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Moved 2022 before its to late.


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17 hours ago, REDWHITEBLUE24 said:

But if they did ban a country and the IOC was seen to be even indifferent to that then country banned would surely withdraw from the IOC in protest.  

Most recent precedent for that is 1976, in the week before the Games started, the Republic of China was banned by the Canadian Government from competing under that name, and no ROC athlete would be admitted to Canada if they held an ROC passport.  IOC protested and threatened to cancel the Games and for a short time, USOC threatened a last-minute boycott if Canada didn't relent (as they had guaranteed any IOC member in good standing could compete).  Well, in the end IOC capitulates, USOC backs off and Canada gets its way, although they did agree to allow ROC flag and anthem, just not the name.  So, ROC pouts, sticks its tongue out and withdraws from 1976 Games, and nobody cares. And no one cared in 1980 when ROC continues its petulant stance.  By then it was more the case that IOC wants PRC in and they of course said we won't join until ROC is out.  

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I don't think China will be banning any countries from competing in the Winter Olympics, regardless of which vaccines their government has approved or not approved to date.  It would be an incredibly bad look for them for a variety of reasons.

1) The virus did originate in China, so there are plenty of people who would be outraged and give the PRC major side-eye at any decision to ban athletes from countries struggling to come to grips with additional waves next fall/winter.

2) Which countries are they likely to ban?  Most winter sports athletes from warm-weather nations have permanent training bases in places like the US, Canada or Europe - they're going to have access to the truly effective vaccines from Pfizer, Moderna, AZ and J&J before the end of summer if they don't already, and China's not going to challenge the efficacy of those vaccines even if they aren't approved for use in China itself.  Who is left?  Russia and other countries with closer ties to Russia than western Europe who are using Sputnik V?  Again, that vaccine's efficacy seems to be at least as good if not better than both Sinopharm and Sinovac.  China's not going to ban any of the major winter sports nations without people thinking, cynically, that China's just trying to improve its own medal chances.  

3) If anything, China is going to look at this as an opportunity for the world to truly emerge from, by then, 2+ years of global pandemic, especially since there won't be any overseas spectators in Tokyo and there might not be any spectators at all.  They are going to bend over backwards to make sure that any and all nations that want to participate are there.

Having said all that - I've felt for the better part of the last year that the IOC should have moved these Winter Olympics from Beijing.  China doesn't deserve to have the opportunity to look good around the world - not after the pandemic and the human rights abuses - notice how this really got the annihilation of Hong Kong's Basic Law out of the headlines.

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43 minutes ago, Karenina said:

I don't think China will be banning any countries from competing in the Winter Olympics, regardless of which vaccines their government has approved or not approved to date.  It would be an incredibly bad look for them for a variety of reasons.

Having said all that - I've felt for the better part of the last year that the IOC should have moved these Winter Olympics from Beijing.  China doesn't deserve to have the opportunity to look good around the world - not after the pandemic and the human rights abuses - notice how this really got the annihilation of Hong Kong's Basic Law out of the headlines.

There is ZERO chance of it happening, so let's not feed the troll and give the dumb idea and creedence.

As for the last paragraph.. you're clearly in the right thread.  Yes, they should have, but similar to FIFA with a World Cup in Qatar, it was never going to get moved.  No way the IOC was going to pull the trigger on that

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5 hours ago, REDWHITEBLUE24 said:

The new evidence pointing to a leak causing Covid makes it harder for the Pelosi/Romney diplomatic boycott line to hold. Feels more likely a total boycott will happen.

I doubt anyone feels that but you.  Calls are not growing.  They're just making headlines this week because Pelosi's name entered the conversation.  A total boycott is probably no more likely or less likely to happen now than it was a week ago

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This feels more important. Looks like the US Hiuse might have bipartisan support for a total boycott. https://www.ucanews.com/news/us-mulls-2022-winter-olympics-boycott-over-china-rights-record/92566
 

A US congressional panel has weighed the possibility of a boycott of the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing to call attention to China's long-standing human rights abuses.

Another tactic discussed was to find an alternate site to host the Winter Games. Sites floated included Salt Lake City; Vancouver, British Columbia; and Lake Placid, New York -- the sites of the 2002, 2010 and 1980 Winter Games respectively.

"If we can delay an Olympics for a year because of a pandemic, surely we can delay the Olympics for a year because of a genocide," said Rep. Jim McGovern, D-Mass., co-chair of the Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission, which sponsored the hearing along with the Congressional-Executive Commission on China.

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2 hours ago, REDWHITEBLUE24 said:

This feels more important. Looks like the US Hiuse might have bipartisan support for a total boycott. https://www.ucanews.com/news/us-mulls-2022-winter-olympics-boycott-over-china-rights-record/92566

On the surface maybe, but reading through it, it's the same nonsensical arguments we've been seeing for awhile now.  The Tokyo games were delayed so let's talk about delaying Beijing as well?  And who exactly is "we" in that conversation?  It goes without saying an alternate site at this point is not going to happen and any talk of it is purely a waste of oxygen. 

The IOC and China make the decision as to where and when the Olympics are held.  No one else.  What a country like the United States wants to do with that information is up to them.  But again, as we've said many times over here, they can't so easily speak for the USOPC.  They can pressure politicians and can certainly pressure sponsors, but they do not have the ultimate authority to force the athletes to boycott (unless they want to do something really sleazy about it).

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On 5/25/2021 at 5:39 PM, Quaker2001 said:

On the surface maybe, but reading through it, it's the same nonsensical arguments we've been seeing for awhile now.  The Tokyo games were delayed so let's talk about delaying Beijing as well?  And who exactly is "we" in that conversation?  It goes without saying an alternate site at this point is not going to happen and any talk of it is purely a waste of oxygen. 

