Quote: Second, Vancouver WTF?? Could you be any more lazy? The last olympics were hosted in Beijing. A city that literally transformed itself with billions of dollars of spending just so that it could wow the world with technology and architecture and culture. Followed by a city that barely swept the street...

Oh yeah, Beijing was impressive. Did you know how badly they fucked up the people of that city holding that fancy show? Vancouver's waste is awful enough; China's waste was literally outright murder. Every impressive feat was done at the expense of millions of the poor. You're talking about one momentary bright spot in a very dark, dark country with hundreds of millions of suffering people (many times more than Canada's entire population). Also, even with all that insane spending they still had to fake a lot of the media coverage.

Yeah, go China! You're thousands of times more evil than us, but you built a really big stadium to impress Americans with! Attitudes like that are why the Olympics are so fucked up to begin with. Thanks so much for your opinion.

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As a side note, television sports networks sure are awful at covering sports. I don't want to see your stupid "control center" with your pinhead announcers, I want to see some bloody athletes. Argh! So hard to find coverage of the actual events.

Quote: Original post by LessBread
I didn't take that as an insult. I really did have to mow the lawn and I wanted to get it done before the sun went down.

OK, whew. :)

Quote: Original post by ChurchSkiz
I didn't even know it was starting tonight.

I only knew it started because someone's life apparently ended. :/

Quote: Last, is possibly the worst winter weather (or best depending on your pov) I can remember. Slushy moguls, watery bobsleds, man-made snow for the downhill events. Sounds like a recipe for the suck.

Thank God the bullet ball competition will be hosted indoors.

Quote: Original post by taby

Quote: Original post by LessBread
I didn't take that as an insult. I really did have to mow the lawn and I wanted to get it done before the sun went down.

OK, whew. :)

That said, having read the entire polemic, I don't want to bother with registration hassles in order to respond to him there. He mischaracterizes the article he criticizes which does not assert a causal link between climate change and the DC blizzard [1]. So he's arguing against a strawman to start with. He flat out lies about the absence of a reference to the argument that climate change results in bigger storms, but that isn't what the article claimed anyway. The article references claims regarding more intense storms not bigger storms [2]. There's a difference there that escapes Lumo. He claims that if the poles are warming faster because of AGW then there should be less storminess in the Atlantic, but that betrays his misunderstanding of the phenomena which is relative to temperatures in tropical oceans not the poles [ibid]. He employs condescension and insult to buttress his attacks -- conspiracies, completely unable to understand, the ancient way, numbers replaced by emotional words, old talking points, no argument, entertaining, artifact of their being inaccurate, "fundamentally" absurd, manifestly aware, ludicrous, average child, incoherent stuttering, fool the laws of physics, normal people are capable, no sane person, obsession, stronger an addiction than heroine or cocaine, euthanasia, declared victims, genuinely sick. In short, the guy is an asshole.

If you're interested in the subject and want to bypass the Time magazine filter and the filter that Lumo applies to the Time magazine article, go straight to the source: Dr. Jeff Masters' WunderBlog. If Lumo was as smart as he claims to be, he would be directing his ire there, not at Walsh.

If you're interested in the point raised by the only response to Lumo's post, check out this article: Why has global warming paused? Water vapor may be in the answer.

If you're interested in the debate in the context of the weather for this winter, check out this: Could All the Freezing Weather Lately Have Anything to Do With Climate Change?.

If you're interested in the media debate over climate change raised by these blizzards, check out this overview: Climate-Change Debate Is Heating Up in Deep Freeze.

Now, let's get back to the Olympics, shall we?

Quote: Original post by LessBread
Now, let's get back to the Olympics, shall we?

Holy smokes, that's a lot of information. Thank you, I'll definitely read these links.

I don't think that many people would disagree with you on your characterization of him. In fact, I bet even he'd agree with you about the asshole part. :)

Congrats to Switzerland on taking the first gold medal of the games.

Quote: Original post by taby

Quote: Original post by LessBread
Now, let's get back to the Olympics, shall we?

