The title is wrong it should be,
“The Olympics, a dying proposition...”
They should be held in the same dedicated areas
(winter and summer) each time,
thus saving time and money.
And with Global Warming...no more snow.
The Gods of the Copybook Headings
AS I PASS through my incarnations in every age and race,
I make my proper prostrations to the Gods of the Market Place.
Peering through reverent fingers I watch them flourish and fall,
And the Gods of the Copybook Headings, I notice, outlast them all.
We were living in trees when they met us. They showed us each in turn
That Water would certainly wet us, as Fire would certainly burn:
But we found them lacking in Uplift, Vision and Breadth of Mind,
So we left them to teach the Gorillas while we followed the March of Mankind.
We moved as the Spirit listed. They never altered their pace,
Being neither cloud nor wind-borne like the Gods of the Market Place,
But they always caught up with our progress, and presently word would come
That a tribe had been wiped off its icefield, or the lights had gone out in Rome.
With the Hopes that our World is built on they were utterly out of touch,
They denied that the Moon was Stilton; they denied she was even Dutch;
They denied that Wishes were Horses; they denied that a Pig had Wings;
So we worshipped the Gods of the Market Who promised these beautiful things.
When the Cambrian measures were forming, They promised perpetual peace.
They swore, if we gave them our weapons, that the wars of the tribes would cease.
But when we disarmed They sold us and delivered us bound to our foe,
And the Gods of the Copybook Headings said: "Stick to the Devil you know."
On the first Feminian Sandstones we were promised the Fuller Life
(Which started by loving our neighbour and ended by loving his wife)
Till our women had no more children and the men lost reason and faith,
And the Gods of the Copybook Headings said: "The Wages of Sin is Death."
In the Carboniferous Epoch we were promised abundance for all,
By robbing selected Peter to pay for collective Paul;
But, though we had plenty of money, there was nothing our money could buy,
And the Gods of the Copybook Headings said: "If you don't work you die."
Then the Gods of the Market tumbled, and their smooth-tongued wizards withdrew
And the hearts of the meanest were humbled and began to believe it was true
That All is not Gold that Glitters, and Two and Two make Four
And the Gods of the Copybook Headings limped up to explain it once more.
As it will be in the future, it was at the birth of Man
There are only four things certain since Social Progress began.
That the Dog returns to his Vomit and the Sow returns to her Mire,
And the burnt Fool's bandaged finger goes wabbling back to the Fire;
And that after this is accomplished, and the brave new world begins
When all men are paid for existing and no man must pay for his sins,
As surely as Water will wet us, as surely as Fire will burn,
The Gods of the Copybook Headings with terror and slaughter return!
What about Curling?
If a middle eastern country can build an indoor ski hill you’d think they could manage a curling rink or ten.
When? In few hundred years? The author makes the common mistake of believing all trends continue inexorably in the same direction.
The winter Olympics also have the advantage over the summer of having interesting, eye pleasing, and novel sports to watch. Bob sled and curling have a certain exotic attraction that shot put never will.
Do we eliminate the winter olympics because it is primarily white europeans competing ? How egalitarian and "tolerant" is that?
Sorry folks no Africans or Indians or Muslims playing ? Then obviously the sport has no value?
I am sick of the liberal whining . I LIKE the winter olympics , I live in a cold area that does produce Olympians from the middle class .
Maybe we should just hang out the sign that is hung out for the tryouts for the college and professional football and basketball leagues...No white athletes need apply
I think it is looking good for Bavaria (Germany) to get the next Winter Olympics.
Curling? Now that was fun to watch. It's a drinking sport!
I assume the Olympics is the same outhouse any other international organization, i.e., the UN, etc., is.
Baron Pierre de Coubertin, the founder of the modern Olympic movement, was opposed to winter games because winter sports were the exclusive purview of the wealthy and privileged. And, while it may be ironic or even hypocritical for someone with a title to say such a thing, I agree with him.
I guess the author never saw “Cool Runnings.”
I maintain as long as non-sports are allowed, like figure skating, the Olympics (both seasons) should be allowed to die.
Consider the top eight Winter Olympic medal-winning nations since 1924: Norway, Russia, the USA, Austria, Germany, Finland, Canada, and Sweden. These nations have spawned the lion's share of great figure skaters, hockey players, alpine skiers, and downhill legends, while serving as host nations on numerous occasions. These same countries also share another dubious honor. If there were a medal count for "lowest birth rates in the world," the Winter Olympics bloc nations would just as certainly sweep the gold, silver, and bronze.
I thought NBC did a horrible job. I remember ABC and Jim McCay, they did a great job with the olympics.
The writer probably needs to be told about air conditioning and refrigerated indoor rinks.
Is the winter olympics really diverse enough? Doesn’t it discriminate against africans and stuff?
ping
As an aside...I wonder how much $$$$$ Canada will lose by having the Olympics in Vancouver?