The Olympics: Pick On whom? And Picks Of What?

By Ali Al-Hail

ccun.org, August 20, 2008

 
   It has to be made clear at the outset that, this article doesn't attempt in anyway, to underestimate both time and efforts, individual and team athletes, along side with their countries from all over the World, have put for their participation in the 2008 Beijing's Olympics. Nor, does it trivialize human-aimed-global collective gatherings, of which Olympics are an eventful venue.
 
   However, the Olympics are alleged to have played in the hands of politicians whose political practices are conceived to have been incompatible with both nature and spirit, upon which the Olympics were founded. Accordingly, it is hoped that, the main object of this article, is to address the other suspected, and every so often, unseen face of the Olympics.
 
   One presumes, as do many that the Olympics, since its inception by the old Greeks,  has been picking on the poor, the weak and those who are deprived to \ from an opportunity arising, by the rich, the powerful, and the oppressors. It's not a stretch, to allege that the initial and sustaining ongoing idea of the Olympics of the 'elite', has consistently, been to drug the masses, to divert their attentions from the politics of the 'elite', and to have the Olympics prescribed as an opium of the proletarian masses by the bourgeon 'elite' .  
 
   The forms of bullying the proletarians by the bourgeois, has for decades been perceived to have taken many aspects. More observably, was that have the poor, the weak, and the deprivable, had no place in the Olympics. As such, they have been looked at, as not more than passive spectacles.
 
   Nowadays, the poor, the weak, and the deprivable, are found to have become even much more and much worse than merely, passive spectacles, and passive recipients of the Olympics' outcomes. They seem to fund, finance the Olympics, and to fuel them, by many means, including purchasing decoded cards to watch the Olympics on TV, with their little money, that is pouring out of their forehead sweat. Subsequently, the poor, the weak, and the deprivable have for long, been taken advantage of by the Olympics' entourage. It's a huge, profiteering industry,
 
   As a matter of fact, the luxuries that imprint, and surround the opening ceremony, every game, and every athlete alike in the Olympics, are being noticed to be alien to the poor, the weak, and the deprivable, even though, they quite often seem to look careless and excited about. This observation doesn't appear to be groundless, if one just considers, the 20 billion Dollars China, the host of Beijing's 2008 Olympics, had spent on the Olympics.
 
   By the same token, if one considers, as do many that nearly half of the Chinese 1 billion and 6 hundred million people, most of whom are farmers, lack basic services, and some of them hardly, find enough to eat, according to media reports. Statistics from the UNICEF, a UN children organization look even far much more horrifying.
 
   They are learnt to have reported that, up to 300 million Chinese children are deprived to basic rights, including either going to school, or short of learning facilities while at school. Minority Chinese at Main land China mostly, the Tibetans and Muslims at North Western  Province have long been deprived to \ from basic human rights. These from within conflicts, don't include Taiwan whose uproar to have its independence had withered away, as a price for the US-China fragile closeness.
 
   Additionally, the poor, the weak, and the deprivable are perceived to be alien to an abundant, and lavish everyday expenditure, countries spend on athletes. For example, an athlete from Dubai, a royal family lady horse knight's costs, had exceeded, according to Dubai Sport TV, one year only, prior to of Beijing's 2008 Olympics $200, 000,000 (two hundred million Dollars). This huge sum of money covers her French trainer's expenses, her horse care-taking including the horse's air lifting from Dubai to Beijing, the Knight's costume's costs, transportations, accommodation, and other related expenditures.
 
   Although, one may appreciate, as do many the hard work both athletes, and their countries do, many argue that, these athletes especially, of costly sports, would not have reached the Olympics, had their countries not given them the opportunity, the facilities, and the luxurious lavishness without which, their participation could be almost impossible. On the other side of this argument, one might open an inquest into, how many athletes were deprived of the latter factors, for a variety of reasons?
 
   Probably, for not having the 'right' name, for political reasons, and so on. And how many people were having potentials to become athletes, but didn't have an opportunity? Perhaps, for being in a poor country.
 
   Therefore, there's an urgency on the part of the UN, or the Olympics themselves, to look genuinely, into this matter, and find possible solutions, in order to include all, and offer a fair chance to every one. This notion by definition, derives from the very soul of the Olympics' charter.          
 
   Paradoxically, the Olympics' extravagances have simultaneously, taken place this year, while other horrendous figures, were this time flawing around from the International Food Program, another UN's organization. The Program has spoken of over a billion people in the World, who are starving to death, amongst whom are 4 hundred million children (400,000,000).
 
