ziggie opened this issue on Jul 06, 2005 ยท 45 posts
XENOPHONZ posted Wed, 06 July 2005 at 11:50 AM
That said......
......as someone who believes that the closing of the original Olympic games was one of the smartest things that the ancients ever did.......and that resurrecting them was one of the culturally stupidest things that the modern world has done.......
Of course, it goes without saying that it was a Frenchman who cooked up the unfortunate idea of bringing the games back again -- Baron Pierre de Coubertin in 1894.
Something else to thank the French for.
The ancient games were plagued by many of the same issues that we see in the Olympics today -- things such as potions (drugs) to win, and curses on rivals. Out-sized individual egos and war-by-proxy between city-states. Cheating, scandal, and gambling were common.
Does any of this sound familiar? I seem to recall something being said about not learning the lessons of history, and therefore being doomed to repeat them.......
One thing that the ancient Olympics weren't: the games did not represent some sort of idyllic 'peaceful' gathering of rivals. Just the opposite, in fact.
Nowadays, the games are a great way for a local city to aquire a load of debt -- and to saddle their taxpaying citizens with the additional financial burden of hosting the games for years to come. Long after the severely under-attended games have mercifully ended and been completely forgotten by everyone.
BTW - without doing a google search, or going to your local library to look it up....tell me.....who won canoeing in 1936? Does anyone care? Not to mention that the 1936 Olympics were fantastic PR for a 20th century paragon of peace, weren't they?
Congratulations to London and welcome. Better there than in my own home town.
BTW - for the French, there exists a commonality between EU Constitutions and bringing back an internationalist Olympic 'ideal'. The French have always secretly wanted to rule the world, anyway. It's just that they haven't been able to accomplish that goal via direct means........
.......the French are all for 'internationalism'. Just so long as it's guaranteed that they'll be the ones running the show.
If you can't do world conquest directly -- then try it through the diplomatic back door.
Beat 'em again, Brits. I love it. It's just too bad that you had to be saddled with the Olympics in order to achieve this particular victory.
Message edited on: 07/06/2005 11:59