Holy smokes, that's a lot of information. Thank you, I'll definitely read these links.

No problem.

Quote: Original post by taby
I don't think that many people would disagree with you on your characterization of him. In fact, I bet even he'd agree with you about the asshole part. :)

Acknowledging you have a problem is the first step towards correcting it. [grin]

His account of temperature and water vapor is fishy too. He uses ground temperatures as atmospheric temperatures and he paints a picture of winter storms that makes it seem like the water they dump comes from the area they dump it on. The reality is that the water usually comes from other areas (typically the oceans) and precipitation occurs when warm, water saturated air cools to temperatures that force the water out.

Quote: Original post by taby
Congrats to Switzerland on taking the first gold medal of the games.

Yes.

Too bad for two Korean speed skaters who wiped out on the last turn in the finals of the 1500 meter race.

Grats on Bilodeau for winning the first, ever, olympic gold medal in canadian games. I saw some people on CBC complaining that it shouldnt have been won by a francophone. It nice to show the world that Canada has its own brand of racism. However most people in Vancouver are really nice - I used to live there - and the rest of the games should be fun.

Given the negative media attention attracted by the protests this weekend, I wanted to post something I wrote which I sent to my family (some of whom were quite offended by my involvement) and colleagues who I have had many discussions with today. Despite the negative-buzz the protest on Saturday generated, my involvement proved an amazing way to open up channels of communication with people who had previously turned a deaf ear to the issues that disturb me about the Olympics.

---------------

Mainstream media is awash with glowing jingoism in the face of escalating poverty, community destruction and looming environmental disaster. The actions of 'anarchist' protesters are being decried by the public, while other protesters call the tactics of direct-action into question. In spite of the gross misconduct of VANOC, the IOC, the Canadian government - and a multitude of sponsors such as HBC and RBC - the forums and the streets are buzzing with anti-protester sentiment.

Feburary 13th's "Heart Attack" protest is being called a 'Riot' - retroactively undermining this powerful word. A riot is mass, spontaneous violence characterized by disorganization and lack of planning. "2010 Heart Attack" was none of these things - it was a calculated effort to disturb capitalism in spite of the surrounding celebration of wealth and popular ignorance of the important issues we move against. Medical professionals, Legal watchdogs and an Olympic Protester Legal Assistance Line were coordinated ahead of time to provide support for those participating in this important protest. In a sense, the protesters are disorganized in that there is no leader, and no agenda aside from solidarity against the organizations which are destroying our homes and communities. We believe that things are going wrong, and that we are ethically obligated to lend support to these tactics.

During the protest, one woman approached myself and other protesters to demand that we stop our comrades from destroying the windows of the Hudson's Bay. Public sentiment reflects this notion that property destruction is a thoroughly unacceptable method of protest. This is not the case, and I would like to elucidate exactly why direct action deserves support.

There is a pervasive myth, perpetuated by a media that refuses to understand our position, that we are anti-Canadian, anti-Athlete, anti-Fun; these are cliches and misappropriations of character and cause that deserve to be quashed - a common sentiment expressed by virtually all protesters is that the unpaid athletes are being used as a commodity - perverted to serve a corporate purpose that is eroding our nation.

Our reasons for protesting are thoroughly documented, articulated by SFU professor Chris Shaw, and many others since the bid in 2003. I personally was not part of the anti-Olympic movement until much more recently - myself originally believing that the protesters were misguided adolescents. A bit of research, however, clears up such misconceptions. The anti-Olympic movement has distributed literature since 2003, held press conferences, held protests and distrubted pamphlets at virtually every VANOC event, generally going to great efforts to articulately elucidate their position. This voice has only found platform in channels outside of the Mainstream Media. Media characterization of us and our goals (which vary wildly from individual to individual) is the single biggest enemy towards the perception of our group, if it can be called that. Largely, this is because our voice is silenced and distorted by the media which is sponsored by the corporations responsible for the debacle of greed happening in front of all of our lives. While we were surrounded by Riot police after the so called "Black Bloc" had been detained, CBC and CTV videographers were let free while members of the Vancouver Independent Media Co-Op were detained in a vivid example of media control enforced by our $900 million dollar security force.

