cross posted from The Dream Antilles The Chinese Government is very afraid of these two women.
Seventy-nine-year-old Wu Dianyuan, on the right, and her neighbor Wang Xiuying, 77, followed the law. They applied for a protest permit. They wanted to protest inadequate compensation for the taking of their homes in preparation of the Olympics. They asked for the permit five times. They didn't get it. They ended up instead being sentenced to a year of "re-education through labor."
Two Women Sentenced to ‘Re-education’ in China By ANDREW JACOBS
BEIJING — Two elderly Chinese women have been sentenced to a year of "re-education through labor" after they repeatedly sought a permit to demonstrate in one of the official Olympic protest areas, according to family members and human rights advocates.
I haven't had much time to watch the Olympics. I catch a little of the broadcasts late at night. I miss the simpler Olympics that I remember watching as a kid, but I still try to extract the kernel of authenticity from the hyper-hyped corporate entity it's become. I seem to recall that back when Beijing was awarded the games for 2008, much of the rationale involved the expectation that it would open up the Chinese to reform, and force them to turn from their totalitarian ways.
After ten days overseas, one week on vacation, and tons of negative ads from McCain, Obama is finally tanking in the polls and the electoral vote count.
Gosh what does a guy have to do to become the underdog?
The Electoral Map Stay with me!
Is it just me, or is everyone totally freaking out right now?
Everywhere I turn there is a new diary, editorial or blogpost lambasting Senator Obama for not hitting back hard enough, losing Saddleback, getting outspent during the Olympics, and (here’s my favorite:) being too calm. Since all of a sudden being hotheaded and temperamental is presidential...
And then today, out comes the Zogby Poll, showing McCain up by 5 points, and the Chicken Littles are out in force. Hence, I feel compelled to write my first diary to say the following to my hyperventilating brethren:
Chillax. Brother Obama has got this sh*t.
Take the dog for a walk, play with your kids, go to the park and do pastoral dances, change the channel and watch some Olympics, read Taking On the System...
Watching the beauty and grace of the athletes at the Olympic it is easy to forget that these games were developed to fight wars. The hammer throw, discus throw, javelin throw, boxing, fencing, and wrestling were all important in ancient warfare.
You may have wondered why the marathon is 42.195 kilometers (26 miles 385 yards). It's a strange and awkward number. According to one legend, it is the exact distance from the battlefield at Marathon, Greece, to the Senate building in Athens. A messenger named Pheidippides ran the entire distance without stopping, burst into the Senate and declared, "Nenikékamen ('We have won')" before collapsing and dying.
The Mayans took the seriousness of their games to another level. This game, played for thousands of years, was some combination of racquetball and volleyball. The winners became heroes. The losers sometimes became human sacrifices to the gods.
But its not ancient games I want to talk about. It's a much more modern one that interests me.
These have been fantastic summer olympics, the Chinese have been an excellent host nation, the facilities are the finest ever.
The country is magnificant.
The Chinese Athletes are amazing, they have come so far.
With all of that being true- it seems in such bad taste to complain about a couple of these events but I'm a sports fan so wtf im going to do it anyway.
As we continue to celebrate the Olympics with profound pride and patriotism , I wanted to share some disheartening rankings that reflect our country's stark decline relative to the rest of the world. I list these fully knowing this community's cognizance of such issues, but sometimes numbers yield a haunting, and thus effective, reminder. For anyone truly proud to be American, these numbers should anger, motivate, and prompt action.
32nd - World rank of U.S. infant mortality rate.
First - CEO to Worker pay ratio (531:1) (Second place is Brazil at 57:1)
9th - Adult Literacy Scale (Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development)
12th - student reading ability (Source: OECD)
37th - U.S. rank on the Healthcare Quality Index (World Health Organization)
Not one given to orgasmic fury when his team scores a last second touchdown to win the Super Bowl I am however seized with naches over the exploits of Olympic athletes. What can be said about the last second minutia win by Dave Wottle in the 800 meter final in the 1972 Munich games, Bob Beamon’s escape from earth’s gravitational pull during the high jump in Mexico City in 1968 or Michael Phelps’ 100 meter butterfly gold in 2008 can never be said of geopolitical stand offs.
I have finally had enough of the overexposed Michael Phelps and his hyperventilating mother. I am glad the swimming is over. Phelps performed brilliantly. His races were exciting. He deserves every medal he won. America has every reason to be proud. But enough of him already. I just don't find him to be a compelling character.
Maybe it is the corporate mindset that is actually irritating me. I felt sorry for the lovely gold medalist Nastia Liukin who, because of her Russion last name, finds herself competing for space on the Wheaties box with Shawn Johnson, the silver medalist. General Mills had its mind set on "America's sweetheart" gracing its box. But I digress.
Although gymnast Nastia Liukin has been a good sport about tying -- and then, thanks to mathematical minutiae, losing to China's He Kexin in the Olympic uneven bars final -- the Internatioal Olympic Committee ought to be more vigilant. If doping is considered cheating -- because it unfairly enhances performance -- then why is lying about one's age not considered cheating by the International Olympics Committee? After all, in other sports, falsifying age has been a disqualifier.
Seventeen races, eight gold medals. This man can truly fly!
Let's hear it for Michael Phelps - the greatest Olympian of all time. He made it look easy - breezing through a schedule most human being would find crippling. Yet he did it. Not alone - but it was his drive and passion that fueled all eight wins. Tonight we all have something amazing to be proud of. Congratulations Michael. You are the very best.
I had my first chance to watch the USA men's team play this morning, and I was more than impressed. Not by their athleticism...although that's impressive enough in itself.
But I was more impressed by their selfless style of play, their enthusiasm, their character, and their desire.
A combination of the right players...and the right coach to organize them. A thing of beauty, selflessness, and a group of people working together for a common cause.
For those of us who had a cow while watching the Faith Forum, I think we all need to calm down. There's one thing that everyone for SURE will be talking about tomorrow: Michael Phelps and his historic Olympic wins!
The equipment and integrated security systems used to detain Olympic protesters will remain long after the Olympics, to be used, many fear, on China’s own population. And some of the biggest beneficiaries of this surveillance boom are US hedge funds and corporations, including Cisco, General Electric and Google.
Now wonder GE has that huge ad campaign.
One thing I'm realizing that this Olympics is showing us is that, YES, it is possible for a government to effectively contain all resistance. Thank God for Democracy.
