The Olympics bore me. I haven’t been excited about them since I was a kid. A lot
of that has to do with the detritus that grows every four years – the list of sports
nobody really cares about. I think IOC should wipe the slate clean and start from
scratch. Do we really need synchronized swimming, for instance? That may be an art
form to someone, but it’s not a sport. Neither is ballroom dancing. There’s talk
of making “dance sport” an Olympic event. I’ve done ballroom dancing before.
It’s art, not sport. Anyhow, room should be made for popular competitive sports,
such as ultimate frisbee. The sad thing is, with the number of events currently
bloating the Games, if ultimate was added, it’d probably be broadcast at 4 AM. *sigh*
One more thing: Ban professionals from the Games!!! “Amateur” comes
from Latin for “lover”, i.e. an amateur one who plays for the love of
the game. That’s who should be competing in the Games, not a bunch of spoiled millionaires.

All of that ranting was actually a digression. My original gripe started with this
BoingBoing article. The basic gist is that the Olympics were a huge ratings
and advertising success, so you’d think the networks would jump at the chance to
put on a similar spectacle. You’d be wrong. The Paralympics will not be aired on
American television. No offense to Olympic athletes, but I think handicapped athletes
are far more impressive and worth my viewing time and applause. It’s a shame that
Americans won’t get to see some real winners. I’m not talking about winning gold
medals. I’m talking about overcoming adversity and thriving in the face of it.