By: Pierre Noujaim 

I am very aware that the Olympics are not what they used to be to this country.  Frankly I think it’s very sad because I am a die hard Olympics guy.  I’ll stay up until 3 or 4 in the morning to watch whatever sporting event is on because, to me, the Olympics are why we love sports.  They’re the very basics of sport.  Who can run the fastest?  Who can jump the highest?  Who can swim the longest?  Is this not the very essence of sport?

The reason why I love the Olympics is because these athletes have sacrificed so much, and have dedicated their lives to reach the highest plateau of sports, the gold medal.  There’s nothing more sacred in my opinion.  Yes, endorsements and celebrity status comes with winning such an award but they don’t do it on a contract.  They don’t do it for money.  They have the honor of representing the United States of America and bring glory to their country.  Personally, I don’t think it gets any better.  Think about these athletes that have dedicated their lives to achieve greatness, and now think about the thousands of their fellow countrymen who basically spit in their face with protest after protest of the Olympic Games taking place in China.  

Let me say this before I rant, I’m all for human equality and the thought that people should be free to dream and free to live their lives however they see fit, but I can’t control what people think about the world and I can’t control what happens in the grand scheme of society.  The Olympic torch passed through ruckus San Francisco crowds today and there was pure chaos.  (Sidebar: I have no intent of involving my own political views in this piece, in fact if you really want to know I don’t declare myself a republican or a democrat.  Crazy as it may seem, I think that we should take the good ideas from both sides and compromise and not worry about party affiliation, ah, you see there I go.)  

It’s no secret that San Francisco is the hippie capital of America, hell the planet.  We’ve seen thousands of protestors marching and putting up signs that say “Free Tibet.”  Look, I understand that there is oppression in the far east and horrible things happen but if you live in San Francisco and are not an immigrant from that part of the country, why do you care?  Seriously.  Why are you taking time out of your life to protest something that has absolutely no impact on your life?  How does freeing Tibet make your tie-dye wearing, pot smoking, no showering, guitar playing lives any better?  They had to shut down the 101 today because of all this crap!  I’m sure people trying to get home or trying to get to work were thrilled on the road today.  Like I said before, I’m all for human rights and equality, but you know what?  I live here, in Sacramento, in America where things matter to me and affect my life.  I don’t mean to sound insensitive to people suffering abroad and this could very well make me sound like a “typical American” who only cares about himself but guess what?  Putting a sign up on the Golden Gate Bridge isn’t going to do jack crap.  I’m sorry I have to be the one to say it, that crap doesn’t work.
If this is such an important issue to hippies and protestors, why hasn’t this issue been protested with this intensity in the past?  How convenient that the Olympics, an event that’s supposed to bring the world together for two weeks, have been turned into a political debacle.  Remember when Olympic protesting and taking a stand actually meant something?  In 1936 Adolph Hitler had to stare Jessie Owens in the eye while he put the gold medal around his neck.  Mexico City, 1968:  Tommie Smith and John Carlos taking their shoes off and raising their fists in the air in an act of support for the civil rights movement in America.  THOSE were political statements.  You don’t have to run around like an idiot in the streets and cause violence to prove a point.  Again, how does it make your life better if Tibet is freed hippies?  I’m extremely eager to hear an answer.  

The Olympics are supposed to be a celebration of the highest form of athletic competition.  It’s a chance for these athletes to prove to the world that what they’ve worked so hard for is worth the struggle.  The Olympics are supposed to inspire us, and make us proud of country.  The fact that protestors and hippies want to bitch and moan about something that has nothing to do with them and doesn’t affect their lives what-so-ever, undermines the athletes all over the world.  Again, where were you guys before the Olympics?  You couldn’t have picked a different time to protest?  I know since the Olympics are coming up you need to have all the attention and coverage you need to get your point across but honestly, you make me sick and you make me ashamed to call you a fellow countryman, not because you want to stand up for human rights, but because you just flat out don’t get it.  You’re selfish for stealing the spotlight from the athletes, you think that by writing a sign people on the other side of the world will care about what you have to say, and most importantly you’re so concerned about what happens in China that you don’t think about bettering this country, and even, your own lives.  

All the protesting you do doesn’t matter to me.  If you feel like you’re meant for a life of helping people, by all means go for it.  I applaud you for your selflessness, but when you make yourself bigger than the actual cause, shame on you.  You don’t give a damn about what happens in Tibet and you know it.  So while you’re all wasting my time and disrupting traffic on the 101, I’ll be paying attention to what the Olympics are actually for, seeing dreams come true.