Beijing and All That

And so, my friends, we've come to the end of the worst Winter Olympics in my lifetime, and possibly yours.  As I type this, it's after midnight in China, which means the 2022 Beijing Winter Games are over.  Now all that's left over are . . . the leftovers, the tape-delayed final events that NBC hasn't aired yet.

While NBC gets a wag of the finger for its coverage and the Russian figure skating coaches get the same for the way they treated that poor girl Kamila Valieva, the hosts - the Chinese Communist Party - get slaps in their faces for infecting the Olympic spirit with severe acute China syndrome.  

China, you're in distress.

It's not just for COVID.  Its for the suppression and the monitoring of activity among not just its citizens but among its guests, the Olympic athletes, and for pretending to let the members of the International Olympic Committee think they were running the show.

And also, a slap in the face for the International Olympic Committee.  Being duped by Commies doesn't make you a martyr; it just means you're as incompetent at running the Olympic movement as Xi Jinping is ruthless at running China.

No doubt about it, this Winter Olympiad was the Sgt. Pepper movie of sporting events - elaborately staged and very expensive but just as pointless and, well, stupid-looking.

Go ask Alice. 

 

Why am I bringing up that 1978 cinematic disaster here?  Watch this space!

All right, on to Cortina d'Ampezzo and Milan for 2026.