I will not be watching the Olympics and I urge all of my readers to boycott them as well, the reason being:
A live orca display is reportedly planned for the Sochi Winter Olympics. Although the report has not been confirmed, the possibility has environmentalists concerned. White Sphere reportedly captured eight killer whales off the northeast coast of Japan. The whales were then transported to Nakhodka, Russia, where they were kept in “small tanks.” According to reports, The Sochi Dolphinarium plans to display two of the orcas during the winter games.
It’s one thing for SeaWorld to keep, breed and display their orcas already in captivity but there is no good reason to capture them wild for the entertainment of humans. Sorry, no good reason at all. This is 2014. We’ve evolved. Let it end.
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Boycotting the Olympics is certainly a perfectly valid response. But speaking for myself, I’d rather see Team USA and others subtly and perhaps not-so-subtly flip their birds at the Russian government and watch those oppressive, reactionary ****sticks squirm in the world spotlight.
OT: Heads up, the did a flawless job with this transfer <3
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kAE5vkmS_4A
As long as the orcas are straight, I guess they’ll be all right.
In case you missed it. http://www.ryot.org/german-winter-olympic-team-unveil-rainbow-uniforms-deny-anti-gay-law-protest/549545
According to the city mayor, Sochi doesn’t have any gay people… but at least they have orcas.
As American citizens we can apply pressure…
I’m always proud of how well American citizens can control American media … 😕
A good friend has qualified for Team USA this year after sacrificing so much and working her ass off for 16 years. I hate, hate, hate, hate that the Olympics are in Sochi. That said, I can’t turn my back on my friend or the other athletes. I just can’t. Besides, Patrick R is correct, there will be protests from athletes. Several members of Team USA, including a prominent figure skater, are planning their own subtle protests of Russia’s anti-gay legislature. Wouldn’t miss it. Did I mention how much I hate that the Olympics are in Sochi?
As American citizens we can apply pressure by viewership dropping that might make them change…
5 years ago I programmed my remote control to skip right past FOX as if it doesn’t exist. But y’all Simpsons/American Idol junkies make all my brave sacrifice for naught.
It’s hard to act shocked anymore when Russia is involved, they could literally ban hugging babies at this point and it would elicit no more then a shrug out of me.
Having said that, this is a travesty, the Olympics are supposed to be about unifying countries, we all know that’s not true, we know it’s about money and propaganda, but it doesn’t even seem like they are trying this time around.
I agree with PatrickR, I can’t wait for the first athlete to wave a rainbow flag or protest in some way, and then see how Russia deals with it.
Paddy, you’re looking at it differently than I am.
My favorite sport within a sport is Men’s Figure Skating. There is a good chance I will be watching Brian Orser watch two of his pupils, Yuzuru Hanyu and Javier Fernandez climb the podium. Perhaps I’ll also be listening to Johnny Weir commentating. Maybe Brian Boitano will be in the stands watching. In my view, that’s a win win win win win. Especially since Vladimir Putin is a huge figure skating fan. Why in the world would I want to miss that?
As American citizens we can apply pressure by viewership dropping that might make them change their minds – who knows.
I can understand people who don’t want to watch or participate in the Olympics because of the law against gay propaganda. But to go ahead and skip that issue and move on to Orcas. That’s something.
They’re both important issues, that’s why the post is called “another reason to…”
This Olympics is going to be a disaster I just know it, it’s horrible about the orcas and the gay issues but even worse is threat of terrorism. I wouldn’t be there for all the tea in china!
I won’t watch and I wish USA would sit this one out. Between the anti-gay stuff and kidnapping Orcas, Sochi is bad news and bad karma all the way around.
But, Antoinette, how can anyone set aside political issues when the Russian government itself will not? Its persecution of the LGBT community has ensured that its voice will be muted and its influence stymied, for the whole world to see.
The gay issue is despicable, but it’s receiving a lot of international attention. This issue may not, and that’s equally despicable. For this reason, I too will be boycotting the games.
I agree with Antoinette. We learned in the 80s that boycotts of any kind only hurt the athletes. Plus – I have a feeling that this event is going to be a giant gaffe for Russian PR and I just don’t want to miss it. The first athlete to hold a rainbow flag up at the podium will be my hero!
I can understand people who don’t want to watch or participate in the Olympics because of the law against gay propaganda. But to go ahead and skip that issue and move on to Orcas. That’s something.
I’m a huge fan of the Winter Olympics and wouldn’t boycott them for any reason that I can think of. I’ve always loved the Olympics and what they represent in the world coming together to set aside political agendas and see how far the human body can push itself forward and basically evolve. If we were to boycott the Games because of the political issues within a host country we’d never find a place to hold them. Everybody sucks. All the time. Except when they play together. That’s the Olympics. A peaceful gathering of athletes.