And they won't be staying at Beijing Olympic Park either: "... The United States Olympic Committee, which will have more than 600 people in its delegation, is planning to transport its own produce because of fears about public health and food standards in China.The athletes will eat their three daily meals at their training camp at a local university, which is outside the official confines of the Olympic Park. ..." [Link]
I read a prediction by Thomas Barnett; author of The Pentagon's New Map, regarding the public relations result of the 2008 Olympics for China. Unfortunately I have to quote him from memory since I can't find it on his blog: China will win the most gold medals. The logistics and overall process will go smoothly but the Chinese will consider the Olympics a failure because the world will be talking about the dirty air, the squalor and Dafur.
The photo above came from Klieg's photostream at Flickr.com. It is entitled: Qian Ye Restaurant: The Chicken lost. The photo was taken in a restaurant in Beijing, China. Here is a direct link to the photo: [Link]
6 comments:
I started writing a post with the working title "F**k You Steven Speilberg". It was about how boycotting Beijing because of China's incidental connection with the Darfur tragedy was being blind to the far greater holocaust which is Iraq, or the intentional genocide now going on in the Gaza Strip. I reconsidered when I realized I write a swimming rather than a political blog. Only an American could insinuate China is abetting a civil war because of its oil interests in the country and then hold out for sanctions against China without choking on his or her own bile. USOC's decision not to use the Olympic Village along with the rest of the world to feed its athletes is yet another slap in China's face and will be seen as such. If the USA doesn't want to play with all the other countries maybe it just shouldn't go.
I know what you mean about politics and swimming. I almost published photos of US 'waterboarding; form the early 1900's through to the Vietnam era but I backed off.
China's hands ARE indeed bloody and my country too is knee high in blood. When you compare the two countries sins, one of the sins is seemingly "lessened." However, neither country should be involved in such horror and two wrongs don't a right.
Personally, I wouldn't eat the food in China. I wouldn't - no way!
I have seen too many photos of metal tailings turning rivers lava red, computers destroyed by coal dust accumulating within them, and lead paint pouring into the sewers.
China is at least 30-50 years away from acceptable standards to that of Mexico.
You're absolutely correct about both trying to distinguish degrees of absolute between two different evils, as you are about the apparent indifference the Chinese government has towards the long term consequences of pollution on its own citizens. On the other hand they are taking extraordinary care and effort over the quality of food to be consumed by the Olympic athletes and everything is being overseen by the IOC. There will be no problems with the food served in the Olympic Village. Now outside the Village would be quite a different case but we're not talking about that are we?
i wonder how far is the usa training camp from the pool and the village ? the american athletes have to take their 3 meals at the camp. So a swimmer takes the bus to camp for breakfast than a bus to the pool , after the morning session bus to camp for lunch , i hope the camp has room for the afternoon nap because if not bus to the village. After the evening session bus to camp for supper then bus to the village. i hope the usa olympic team have a good logistic team to plan transportation and will the chinease provide the same rotation of buses between the camp and the pool and the village than they will provide between the pool and the village. i read in an article that the french swimming team will stay and eat in the village because it is not far from the pool and the frequency of the bus between the pool and the village will be maximum. i hope bob have taken the extra time lost at the training camp in account for michael phelps. if i was an olympian i would think that where you meet other athletes is at the village restaurants .
I just read in SI that the majority of the us athletes will eat in the village ; the us olympic committee said friday that they had confidence in the food that will be serve in the village. i guess that they realize that more complicated to have the athletes eat outside the village and a waste of time.
Maly raises very good points about the logistical problems in living and sleeping in one location, eating in another, and competing in still another. Everybody has heard the horror stories of athletes missing their events because they're late getting to the facility. I think the USOC's decision to rely on the Olympic Village food is an excellent one.
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