Jump to content

Recommended Posts

^^ The catastrophe which were the Tokyo ceremonies, which left many people starving for a good show.

Lets face it, it feels like since 2018 we haven't had an actual Olympic ceremony (excluding the paralympics on which at least they did what they could considering the restrictions and low budget but it didn't suffered of development hell), and the fact Yimou is involved reignited the interests of many here since the 2008 ceremonies are still considered one of the best ever.

Don't get me wrong, most of us in this board don't support the CCP and the fact the IOC keeps bowing down to them (i still don't buy what the OBS guy said about this ceremony being on par with 2008's....), but I think one can still watch and appreciate things putting politics aside (also, in order to appreciate chinese culture which is worldwide and not strictly associated to a political form). Its not like i'm going to become a Winnie the Pooh fanboy after watching it.

I mean, as long as i'm not paying a single cent of my pocket to watch it...if i gave a single penny then that would be a problem. Then again, we're all already giving pennies to the CCP anyway, thanks to the West naivety into moving all outsourcing industries over there out of pure greediness.

  • Like 1
  • Thanks 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Everyone is entitled to respectfully express their opinion on gamesbids.com on the topic of that thread.

While I am reluctant to bring up politics in an Olympic fan blog such as gamesbids.com, I do need to respond to your previous post Sir Rols.  

Firstly, with the world gripped in a once-in-a-100-years pandemic, it is absolutely ok for all of us to lift our spirits by watching Olympics, sports, ceremonies, shows, movies, music or whatever we enjoy doing in our own time.  Goodness knows, the mental health of many around the world has taken a hit during these past two years of the pandemic.  Our worlds have been turned upside down.

Secondly, Gamesbids.com is not a political platform and anyone reading this should not feel guilty watching the Beijing Olympics and Ceremonies.  

Like many, I personally do not/did not like nor agree with the politics nor the practices of the national government in which several Olympic Games have been held in 2022, 2016, 2014, 2008, 1980 as examples.

I still watched the Opening Ceremonies of those Games and the sporting contests which followed.

But I am like many as an Olympics and Ceremonies and big shows/events fan am able to separate and recognise that the creative teams of the Opening Ceremonies are not the national governments.

The Opening Ceremony creative group including directors, technicians, artists, musicians, volunteers, performers, etc  just put together an entertainment and ceremonial show to open or close an Olympics.

This is just my opinion but it is entirely possible to watch an Olympics ceremonies and events put together by a creative team while at the same time strongly disagreeing with the policies or practices of the national government of that country, including that of these coming Winter Games.

The same goes for big shows or events like the Superbowl for instance.  I loved watching the Superbowls and Half-Time Shows from 2017 to 2020.

At the same time, I personally separately detested that poor excuse for a human being sitting in the oval office during that period.

I’m am sorry that politics of the national government of China have suddenly been linked somehow to Olympic Ceremonies fans on gamesbids.com looking forward to watching the upcoming ceremonies.  

So I say again, it is absolutely ok to watch Beijing 2022 Ceremonies and the coming sporting contests and achievements.

Politics is for a different platform - not Gamesbids.com.  That’s how I see it anyway.

Sir Rols, how you express your political opinions is respectfully up to you.  I would suggest thought that this gamebids thread is not the place for a political protest or making assumptions about the views of others.

There are other avenues and platforms for political passion and action.    But again, I suggest that gamesbids.com is not one of them.

  • Thanks 1
  • Haha 1
  • Sad 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Right from IOC PR School there again.

I‘ll (un)happily join Sir Rols rather and only try to enjoy some athletic achievements as long as they‘re not done by cheating. 
 

The rest is a despicable farce and no pandemic starving us from enjoyment can excuse or deny that.

  • Thanks 1
  • Confused 1
  • Sad 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Most ceremonies are a farce anyway, as they're an idealized view of the host country/city most of the time.

