Temat: Should athletes boycott the Olympics?

I think the PM is right, he shouldn't go, another thing is that he didn't plan to go anyway (I heard him say this on TV), so this decision wasn't made because of his political views. But I agree with what someone had said before that politicians should boycott the Olympics and the governments should state their views publicly. i also heard about an idea how Polish athletes could protest - they could wear T-shirts with Solidarność logo on them during the contest. I don't know, maybe this is a good idea?

Temat: Should athletes boycott the Olympics?

Keith Byrne:
Lately there has been a lot of debate over whether athletes should take part in the Olympics in Beijing or not. In my opinion, the governing bodies have passed the buck in a shameful, underhanded fashion, and they should have made deisions long ago about whether their athletes would travel or not. I know the latest violence occurred only a matter of days ago, but when you say "China!", people's first reaction is not generally "Outstanding human rights record and champions of free speech!" Either something is wrong, or it is right. I agree with athletes who will refuse to go to Beijing to make personal protests, but I also agree with athletes who will go, as it is possibly their only chance to compete with peers at such a prestigeous level. I also agree with the Kenyan who will not run the marathon because the smog will trigger his asthma. I say leave the athletes alone, and complain about the national Olympic committees, national governments, and the IOC, who chose Beijing in the first place.

Apparently China will stop everything in the city during the Olympics and the quality of the air will improve. And I mean everything - cars, factories, etc. They don't have to worry about people complaining or wanting compensation, do they?

An associate of mine worked in China for a while and he said that 1pm (afternoon) was like late evening (dark) because of the pollution. One day they had a trial ban on everything that was causing pollution and it turned into nice, clear day. From he's stories it looks like China is a mad place in more than one way.

So maybe we should call the Kenyan back to reconsider.

BTW, It looks like Aussies will get a bucket full of swimming medals.Tomek P. edytował(a) ten post dnia 29.03.08 o godzinie 13:15