So why smash the windows of the HBC? If you have a pair of red Olympic Mittens handy, check the tag. You will see that the merchandise being sold by the HBC bares a 'Made in China' tag. The HBC is outsourcing production of our very own patriotic paraphernalia overseas in order to save money and increase profit margins. If production were kept in Canada, thousands of jobs that we desperately need would have been created, and that alone should be reason enough for every Canadian to head to their local Bay and start trashing away; to say nothing of historic acts of genocide against indigenous people and their participation in a nation-wide brainwashing campaign that preys on the same patriotism that motivates direct-action protesters.

How, when people at home are struggling in poverty, when household debt is the highest in history, can we in support such purveyors of our own misery in good conscience? Hundreds of thousands of Canada hoodies flood the streets of Vancouver and each Made-In-China trinket is an affront to our own struggle. We are fighting for you, we are fighting for Canadians, we are fighting for workers. When "violent" protest against this evil is debased, you are only hurting yourselves as you allow the corporations that enact such destructive policies of profit maximization to continue to monopolize and destroy our country by lining the pockets of the new Aristocracy and taking from working-class.

Yes, direct-action creates a negative media and public sentiment towards protesters. But it proves that direct-action is possible; you can stand up to the authorities when you are convicted about what is right. This sets the example for children, for those marginalized and inspires like-minded individuals to work for what is right in this country. Howard Zinn is popularly quoted as saying "Dissent is the highest form of patriotism" and this is the crux of what we believe.

Alternatively, "peaceful" protests - while very important - simply do not get the message out in the same way. The Mainstream media has failed to pick up on the non-violent activities protesters engaged in at both protests. No news outlet, outside of the Vancouver Media-Coop, has thus far reported that riot police detained participants in a giant dance party on Cardero Street where I joined protesters in dancing and chanting 'We want lollipops, not riot cops!' - onlookers from the surrounding buildings chanting against the police to let us go. No news has reported on the effort of protesters to hand out hot, healthy food to hungry people in the streets. None have reported the massively positive response of the members of the Downtown Eastside community towards our actions.

I would like to conclude by addressing the misconception that protesting changes nothing. Through the direct-action of protesters towards the VANOC countdown clock, VANOC has been inhibited from lavish, public presentations (on our dollar) since 2007 due to security concerns. Hopefully, the end-result of the Olympics protester backlash will see City Council, the Provicinal and Federal Government think twice before sponsoring such corporate take-overs of our wonderful city - with our tax dollars.

Quote: Original post by Oberon_Command

Quote: Original post by djz
The Vancouver Library (recently featured in Dr Parnassus Imaginarium), and branches must cover up their Panasonic DVD players, as the official Olympic sponsor is Sony. Hamburgers cannot be sold unless they are McDonalds hamburgers.

Er, what? I see hamburgers made by other chains (the Pit Window/Burger Bar being a notable one here) being sold all the time on the UBC campus at least if not in other places.

Source. I wasn't referring to the whole of the GVA; sorry for the lack of clarity.

Quote: Original post by Buttacup

Quote: Original post by LessBread

Quote: Original post by djz
The Vancouver Library (recently featured in Dr Parnassus Imaginarium), and branches must cover up their Panasonic DVD players, as the official Olympic sponsor is Sony. Hamburgers cannot be sold unless they are McDonalds hamburgers.

That says it all doesn't it? Corporations bought the rights to the city, locals be damned. LockePick said it well.

The other building I have stared at for the past five weeks
Panasonic 3D Experience

not to mention the Acer and Samsung Pavilions! I hear Acer is showcasing a fat monitoring computer <== o.O lol what? I haven't been to the VPL in a while so I haven't witnessed such events, but I will be sure to swing by just to check this out... I need to pick up a book anyway..

Just a little piece of tape...

Sorry, I guess Sony not Panasonic would be covered up :P