The Olympics have always been an event that my family rallies around.
It's the one time that my 17-year old brother takes a break from rehearsing with his metal garage band, my dad doesn't fall asleep on the couch before seven o'clock and my mother sets aside her quilting to make homemade popcorn as we all sit in front of the television and cheer on U.S. athletes.
I call "rain check" on my boyfriend when it comes to date night and opt for watching the heart-pumping 100-meter dash instead.
But when athletics become the secondary event at the Olympics and people become more concerned over whether Sarkozy and Bush are sitting in the front row at the opening ceremonies, something just isn't right.
Why not flip over to C-SPAN? Or, why not watch the 24-hour coverage of Obama and Clinton engaging in some glorified "tit-for-tats?"
Many of us have been getting more than our fair share of politics lately, and I, for one, would like to watch the summer games as a sports fan, plain and simple.
The Greeks intended for the Olympics to celebrate the strength of man on a world-wide level.
While the Greeks fathered democracy, they didn't use the Olympics as an advertisement to further their ideals.
Rather, it has always been an event promoting unification among countries sharing one world.
To some extent politics have always been an inherent ingredient in the games.
Parading the flags and colors of each country, the athletes represent everything from the governing systems to the economies of each nation.
Their physical performances give each nation bragging rights and link back to the country's level of success and presence, or non-presence, as a world power.
But China's debut, via its hosting of the 2008 summer Olympics in Beijing, has yielded a flood of protests and political predicaments.
The emphasis has been taken off of the athletes completely and turned to the Dalai Lama's crusades for the people of Tibet and the issue of whether or not world leaders should boycott China's opening ceremonies in order to make a statement concerning its abuse of basic human rights.
While world governments must take a stand on issues concerning human rights abuses, it's a shame when athletes, who have trained their entire lives for a chance at representing their country, are booed while bearing the torch.
World governments have a tough choice to make, but should it be at the expense of damaging the spirit of the Olympics, a symbol of unification?
In a world that is so divided, with the United States losing favor overseas by the day, it's important for countries to preserve what few customs existing that work to bind us all together.
NY Times - "For the West, Many Tough Calls on China"
NY Times Olympic coverage page