It was only until recently when we had ceremonies like Rio which actually addressed global concerns and didn't shied away from depicting the poor areas of Brazil (even though the reality was a lot of favelas were being walled during the Olympics) as well for other urban subcultures.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

9 minutes ago, StefanMUC said:

Right from IOC PR School there again.

I‘ll (un)happily join Sir Rols rather and only try to enjoy some athletic achievements as long as they‘re not done by cheating. 

The rest is a despicable farce and no pandemic starving us from enjoyment can excuse or deny that.

Thankyou for telling us that you are not going to watch the Opening Ceremony.

Thankyou also for telling us that you are going to watch the sporting events.

I honestly don’t see the point of you sharing that you are going to watch one but not the other (?).  Makes no sense at all, but respectfully, that’s entirely up to you.

I’ll watch both while knowing that neither the Opening Ceremony Team nor the Athletes have anything to do with the politics and actions of the government of China.

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

4 hours ago, Ikarus360 said:

Most ceremonies are a farce anyway, as they're an idealized view of the host country/city most of the time.

It was only until recently when we had ceremonies like Rio which actually addressed global concerns and didn't shied away from depicting the poor areas of Brazil (even though the reality was a lot of favelas were being walled during the Olympics) as well for other urban subcultures.

There can be enjoyable farce and there can be totalitarian propaganda farce though.

 

  • Thanks 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

5 hours ago, AustralianFan said:

Everyone is entitled to respectfully express their opinion on gamesbids.com on the topic of that thread.

That's so kind of you. :rolleyes:

5 hours ago, AustralianFan said:

Firstly, with the world gripped in a once-in-a-100-years pandemic, it is absolutely ok for all of us to lift our spirits by watching Olympics, sports, ceremonies, shows, movies, music or whatever we enjoy doing in our own time.  Goodness knows, the mental health of many around the world has taken a hit during these past two years of the pandemic.  Our worlds have been turned upside down.

I guess that's the difference between living in a democracy VS not living in one. 

5 hours ago, AustralianFan said:

Secondly, Gamesbids.com is not a political platform and anyone reading this should not feel guilty watching the Beijing Olympics and Ceremonies.  

I don't feel guilty, but certainly feel that these winter Games are now tainted. This certainly won't be the big hoopla spectacle that 2008 was, no matter how much spin the current ceremonial people put on it. 

5 hours ago, AustralianFan said:

This is just my opinion but it is entirely possible to watch an Olympics ceremonies and events put together by a creative team while at the same time strongly disagreeing with the policies or practices of the national government of that country, including that of these coming Winter Games.

The same goes for big shows or events like the Superbowl for instance.  I loved watching the Superbowls and Half-Time Shows from 2017 to 2020.

At the same time, I personally separately detested that poor excuse for a human being sitting in the oval office during that period.

:lol::lol:

5 hours ago, AustralianFan said:

Politics is for a different platform - not Gamesbids.com.  That’s how I see it anyway.

Sir Rols, how you express your political opinions is respectfully up to you.  I would suggest thought that this gamebids thread is not the place for a political protest or making assumptions about the views of others.

There are other avenues and platforms for political passion and action.    But again, I suggest that gamesbids.com is not one of them.

Perhaps. But that is what the general off-topic subforums here are for. And it's not like some threads around here don't sometimes veer off course, but yet still in a tangible way. That said, though, let's not pretend either that politics & the Olympics are somehow "seperate" (no matter how much the IOC disingenuously says otherwise), since politics is exactly what got China the Olympics ITFP, especially the 2008 Summer Games. 

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

9 hours ago, Ikarus360 said:

^^ The catastrophe which were the Tokyo ceremonies, which left many people starving for a good show.

