The Games Of The 43rd Presidency – #2: Going Along Swimmingly

What’s with the profile of Not-Jenna? What side of the family did that nose come from?

Michael: I’m waiting for pictures of the interview of the President (the only one I can remember in recent times actually)
with that great political journalist Bob Costas! And what about the irony of the president admonishing the Russians for engaging war
during a time of (Olympic) peace.

Well, now we know. The reason our Olympic athletes spend four years training so hard is for the opportunity to be part of a massive photo-op for a lame-duck despot. They’ve shredded all the documents, gotta have something to put in that prezidenchul liberry.

Widen the frame on some of the shots of Bush to include the next row of seats in front of him you will find the old monster war criminal Henry Kissinger and his horsey wife. Wonder how many of the countries he’s watching compete he war crimed?

As a boy I loved the Olympics. But the older I get, (forty-one now), the more hollow they have become. I really just want to appreciate the endeavors of these fine athletes, and I want to feel a sense of brotherhood with other cultures, as I believe was part of the original spirit of the modern Olympic games. But every four years the media stranglehold on the games seems to only increase, and more and more we get this jingoistic orgy of images and story. I can hardly watch at all, it’s so disgusting.
As for the above images, two other sets of images leap to mind when I see them. First, I’m struck by the number of civilian casualties-of-war photos we have seen from Georgia over the last few days. I wonder where these photos have been over the last several years in Iraq. Much like the incoming coffins of our soldiers, photos depicting the suffering of Iraqis are rare. And I think there is a tie-in here: the context of patriotic sentiment clouding the journalistic decision of what to show or not show.
The other set of images I immediately think of are the shots of Adolph Hitler soaking up the glory at the 1936 Berlin Olympics. Of course the Chinese leaders, in their own rather secretive, behind the scenes way, are using these games of 2008 as the very same kind of legitimizing propaganda. But isn’t it embarrassing and repulsive to see our own small president aiming to use the Olympics in the same way. And, predictably for the president who has set the record for vacation time, and the way in which bad things invariably happen when he is out of the office, we see Georgia unfolding…
People who lament that we should just leave the politics out of the Olympics miss the point. They are political, through and through, like it or not. Not talking, not showing, are just as politically powerful as talking and showing. Visual media is a shell game. The important stuff is missed due to slight of hand. For every Michael Phelps, perhaps we do have a Joey Cheek. But will the media let us see him?

One more thing about these pictures that should irk all viewers: the word “live” in the upper corner. Isn’t this simply a bold-faced lie?

Just trying to close the italics.

I don’t want to insult anybody, but I thought the reaction of the swim team was over the top. It was unsportsman-like and boorish. It was the sports version of ‘bring’em on.’ I was really put off by that jock attitude of superiority. I was sorry I had watched it. And the cheerleader in chief cannot but act like an oaf in public. Olbermann had a shot of him holding up the flag……..backwards! And typical of this idiot (as Quincy Scott noted) he is off in lala land whenever something serious happens. We will probably find out in about 8 months that he knew ahead of time that Georgia was going to make a move and that the boot of Russia was going to come down.

Where does this weird notion, i daresay mythology come from that “The Olympics” is not supposed to be about nationalism? or, for that matter, professionalism? i mean, when was it NOT about nationalism? in ‘Ancient’ times..? NOT!
so, what’s with this “gosh, you mean there isn’t a tooth fairy” aww, gee ~ lookit all the nationalism, apparent during “Olympics” naivete all over the place (et tu, BAGman?)
if you want to lookit something news note worthy, BAGman & BAGistas, diggit the development not of nationalism, but of the visual evidence for the rise of corporatism, as we lurch forward from our quaint post-Monarchy 19th/20th century notions of “nations” to post-Modern 21st century corporate states.
“Look at that swimmer, honey; is he an American, or is he a Nike?“

Have you seen the pictures of the Secret Service agents having to almsot carry what appears to be a drunken George Bush out of the arena? I’d love everyone’s analysis of this.

Naomi Klein => China’s authoritarian capitalism a global trend?
i suppose if ya go looking for symbols of nationalism at the premiere cause célèbre du nationalisme, then that’s what ya’ll find. otoh, if ya followed the money an’ went lookin’ for logos, an’ then had the chutzpah to sort them medals by Corporate brands or somesuch, then it’s kinda like putting on the magic glasses from They Live! or somethin’.
(then again, there’s always stupid pictures of George W. Bush to fall back on, if ya can’t think of anythin’ better to put on up there, eh Michael? kinda sorta brings the ol’ BAG up to a whole new level, seein’ all them stupid pictures of George W. Bush