And Now... The Daily Olympics Report

Now that we're finally posting images of erotica to "celebrate" the Olympics, and because it seems the Olympics this year can’t seem to get off the ground without 1001 problems… here’s a few more to record on your list prior to opening day.
And yes, China, only you can fix your own problems with your public image... try actually doing what you promised you were going to do years ago when you were trying to get the Olympics for starters (you know, all that talk of freedoms and so forth).

Beijing Has Pollution Problem (Hawaii’s Vog problems not so bad by comparison)
We’ve come right down to eight days before the 2008 Beijing Olympics and the city's air quality makes bad vog days over on this island look downright tolerable in comparison. Sheesh. Anyway because of this officials were “forced Thursday to announce emergency contingency plans.”

Maybe they should have announced that emergency months and months ago!

Is it noticeable? Like bad vog days in Hilo, Beijing has been blanketed in a haze, and vehicle emissions have been higher than those expected by experts (unlike here where we know the source of our emissions is all natural… as in a large volcano venting). According to news reports it seems the Olympic organizers are in abit of a tiff over this, worried that the pollution could not only prove a “nuisance” to spectators, but also hinder the performance of athletes if they deeply inhale the pollutants.

Obviously I take it this is only a concern to outdoor Olympic events as indoor events shouldn’t be troubled by this… I think.

Anyway it seems that Chinese authorities had previously (earlier) ordered many of the so-called “gunk-spewing factories” to move out of town or shut down (I don‘t think I ever heard of it referred to as “gunk-spewing“ factories before). So anyway on Thursday, the so called “Ministry of Environmental Protection” (huh?) announced that officials would “close another 220 factories, coal-fired power plants and steel plants in Beijing, nearby Tianjin city and surrounding Hebei province if air quality was forecast to be poor for any 48-hour period.”

Maybe the Chinese should work on a Ministry of Human Rights while they’re off making meaningless ministries. Just a thought.

Oh, and while we’re talking about meaningless shutdowns, it seems “Beijing will also ban all forms of construction "if there is very unfavorable weather, and the air quality is forecast to not be up to standard for the next 48 hours," according to the MEP website. Heh… MEP. According to experts they say they’ve “interpreted this to mean that the emergency plan would begin if Beijing's air pollution index, or API, was forecast to be 100 or more for two days in a row.”

Oh, according to officials an API of over 100 is considered unhealthy for sensitive groups such as the young and the elderly (or Chinese government officials who don‘t like being criticized too much by the rest of the planet, allegedly).

Anything else? Oh, right, the report (up today) also said “On July 20, authorities began banning cars from the roads based on their license plates -- vehicles bearing odd and even plates were given permission to take to the roads on alternate days.”

Did this help any? Hmm… no. It went over 100 soon after that happened, and held at over 100 for the required two days.

According to one news report “Zhu Tong, an environmental sciences professor and the director of the Beijing Olympics Air Quality Research Group at Beijing University, said officials hadn't calculated that creating special highway lanes dedicated to Olympic travel would clog the other lanes. "We expected that with the odd and even restrictions there would be no traffic jams, and therefore fewer pollutants emitted. But because of the special Olympic driving lane, there are still a few traffic jams, so the emissions are higher than our predictions," Zhu said. Still, Zhu said the measures imposed July 20 have already improved air quality, and the emergency measures announced Thursday were only a "just-in-case" plan. "The hazy days we had last week were due to unfavorable weather conditions," Zhu said. "If there's no unfavorable weather, I think we can guarantee good air quality during the Games." “

Speaking of clearing the air of bad toxins… here’s some bad air in the political venue.

China Cries Over House of Rep Resolution (One Rep. Votes No on Resolution, And Nobody Cares).

On a Thursday like any other Thursday China “sharply criticized "odious attempts" by US lawmakers to politicize the Olympics and to interfere in its internal affairs.”

How did this all happen? Well it started (if you missed this over all the coverage of the Alaskan Senator getting sent up the river over free house upgrades and all the bickering between McCain and Obama) when the US House of Representatives passed Wednesday by 419 votes to one (somebody just had to be different, didn’t they) a resolution "calling on the Government of the People's Republic of China to immediately end abuses of the human rights of its citizens...to ensure that the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games take place in an atmosphere that honours the Olympic traditions of freedom and openness."

According to the report on the topic, “Reacting to the resolution, China's foreign ministry spokesman Liu Jianchao said, "Despite China's objections... the US House of Representatives passed a resolution that reflects their malicious intent to politicize the Olympic Games... and sabotage the Olympics in Beijing." “

Sorry, Spokespuppet Jianchao, the Olympics is China’s to make or break (and remember if you break it you bought all the unsought 2008 Olympics trinkets nobody buys). Anyway what a CRIME! Somebody told you to not be jerks to your own people! HORRIBLE!!

Anyway showing that Jianchao can‘t stop at just one comment, "These measures undermine the spirit of the Olympics and do not reflect the real hopes and aspirations of the American people,”

What does my hopes and aspirations have to do with you not screwing up the Olympics, China? For god’s sake swallow your self hate gene for a month and pretend you can go a few weeks without oppressing others why don’t you!!

And yes, despite some earlier comments by people that he should skip out on the event, President George W. Bush is still going to be among over 80 top foreign officials set to attend the opening ceremony of the 29th Summer Olympic Games (aka the XXIX games for those who like recording said events in Roman numerals), to be held from August 8-24 in Beijing.

As for that House of Rep thing? Well it also called on Bush "to make a strong public statement on China's human rights situation prior to his departure to Beijing for the Olympic Games, to make a similar statement in Beijing and meet with the families of jailed prisoners of conscience, and to seek to visit Tibet and Xinjiang while in China to attend the Olympic Games."
Yeah, good luck on that one.

That's it for today... imagine what new mischief will be uncovered TOMORROW!