olympic civility

[ryan costa]

there are protests all over where the olympic torch carrying ceremonies are going on.

It is best to draw inspiration from the ancient greek past in dealing with this.

Ancient Greece was made of dozens of independent greek city states. shifting alliances arose and broke all the time. There were no mergers and acquisitions and leveraged buyouts: the biggest economic activity was rousting an army to pillage and plunder each other. These rivalries were suspended for duration of the Olympics frequently enough for us to say these rivalries were suspended for duration of the Olympics.

although there were no bids for which telecommunications corporation hosted which part of it, or who sponsored which athletes, or who paid for the olive oil the winners got.

[Jim DeVito]

It is interesting to see how many people come out to the protest the torch.

While I am not saying that Tibet is not worthy of such a turn out. I just think it would be nice for people to come out in such droves for other issues.

What is it about Tibet that brings people in such mass?

[ryan costa]

have there been protesters for Tibet?

I haven't seen any in Cleveland.

It is good to know hippies are finally protesting communists.

Tibet was a pretty civilized place that got commandeered by China 50 or 60 years ago.

We don't see people protesting Indonesia's commandeering of half of New Guinea a few decades ago and continued ownership today. You can get away with anything so long as you don't describe yourself with communist vocabulary words. Pinochet, Fransisco Franco, the Marcos family, and even Saddam Hussein for a while.

The important thing is taking a time out to send competitors to the olympics. I've taken an interest in Curling. It has been on Television a few times. most of the competitors aren't professional Curlers.

[Lynn Farris]

When I posted about the problems in Tibet a few weeks ago talking about how bad the situation was - someone intelligently asked what I thought should be done. Obviously we don't want to get involved in another war.

But the torch protest is appropriate. I think the French President boycotting the opening ceremony is as well. I would like to think that all heads of state would boycott the opening ceremony unless they stop their attacks on the people of Tibet and allow them religious freedom.

You are right - maybe the olympics isn't the best place to do this. But it will make a huge statement and it beats war any day of the week.

[ryan costa]

The Torch protest heckles innocent torch carriers who just thought it would be fun to carry an olympic torch.

Goods from China mostly arrive in a few mega-ports for the mega-cargo ships. Protesters should gather at the ports. Watch out for the longshoreman! Protesters can also boycott the sponsors of the Olympics for the duration of the Olympics, and refuse to watch them on television/cable. Don't worry, all the clips will be on Youtube years later.

[Bill Call]

What is it about Tibet that brings people in such mass?

It's easy and fun and effortless and meaningless, and entails no risk for the demonstrators. It has all of the requirements of modern day protesting.

People can place the Tibetan flag bumper sticker on their car and feel really good about themselves. They can harass the Olympic torch bearer in the morning and meet for latte at Starbucks before lunch. Once there, they can congratulate themselves on how involved and sensitive they are.

The people of Tibet are a gentle, cultured and peaceful people. What does that mean? It mean that they are going to be exterminated.

Perhaps the State Department will be willing to issue a statement expressing "deep concern". Or maybe there can be face to face meetings at the finest hotels in Geneva where diplomats can discuss joint declarations expressing support for a "peaceful solution".

If the Tibetans want to be taken seriously they will have to start machine gunning Chinese school children, blowing up airplanes or comitting random acts of violence against individual Chinese. At that point perhaps Jimmy Carter will fly in to offer his support.

If they want the support of Hollywood and the "international" community the Olympics offer a unique opportunity for the people of Tibet. The Tibetans should send in a team of heavily armed men to kill Chinese athletes at the Olympics. A few years later movies will be made and books will be written on...it will be really cool.

[Jim DeVito]

It's easy and fun and effortless and meaningless, and entails no risk for the demonstrators. It has all of the requirements of modern day protesting.

Bingo! That is the point I was getting at. Seems to me there are plenty of other worthy causes to protest. You know like poverty. Problem is those protests are not as trendy and "cool" as protesting China's heavy hand.

While I will not go as far as saying violence is the answer. I think that the Tibetan people need to stand up to China in a bigger way. What that way is... I don't know.

[Lynn Farris]

That is precisely the problem. The Tibetan people are for the most part Buddhist. The don't kill bugs. They have tried to engage in Ghandi like behavior of non-violent protests but it gets the exterminated and abused.

It was monks who started this protest. They gave up their country to the Chinese rather than fight - all they are asking for is religious freedom and they don't want Tibet as the holding ground for all of China's nuclear waste. But I think they are even caving on the second part - they want to practice their religion and not be exterminated.

Can't China be embarrassed into ignoring them?

[Jim DeVito]

Can't China be embarrassed into ignoring them?

I doubt it.

[Phil Florian]

How do you protest "poverty?" Picket rich people's homes? Just curious. Picketing poverty is like having a war on drugs. Or, as I hear Steve Martin said it, "dancing about architecture."

People do things about poverty and in great droves. Do we even need to begin to list the non-profit agencies out there working to help out people in poverty? Or would that be self-aggrandizing? Can they still drink latte while they do it? And c'mon, people who "protest" poverty might go to Starbucks but clearly the ones who do something about poverty drink at Phoenix.

China is acting like any monster trying to gobble up little children in fairy tales but now they are doing it with the world spotlight on them with the Olympics. If they didn't want the publicity, they shouldn't have worked so hard to get the Olympics there. Then people protesting Tibet wouldn't make the news (because if you think protests around Tibet are new...well, you must ONLY watch mainstream news sources).

I do declare but it sounds like we have some Chinese apologists on the LO. Maybe McCarthy was right...they are among us!

[Stephen Eisel]

They gave up their country to the Chinese rather than fight - all they are asking for is religious freedom

The Tibetan army battled with the Chinese in the 1940's and 1950's.