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Boycotting the OlympicsFollow

#1 Dec 16 2013 at 8:10 AM Rating: Good
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The winter Olympics will be held in Sochi, Russia this coming February. France Pres. Hollande announced today that he wouldn't be attending the games but declined to give an explanation. The Obama's have been mum on their plans for the winter games.

The outrage stems from the recent anti-gay law that Putin signed. (Legislation on gay propaganda bans the distribution of any information that could make homosexuality seem attractive, promote the “distorted perception” that traditional and non-traditional sexual relations are equal, or force them to become interested in such relations, according to the bill's text.)

I don't think any athletes have publicly announced boycotting, and in fact Greg Louganis (gay diver) is encouraging people NOT to boycott. He says this is about the athletes and not the venue. I'm with Greg... I think.

I don't reason to dis an entire country, or let down the worlds athletes over a poorly thought out law. I don't think the Olympics are the proper venue to send a message to world about the offending policy.

Who knows, maybe Putin will come to grips with his sexuality while watching the men's luge live and close-up.
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#2 Dec 16 2013 at 8:45 AM Rating: Good
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The whole winter Olympics are about Putin's sexuality, they're more or less a giant jerk off fantasy.


As for boycotting, I think it's meaningless. You're not going to get any athlete to boycott the big event they've spent the past 4 years of their life working towards, you're never going to get enough people to boycott watching or attending the events to have any sort of impact and a few politicians more or less makes little difference.
#3 Dec 16 2013 at 8:46 AM Rating: Good
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I'm pretty sure Putin did this because somebody made fun of him riding a horse topless.
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#4 Dec 16 2013 at 8:56 AM Rating: Excellent
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His Excellency Aethien wrote:
As for boycotting, I think it's meaningless. You're not going to get any athlete to boycott the big event they've spent the past 4 years of their life working towards

Sure you can. If the US Olympic Committee says they're not going, they're not going. You're not allowed to just show up and freelance it for your country. The USOC is a nonprofit operating under a federal charter so Congress could probably threaten to revoke their charter if they attended (in theory, I'm not speaking of the current Congress or implying that they would) and most nations have stricter government control over their Olympics teams than that.

When the US boycotted the Moscow Summer Olympics in 1980, that was that. Not as though US athletes showed up in Moscow anyway.

That said, I agree that it's a pointless act so far as actually promoting or forcing change.
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#5 Dec 16 2013 at 10:49 AM Rating: Excellent
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lolgaxe wrote:
I'm pretty sure Putin did this because somebody made fun of him riding a horse topless.

That was a bear, silly.
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#6 Dec 16 2013 at 11:46 AM Rating: Excellent
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Jophiel wrote:
When the US boycotted the Moscow Summer Olympics in 1980, that was that. Not as though US athletes showed up in Moscow anyway.
My track coach was on the team that year, qualified in the 400m hurdles if memory serves me correctly. His hard work and dreams got thrown under the bus so the political types could feel good about themselves. Boycotts don't really do anything but hurt the athletes.
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#7 Dec 16 2013 at 3:05 PM Rating: Excellent
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Does intense apathy count as a boycott?
#8 Dec 16 2013 at 3:06 PM Rating: Good
trickybeck wrote:

Does intense apathy and lack of a cable provider count as a boycott?


FTFM
#9 Dec 16 2013 at 3:23 PM Rating: Good
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You can probably watch most of it online if you wanted to.
#10 Dec 16 2013 at 3:25 PM Rating: Good
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His Excellency Aethien wrote:
You can probably watch most of it online if you wanted to.

Isn't that what most of the population does now anyway? I haven't had cable TV for six years now.
#11 Dec 16 2013 at 3:28 PM Rating: Excellent
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A lot of the online content here probably won't be available unless you have an active cable subscription. At least that's how they've forced it to happen in the past couple of years. They want to you view their primetime coverage, not stream the couple of sports you're interested in.
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#12 Dec 16 2013 at 3:30 PM Rating: Good
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I'll wait until Netflix has it
#13 Dec 16 2013 at 3:39 PM Rating: Good
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someproteinguy wrote:
A lot of the online content here probably won't be available unless you have an active cable subscription. At least that's how they've forced it to happen in the past couple of years. They want to you view their primetime coverage, not stream the couple of sports you're interested in.
For the London Olympics the public network here streamed everything on their site live, lots without commentary for smaller sports but they did stream everything for free.

I mean they have all the rights and they don't exactly air everything live (not enough channels for one) so streaming it was a nice solution.
#14 Dec 16 2013 at 3:46 PM Rating: Excellent
I think it's fair to say that we Brits do not really engage as well with the Winter Olympics. We lack the weather for it Smiley: nod If they ever have a 'grey, miserable and wet Olympics' we will be first choice Smiley: clown

A boycott may not make much news this late in the day although for the UK I hope we do not send any high profile senior UK political representatives. They would would be there simply to add lip gloss to the proceedings and the event should be about the athletes, not Putin.
What will make news though is everyone else going and showing tenacity. Take for example Clare Balding. She is a gay Television presenter who presides over most major UK sporting events. What are they going to do? Ban her? Arrest her? Glare intently?




