By now you will have been inundated with the Olympics coverage.
You maybe have your own views of this man, who frankly politics aside is now high in my little book of hate. Mitt Romney came here, shit all over his home country’s Olympics, and then gleefully took part in watching the Opening Ceremony (I think he should have been banned, but hey ho). I’m not addressing his politics or agenda, mind. I’m talking about his behavior as a visitor to a country he came here and insulted.
Lots of people are. I’ve seen on Facebook the negative spin that some American media outlets are putting on the Olympics. To which I am taking to my blog to say this:
Stop taking the piss out of our Games.
I loved the Opening Ceremony. NHS? I’m a fan – they saved my life, they saved the lives of my children and they continue to provide for this family. GOSH? They checked out my daughter’s heart and made sure she was ok. They save children’s lives every day. I’m a fan. Children’s literature? I’m a fan. The agricultural and industrial revolution and a walk through British culture? I’m a fan. The most amazing Olympic torch I’ve ever seen lit by seven athletic hopefuls? I’m a fan. Hell, men on bicycles with flying wings? I’m a fan. There is nothing to not love there.
And Danny Boyle using Blade Runner (one of my top favorite films of all time) images in his Opening?
Total fan.
I started out against the Olympics. Whole-heartedly. I thought it would cost too much (it has), create a series of structures we would struggle to use moving forward (which we might) and be a hideous inconvenience to the British public (it is). And then a funny thing happened – we had a recession. Then another one. The country is crippled by high costs and high unemployment and frozen pay. And we needed something to help us forget the money woes, the crumbling Eurozone, the state of our lifeless bank accounts and the infrastructure which has been choked from budget cuts.
The Diamond Jubilee came, and behind it the Olympics.
And it was enough to start to blow the cobwebs out of our heads and hearts.
Further for me, my husband started working with the Games a few years back. He and his team have worked incredibly long hours under huge duress to get things ready. It’s at no small cost – I’m one of a number of women holding a household up while their husbands create an environment we can all be proud of. One of Alastair’s team died of a heart attack at work, due to stress. They are working so hard to make it right, my husband and tens of thousands of others.
So I take umbrage at critics who want to have a go at the London 2012 Games. We need them. We need the diversion, the cheering, the hope, the razzle dazzle of distraction. We need it. For people like Alastair, they’ve earned it.
Nothing is perfect.
The London 2012 Olympics aren’t far off.
Close your eyes and just believe, just this once.
-S.
I LOVED the opening ceremony. Loved it. Showcased the best of Britain – I say that as an Irish person. And as a tweet I saw today, if the ceremony cost about £1 per British viewer, then it was money well spent.
I know politics isn’t your thing and U.S politics in particular, and personally I am no fam of Mr. Romney’s, but I have to respond to your criticism. The issues Mr. Romney noted were areas of concern that had been mentioned in the British press in the run-up to the games. That there were potential problems is hardly suprising and unique to to the London games.
Romney was speaking from experience that was based on being brought in to rescue the Salt Lake City games that had been badly bungled by the people who had been put in charge. He well understands that in a endeavor of this scope not everything is going to be perfect. And so far I have yet to see anyone dispute the facts of his comments, just complain that it wasn’t nice for him to make them.
He was aksed a question and he answered factuallly and whith his honest opinion. It’s a shame that has to be considered a mistake.
Shannon, I share your views re: Romney’s comments. They were rude and ill considered. His remarks are especially troubling since his visit was intended to demonstrate his foreign policy acumen and skills. That he managed to irritate our closest friend and ally is such short order is botheresome.
The opening was simply the best and most moving tribute possible. A short history of England and her contributions to the world. The torch lighting and it’s symbolism was to me the spirit of the Olympics.
The NHS may not be the perfect model for the US but it does demonstrate universal quality health care coverage is possible and fair.
Stephen, I beg to differ with you. His remarks demonstrates a lack of understanding.
