It was a day that I dreaded seeing the pictures. Today was a day it got quite ugly over here in London.
I've been here a week---on unrelated stuff. It's been about two years since I have been back-under much happier circumstances.
All week local news channels have been whipping us up into a frenzy over the torch relay route. It came less than half a mile from my hotel but gut feeling told me it was going to get nasty-and it did. It's a preview of what is to come for the additional cities on the route (San Feancisco take note.)
And if today's pictures on BBC1 are anything to go by, it's going to be a rough one. And a necessary one.
Jacques Rogge was on ITV last night and continued to spiel the usual about how politics and the torch relay should be separate. I still maintain that if he dealt with these issues in the beginning, none of what we saw today in London would have happened.
On one side, it saddens me. This could have all been avoided...but ignore it and it will still be there the following morning. And the day after and the day after.
It could also spell trouble for London 2012 if the talk around town is to be believed. Something along the lines of "when it is tine for our torch relay, we will remember the events of Spring 2008 and how we were treated." Tessa Jowell who is the Olympics Minister here gave a subtle support to the protest, saying it "was the great British tradition" of how life is here.
She gets it. Hey Tessa, how about a trip to Lausanne to educate others who need it?
Bravo!
Sunday, April 6, 2008
Tuesday, March 25, 2008
Take some time off...and look what happens!
As you can probably see, I took some time off. "Always leave them wanting more" my late husband would say-the number one rule of the professional musician. So I wasn't too worried about not posting anything. It seemed there was a bit of a lull in the news area and with the Easter holiday coming up, I thought most people would have other things on their mind.
I was in Jacksonville, FL all last week. Another widowed friend of mine called me up and she said what were my plans. At the time, nothing, so I decided to go. Not thinking about anything, just being lazy, it was great.
Come home and all sorts of hell breaks lose. A friend of mine is being sued by the International Cycling Union. CCTV gives it's version of the torch lighting ceromony. And the apologists starting up again (after a bit of a lull.)
Gah.
Looks like we've got enough material to last the week, and then some.
If there is one thing that I can't stand it's the apologists. No, we shouldn't boycott because that will be detriment to the Olympic movement. BOCOG saying that RSF's protest at the torch lighting ceromony was "flawed." Preisdent Rogge saying that the "glass is half full" (verus "half empty") in regards to the human rights issue.
What WILL it take for people to LISTEN?
I for one am not playing into the hands of the Chinese and writing what they would want to hear. They say foreigners are presenting a "distorted" view of the Games. They should know-they've had experience doing it for the past seven years.
And sadly, there are writers over here who are all too happy to oblige.
It's time to get real, folks. I for one am not going to blindly sit and stay silent. Especially when I will have friends over there whom I hope come home safely. We have an obligation (and I have said this before but it bears repeating) that we are the voice and the conciense of those who can't speak out. Not doing so makes us part of the problem.
And I, for one, will not sit blindly while others live in their gilded cocoon and pretend everything is OK.
These people think that if you ignore it, that it will go away. Bull.
If the various issues were dealt with seven years ago, we still wouldn't be talking about this today. But then Jacques Rogge is so clueless, I guess it's going to take one of his employees being hurt (or worse) before he sits up and takes notice.
I am not damming all folks in Lausanne. But he is a cancer on the Olympic movement that has got to go. I feel for the good people at the IOC who do see the issues (surprise-there are those folks) but whom are hampered by it's President who doesn't share that same view and in turn make their jobs more difficult.
Can some people be turned around? Maybe.
Only time will tell-and it will be our reaction as to how the other side responds.
Think about it. I have.
I was in Jacksonville, FL all last week. Another widowed friend of mine called me up and she said what were my plans. At the time, nothing, so I decided to go. Not thinking about anything, just being lazy, it was great.
Come home and all sorts of hell breaks lose. A friend of mine is being sued by the International Cycling Union. CCTV gives it's version of the torch lighting ceromony. And the apologists starting up again (after a bit of a lull.)
Gah.
Looks like we've got enough material to last the week, and then some.
If there is one thing that I can't stand it's the apologists. No, we shouldn't boycott because that will be detriment to the Olympic movement. BOCOG saying that RSF's protest at the torch lighting ceromony was "flawed." Preisdent Rogge saying that the "glass is half full" (verus "half empty") in regards to the human rights issue.
What WILL it take for people to LISTEN?
I for one am not playing into the hands of the Chinese and writing what they would want to hear. They say foreigners are presenting a "distorted" view of the Games. They should know-they've had experience doing it for the past seven years.
And sadly, there are writers over here who are all too happy to oblige.
It's time to get real, folks. I for one am not going to blindly sit and stay silent. Especially when I will have friends over there whom I hope come home safely. We have an obligation (and I have said this before but it bears repeating) that we are the voice and the conciense of those who can't speak out. Not doing so makes us part of the problem.
And I, for one, will not sit blindly while others live in their gilded cocoon and pretend everything is OK.