If Tokyo proved anything, it’s that the success of an Olympics DO NOT depend on its ceremonies. And it’s OC was NOT a “catastrophe” - it was a modest and respectful event dictated by and reflectant of the existing global circumstances. It was only a disaster for those demanding profligate and extravagant entertainment. The world is NOT “starving” for a “good” (read gigantic) Olympic show - a handful of ceremony enthusiasts on GamesBids.com are starving for one and are gleefully and will fully ignoring and dismissing  basic decency and morality to get their fix.

8 hours ago, AustralianFan said:

Everyone is entitled to respectfully express their opinion on gamesbids.com on the topic of that thread.

Gamesbids.com is not a political platform and anyone reading this should not feel guilty watching the Beijing Olympics and Ceremonies.  

I’m am sorry that politics of the national government of China have suddenly been linked somehow to Olympic Ceremonies fans on gamesbids.com looking forward to watching the upcoming ceremonies.  

So I say again, it is absolutely ok to watch Beijing 2022 Ceremonies and the coming sporting contests and achievements.

Politics is for a different platform - not Gamesbids.com.  That’s how I see it anyway.

Sir Rols, how you express your political opinions is respectfully up to you.  I would suggest thought that this gamebids thread is not the place for a political protest or making assumptions about the views of others.

There are other avenues and platforms for political passion and action.    But again, I suggest that gamesbids.com is not one of them.

No, GamesBids is precisely a forum where one can express opinions on politics directly affecting the Olympic movement. A thread on the Beijing opening ceremony is exactly the appropriate place to express opinions regarding the politics and morality of the event. And this board has a long and proud tradition of doing so - go look at the similar threads for Beijing 2008 and Sochi. Politics and the Olympics are inextricably linked, and this board reflects that.

7 hours ago, AustralianFan said:

I honestly don’t see the point of you sharing that you are going to watch one but not the other (?).  Makes no sense at all, but respectfully, that’s entirely up to you.

I will be doing the same as Stefan. That is also the policy of the Australian government and other governments who are pursuing a diplomatic boycott of the games. It’s called supporting the athletes, but not supporting CCP propaganda.

I will make no apologies for bringing up the politics of Beijing 2022 in the GamesBids threads. If I’m raining on anyone’s parade and that makes some people here uncomfortable or forces them to question or defend their choices... Good!

Edited by Sir Rols
  • Like 4
  • Confused 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I am going to watch and enjoy the ceremony and the games- whether a dozen people on a chat forum watch is of no consequence. The Games are for the hard working athletes, and I am actually glad China is stuck with the effort and expense of holding it during a pandemic.

The Tokyo ceremonies were a trainwreck....being low budget and repectful didnt mean they had to be disjointed and dismal. But again didnt matter in the scheme of things.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 hour ago, Sir Rols said:

The world is NOT “starving” for a “good” (read gigantic) Olympic show - a handful of ceremony enthusiasts on GamesBids.com are starving for one and are gleefully and will fully ignoring and dismissing basic decency and morality to get **their fix.**

56c4da2eba6d5ce221109323117c87ac.gif

Yeah, sometimes I just have to Laff at the ceremony fever that some on here display. It‘s all fun & good, but come on, it’s not like they’re the greatest thing since sliced bread.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

2 hours ago, FYI said:

Yeah, sometimes I just have to Laff at the ceremony fever that some on here display. It‘s all fun & good, but come on, it’s not like they’re the greatest thing since sliced bread.

Don’t get me wrong, I can enjoy a good Olympic ceremony as much as the next person - I’ve watched them all since 1976. I can enjoy critiquing, comparing and rating them against each other. The ceremony live chats, which I’ve participated in since 2004, are some of the most fun moments of GamesBids. A highlight indeed. And the ceremonies crowd here may incredibly focussed and single-minded, but they’re generally and usually harmless, keep to themselves and indeed these days are basically the backbone of the board in between anything at all happening in the wider Olympic world.