The IOC and China make the decision as to where and when the Olympics are held.  No one else.  What a country like the United States wants to do with that information is up to them.  But again, as we've said many times over here, they can't so easily speak for the USOPC.  They can pressure politicians and can certainly pressure sponsors, but they do not have the ultimate authority to force the athletes to boycott (unless they want to do something really sleazy about it).

A ban on US citizens going to China would be something they could do but the likelihood is USOPC would fold and agree to boycott under the resulting pressure. 

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On 5/25/2021 at 7:13 AM, REDWHITEBLUE24 said:

Smith later said "a so-called diplomatic boycott is weak and in no way penalizes Xi Jinping and the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) for the heinous crime of genocide."

It's not just that. An Olympic boycott would play right into the CCP's narrative that the USA is merely angry with China for surpassing it as the most powerful country in the world, instead of being genuinely concerned about China's behavior.

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2 hours ago, Nacre said:

It's not just that. An Olympic boycott would play right into the CCP's narrative that the USA is merely angry with China for surpassing it as the most powerful country in the world, instead of being genuinely concerned about China's behavior.

Let's be real. The US political elite care far more about China's rise than the Uyghurs so this really isn't a false narrative pushed by the CCP.

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https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/lawmakers-propose-ban-on-firms-backing-beijing-games/ar-AAKs9CK?li=BBnbcA1

 

The proposal goes much further than what Republican and Democratic leaders in the House have proposed, but it is a sign of the broad bipartisan frustration in Congress over China’s behavior on a range of issues from human rights in the Xinjiang region to transparency over the origins of the Covid-19 pandemic.

“Hitting their bottom lines seems to be the only thing that will ultimately get their attention,” said Republican Representative Mike Waltz from Florida, who is sponsoring the bill. “And they’re either going to do business with the federal government or continue to sponsor these games. But we’re going to make them choose.”

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The legislation being introduced Friday directs the heads of executive agencies and the defense secretary not to enter into contracts with companies or people who have “business operations with the Beijing Organizing Committee for the 2022 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games or the International Olympic Committee.” It wouldn’t apply to contracts the secretaries of State or Defense determine to be in the interest of national security.

The ban would be lifted if companies withdraw their support from the Games, which are scheduled to begin Feb. 4.

“This section shall not apply with respect to a person that terminates business operations with the Beijing Organising Committee for the 2022 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games or the International Olympic Committee within 30 days after the date of the enactment of this section,” according to the legislation.

If passed by Congress and signed by the president, the practical effect of the law would be to ban products produced by those companies from being sold in federal buildings or installations, parks and military bases -- anywhere the federal government enters into contracts with vendors to provide services.

Some of the major partners of the 2022 Games include Coca-Cola Co., Intel Corp., Proctor & Gamble Co. and Visa Inc., according to the Beijing 2022 website.

Pelosi Calls for a ‘Diplomatic Boycott’ of the Beijing Olympics

Criticism of the decision to hold the games in Beijing has been growing in Congress. In recent weeks, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has endorsed a proposal first raised in the Senate for a diplomatic boycott of the event, in which athletes and coaches could attend and compete but the U.S. would send no official delegation of government leaders.

Language calling on the Biden administration to take that step has been added to a large package of China-related legislation that is moving through the Senate.

(Updates with additional details from the bill beginning in the eighth paragraph. An earlier version of this story was corrected to remove GE from the list of corporate sponsors of the 2022 Olympics.)

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Since it is a huge annoyance for even an American city to host the President, I am not sure that others countries will be in any way disappointed if the US government declines to attend the Olympics. It is the equivalent of trying to punish someone by giving them free candy.

On 5/26/2021 at 3:39 PM, ulu said:

Let's be real. The US political elite care far more about China's rise than the Uyghurs so this really isn't a false narrative pushed by the CCP.

I don't disagree. But the common people that vote for those politicians do care about Tibetans and Uighurs, and mostly do not believe or understand that China has surpassed us as the most powerful country in the world.

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2 hours ago, Nacre said:

Since it is a huge annoyance for even an American city to host the President, I am not sure that others countries will be in any way disappointed if the US government declines to attend the Olympics. It is the equivalent of trying to punish someone by giving them free candy.

Pretty sure every country hosting the Olympics wants dignitaries from other countries to attend.  Or else the question will be asked "why did their dignitaries not attend."  Particularly in this case where it will be a very clear political statement.

2 hours ago, Nacre said:

I don't disagree. But the common people that vote for those politicians do care about Tibetans and Uighurs, and mostly do not believe or understand that China has surpassed us as the most powerful country in the world.

Who in this country actually cares about the Tibetans and the Uighurs?  Probably not that many.  This is about the American mindset that we are the preeminent world super-power and we're worried that we could lose that title to China.  That's why we're pushing back against it and why we're siding with those who oppress China.  While conveniently forgetting much of our own history

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1 hour ago, Quaker2001 said:

 

Who in this country actually cares about the Tibetans and the Uighurs?  Probably not that many.  This is about the American mindset that we are the preeminent world super-power and we're worried that we could lose that title to China.  That's why we're pushing back against it and why we're siding with those who oppress China.  While conveniently forgetting much of our own history

Not just history, present too. Stopping people from participating in democratic elections is a trademark of both CCP and GOP. That’s why it is so easy for China nowadays, they know exactly about all this hypocrisy, and let’s face it: Biden can’t singlehandedly  change America if half of it votes for people like this Marjorie woman or of course the Orange Man.

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