These people think that if you ignore it, that it will go away. Bull.
If the various issues were dealt with seven years ago, we still wouldn't be talking about this today. But then Jacques Rogge is so clueless, I guess it's going to take one of his employees being hurt (or worse) before he sits up and takes notice.
I am not damming all folks in Lausanne. But he is a cancer on the Olympic movement that has got to go. I feel for the good people at the IOC who do see the issues (surprise-there are those folks) but whom are hampered by it's President who doesn't share that same view and in turn make their jobs more difficult.
Can some people be turned around? Maybe.
Only time will tell-and it will be our reaction as to how the other side responds.
Think about it. I have.
Wednesday, March 12, 2008
Who you gonna call?
It's 3AM. Your wife, husband, co-worker, best friend, is over in Beijing this summer working. They're in trouble. Maybe even arrested. Who you gonna call? Who's going to stand up for those of us stateside who just hope our friends get home safely and without incident? Don't count on the folks in Lausanne to back us up. They're too busy being in denial of the issues that have been raised in regards to the 2008 Games. We'd rather protect our bottom line-and to hell with the human element.
I sincerely hope you don't get that "middle of the night" phone call. I have-and when your friend is thousands of miles away, there is little one can do but only hope the local authorities will step up to the plate and guarentee fair treatment or justice served in the case of a crime being committed against the people you care about.
That is a precarious position to be in. You'd like to think that besides your employer (if you have one if not self-employed) and your family, the IOC would be watchful for any behavior that is out-of-order by the local Beijing authorities. But it looks like this summer those of us here in the US (or outside China) are stuck on our own, with gearing up for several weeks of worry, hoping everyone gets home safely.
Moral of the story: just cross your fingers that you don't get into trouble over there. The IOC is too busy protecting it's own interests to worry about the safety of journalists during the Games time period.
And that is a dammed shame. And it doesn't have to be that way.
As for me, I won't rest until everyone I know going over there is accounted for-in this or any other Western country.
Too bad the IOC doesn't pick up the phone on this one. Guess we are expendable.
Just as I thought.
I sincerely hope you don't get that "middle of the night" phone call. I have-and when your friend is thousands of miles away, there is little one can do but only hope the local authorities will step up to the plate and guarentee fair treatment or justice served in the case of a crime being committed against the people you care about.
That is a precarious position to be in. You'd like to think that besides your employer (if you have one if not self-employed) and your family, the IOC would be watchful for any behavior that is out-of-order by the local Beijing authorities. But it looks like this summer those of us here in the US (or outside China) are stuck on our own, with gearing up for several weeks of worry, hoping everyone gets home safely.
Moral of the story: just cross your fingers that you don't get into trouble over there. The IOC is too busy protecting it's own interests to worry about the safety of journalists during the Games time period.
And that is a dammed shame. And it doesn't have to be that way.
As for me, I won't rest until everyone I know going over there is accounted for-in this or any other Western country.
Too bad the IOC doesn't pick up the phone on this one. Guess we are expendable.
Just as I thought.
Tuesday, March 11, 2008
What could have been
I just returned from a week in Philadelphia. I actually stayed out in the suburbs but got to see quite a bit of the city on the one day I was downtown. It's one place that I thought would do much better with their Olympic bid.
I've always felt they should try again. The Olympics coming there would do wonders for the revitalisation of the city. There are similarities between them and Atlanta and a legacy of an Olympics in the PHL would do wonders. But it might take several bids to win a Games (as it seems the current trend is heading towards.)
One can only imagine what a Philadelphia games would have been like. The only way we will ever know is if they bid again-which I hope they do.
The legacy would be tremendous, I am sure.
Tomorrow: who do YOU want answering the phone at 3AM in Lausanne this summer?
I've always felt they should try again. The Olympics coming there would do wonders for the revitalisation of the city. There are similarities between them and Atlanta and a legacy of an Olympics in the PHL would do wonders. But it might take several bids to win a Games (as it seems the current trend is heading towards.)
One can only imagine what a Philadelphia games would have been like. The only way we will ever know is if they bid again-which I hope they do.
The legacy would be tremendous, I am sure.
Tomorrow: who do YOU want answering the phone at 3AM in Lausanne this summer?
Friday, February 29, 2008
Friday's Random Thoughts
How has your week been? Hopefully it was good. Next week I am out of town but will check in from time to time. Won't tell you where I am going, but let the guessing games begin!
I am the secretary for our homeowners association. The girl who works in the office at the management company has no clue when it comes to customer service. I've got a tree precipiously catching the top of a tree on my property. She says it's "not (her) problem." All I want is for someone to come out and look at where my neighbor's property line is so I don't encroach in case I have to call a tree removal service-or if my neighbor is responsible. What is it with people? Stay tuned.
I've got a minor beef with the human rights orgs-one in particular. We'll be discussing this in more detail next week.
MTV says they won't play Paula Abdul's new video. Remember when MTV used to play vids? Maybe they have passed their shelf life?
