WROTE:
Geez, BCulz, I don't know. If Chicago gets the 2016 Olympics should all other countries boycott those Olympics because we killed, murdered or otherwise drove out Native Americans from their homeland 200+ years ago?
NO,BECAUSE CHICAGO DIDNT DO THAT, CHICAGO WAS A NATIVE PORT CITY FOR THOUSANDS OF YEARS BEFORE WHITE MAN GOT THERE.

Or because we owned slaves?
CHICAGO OWNED SLAVES?

Or because our government holds in jail thousands of alleged "terrorists" who appear to be detained on the slimmest of legal reason?
DO YOU HAVE ANY NAMES? YOU GIVE ME A NAME OF SOMEONE WHO IS UNFAIRLY IMPRISONED IN THE USA WHO WAS NOT AN ENEMY COMBATANT CAUGHT IN THE THEATRES OF WAR AND I WILL FIND YOU THE REASON THEY ARE IN JAIL.

If we want to go looking for politically motivated reasons to boycott the Olympic Games no country will be able to serve as host -- except maybe France,
WHY FRANCE? ARE YOU NUTS? FRANCO-PRUSSIAN WAR (THE WAR THAT STARTED WW1)

because it tries so hard to not offend anyone and seems to always tuck tail and run when the going gets rough. SARKOSY IS A STUD, HE WILL CHANGE FRANCES IMAGE

Whether we boycott the Olympics will not affect my perception of China one iota. Neither will the fact that China is hosting the Olympics. It is a country that is run by a powerful and wealthy few at the expense of the masses.
HARDLY, CHINA IS AN EMPERIAL COMMUNIST POWER
(In the 1920s, Sun Yat-Sen established a revolutionary base in south China, and set out to unite the fragmented nation. With Soviet assistance, he entered into an alliance with the fledgling Communist Party of China)

Gee, what other country sounds like that?
THIS ISNT RUSSIA IS IT BETTY?
LAST TIME I CHECKED WE LIVED IN A FREE DEMOCRACY, TRY AGAIN.

Quit navel gazing and ask a better question next time.
MY QUESTION WAS TIMELY AND INTERESTING, WHAT WOULD YOU HAVE SUGGESTED?
Posted by: Seedy Backslash | April 9, 2008 01:21 PM

:)

Posted by: Anthony Navarro | April 9, 2008 02:09 PM

Being as we are, a democratic nation, and seeing as what truly is at stake here (can a protest really change the Chinese gov't?), the once in a lifetime dreams of those participating American athletes, I say let the athletes, and only the athletes, decide on an Olympic boycott!

GREAT POINT

Pressure has to come from the World to shame them.
Posted by: Keith Lifetime Southsider | April 9, 2008 03:12 PM

RIGHT

You want to send China a message? Don't by anything that says "Made In China" or "Made In Hong Kong". The only ones hurt by boycotting the games are the athletes.

Posted by: Tim Little | April 9, 2008 03:17 PM

AGREED

I say no. Why? Past experience. We did this to the Soviet Union in 1980 when Moscow hosted the summer games, then they did the same thing to us in '84 when the games were in Los Angeles. The boycotts caused a press frenzy and some diplomatic name-calling but not much else.
I DONT KNOW ABOUT THIS. #1 THE COLD WAR DID END NOT TOO MUCH LATER. #2 BECAUSE THE USSR BOYCOTTED THE 1984 OLYMPICS...I ATE FOR FREE THAT WHOLE SUMMER AT MCDONALDS WITH THEIR USA GOLD MEDAL = FREE FOOD CONTEST SO, IM GONNA HAVE TO DISAGREE WIT YA'

And now I have dated myself and everyone knows I'm 80 and I live in Boca Raton.
Posted by: Bubba's Mom | April 9, 2008 03:20 PM
TRU

I HAVE TO GIVE CREDIT TO BUBBA'S MOM FOR REMINDING ME OF THE JESSE OWENS TIDBIT THOUGH...

Only the history buff Culz could work Jesse Owens. I think boycotting the Olympics is always a non-issue, and even makes the storyline, which should be the games, less interesting.

Hey Seedy, outside Nopoleon B., the French dissed no one, but the French's own poor people.

Posted by: Chuck | April 9, 2008 06:54 PM

THANKS CHUCK..YOUR RIGHT...BUT THE FRENCH ARE THE WORLDS BEST PROTESTORS AND THEY PUT THE TORCH OUT 5 TIMES.

It does have a trojan horse element to it, doesnt it?

