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Beijing Olympics 2008
- Thread starter SeagullEd
- Start date
mejonaNO12 aka riskit
Well-known member
sure the athletes who have prepared for 4 years will be CHUFFED
Wardy
NSC's Benefits Guru
We will follow the lead of the USA. If they go we will go. If they stay at home so will we.
REDLAND
Active member
I'd love it if a Tibetan Monk won 4 gold medals ..
but no, the games should be moved to a 'nice' country ..
but no, the games should be moved to a 'nice' country ..
driller
my life my word
who cares athletics is shit
Wardy
NSC's Benefits Guru
The Olympics is more then just athletics.
dougdeep
New member
They should never have been awarded them.
Beach Hut
Brighton Bhuna Boy
Probably the right answer however they lobied so hard for it they were bound to get it at some point.
Personally I think there should be an ethics test or something similar so countries like China who systematically abuse human rights do not get it.
Gully
Monkey in a seagull suit.
No, we should not boycott, but I am another whose opinion it is that the games should never have been awarded to Beijing in the first place.
Norman Potting
Well-known member
Can anyone name a country big enough to successfully hold the Olympics and also with an absolutely unimpeachable record on anything that would cause anyone to get the teensiest bit upset?
- Thread starter
- #11
Other countries in the running were Canada, France, Turkey and Japan. Their 'records' are very different from the Chinese.
One of my Mums friends worked for Nike in China and had to quite becaus ehe could not accept the conditions. There were 6 year olds working there in such awful conditions. He said the Chinese way, something I have experienced first hand, is to say you will do something or something will happen when you know it won't just to 'save face'. They were questioned by the Olympic Committee about the conditions and said ' oh yes, they will be improved'. They haven't been.
There is then this myth that somehow holding the olympics will mean they'll change. They are currently bugging just about everywhere in and around China. They will only show the places with great conditions. They'll be clever enough to cover it up. Then people say ' well it's hypocritical because you have CHinese products', surely we saw with Apartheid that trade embargos etc don't work. They make the average man suffer more then the authorities. China is currently trying to stretch its' muscles as a superpower. The ambitious Yangzte River Dam project is a prime example of this. That's why boycotting the olympics would be so very effective. It's a matter of Chinese pride currently. People who say sport and politics are seperate are wrong, there has always been a huge link.
Then look at the Moscow Olympics, it didn't have a huge effect so we'd need LOTS of countries to pull out. Us and USA will effect it, definitly, but we do need more then that. We preferably need at least most of Europe (including Russia, which is unlikely), the whole of Americas, Australia and some of Asia. Africa will not withdraw and neither will much of Asia sadly. I am unsure what effect it would have. The alternative is sending people there to try and go and delve into the real China to uncover the issue globally. But it seems that everyone knows what is happening yet no-one is in a position to stop them!
I agree, it should never have been given to them. They made promises they can't keep. A boycott must be planned, in my opinion. However, the counter-argument remains. Altough it isn't ethical by our standards today, we used to treat people that badly and perhaps it really is the only way to become a glboal superpower. But that doesn't cut it for me. That is no excuse.
Athletics is a great sport by the way, second favourite to watch behind Football.
Tooting Gull
Well-known member
- Jul 5, 2003
- 11,033
I'm much more interested in how China act in the face of what's about to hit them then anything on the track or field, which probably says it all.
Are their infringements of civil liberties and freedom of speech, and abuse of human rights going to be exposed - or is everyone just going to pretend it isn't happening to cover the bloody dressage with no grief?
And if anyone does show some balls, what's going to happen to them?
I'm sure some people are already aware of this, but Google had to agree (some might say sell out) to get into the Chinese market that a whole host of words and web sites would be censored out of searches. I'm sure the BBC is one of these, mainly because it actually features, err, some real news about China.
It's a f**king disgrace that our government haven't done more about this.
Are their infringements of civil liberties and freedom of speech, and abuse of human rights going to be exposed - or is everyone just going to pretend it isn't happening to cover the bloody dressage with no grief?
And if anyone does show some balls, what's going to happen to them?
I'm sure some people are already aware of this, but Google had to agree (some might say sell out) to get into the Chinese market that a whole host of words and web sites would be censored out of searches. I'm sure the BBC is one of these, mainly because it actually features, err, some real news about China.
It's a f**king disgrace that our government haven't done more about this.
REDLAND
Active member
- Thread starter
- #14
That's the thing, everyone thinks people will go there and uncover the 'true China' but it will all be doctored. They should never have got it and governments should have done more.
On top of that, obviously I have no proof, but I highly suspect the Chinese Athetics boards and Olympic committees are corrupt.
Zesh Rehman
New member
Yeh course we should go, by why the hell did they get the games its a joke. Its this whole thing of trying to share the wealth and fame, thats why South Africa got the world cup - positive discrimination.
Zesh Rehman
New member
Yeh course we should go, by why the hell did they get the games its a joke. Its this whole thing of trying to share the wealth and fame, thats why South Africa got the world cup - positive discrimination.
China is the world's biggest consumer market and will become the worlds biggest manufacturer. No first world country can afford to upset them so there will be no boycott.
However, Russia was an ailing economy with a crumbling political system and not much to offer (oil deals already tied up), so easy for the US to boycott back in 1980's.
However, Russia was an ailing economy with a crumbling political system and not much to offer (oil deals already tied up), so easy for the US to boycott back in 1980's.
1066familyman
Radio User
- Jan 15, 2008
- 15,189
Spot on !
Money always comes above all else, and anyone thinking, 'democratic' countries are better than that, are deluding themselves.
hart's shirt
Well-known member
I'm going.
dougdeep
New member
Didn't the Yanks boycott a games because the Russians were in Afghanistan? Perhaps they'll boycott ours for the same reason.