Canadian and American Olympic broadcasts lash out against the IOC

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Both CTV and NBC had choice words for the International Olympic Committee when Israeli athletes walked into the Olympic stadium during the opening ceremonies of the XXX Olympiad.

From CTV:

Brian Williams: And as Israel prepares, my position is well known and it is one that I have taken in previous Olympics. It is wrong that the IOC refuses to have a minute’s silence for the Israeli athletes that were slaughtered in Munich. It is a much bigger issue this year, as it’s the 40th anniversary of Munich. Members of the Canadian government, yesterday our Governor General, all calling for a moment’s silence. Dr. Rogge says the ceremony is not the place to remember a tragic event, but – it’s tragic – however it’s one of the most significant and world-changing events in Olympic history. It absolutely should have been done here. The IOC worries about politics? This event is political by its very nature.
 
Lisa LaFlamme: The widow of one of the victims spoke out saying ‘they came with dreams, they went home in coffins.’ They want to be remembered here tonight.
 
Brian Williams: And remember – they died as Olympians.

NBC:

Bob Costas: There have been calls from a number of quarters for the IOC to acknowledge that, with a moment of silence at some point in tonight’s ceremony. The IOC denied that request, noting it had honored the victims on other occasions. And in fact, this week (IOC president) Jacques Rogge led a moment of silence before about 100 people in the Athletes’ Village. Still, for many, tonight, with the world watching, is the true time and place to remember those who were lost, and how they died.

While the IOC refuses to recognize the murder of Olympic athletes, it does what it can to satiate the same type of hatred,

London 2012 organising committee officials erected a makeshift curtain to split the two halves of a training gym at the ExCeL centre on Friday afternoon to placate the Lebanese team, which was refusing to train at the same time as the Israelis.
 
Earlier officials from another country, Iran, said they would compete against Israel but that view has since been contradicted by officials in Tehran.

Jul 28
July 28th, 2012 9 Comments Other
  • http://twitter.com/Syncrodox Lloyd S

    Self-juxtaposition..?..self-juxtaposing..?

  • http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1005816532 Mark Watson

    I suspect that the good Dr Rugge is speaking on behalf of many who still – STILL! – harbor anti-Semitic feelings, whether he realizes it or not. Many Muslims and Europeans are still holding to the attitudes that allowed the Holocaust to take place. Should we be surprised by the willful blindness now?

  • http://www.facebook.com/people/Robert-Connon/552881180 Robert Connon

    More of what the BS “5 ring circus ” organized by the high and mighty ( in their own minds ) for THEIR own pleasure and ego and funded by the lowly tax paying peons.

  • E Mac

    And well they should.
    It is shameful that they were not given a short-period of silence in remembrance.
    Nothing politically correct about this unforgivable stunt.

  • Nicola Timmerman

    Well they had time for some tribute to deceased family members of Olympic athletes or some such category yesterday with photos of all these people which were sent in, plus a sort of hymn that was sung for five minutes or so.

  • Alain

    To have caved in to Muslim pressure on this is disgusting. What I find equally disgusting is allowing them to get away with refusing to compete against Israeli athletes or to train at the same time as them. If a country is unwilling to compete openly with the others there, it should be barred from competing.

  • Anonymous

    There is NO level of Olympic “politicking” that will satisfy everyone. Dr Rogge is correct to push back on the request to make yet another public acknowledgement of a 40-year-old tragedy, as he is also correct to push back on the myriad other demands for special action and treatment from other nations that the IOC must receive by the bushel.

    The Olympic ideal is supposed to be that nations put aside their differences every 4 years and get together to let individuals and teams compete honestly, to the best of their (undoped) abilities, and to celebrate human achievement. Based on this ideal, there is only one 100% acceptable level of political accommodations, and that is zero. Anything other than that is imperfect.

    I went looking for something official that describes the Olympic ideal, and found this instead. I think it’s much more on-point.

  • Anonymous

    While the IOC refuses to recognize the murder of Olympic athletes, it does what it can to satiate the same type of hatred…

    Um, Israel and Lebanon were at war in, like, 2006. Installing a curtain is “satiating hate”? Really?

  • DougM

    Politically incorrect or not, the memory of the Athletes has been overshadowed by the current Israeli governments actions. It may not be fair, but like ti or not governments set a tone. Israel is in direct violation of the 4th Geneva convention, the International Court of Justice and numberous UN resolutions from UNR 242 onwards. They kill Palestinians on almost a daily basis and killed some 700 women and children non-combatants in Operation Cast Lead. They are a nuclear armed regional superpower, occupying and stealing land beyond their borders and complaining they are being attacked (which they are) by home made rockets and AK47s while the blast built up areas with Helicopter gunships. How the hell could any Olympic administration honour the dead athletes and not get caught up in a very justifiable outrage over the dead the Israelis now leave around with less compuction than their sheep?

    We are told that its the Muslim’s who are lunatics (and some of them are) but we forget that there isn’t a lot of room between Islamic nutbars and Jewish ones http://alethonews.wordpress.com/2010/10/18/major-rabbi-says-non-jews-are-donkeys-created-to-serve-jews/

    Even Jews of conscience like Norman Finkelstein have begun admitting the truth, the Israel used the “Peace Process” to gain more land and they never, according to Rabin himself, had any intent of granting peace. http://www.normanfinkelstein.com/

    Isn’t it funny? We went to war when Germany invaded Poland, we went to war when North Korea invaded the South, we went to war when Serbia invaded Kosovo and we went to war when Iraq invaded Kuwait, but 60 years after the Israelis are occupying land beyond their borders, we first object to the Palestinian’s resisting that occupation (the French resistance of course were heros, ditto the Jew of the Wassaw Ghetto) by using force to eject a government stealing their land and killing their people, and then we have the chutzpah to criticise them for using the UN to gain recognition to allow them to take legal action.

    The one unequivical stain on this governments record will be that it has been the first time that Canada has stood firmly on the side of occupation and suppression of a people seeking only what international law and self determination automatically grants them under Human rights legislation. Oh well, they’re only Arabs…. Wonder why they don’t like us – aren’t we Canadians “nice”?

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MrQOOyoCeG0