Your Daily Outrage: Olympic Edition.
One of the reasons I love sports is because I spend way too much time on politics. I suspect I’m not alone in this.
Sports are where we come together. Whether it’s a college team or professional, once the competition begins we’re all on the same team: Republican, Democrat, independent, white or black.
Athletics is a glorious antidote to everything else going on in the world.
And no athletic competition is more unifying than the Olympics. Fans from entire countries rally to cheer on their most talented athletes who proudly compete wearing the flags of their nations.
Now and then politics infuses the Games. It always a turd-in-the-punchbowl moment.
The first instance I can recall is 1968. From Wikipedia:
The 1968 Olympics Black Power salute was a political demonstration conducted by African-American athletes Tommie Smith and John Carlos during their medal ceremony at the 1968 Summer Olympics in the Olympic Stadium in Mexico City. After having won gold and bronze medals respectively in the 200-meter running event, they turned on the podium to face their flags, and to hear the American national anthem, "The Star-Spangled Banner". Each athlete raised a black-gloved fist, and kept them raised until the anthem had finished.
Funny thing, no one remembers Tommie Smith or John Carlos.
During the 2021 summer Olympics in Tokyo, attention whore Megan Rapinoe and the rest of the sheep on the women’s soccer team, took a knee to protest unequal pay in sports and trampled the American flag in the process. Ironic, because almost no one would pay to watch women who were beaten by high school boys, play soccer.
Many of us rooted for opposing teams when these awful women took the pitch.
Once she retired, Rapinoe went on to support boys in girls’ sports.
Of course she did.
Now this.
Several American Olympians in Milan have been outspoken about how they disapprove of ICE and the present administration. They come off like a bunch of self-aggrandizing brats. They’re more than happy to slurp up the largesse of the American public and their American sponsors who pay their way to Italy. Once there, they give the country the finger.
Halfpipe skier Hunter Hess, for instance.
He’s competing for his friends and family? Good to know. Will his friends and family reimburse us for the expense of sending this insufferable brat to Italy?
It may be unfair to blame him entirely. He’s been brainwashed by leftist teachers, live in an athletic training bubble and isn’t necessarily very smart.
He got played by the left-wing press that’s been peppering the American athletes with political questions. And yes, even sports writers are lefties.
The blowback from his stupid interview was so strong he had to close the comments on his social media posts.
As best anyone can tell, the athletes from China and Iran are not being asked by the media about whether they approve of their countries’ brutal policies.
It’s well known that these athletes cannot be critical of the regimes without putting themselves or their families in peril.
On the other hand, American athletes know they’ll be cheered by the anti-American left back home when they denounce their country.
Look these kids have a right to speak their minds. And I have a right to speak mine.
If they can’t behave like decent people, if they can’t simply say what an honor it is to represent the United States of America in the Olympic Games, they should shed their Ralph Lauren patriotic finery and just come home.
Someone needs to remind the big mouths on Team USA that they don’t represent President Trump and his administration. They represent our great republic, which is celebrating it’s 250th birthday this year.
Show some respect.
Sadly, some members or our team will never embody the spirit of the Olympics the way Jamaica’s Usain Bolt did in 2012 at the London games. He’d just finished the 100-meter semi-final and was giving an interview when the Star Spangled Banner played.
Here’s an idea, kids: Be like Bolt. Show a little class.
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