#15 Dec 16 2013 at 3:51 PM Rating: Excellent
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JennockFV wrote:
What are they going to do? Ban her? Arrest her? Glare intently?
My bet is to do absolutely nothing out of the ordinary as part of a "everything isn't as bad as you make it out to be" PR campaign. Then after everyone leaves, wait a few months, and throw in jail everyone who agreed with anything she ever said.
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#16 Dec 16 2013 at 4:04 PM Rating: Good
Quote:
A boycott may not make much news this late in the day although for the UK I hope we do not send any high profile senior UK political representatives.


In a sane world, sending one of those guys to another country would amount to a declaration of war. As it is, Boris'll probably make one after his seventh glass of port.
#17 Dec 16 2013 at 4:22 PM Rating: Good
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JennockFV wrote:
I think it's fair to say that we Brits do not really engage as well with the Winter Olympics.
Don't forget about the legend that is Eddie The Eagle. Probably one of the most famous athletes to ever compete in the winter Olympics and a Brit.
#18 Dec 16 2013 at 4:28 PM Rating: Excellent
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For the past several Olympics I've found the online coverage to be very good.

I like the ability to quickly go see a particular competitor
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#19 Dec 16 2013 at 4:38 PM Rating: Excellent
His Excellency Aethien wrote:
JennockFV wrote:
I think it's fair to say that we Brits do not really engage as well with the Winter Olympics.
Don't forget about the legend that is Eddie The Eagle. Probably one of the most famous athletes to ever compete in the winter Olympics and a Brit.


Smiley: lol How dare you quote Eddie at me! Smiley: lol He is the worlds most famous underdog and such an embarrassment to the games they introduced rules to keep him out! Smiley: lol

Eddie is just proof that If you are going to fail, do it with style, make it epic and keep smiling Smiley: smile
#20 Dec 16 2013 at 4:43 PM Rating: Good
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You also have Amy Williams who even won a gold medal 4 years ago.

Edit: well, had anyway since she quit 2 years ago.

Edited, Dec 16th 2013 11:45pm by Aethien
#21 Dec 17 2013 at 12:01 AM Rating: Default
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someproteinguy wrote:
Jophiel wrote:
When the US boycotted the Moscow Summer Olympics in 1980, that was that. Not as though US athletes showed up in Moscow anyway.
My track coach was on the team that year, qualified in the 400m hurdles if memory serves me correctly. His hard work and dreams got thrown under the bus so the political types could feel good about themselves. Boycotts don't really do anything but hurt the athletes.


Yep. They're a lazy tool for a weak mind.

Just something for armchair activists to feel proactive about; despite them living in their own civil-rights/international-law-violating country. And I'd just assume also despite them NOT screening all their items and tossing everyone in the bin that says "Made in Russia", or "Made in X", where X is the flavor of the month.

Wish there was a 4-year competition of Economists, Teachers, Herbalists, Professors, etc., which their jobs were tied to, and which athletes could boycott and destroy their careers while not suffering at all themselves.
#22 Dec 17 2013 at 12:18 AM Rating: Excellent
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I'd throw anything in the trash that said "Made in Russia" except maybe vodka and caviar. Russian manufacturing isn't exactly stellar.

Edited, Dec 17th 2013 12:18am by Jophiel
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#23 Dec 17 2013 at 12:22 AM Rating: Good
The BBC only streamed the Olympics for the UK crowd. I halfheartedly searched for a UK proxy so my husband could watch some of it, but didn't get very far. All of the other online streaming (read: legal streaming services) made you sign in with your cable ID and password.
#24 Dec 17 2013 at 7:24 AM Rating: Decent
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I'd throw anything in the trash that said "Made in Russia" except maybe vodka and caviar. Russian manufacturing isn't exactly stellar.

Totally. We have a separate blue plastic tote just for Faberge eggs. Also, I'd say the AK-47 was a fairly successful manufacturing effort. There are others, obviously, but let's not get in the way of soviet era "in Russia toilet ***** on you!" sentimentality with facts.
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#25 Dec 17 2013 at 8:01 AM Rating: Good
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AKs are a bit annoying as far as accuracy goes, but they're definitely better at actually putting rounds down range than our rifles. Drop it in mud and it'll still fire. Breath wrong on a M4 and its an hour of cleaning. Dragunov is pretty stellar, though the M24 is a bit better in my experience.
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#26 Dec 17 2013 at 8:33 AM Rating: Decent
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Dragunov is pretty stellar, though the M24 is a bit better in my experience.

In my experience the rifle choice is almost meaningless for sniper shooting. Less complex, easier to tune to a shooter, etc. Assault rifles are complex enough that it seems to matter a lot more.
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Disclaimer:

To make a long story short, I don't take any responsibility for anything I post here. It's not news, it's not truth, it's not serious. It's parody. It's satire. It's bitter. It's angsty. Your mother's a *****. You like to jack off dogs. That's right, you heard me. You like to grab that dog by the bone and rub it like a ski pole. Your dad? Gay. Your priest? Straight. **** off and let me post. It's not true, it's all in good fun. Now go away.

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