What the Olympics Really Says About Us

An illness of unknown potential is endemic in Brazil. Gold medalist Ryan Lochte  has reportedly been held up at gunpoint during a party in Rio. Countless people are uprooted to build these Olympic villages every time they are built. Over one million people lost their homes for the 2008 Beijing games alone. Brazil has similarly evicted large numbers of people for the current Olympics in Rio, and even more to build the stadiums for the 2014 World Cup. Usually these efforts lose money; a single exception is the privately funded Los Angeles Olympics. But they are very good for propaganda to pump up the appearance of the host country, particularly despotic ones. This all asks the obvious question: Why is there not a permanent Olympic site? It would help the athletes, the people, the economics...so, why not?
Because the politicians, their bureaucracies and their cronies could not take as much advantage of the situation. As always, the political infrastructure trumps everything else. And this is for games; imagine what it is like for conflict.
Brotherhood. Sportsmanship. Safety of the athletes. Safety of the world, for that matter. All as phony as a gymnast's smile.
The Olympics are a metaphor for our lives.