Anti - Olympic Protestors.

[thom_cat_]

Maybe it's because the Olympics cost tax money.

Do you know how much revenue the olympics gain? It brings tons of money to a city.

 

[Valksy]

Protesting the cost is something that I do understand. When London was announced as the "winner" of the 2012 games I found myself wondering what the hell we had won other than a bloody enormous bill (which is already something like 4 times the amount predicted in the bid..goodness..was someone just making shit up when they made the budget?).

Sebastian Coe can go fuck himself.

However, once the games are already under way it is too bloody late to protest. The infa-structure is already built, the facilities are already built. Protesting now just seems like douche-baggery.

 

[DayDark]

I'm amazed that not a single person is aware of why these people are protesting the Olympics - I suppose it really is a local issue.

Although I'm no expert on it, I do have a fairly good idea. As some of you may know, Vancouver has one of the WORST homeless problems in North America. The Downtown East side of the city is an extremely impoverished, drug-riddled area, and it's been like this for a long time. The idea that the government isn't doing enough to help this problem has long been a contested issue, but it's really been brought to the forefront in the years leading up to the Olympics. The city has poured hundreds of millions of dollars into projects being built PURELY FOR these two weeks in February, yet when it comes to helping people who actually LIVE in Vancouver, the government always seems strapped for cash.

There a number of other factors too - in a recent article, it was revealed that Vancouver has the most expensive housing market in the entire fucking world. With housing costs already at all-time highs, people are worried about the additional price increases the games may bring, not to mention the tax hikes which are likely to follow the games, considering the MONSTROUS debt the city has taken on. To give you an idea of how huge the debt is going to be, Montreal, who hosted the games in 1976, just finished paying off their Olympic debt two years ago. So yeah, as you can see, there are a shit load of reasons why people are against the games being here, and I personally feel the protestors are fully justified in their opposition.

I've always wondered why the hell the Olympics needs to go around and be set in different countries, it started in Greece, let it freakin stay in Greece, then they wont have to build a stadion for each Olympics either.

 

[Lazy Kitty]

Maybe it's because the Olympics cost tax money.

Do you know how much revenue the olympics gain? It brings tons of money to a city.

No, I don't and I bet neither do a lot of the protesters.

 

[ejb626]

What? the 2008 protests I understand because some beleive China to be a totaltarian country but Canada? This is demoncratic capitalist Canada we're talking about here, so it can't be the country,why are they protesting? I can't think of a single good reason.

EDIT: Oh, I read some of the posts its tax money, yeah I guess I sort of understand that.

 

[fix-the-spade]

so why is it people waste their time protesting against a few jocks playing a few games?

Pretty simple, your country has just spent a large percentage of it's gross national produce on... a few jocks playing some games.

For exmple the bill for the security is landing at around £600million, I have no idea what that is in $CAD besides a lot. Governments spend tens of billions trying to outdo each other for a couple of weeks worth of sports.

Think of all the things that bother you or you think need improving just within Canada's borders and realise why people get upset about such a colossal waste of money.

 

[tetron]

I see a lot of hate for the Olympics and I'd just like to say something. Personally I don't care much for the Olympics and don't even bother to watch the games. But the Olympics is more than just a bunch of jocks coming together to be jocks. The Olympics is a symbol, a time when all the worlds people come together to compete in a time honored tradition. To be honest I feel the day when the Olympics are no more is the day humanity loses all hope for world peace. And some people may say world peace is just a fantasy and can never happen anyways. Well to those people I say you should rethink your view on the world, because statements like that are what keep peace from being a reality.

 

[-Orgasmatron-]

Maybe they got tickets to Beijing but took a wrong turn at Lithuania and ended up in Canada two years late?

This made me laugh pretty hard for some reason.

Everything I'd say on the matter has pretty much been said already.

 

[Mr.Squishy]

I kinda used to not like the olympics, 'cause they hogged all the screen-time ever when they were going, but now that I stopped watching TV (apart from scrubs and simpsons) I find I don't give a shit

 

[Baby Tea]

Maybe it's because the Olympics cost tax money.

Do you know how much revenue the olympics gain? It brings tons of money to a city.

Well that may be, but I can tell you that it doesn't bring hundreds of millions of dollars back to the city.
As other pointed out, Montreal just finished paying of their Olympic debt 2 years ago. That was from the 1976 games. Obviously, the money they got from tourist revenue wasn't as high as you might think it is.
A fortune payed out...a pittance, by comparison, returned.

I agree totally with the protesters.

I say scrap the Olympics completely, or pick two cities (One for winter games, one for summer games) and host them there all the time, and have every participating country help fund the construction of those places. That's it.
Otherwise, save the money and stick with the corporate sponsored 'World Cup' events.

 

[Wicky_42]

I see a lot of hate for the Olympics and I'd just like to say something. Personally I don't care much for the Olympics and don't even bother to watch the games. But the Olympics is more than just a bunch of jocks coming together to be jocks. The Olympics is a symbol, a time when all the worlds people come together to compete in a time honored tradition. To be honest I feel the day when the Olympics are no more is the day humanity loses all hope for world peace. And some people may say world peace is just a fantasy and can never happen anyways. Well to those people I say you should rethink your view on the world, because statements like that are what keep peace from being a reality.

