Olympinonsense

**kernelbogey** · 05-08-12, 09:43

A friend writes this morning:

Went to the athletics last night to see Ennis, Farah and Rutherford win gold. It was fantastically well organised, with a wonderful atmosphere inside and outside the stadium. The Ennis and Farah wins were possibly the most enjoyable sporting moments I have ever seen live. The crowd went completely nuts, strangers hugging, everyone singing along to "All You Need Is Love" (not sure why they played it but it was a great choice anyway).

Very pleased, I was, to read of his experience and judgement.

**JohnSkelton** · 05-08-12, 09:52

Originally posted by gurnemanz View Post

To be less than enthusiastic about the commitment of the these young athletes and to think that it should always be left up to some other more stupid county to "waste" its money on organising these international events seems to me to be sour and perverse in the extreme.

Quite right. Anyone who is less than enthusiastic should be shot IMV.

**JohnSkelton** · 05-08-12, 10:00

Originally posted by gurnemanz View Post

to think that it should always be left up to some other more stupid county to "waste" its money on organising these international events seems to me to be sour and perverse in the extreme.

The real winners are the IOC themselves, however. In the Athens games, they made a billion dollars in TV rights alone. The IOC enjoys tax-free status despite not being a charity, a religion, or a non-profit organisation. And to be on the safe side, its members enjoy diplomatic immunity.

The Regeneration Games

http://www.metamute.org/editorial/articles/regeneration-games

Whatever the overruns on time and cost, one thing the London 2012 Olympics is certain to deliver is a huge public debt. The enormous bill for two weeks of telematic sport is legitimated by promises of urban regeneration but in reality the games are a corporate landgrab facilitating the looting of nature and labour as prices go up and people are pushed out, argues Mark Saunders

**Flosshilde** · 05-08-12, 13:05

Excuse me, KB, Gurnemanz & Scotty, this is the whingeing cynics thread; if you don't like it take yourselves off to here http://www.for3.org/forums/showthrea...lympics-Thread.

The crowd went completely nuts, strangers hugging, everyone singing along to "All You Need Is Love" (not sure why they played it but it was a great choice anyway).

Sounds ghastly. You wouldn't get that happening at the Proms, even between movements (well, except for the singing along).

**kernelbogey** · 05-08-12, 13:12

Originally posted by Flosshilde View Post

Excuse me, KB, .... this is the whingeing cynics thread; if you don't like it take yourselves off to here http://www.for3.org/forums/showthrea...lympics-Thread.

Well, Flossie, as I started the pro-Olympics thread (so we whingers could have this one to ourselves

) I felt entitled to post the above on both threads. That's what comes of voting LibDem for several years

.

**Serial_Apologist** · 05-08-12, 13:15

[QUOTE=kernelbogey;192042]

Originally posted by Flosshilde View Post

Excuse me, KB, .... this is the whingeing cynics thread; if you don't like it take yourselves off to here http://www.for3.org/forums/showthrea...lympics-Thread.]

Well, Flossie, as I started the pro-Olympics thread (so we whingers could have this one to ourselves

) I felt entitled to post the above on both threads. That's what comes of voting LibDem for several years

.

**kernelbogey** · 05-08-12, 13:18

Originally posted by Flosshilde View Post

.... You wouldn't get that happening at the Proms, even between movements....

Apparently the crowd was also shouting 'Boris, Boris!'!

We'll soon have that at the Last Night, just after 'Jerusalem'. By Order.

**Serial_Apologist** · 05-08-12, 13:21

Originally posted by kernelbogey View Post

Apparently the crowd was also shouting 'Boris, Boris!'!

Goodenuff?

**amateur51** · 05-08-12, 13:35

Originally posted by kernelbogey View Post

Apparently the crowd was also shouting 'Boris, Boris!'!

Not 'Doris, Doris!' then?

No dafter really

**amateur51** · 05-08-12, 13:35

Originally posted by Serial_Apologist View Post

Goodenuff?

**Old Grumpy** · 05-08-12, 13:40

Originally posted by kernelbogey View Post

Well, Flossie, as I started the pro-Olympics thread (so we whingers could have this one to ourselves

) I felt entitled to post the above on both threads. That's what comes of voting LibDem for several years .

Keep it up Kernel - we'll get to silver yet!

**Flosshilde** · 05-08-12, 13:41

Originally posted by kernelbogey View Post

Well, Flossie, as I started the pro-Olympics thread (so we whingers could have this one to ourselves

) I felt entitled to post the above on both threads. That's what comes of voting LibDem for several years

.

As one of my bosses said, that's the trouble with voting & democracy - you don't always get the result you want.

**Lateralthinking1** · 05-08-12, 14:00

Success has led to the following changes -

- Most people are saying that it is all well-organised; for months beforehand they had said the very opposite
- Bozo became the politician most closely linked to the project; he wasn't even involved in the bidding for it
- His meeting with Murdoch, days earlier virtually a pariah, was met with a shrug of the shoulders; ditto Hunt's
- Cycling became the new religion; and so what if the Olympics sponsors stopped Boris Bikes going near the Park
- Good as they are, the winning athletes are elites in their field; the general public cap-doff again and so easily
- A police state, or at least a police capital, is now largely seen as fairly acceptable for tenuous national gain

Would failure in these Olympics have been a better outcome for most people?

**scottycelt** · 05-08-12, 14:37

Last night after Mo Farah won his race ...

BBC Commentator: Great Britain's Mo has just put all those African athletes in their place ...

**Lateralthinking1** · 05-08-12, 15:31

Originally posted by scottycelt View Post

Last night after Mo Farah won his race ...

BBC Commentator: Great Britain's Mo has just put all those African athletes in their place ...

There is something of the Empire about the way we cast our net as wide as possible to add to the tally. However, Farah's father was born in Hounslow so I find his inclusion acceptable whereas Robson is Australian through and through.

Currently, I am trying to decide quite how the so-called positives to this jamboree will translate across to ordinary lives. For example, how many people went in the Victorian era to see the guy who could swallow a thousand florins or the double-jointed female contortionist and then felt motivated to sell more walnuts and satsumas? Not many.

And what do you do when 50% have been forced to push themselves beyond their natural capability to get a degree and 25% can't get a job stacking shelves? I know. Raise their expectations even further with a ludicrously expensive spectacle and manipulative blonde headed old buffer hysteria. Not!

34 medals have been won. That is far fewer than a hundred individuals. People stand a much more realistic chance of becoming Hollywood film stars than Olympians and many of those will get there with minimal effort.

Murray has just won. I made a point of going to the shops as it doesn't seem like proper tennis. Time for another biscuit.