Olympic Fever

I LOVE THE OLYMPICS. Just had to get that out there. I mean seriously, perhaps the best invention ever. Perhaps only following democracy and modern rational thought...hmmm, a greek connection. Wow, I should have been an ancient greek...i bet thats what I would have gotten on my aptitude test in high school (if we had to take those things). I wouldn't want to be a modern greek though...at least not today, the US destroyed their basketball hopes in a mere 40 minutes. Back to the olympics, I was trying to put together why I like them so much. I think its because way deep down I am an overly proud american supremacist that really believes that we have something special here not easily found in the rest of the world. Of course, the olympics and the ubiquitous medal tables only serve to confirm that notion. Of course, my Americo-supremicist ideologies are not at all based on athletic prowess but sometimes its nice to just kick ass and take names. For all the shit we get from the rest of the world, every four years we can take a few weeks to shove it back down their throats with an F-U from the U-S-A. Ok, maybe that goes a little far but after watching the Men's 4x100 freestyle relay and their outstanding performance against the french...I have never been more proud of the US athletics. The novelty of having the french team say they were going to destroy the US was just beyond words. It was like they were playing into the worst french stereotypes meanwhile, the americans come from behind to snatch away victory in spectacular fashion. It was like watching a pro-US movie on the big screen but it was real. I mean this was the "Independence Day" of olympic sports and Michael Phelps was Will Smith, but in this one...the French couldn't blow up the white house. Gymnastics is another story of course, the US men were pretty much out of gold medal contention from the start...the women were a different story. After watching some of the competition it was clear that the US-CHINA battle was going to be tough. At the same time, it seemed that the two teams were getting along really well on the side lines. I wondered what they did in their off time. I bet the US team was listening to music, watching movies, just relaxing. The chinese team...maybe getting their training wheels off their bikes. Taking their baby teeth and hiding it under their pillow at night, or maybe being read a bed time story by the coach. Hmmm, 16 years old? Each one or combined? I guess it doesn't matter now, Silver medals are nothing to be scoffed at and I guess we'll never know the truth but it certainly seemed a little strange. Tonight, Phelps goes for #5...should be good. Patrick OUT!!!

2 comments:

Marie said...

Agreed almost completely, except that the French were never a real threat anyway and - who'd-a-thunk it - there is now a rather pro-America French president in Sarkozy.

Gymnastics has been ridiculous. The scoring has massively favored the Chinese, which, besides the clear flaunting their disregard of the Olympic age standards everyone else is supposed to abide by, I have to admit the American team is by and large a whole lot more attractive than the little babies.

The sport is called *women's* gymnastics, not "little girls'"!

Oh, and for your daily procrastination needs, my website is back. http://www.stillinquisitive.com/

A Taste of Home said...

I'm surprised you didn't mention women's volleyball. I thought that was your favorite sport, Pat?

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