I'm no rah-rah American patriot, but I've started pulling for the U.S. in the Olympics for one very simple reason -- China can't come out first in the medal count. It's like rooting for Germany in Munich in '36.
If we were behind Great Britain, France, Canada, Japan, etc., that is, countries with strong human rights records (at least recent human rights records), I'd be OK with that. But China? That's just slightly better than pulling for Sudan or Zimbabwe, and in some ways worse. They don't have the pr machine in place China does. China's govt. will say it's proof their programs are working. No reason to change things. They are on the right path. The medal count is close now, with the US and China the clear frontrunners. They will probably win the most gold medals, but we must win the most medals, not for our own national pride, but to limit the boasting of such an abusive regime. We may not have a great human rights record these days, but it's still, at least domestically, better than China's.
Here's hoping we find our Jesse Owens. It won't be Michael Phelps or the Men's Basketball team, but maybe, just maybe, we can find a hurdler to beat Liu Xiang. That would be an embarrassment on the world stage, a surprising attack on their pride, like Louis beating Shnelling. It shouldn't mean anything, but for some reason, it does. So, sigh, here it goes -- USA! USA! USA!
John Briggs.