But I do get flustered that so many consider them the only purpose of the games and treat the sports as the unimportant filler between the main events. And I do question the priorities of someone who would describe a low-key or uninspiring ceremony as “catastrophic”, “a disaster” or “a train wreck”. And I do find it very disquieting and troubling to see such gushing and members wetting themselves in anticipation at the thought that the CCP are “finally” going to give a spectacular ceremony and thank God for the CCP. Even if the entire ceremony is about peace, love, togetherness and understanding, the message is still grotesque coming from the CCP.

I thought long and hard over whether I’d watch it. At the end, reluctantly, I realised I’d be hypocritical to do so. I’ve been fooled once by the idea that 2008 might make China a better society and a responsible member of the world. It did  anything but. You can’t separate the politics from the event, and I’d just hope that even the most ardent ceremony fan would pause to think just exactly what they’re cheering on and encouraging when they marvel at the best spectacle that modern totalitarianism can bring.

Edited by Sir Rols
  • Like 1
  • Thanks 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 hour ago, Sir Rols said:

Don’t get me wrong, I can enjoy a good Olympic ceremony as much as the next person - I’ve watched them all since 1976. I can enjoy critiquing, comparing and rating them against each other. The ceremony live chats, which I’ve participated in since 2004, are some of the most fun moments of GamesBids. A highlight indeed. And the ceremonies crowd here may incredibly focussed and single-minded, but they’re generally and usually harmless, keep to themselves and indeed these days are basically the backbone of the board in between anything at all happening in the wider Olympic world.

But I do get flustered that so many consider them the only purpose of the games and treat the sports as the unimportant filler between the main events. And I do question the priorities of someone who would describe a low-key or uninspiring ceremony as “catastrophic”, “a disaster” or “a train wreck”. And I do find it very disquieting and troubling to see such gushing and members wetting themselves in anticipation at the thought that the CCP are “finally” going to give a spectacular ceremony and thank God for the CCP. Even if the entire ceremony is about peace, love, togetherness and understanding, the message is still grotesque coming from the CCP.

I thought long and hard over whether I’d watch it. At the end, reluctantly, I realised I’d be hypocritical to do so. I’ve been fooled once by the idea that 2008 might make China a better society and a responsible member of the world. It did  anything but. You can’t separate the politics from the event, and I’d just hope that even the most ardent ceremony fan would pause to think just exactly what they’re cheering on and encouraging when they marvel at the best spectacle that modern totalitarianism can bring.

Sir Rols, you continue to throw mud over many Olympic and Ceremony fans here in these threads by not naming any names at all.

Why on earth did you not just have your say that you are boycotting the Ceremony and leave it at that ?  Why on God’s earth would you then go further and do this without naming anyone nor asking anyone what their opinins are?

You’ve created a right mess here now and it all began with your post at the beginjng of this thread.

By not naming anyone you have twice now thrown mud over the lot of us.

I find this quite astounding especially since you are a moderator.

You are literally ridiculing all the fans here by not naming anyone, which I think is a huge mistake you have now twice made.

 Don’t get all self righteous and throw mud at the fans who frequent these threads.  They/we didnt cause the human rights abuses, the Chinese Government did!


 

 

  • Like 1
  • Thanks 1
  • Confused 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

53 minutes ago, AustralianFan said:

Sir Rols, you continue to throw mud over many Olympic and Ceremony fans here in these threads by not naming any names at all.

You are literally ridiculing all the fans here by not naming anyone, which I think is a huge mistake you have now twice made.

Naming names??? Don’t be ridiculous! Many people have expressed opinions and attitudes, and I’ve expressed my thoughts on those attitudes. If you feel you are being judged, it’s probably because you’re one of a number who’ve made the kind of posts I find disturbing. If the hats fits - then wear it!

53 minutes ago, AustralianFan said:

Why on earth did you not just have your say that you are boycotting the Ceremony and leave it at that ?  Why on God’s earth would you then go further and do this without naming anyone nor asking anyone what their opinins are?

You’ve created a right mess here now and it all began with your post at the beginjng of this thread.

