Posted on 08/11/2013 9:21:01 AM PDT by Kaslin
It's like 1980 all over again. There's a war in Afghanistan, the economy is lousy, Paul McCartney has a new record coming out, and some people are calling for the United States to stay away from the upcoming Olympics in Russia.
When the first talk of another Olympic boycott arose, no one took it very seriously. It came from Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., who enjoys far more face time on Sunday morning talk shows than influence over U.S. policy, and who is upset about Edward Snowden. But the idea could be gaining traction.
Some gay rights advocates, from both the United States and Russia, have urged the U.S. and other countries to stay away from Sochi this winter to protest an anti-gay law signed by Russian President Vladimir Putin in June. The law makes it a crime to engage in "propaganda" in favor of "nontraditional" sexuality among minors, which is an ominously wide net.
Human Rights Watch has said the law "is clearly incompatible with the Olympic Charter's promotion of 'human dignity,' as well as a blatant violation of Russia's international legal obligations to guarantee non-discrimination and respect for freedom of expression." Comparisons have even been heard to the 1936 Berlin Olympics, presided over by Adolf Hitler. On Friday, though, President Barack Obama said he does not favor a boycott.
It's true that the Olympic Games can be exploited for the benefit of a repressive, authoritarian government. But everyone knew all along that Putin's government views personal liberty with suspicion and malice.
It's not clear, though, that Russia is less free than China -- which was allowed to host the 2008 Summer Games. In both cases, the International Olympic Committee decided not to use human rights as the main criterion for choosing a site.
Maybe it should. But that would mean restricting the games to liberal democracies -- which could lead other governments to withdraw on grounds of second-class treatment. This approach, like a boycott, would undermine one of the central purposes of the Olympics: fostering international understanding and friendship. It would separate the world into good guys and bad guys, instead of building bridges between the two.
Back in ancient Greece, the games took place under a truce. "Wars were suspended, armies were prohibited from entering Elis (the site of the first Olympics) or threatening the Games, and legal disputes and the carrying out of death penalties were forbidden," notes the Perseus Digital Library Project at Tufts University. That allowed enemies to meet without hatred or bloodshed. To stay away from the event because it is being held in a place inhospitable to our values is to miss the point.
The International Olympic Committee says it has "received assurances from the highest level of government in Russia that the legislation will not affect those attending or taking part in the Games." If police were going to drag protesting medalists off of the podium, a different approach would be warranted. But Putin isn't likely to do something that would impress his brutality upon the world.
The last U.S. boycott, in 1980, suggests that refusing to participate will accomplish nothing of value. It was a protest of the 1979 Soviet invasion of Afghanistan. But the Soviets stayed there until 1989.
What the protest did achieve was to punish blameless athletes who had trained for years for the chance to compete in the ultimate contest. Many of them lost the chance forever. The same thing happened in 1984, when the Soviets and their satellite states paid us back by spurning the Los Angeles Games. They had no more effect on our government's policies than we had on theirs.
It's true that host governments endeavor to strengthen their hold on power by showing themselves off in the most flattering light. But as the Chinese can attest, the games also invite intense worldwide scrutiny, which in the modern media age is likely to trump any gains.
By singling out gays for discrimination, the Russian government has invited athletes to find ways to signal their belief in equal treatment -- before the eyes of the Russian people and the world. In the end, the games are likely to highlight the flaws of the ruling regime, not conceal them.
Will the games make an important contribution toward expanding gay rights and human rights in Putin's Russia? No. But that's not their purpose. Their purpose is to showcase individual excellence, honest striving and peaceful competition across national boundaries. It's not everything, but it's enough.
The number ONE reason we shouldn’t boycott the Russian Olympics: the Russian view on the sodomites happens to be the RIGHTEOUS view.
Uh... Snowden has asylum and homosexuals with their allies are being beaten in the streets of Russia under color of law. By celebrating the Olympics, we are endorsing what's going on there. Violence has not been an accepted legal response to homosexuals in the United States for decades and the Snowden asylum is intolerable.
With China there was a wink-and-nod that we were encouraging their progress towards Westernization but we also knew about their use of CG effects to make themselves look better and other issues like environmental concerns. There's no such pretext with Russia; it's in regression with Obama's "reset button" diplomacy a failure.
Obama's gotten this one wrong. He says our nation shouldn't boycott the Olympics but it's ok for him to cancel his meeting with Putin to express outrage? There's a disconnect, a very public one, that sends a muddled message and bespeaks of weakness, not strength. He's two-faced.
We shouldn’t boycott because Russia has the right idea.
Will the pudding eating contest be canceled this time around?
We shouldn’t boycott the Olympics because that punishes our athletes and not the host country. Russia is loosing money one way or the other, NBC is losing money one way or the other, the only question do our athletes get to go over there have some fun and win some metals.
A horrible, horrible president.
Dallas is pretty much already set for the games....they even have a velodrome in Plano already built for the cycling events. They probably wouldn’t even need Cowboys’ stadium, since they have other stadiums, from local universities, and even some of the high school football stadiums here could be used for certain events.
They probably couldn’t have them in the middle of August though, with the triple-digit temperatures.
Utter nonsense! Nothing but destruction will follow the elevation of this Humanity Hating Death Cult.
I never thought I would cheer for Putin. But his positive statements regarding Christianity and Traditional Marriage speak well for him and the future of Russia.
This country is lost in a stupified orgy of self endulgence, purchased with the scarifices of generations of Americans who would be appalled at the wasted legacy.
“Why Obama shouldn’t be saying...I hope some fags and lesbos win....”
Our lesbians can beat their lesbians.
Because not everything in the world is about homosexuals?
Unless they reinstate wrestling I’m boycotting all Olympic games.
There was wrestling in the snow in the Winter Olympics, Joe? (I'm too young to know.)
Oh I know everything that is around here but the temps man...the temps are brutal to be out in...no way big crowds could do daytime events unless indoors.
Oh I know there is no legitimate comparison, but that mealy mouth gangsta punk wannabe twists and turns everything to his liking (without being called upon it by suck-up media).
He even had the “audacity” to say he already was going to soften NSA, he was already going to do this and that. So even whenever anyone comes along and says why did you not do this? He can lie through his teeth and say, “I was about to do so.”
( what would jimma carter do?)
You’ve got to be kidding. Most of them can’t control their urges for 16 minutes.
Gay rights.. I want them to have the right to shut up and go away.
Public education in America is revolting. As are cats that don’t understand the word all which modifies Olympic Games to include winter and summer. Understanding the English language is a prerequisite for attempting to be a smart ass genius.
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