I guess that if that symbol didn't require the big bucks to show off a nation's political penis then people wouldn't mind. There are plenty of symbols that don't require hundreds of millions, even billions of [insert national currency here] to work. There are plenty of old traditions that have lost their meaning in the modern world.

I don't disagree that in some ways the Olympics is about more than sports people doing their thing. Question is can we, in good conscience, spend that much on a sporting event celebrating the peak of human achievements whilst the homeless and the hungry roam the streets outside the Olympic compounds.

I agree totally with the protesters.

I say scrap the Olympics completely, or pick two cities (One for winter games, one for summer games) and host them there all the time, and have every participating country help fund the construction of those places. That's it.
Otherwise, save the money and stick with the corporate sponsored 'World Cup' events.

+1 in support of this motion

 

[mattman106]

Animals are suffering, people are dying, so why is it people waste their time protesting against a few jocks playing a few games?

I think it is because some people are very flawed. They either simply want to mess with the establishment, or more likely, they desperately wish to feel as though they are contributing and making a difference to the world, and are choosing to do this through protest. However, they are also content with their lives. They don't wish to try and protest against something important (Climate change/Deforestation/other important issues) because protest and campaign into these subjects would probably involve a certain degree of personal sacrifice, which might disrupt their contented lifestyle.

You are a PRIZE WINNER Sir. yeah I agree, it's piss easy to protest about stuff like the Olympics without having to do anything beyond saying 'I am protesting against the Olympics'.

 

[Daffy F]

You are a PRIZE WINNER Sir. yeah I agree, it's piss easy to protest about stuff like the Olympics without having to do anything beyond saying 'I am protesting against the Olympics'.

Do I win anything? Like, I dunno, a packet of gummy bears or something?

 

[tetron]

... Question is can we, in good conscience, spend that much on a sporting event celebrating the peak of human achievements whilst the homeless and the hungry roam the streets outside the Olympic compounds. ...

Can and will, if you care so much about the homeless and the hungry then instead of protesting the Olympics go volunteer at a soup kitchen or habitats for humanity. Although anyone who did actually care about those people wouldn't use them as an example for the sake of arguing a point.

 

[Exterminas]

Besides the financial aspects there are some ideological problems with olympia.

Frist of all, do you know who reintroduced the torch-stuff back into the games, after they were held again in modern times?

Take a guess.

Yes, right, the nazis.

For it self not a major reason to demonstrate, of course. But what about stuff like steroid abuse, excessive corporate-buisness utilizing sport and therefore steroids to make money? I mean, in todays olympic boradcasts there are usually more ads on the screen than athlets.

Of course these are relativly pity complaints, compared to world famine and stuff like that, but who cares about africa, when there is MacDonalds on the shooting range.

 

[Deleted]

All right. In my country, Canada the winter olympics is being celebrated. I had a friend that actually had the torch go right by him and he considered this an incredible experience.

'Once in a life time.' In his words.

Days and weeks later, the opening ceremony draws near, then I hear of Anti - Olympic Protestors rioting...

First of all, I don't actually give two craps about the olympics. Sports are one of the things I'm least interested in and care nothing about - I paid no attention to the ceremonies and I paid even less to the games them selves.

One thing that did interest me about the olympics is the Anti - Olympic protestors. I simply don't understand...Why are people protesting against the olympics? Animals are suffering, people are dying, so why is it people waste their time protesting against a few jocks playing a few games?

These people are commonly known as, Funsuckers like a real life troll. They grief humanity and take away fun.

 

[Cavouku]

Protesting the cost is something that I do understand. When London was announced as the "winner" of the 2012 games I found myself wondering what the hell we had won other than a bloody enormous bill (which is already something like 4 times the amount predicted in the bid..goodness..was someone just making shit up when they made the budget?).

Sebastian Coe can go fuck himself.

However, once the games are already under way it is too bloody late to protest. The infa-structure is already built, the facilities are already built. Protesting now just seems like douche-baggery.

How has no one else said this yet?

Really, what can you do now? I say let them finish these ones, while you silently plot your Olympic downfall for the next games or something. That way you can be ready before it takes foot.

 

[Nemu]

Some people just need something to protest or complain about. They can never be content.

This pretty much.

Tho I know that group of self-righteous lunatics, P.E.T.A., were protesting cos skaters had the audacity to wear fur. (Ffs, they're prolly wearing FAKE fur, but these c*nts don't care. GOD I hate them...) Otherwise I don't understand why anyone would be protesting, tho I'd speculate folks were there hating on countries like China, Korea and Iran, but due to apathy, I don't really care about protesters one way or the other.

 

[GundamSentinel]

Probably the anti-globalisation bunch again. Always bothering international gatherings. Go away!

 

[Outlaw Torn]

If someone developed a cure for all human diseases someone else would start to protest against it. That's just the way things are.

I myself am a firm protestor against women wearing bras and not bouncing up and down on the spot. One day justice shall prevail.