Posted by: bculz | April 9, 2008 03:38 PM

GREAT POINT CULZIE!

a personal level - BC, is the plural of cactus cactus? I always thought it was cacti, but being out here now, I'm not sure. Anyway, they are so weird and beautiful, and I'm totally mesmerized by them is this desert of yours.

Posted by: Julie B. | April 9, 2008 11:11 PM

ITS NOT MY DESERT..ITS EVERYONES!

I DIDNT GET ANY PASSWORDS?!!

RICKY...GIMME D' KEYS...HE DONT EVEN HAVE HIS LICENSE LISA!!!

Roman responds: Ricky knows better.

Bculz:

Good point about Jesse Owens. However, I've always wondered how much of the "Jesse the annihilator" of the "pure Aryan Race" was a product of revisionist historians. Don't get me wrong, what he accomplished was great and I've always enjoyed the fact he did it right in front of Hitler's face, but, come on, we didn't allow blacks to play pro baseball for another 10 years, to vote for another 30+ years. Why did we so enthusiastically promote Owens in one instance, while we swept under the rug our transgressions against the rest of his race? Sounds pretty freaking politically convenient. And Roosevelt wasn't above using those sorts of tactics. Fast forward 76 years and it looks like politicians haven't forgotten the lesson.

I hate seeing the Olympics used as a political tool by politicians who often are "tools" themselves.

Hey, you're up to 15 responses, including the 7 you added yourself. That's 12 more than I expected.

wow china, weird science, cacti, what a topic... who woulda thought the olympics would get soooo much of a diverse response... you guys rock, oh and the ladies too

That's 13 including the one when we first came in and you asked Mr. Seedy here whether Barry Manilow knew that he raided his closet. ...?

That's 13 including the one when we first came in and you asked Mr. Seedy here whether Barry Manilow knew that he raided his closet. ...

Seedy...

tell that to the...

Jesse Owens Foundation

http://www.jesse-owens.org/about1.html

They have a word in yiddish for people like you.....it starts with a SCHM and rymes with DUCK.

From the JOF owns website...

Jesse Owens, the son of a sharecropper and grandson of a slave achieved what no Olympian before him had accomplished. His stunning victories and achievement of four gold medals at the 1936 Olympic games in Berlin has made him the best remembered of all Olympic athletes. His outstanding performance during the 1936 Olympic games not only discredited heinous claims of the dictator, Adolph Hitler, it also affirmed that individual excellence rather than race or national origin, distinguishes one man or woman from another. Jesse Owens was a dreamer who could make the dreams of others come true. As a speaker he could make the world listen and through his living example he held out hope to millions of young people. Throughout his life, he worked with youths, sharing of himself and the little material wealth that he had. He was as much the champion on the playground in the poorest neighborhoods as he was on the oval of the Olympic games. A true legend in his own time.

Wow, up to 25 responses, half of which are by Bculz in defense of his post. Must be nice to have your cake and defend it too. Hey, Roman, you should follow Bculz's strategy and only post your comments in defense of your posts.

For topics, I might have picked from one of the following:

Who's more over-rated Piniella or Guillen and why?
Who's more over-rated Mariotti or the Tribune's David Haugh?
False Gods and empty heroes -- in an era where few if any athletes are what they appear to be, what holds our attention?

Probably would go with the third one because it's a thinking person's question. Probably would have drawn few responses, but I believe Chuck, Stuck, Julie B and maybe even you would have posted some thoughtful responses.

HE'S RIGHT, CULZIE DOESN'T EVEN HAVE A PERMIT.

SHE'S RIGHT, CULZIE DOESN'T EVEN HAVE A LEARNER'S PERMIT.

I kindof hope we don't boycott the games. How will I ever find out who the worlds best ping pong player is? Besides, I was looking forward to heading down to the tavern and having a few with the boys and checking out the synchronized swimming. We are all also big fans of that thing when they prance around on the mat with the ball and hoop thingys.

Of course if the air is bad and the athletes can't breathe, then all that training and doping will be for naught.

A. Seedy, I DID post a thoughtful response, however it seems until I get the password for this thing, it ain't showin' up.

B. It is unlawful in the State of Illinois, or at least in Shermer, Illinois, to mix John Hughes movie quotes.

C. If I had won this thing, it wouldn't have occurred to me to respond to my own comment.

D. I knew cactuses wasn't wrong! And thanks for the history/botany lesson - I was having trouble sleeping.

E. Is it "Bosco"???

Seedy, my comment would've been about Marion Jones for sure. But really, who says "tool" anymore?

Shenanigans!

