Olympic glory

Despite what I said earlier regarding the Olympics, and the various oddities that have emerged with the coverage (the lipsynching girl, the children used in the opening ceremony, the potentially forged passports of the gymnasts, among others), I have been watching most of the events at night, which has been taking a surprising amount of time. After watching Phelps's .01 second victory for gold number 7, I will be watching him go for the record 8th gold medal tonight, and I hope he gets it.

Tags: michael phelps gold

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Chinese democracy? Maybe in 2009 - athletes conform, or else

Just a quick note since I'm in the middle of finishing up a major brief reading session and needed a quick internet fix. I'll save my comments for the 2008 Beijing Olympics for when they get closer, but I saw on the Drudge wire that the Chinese government has required athletes not to comment about the Chinese society while they are over there. With the advent of cell phones and camera phone photos/videos/etc., I'm not sure how exactly they plan on holding these athletes accountable. I'm curious as to what the American athletes are being required to sign, if anything. I'll save my free speech commentary for another day, but the article should speak for itself. See Britain Kow Tows to China as Athletes are Forced to Sign No Criticism Contracts.

Tags: chinese olympics, free speech bans during olympics

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