I don’t know enough about Mitt Romney’s turning around of the Salt Lake Olympics, but addressing the facts is easier by saying thus: He’s not here. He doesn’t live here. He may have aides, he may have wikipedia, heck he may get his news from the USA Today that is stuffed under his hotel room door. If he’s not here, it strikes me as incredible that he believes he has some magic insight that he needs to share. His comments themselves were vague and non-nonsensical (I thought) and statesman/leader should be more exact about his issues (I believe). But broader than that, my real issue is that he said them. Where was the diplomacy? Where was the tact? I do believe he made a mistake, though, in even bringing up his concerns.
You don’t fly into someone’s country clutching the equivalent of a Golden Ticket (and the Opening Ceremony’s tickets really were golden colored) and then shit all over your hosts and question their ability to pull it off. My impression was that he was hoping the entire British nation would go “Really Mitt? You’re worried? Well, you are an ace businessman and are completely perfect please, please tell us how to better fix it!” You don’t turn up at your hosts’ home and say “Oh you made quiche? I made quiche ten years ago. I hope you don’t fuck it up, I have reservations on how you’re doing so far.”
On the eve of a nation’s culmination of many years’ of work, you don’t kick the knees out from under them.
I don’t disagree with your comment, Stephen, and I (honestly) applaud the open way you wrote it (no really. No sarcasm there, I thought it was considerate and not a bit flame throw-y, which I am grateful for).
Right on Shannon.
His opinion may have been right, but then was not the time to share it. It was Diplomacy (hell, simple *politeness*) 101, and he failed it.
I’m not going to discuss politics or potential presidents. I blame media for the focus on the negative. In a world with so much negativity do we really need to hear about mean tweets, cruel Facebook comments, and potential presidents who tend to put their foot in mouth far too often?
I will say I love the Olympics. I loved the opening ceremony. I’ll be sad it’s over when it closes. I choose not to cloud my awe of the many hearts it takes to put something so grand together and the many hours of dedication to sport and good will these athletes put in to get themselves on this stage. Every one of them has a story and many are inspirational and remarkable. To me this things are what is AMAZING and where the focus should be.
Thank you Alastair, Shannon, the Families and the tens of thousands who have made sacrifice so that we, the world, can enjoy 10 days of history being made in the world of sport. Thank You!
I missed the opening ceremony, because I was too busy drinking. I am a bit miffed of the coverage on NBC, though, and I’ll use your blog to say it (you know, since you put it out there). They censor shit left and right, and it’s annoying. This isn’t the fault of your country. This is just American media being American media. They’re assholes. I have nothing with the way the British are doing the Olympics, nor am I sucker in the dirt because we didn’t get to host, which could be said for others (Hell, I boycott winter Olympics, because I have no business liking anyone on skis, and don’t even get me started on professional sweeping). I can imagine that even with the huge inconvenience it’s causing, it’s also bringing camaraderie, which is never a bad thing.
What I saw of the opening ceremonies was pretty damn impressive. My daughter complained about watching it, then was enthralled, and then switched to a different channel.
I keep noting that Romney is a clown…or rather, he says clownish things. I would have thought he’d know better. Sigh.
Tell Alastair I think he did a great job (seriously, I was going to email yout that while I was watching the Opening on TV, but I thought that might be a bit too stalker-y).
And touching on someone’s comment on yourlast post, will you talk about the rehearsal now?
We loved it. My 7 year old Godson came over we made Olympic pancakes (a small egg ring in a larger egg ring makes perfect Olympic rings) and I will remember the look on his face as the Queen jumped out of the helicopter (“she’s doing it…she’s REALLY DOING IT”) until the day I die.
Add that to the picture my sister sent of my neices in Outback Queensland wearing bathers over leggings (to allow them to look like gymnasts!!) and riding their bikes with paper stuck on their arms (to best emulate the birds in the opening ceremony) and I would say it was a wholehearted success.