I can't sleep. Read the Saguaro thing 8 times. Googled the movie scripts from Weird Science and The Breakfast Club one time each. Came to the realization that I can't use the quote I really want to for fear of being banned for life (but it had to do with the family jewels). Don't know the channels or TV schedule out here and I've now seen every episode of The Girls Next Door. Saw a snake in the parking lot tonight. Why did I just think of that? Yeah, I better go......

I agree with Seedy...make him your next guest author.

Seedy.....your total posts count for a third of my thread so thanks!

i have an idea for you...

Try winning something?

then you can Guest Blog your heart out...otherwise...stop being so JEALOUS!!!

"It is a country that is run by a powerful and wealthy few at the expense of the masses." --

That bears a startling resemblance to the United States. Or at the very least to Cook County.

Culzie (may I call you Culzie?), because of your unusually locquacious but extremely entertaining performance on this blog, you have given new meaning to the term "I am beside myself!" Next time I use that phrase, I will think of you.

I'm glad my post triggered fond memories of eating for free at McDonalds in the summer of '84, and I loved the way you invoked Jesse Owens. I'll stand my ground, though, on my belief that Olympic boycotts are essentially noise in the system.

AM Arizona, Good Morning Arizona, Arizona Morning, Better Arizona - my God, how many local morning shows do you need???

Bubba's Mom | April 11, 2008 08:12 AM - I agree with Bubba's Mom. The price is too high to pay. And Jesse Owens - represented.

He showed the world that Hitler was wrong about "racial superiority". Hitler and his foolishness perished with him. He was a PUNK - who jumped up to get beat down!

Regardless of whether American Olympians participate, and I forecast that they shall, I will boycott these Summer Olympics as a fan by refusing to watch them on TV at all. The Chinese Reds are only slightly less fascist than Hitler and his Nazis, with their taking over another country in 1959, with another language and culture (Tibet), and suppression of its culture and political decent, and engineering the making of Tibetans a minority, with their language and customs, now even in their own country. That added with lack of political and religious freedom in China as a whole (see the Falon Gong movement), the imprisonment of political dissidents, even their killing by harvesting political prisoners' vital organs for transplants for wealthy Chinese loyal to the regime, and their vital support for the cruel regime of militarily-inbred North Korea, and I don't want any part of these self-glorifying endorsement of the government of China that is the 2008 Olympics, even with reports of any U.S. gold metals here or there or not.

Tom Blumenthal
Philadelphia, PA

Boycotting the Olympic games will accomplish nothing. In the end, the US will need China as much as China needs the US. The Olympics are a sporting event and TRADITION. It's not a place to demonstrate political issues. Besides, the Olympics itself have their own internal issues on corruption, doping, etc. Boycotting on human rights issues almost becomes hypocritical if the athletes are already competing under these same issues.

Seedy sez: "False Gods and empty heroes -- in an era where few if any athletes are what they appear to be, what holds our attention?

Probably would go with the third one because it's a thinking person's question. Probably would have drawn few responses, but I believe Chuck, Stuck, Julie B and maybe even you would have posted some thoughtful responses."

What am I ... an orphan?

After the Athletes make their decision to participate in their sports the US government offcials should also make a decision - why go to the Olympics only to boycot the opening games.

The US should protest the games being held in a country that is currently cleaning up cities by imprisonment or murder. Protest has worked wonders to expose problems and draw attention to issues. Always remain hopeful!

The Athletes (coaches, trainers, etc) should go to China - wear an armband that supports their hope for change in China and certainly finally FREE Tibet. The media attention to this event is best used to peacefully send a message to the world.

The rest of world (spectators, vendors, government officials,) should stay home! Protest the Olympics by not traveling to China (unless your vital to an athlete) and not buying products from China during the games. (watch that last step it is a douzzy)

Please no more magnetic car ribbons.
And if you choose to protest by turning off the TV - Go for it!
Going Green for the Olympics has a nice ring for a campaign!!

Brilliant post BCOlorado.

I'm currently working on a pair of 12 story condominiums, and I'd guestimate that at least 90 percent of the material and fixtures in this dump are made in China. They are garbage.

We no longer manufacture anything here, and aside from agriculture, we create little if anything on our own soil (unless you wish to include mindless television shows).

We have become a "service oriented" economy. All we make here are hamburgers and hot dogs, while the rest of us take care of the dry cleaning, mow the lawn, and detail cars that are built overseas. Then we fill them with gas that's pumped in Saudi Arabia, and Venezuela.

"Would you like fries with that, sir?"