So, I make my statement, you come back to berate me and lecture me that I’m not allowed to express any negative attitudes to the OC or discuss politics in this thread, and I’m supposed to leave it at that?????

I didn’t create a mess. I created a discussion that is very much within and pertaining to the topic of the thread. It seems like you are most upset that your pristine thread was sullied by difficult questions and unexpected opinions rather than going the way you wanted/expected it to. I see this a lot in many different forums - someone creates a topic then freaks out when they don’t get the responses they wanted and want to close it or ban opinions dissenting to theirs. It’s been said so many times - if you post an thread in a forum, the expectation is that that open and subject to discussion and debate. No-one “owns” a thread or can dictate how it develops. GamesBids over the years, from long before you joined, has thrived on frank and often heated debate. The board has always given a lot of leeway for debate. Many of us aren’t here to be a cheer squad.

China is not a “typical” host, and the upcoming ceremony is NOT a normal ceremony. I feel it’s important that it be discussed it its wider political context. Just as you can’t discuss or critique, say, Berlin 1936 or Leni Riefenstahl’s Olympia without noting it’s political and historical context.   

Edited by Sir Rols
  • Thanks 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

12 minutes ago, Sir Rols said:

Naming names??? Don’t be ridiculous! Many people have expressed opinions and attitudes, and I’ve expressed my thoughts on those attitudes. If you feel you are being judged, it’s probably because you’re one of a number who’ve made the kind of posts I find disturbing. If the hats fits - then wear it!

So, I make my statement, you come back to berate me and lecture me that I’m not allowed to express any negative attitudes to the OC or discuss politics in this thread, and I’m supposed to leave it at that?????

I didn’t create a mess. I created a discussion that is very much within and pertaining to the topic of the thread. It seems like you are most upset that your pristine thread was sullied by difficult questions and unexpected opinions rather than going the way you wanted/expected it to. I see this a lot in many different forums - someone creates a topic then freaks out when they don’t get the responses they wanted and want to close it or ban opinions dissenting to theirs. It’s been said so many times - if you post an thread in a forum, the expectation is that that open and subject to discussion and debate. No-one “owns” a thread or can dictate how it develops. GamesBids over the years, from long before you joined, has thrived on frank and often heated debate. The board has always given a lot of leeway for debate. Many of us aren’t here to be a cheer squad.

China is not a “typical” host, and the upcoming ceremony is NOT a normal ceremony. I feel it’s important that it be discussed it its wider political context. Just as you can’t discuss or critique, say, Berlin 1936 or Leni Riefenstahl’s Olympia without noting it’s political and historical context.   

Yes but you have done much more than just give your opinion.

You’ve dumped on everyone.   You don’t seem to realise this.

If you’re happy to leave it at that by dumping on everyone and then just stepping back, then that is your choice.

 

 

 

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

13 minutes ago, AustralianFan said:

Yes but you have done much more than just give your opinion.

You’ve dumped on everyone.   You don’t seem to realise this.

If you’re happy to leave it at that by dumping on everyone and then just stepping back, then that is your choice.

Again, If you feel you’ve been judged, I’ve obviously struck a nerve.

I haven’t “dumped on” all ceremony fans. I have nothing against the ceremony fans, they’re a part of the mosaic of GamesBids where all of us are probably a bit eccentrically fascinated by the games. What I have dumped on is what I perceive to be a blindness and insensitivity within many hard-core ceremony fans. I hope to open their eyes to a wider perspective beyond “I hope it’s big and spectacular and better than some of the crap we’ve seen lately”. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

4 minutes ago, AustralianFan said:

Sir Rols, it would be better if you got this out of your system before the Opening Ceremony Live Chat begins on the night of the Opening Ceremony

…. but that’s just my opinion.

Oh, don’t worry. As I said, I won’t be watching it or on here for it. Just remember as you’re enjoying it, consider WHAT you’re enjoying.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

Loading...
×
×
  • Create New...