an athlete's dream, a city's nightmare...

when i was a kid, i remember watching the olympics wide-eyed and entertained... the summer ones were my favourite -- gymnastics, swimming and diving, oh my... but i was a kid and the pomp and circumstance was like catching a glimpse of something shiny... i was attracted to what it represented on the surface and
never thought much more about it once the fireworks disappeared after the closing ceremonies...

protests and critics of the olympic games are nothing new, but it seems as though the discussions of the event's destructive nature has become a hotter and hotter topic over the last number of years...

beijing had its fair share of blissful and bashing media coverage, but things are hitting even closer to home now with only a year or so to go until vancouver is engulfed in a similar madness... i can imagine as an athlete, the olympics mean oh so much -- like the oscars to an actor, they are a defining popular culture moment where individuals are crowned as being the best... and athletes train, qualify and prepare for what they see as the biggest event of their lives... that is admirable...

but i often question, at what cost? it seems nothing more than foolish for a city to even want to bid battle for the chance to host the games... i don't get it -- debt and tax increases for years to come is of no concern? instead, cities are the ones wide-eyed and entertained with the ideas of mass marketing, commercialism, mascots and ultimately being able to claim the games as their own... but in so many people's eyes (especially some living in vancouver), the games are negatively altering a city that was better left untouched by the olympic wrath...

vancouver recently agreed to foot a $450 million dollar bill to make the olympic village a reality -- money well spent? or were there better options available? not to mention, when i was in vancouver last april, the top story that week was about the botched roof on one of the venues, meaning millions of dollars was to spent on fixing the error -- money well spent?

there are two sides to every story and every argument... but here's one that is certainly on the critical side of the games, and proud of it... whether you agree or not, it's interesting to hear what has to be said... and like many things worth reading and listening to, it questions what our priorities really are...