No Human Rights...No Olympics for Me!

Original posting Aug 8, 2008

One of the two most vivid news casts I will always recall from 1989 is the Tiananmen Square student democracy protest. The scene of the lonely business man standing in front of a line of military tanks is forever emblazoned in my mind.

I was horrified then....and I am horrified now. Human rights and environmental rights are not discernable and are non-negotiable terms in my mind. China does not respect either rights. They are both necessary and essential for mankind to continue down a path towards evolution, enlightenment, and humanity.

To think that we actually went to war in Iraq to bring "democracy" (that was the second story told to us....after the WMD story didn't hold water) to the people there and yet in China free speech is NOT ALLOWED ( but there is LOTS of security...more than 300,000 surveillance cameras and 100,000 policemen are operating in Beijing now for the Olympics...and let's bet after the games the cameras will stay and the numbers of police will remain the same) is hypocritical. How any American can believe that holding the Olympics in China will bring freedom & justice is just delusional. I mean we shouldn't export something until we have mastered it here..don't you think?

If Communism is so respectable now why then are we, Americans, not allowed to travel to Cuba? If Communism is ok now then why is it ok to do business w/ China but not with Cuba? Our politicians must think Communism is a good thing otherwise why would we do business with the Chinese? What is the difference between the two countries?

For more than 40 years we waged a "Cold War" against Communism and all of a sudden we are now embracing the largest Communist (and the most populated) country in the world? Am I missing something here?

Our government and people with access to the media want us to believe that sports has nothing to do with politics. I say that is not true. Everything is political (even religion).

No....as an American, a world citizen, and a human being I cannot just compartmentalize my views and separate the Olympics (or sports) from my political and moral values. That would be like asking me to go to go out and sell sub-prime mortgages to poor & working class people during the week and then go to church on Sunday and maybe write a check to "Feed the Homeless" at Thanksgiving.

It is a farce to believe that the Olympic games will do more to promote democracy in a country that is ruled with an iron fist. The only thing we are promoting is "McGlobalism" and less freedom by increasing security measures. You can either choose to be free or secure...you cannot have both.

I mean no disrespect to athletes. I grew up being very involved in competitive swimming and gymnastics and if it were not for sports I would not have learned how to respect and care for my body. But there comes a time when you have to see that anything and everything can be used as a political tool and having the games in China is akin to having the Olympics in Nazi Germany. I believe we would not have participated in the 1936 Olympics had we known the atrocities going on there.

Please join me in NOT turning on your television to watch the Olympic games.

Peace & Justice,

Emma : )