Who cares what some upper class Yank thinks?
I will state first that I love the Olympics overall. And I think Mitt is an idiot, full stop.
Where I’m confused in this whole thread is what is the US media doing to put a negative spin on them? I’m genuinely asking – by nature I’m a sarcastic, cynical person and can see through almost anything. But all I see in coverage is coverage of events, go team! And I’ve watched a lot of coverage because I just love all the different sports out there that never get any air time. And I’m showing my 7 year old all the other things out there apart from the handful of sports we hear about all the time. And now all he can talk about is how he wants to excel in swimming and go to London.
So I’m definately a fan. And I really am curious to know what the US media is doing to shit on the Olympics – I’m seriously interested.
I didn’t watch the first part of the opening ceremony yet – i have it recorded, and I saw the whole parade and lighting of the torch which was cool. I mean to go back and see the first part, but damn life keeps getting in the way.
I liked it well enough – I’m very stingy with my praise of these things. I think it’s because I’m a perfectionist. The industrial era thing? Loved it. Musically bright, amazing costumes and characters, and everybody moving in synch. I like precision. I do not like agrarian sprawl. I am also a little pissed that we didn’t get castles and pointy hats and King Arthur, because I love a good medieval faire. The thing with the technology whatsies wasn’t my thing, either, but the NHS/GOSH? Hell yeah. I took it as a big, smirking middle finger to the US system and I relished it. And the dancing docs and nurses delighted me. We will not speak of the puppets. I do not like puppets. Puppets frighten me.
As for Mitt, you Brits think you’re so smart with “Mitt the Twit,” but back in Boston, he’s been Mitt the Shit for years. And Fee-Fee. And Mittens. And in my head, Mittenshit. What he said, right or wrong, was a gaffe because as you said, you do not go to your best friend’s house where they’ve worked for days on a fabulous meal and then insult them. Even if their souffle looks like crap, you smile and thank them, and then you go to your second best friend’s house and are polite to their neighbors on the way in and don’t mention the tree over which they have a land dispute.
D – you just made my day…. “mittenshit”?!…. still laughing!!
I had only ONE complaint about the opening ceremony. Dr Who needed more focus. Mr Bean – I loved. The rest of it – whatever – I thought it was great. No, it wasn’t Beijing, but it didn’t have the budget to be, and who really expected it to be? I thought it was great.
(But I will admit, the bike-glowy-moth things kind of made me go…um…oooohhh, pretty…but wth?)
I liked the opening ceremony for the most parts. I loved it Mr. Bean and when J.K. Rowling read out loud from Peter Pan and I loved when all the Mary Poppins fought Voldemort and co. :) I LOVED the the Olympic torch (gorgeous!) and the fact that it was lit with young upcoming athletes. :)
I sit glued to the TV during the whole 2 weeks of the Olympics; watching sports I’d never give a minute to during the down times. I love gymnastics and diving and I get chills watching both. How anyone can trash that, I’ll never know.
Tracy; they were doves and were used instead of releasing live doves (an Olympic tradition).
See: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/olympics/london-2012/9434411/Opening-Ceremony-The-secrets-behind-the-dove-bikes-a-speedometer-and-a-blackout-zone-for-any-breakdowns.html
for more info
Flikka – thank you. It makes MUCH more sense now. I admit I was paying attention off and on (as one does when trying to get a 3-year-old to bed peacefully), and had NO idea.
I’ve been in hospital having a baby and I am devastated that I haven’t been able to see a single bit of Olympics coverage! I adore the Olympics and hope they replay the opening ceremony at some point.
Veronica—maybe there’s a way for you to get a download or somesuch. I know that in the US, NBC has a number of the opening ceremonies for sale from varying years, but I’m not interested in purchasing them unless I can verify that they are a) complete and b) without the idiot commentary NBC does. Maybe the BBC will have a DVD for sale.