   According to the media and information center at Beijing's 2008 Olympics, Al Jazeera Sport TV, Dubai Sport TV, Abu Dhabi Sport TV are estimated to spend nearly up to a half a million Dollar each daily, on coverage of the Olympics, including paying lavishly, for interviewed guests, staff expenses, 5 star hotels, and extravagant meals, and other interrelated costs.            
 
   Whether right or wrong, good or bad, fair or unfair, to ask more critical questions such as, how many starving human being could a cost of an athlete, one single athlete feed? It does sound as a reasonable and legitimate query? Is it a fair comparison? The answer may be relative, depending on who's answering whom. Is it ethical? You could find somebody somewhere, saddening you with a type of answer; what's ethical? Just to cite one example; imagine what would $200,000,000 (two hundred million Dollars), a cost of one single horse knight over a year, do to 400,000,000 children (four hundred million), who are starving to death, according to the UN Food Program, while the Beijing's 2008 Olympics luxuries decorate World media, and satellite TVs? What a shame? I think these frightening statistics from UN known organizations while the Olympics are in place, are a scar on the conscious of the Olympics member states. Why cannot both happen? Spending lavishly, on an athlete, and feeding the starving little beautiful children? The money is there, and too much of it, had the politicians wished to do so.
 
   Having stated that, the widespread presumption goes on, to assert that the Olympics, are not all about sport, and fair competitions, despite the ferment in the field, and its organizers' declared rhetoric. Those few, who are aware of the Olympics' behind closed doors old boys network, might realize by now that, the Olympics are not as ideal as they look on the surface. The Olympics rather, appear to them as, they are Olympics only, "in the eye of the beholder". 
  
   Many argue that the Olympics, particularly, in modern times, has systematically, been used by dominating powers, as a tool of  teasing,  harassing, bullying, criticizing, persecuting, and singling out countries, groups, and individuals, with whom the Olympics' 'fat cats' or their masters, do not seem to associate, somehow . Thus; the Olympics' picks and best choice of countries that might or might not host the Olympics, do not necessarily, have to do with stated criteria and ethics, that are available for readers in the Olympics' literatures.
 
   Almost entirely, all head of states, including George W. Bush, and Nicolas Sarkozy, who attended the opening ceremony of Beijing's 2008 Olympics, had succinctly, summed up this article's argument. While US's might is at its peak, killing innocent people in Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Palestine (through its regional agent i.e., Israel), George W. Bush was there, under the banner of 'Olympics unite the World'.
 
   US's administrations and to an extent EU's states, have long been 'pioneering' dividing nations in the United Nations (UN), and spreading hatred, and bitterness amongst human beings. As a result, this action had led many observers to detect that, this hopeful global body, has nothing to do with United Nations, but rather, it is an organization which constitutes of a number of member states, led by the US that share the  same Machiavellian interests.
 
   Similarly, Sarkozy of France, whose country has been maintaining its position not to apologize to the Algerians for massacring up to 10 million Algerians during the colonial rule, 1830-1962, was also there under the same banner. Though, his country couldn't accept the Hijab (Muslim women's head scarf), with a sportive and (Olympic) attitude (albeit, the Hijab, represents a symbolic personal choice, and freedom), has insisted to defeat his own argument, and attended the Olympics to 'unite the World'.
 
   Moreover, Sarkozy, amongst other EU's leaders, has placed strenuous pressures on their agent, Okambo of the 'assumed' International War Crimes Tribunal, to indict  Al- Basheer, the Sudanese President for 'alleged' war crimes at Darfur, Western Sudan. Many saw in such an action a blatant double standard policy, political selectivity and hypocrisy.
 
For, US's administrations, and the EU led by the UK and France, have since 1948  weighed out Israeli governments' unconcealed holocausts and genocides as "self defense".  Regardless of such a distorting perception of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, Sarkozy, and other EU's leaders were at Beijing's 2008 Olympics, were shamefully, blessing 'bringing World people together'. It's an irony, and our World is full of them.
 
Professor, Dr. Ali Al-Hail, Professor of Mass Communication, Twice Fulbright

Award Winner, Fulbright Visiting Scholar, Vice-President Of Qatar Fulbright Group, CSR Award Judge and Board Member of AUSACE, ASC, IABD, NEBAA, BEA, IMDA and EAJMC American Associations.