I don't like the new Cadillac Escalade commercial where the woman looks over at a bunch of guys and then floors the pedal. We just had a tragic accident recently with kids at an illegal drag race. What message is Cadillac saying to it's viewers? The wrong one!
What is the delay with "A Mighty Heart" not being on PPV or the cable channels? Too bad it did poorly at the theaters. It seems there is a delay on "PS I Love You" too.
If you have a US post office box to get your mail, renew your box now-I was told by my post office yesterday that rates are going up in May. Ditto about getting a new box if you haven't had one before.
See you next week---from a location due northeast. Start the guessing!
I am the secretary for our homeowners association. The girl who works in the office at the management company has no clue when it comes to customer service. I've got a tree precipiously catching the top of a tree on my property. She says it's "not (her) problem." All I want is for someone to come out and look at where my neighbor's property line is so I don't encroach in case I have to call a tree removal service-or if my neighbor is responsible. What is it with people? Stay tuned.
I've got a minor beef with the human rights orgs-one in particular. We'll be discussing this in more detail next week.
MTV says they won't play Paula Abdul's new video. Remember when MTV used to play vids? Maybe they have passed their shelf life?
I don't like the new Cadillac Escalade commercial where the woman looks over at a bunch of guys and then floors the pedal. We just had a tragic accident recently with kids at an illegal drag race. What message is Cadillac saying to it's viewers? The wrong one!
What is the delay with "A Mighty Heart" not being on PPV or the cable channels? Too bad it did poorly at the theaters. It seems there is a delay on "PS I Love You" too.
If you have a US post office box to get your mail, renew your box now-I was told by my post office yesterday that rates are going up in May. Ditto about getting a new box if you haven't had one before.
See you next week---from a location due northeast. Start the guessing!
Thursday, February 28, 2008
Women's ski jumping-what's the problem?
I don't understand this.
Can someone explain it to me?
The IOC's continued reluctance to offer women's ski jumping as a sport in the Winter Olympics.
The numbers for women's participation in the Olympics overall are at record levels. Having said that, I don't understand the continued stalling to get women's ski jump into the Games.
Jacques Rogge as IOC President has said continually about "scaling down" the number of participants. That also means scaling down opportunities to compete and that's just not acceptable.
The IOC is at a conjecture in it's history. It's future looks good, IF they continue to promote sport as opportunities for growth worldwide. But cutting back the available avenues to compete is never acceptable and in fact downright offensive.
It's time to be inclusive and not exclusive.
Something to think about-especially in this war-ravaged world. We need a break-and sport gives it to us.
It's the right thing to do.
Can someone explain it to me?
The IOC's continued reluctance to offer women's ski jumping as a sport in the Winter Olympics.
The numbers for women's participation in the Olympics overall are at record levels. Having said that, I don't understand the continued stalling to get women's ski jump into the Games.
Jacques Rogge as IOC President has said continually about "scaling down" the number of participants. That also means scaling down opportunities to compete and that's just not acceptable.
The IOC is at a conjecture in it's history. It's future looks good, IF they continue to promote sport as opportunities for growth worldwide. But cutting back the available avenues to compete is never acceptable and in fact downright offensive.
It's time to be inclusive and not exclusive.
Something to think about-especially in this war-ravaged world. We need a break-and sport gives it to us.
It's the right thing to do.
Thursday, February 21, 2008
Singapore snags it
Good job to the Lion City!
The IOC finally did something right. Although I am not too keen on a Youth Olympic Games, I would have to say the winning bid by Singapore is a great start. It just might make me change my mind.
I've been there. It's a long trek from the USA, but well worth it. I've always wanted to go back. There is no doubt that the younger athletes will have a good time, win lots of medals and take home memories to last a lifetime.
Singapore has been handed a great opportunity. It just might work out and a Youth Games can peacefully co-exist with it's big brother.
The vote was close, only 9 votes separated Moscow from Singapore. Everyone is encouraging Moscow to bid again. Either city would have been fine with me, but with the Sochi Games so close, I just couldn't see a 2nd Olympics being awarded to the same country.
Well done all around. It's a great start, as as one Singapore official has said, "the real work now begins."
We'll be watching.
The IOC finally did something right. Although I am not too keen on a Youth Olympic Games, I would have to say the winning bid by Singapore is a great start. It just might make me change my mind.
I've been there. It's a long trek from the USA, but well worth it. I've always wanted to go back. There is no doubt that the younger athletes will have a good time, win lots of medals and take home memories to last a lifetime.
Singapore has been handed a great opportunity. It just might work out and a Youth Games can peacefully co-exist with it's big brother.
The vote was close, only 9 votes separated Moscow from Singapore. Everyone is encouraging Moscow to bid again. Either city would have been fine with me, but with the Sochi Games so close, I just couldn't see a 2nd Olympics being awarded to the same country.
Well done all around. It's a great start, as as one Singapore official has said, "the real work now begins."
We'll be watching.