The Olympics: Must The Show Go On?

Having been delayed once because of the worldwide COVID-19 pandemic, the Summer Olympics in Tokyo are scheduled to begin this week. Unless, that is, people come to their senses. 

Japan and much of the rest of the world is still dealing with the virus, which is now in its more contagious phase as the Delta Variant, leaving people to question why the Olympics are being held at all.  The reason, of course, is money.  The International Olympic Committee is willing to put up with empty venues, sick athletes, angry locals and government officials to realize the payday they're going to get from media companies like NBC and corporations like Coca Cola, no matter how much pushback they get

Already, several athletes have been taken off their teams' rosters due to getting sick, or declining to come in the first place because they might get sick.  

Others are not in Tokyo because the drug enforcement agencies are cracking down on those who prefer a little stimulation to their performance.  Some are legitimate cases such as the Russian team accused of alleged doping.  Others are rather questionable, as in the case of Sha'Carri Richardson,  the U.S. sprinter who was caught smoking marijuana during a tough time in her life. Apparently, it doesn't matter if MJ is now considered legal in half of  America, it is still a performance-enhancing drug to the rest of the world that had best be avoided. 

In show business parlance, no matter what kind of calamity might hit a performance, it is said that the show must go on. Well, that's been sorely tested in the past year and a half, hasn't it?  Even Broadway has been shut down, not to return until fall. In its current state, the Olympics in Tokyo is a slow-moving disaster about to unfold on the world's TV and video screens. It should not be held, even at this late date.

But the IOC, which has survived wars and dictatorships, thinks it can survive a pandemic no matter what the cost. So let the Games begin, and hope everyone stays healthy. 

The Trump Variants

 Halfway into 2021, America is still dealing with two dangerous variants coming from a single source.  One has killed millions worldwide and more than 600,000 in this country alone.  The other is spreading "The Big Lie" about the outcome of an election, resulting in a near takeover of the American government and more restrictive voting laws in several states.  That source is former President Donald Trump, whose followers in the Republican party and elsewhere believe him when he moans about current President Joe Biden taking the White House away from him, and for not masking up and getting vaccinated to stop the spread from COVID-19.

It's been six months since a mob of "tourists" stormed the U.S. Capitol, the intent being to stop a joint session of Congress from ratifying the results of the Electoral College that would make Biden the next President, allegedly egged on by Trump himself.

Six months later, we're just starting to get to the bottom of this insurrection.  It would have been done earlier, but Senate GOP's helped vote down an opportunity to set up a bipartisan commission to investigate the assault.  It has fallen to the House of Representatives to set up such a commission and hold hearings.

All this attempted whitewash of recent American history is at the doorstep of Trump, who never did concede the 2020 election to Biden, who he has accused of stealing the votes.  In spite of his being banned from social media (of whom he plans to sue), reducing the voice he carries to a fading pipsqueak--not to mention the number of his minions having legal troubles, Trump still has fantasies of retaking the White House either in 2024, or by the end of this summer--whichever comes first.  That's assuming, of course, he doesn't spend time in prison. Which he probably won't.

"The Big Lie" is also the reason why several states are pushing for laws that restrict the right to vote for not just minorities, but for all those who'd rather avoid lining up at the local polling place on Election Day, as the pandemic has proved.  The GOP just can't stand the sight of all those people doing their Constitutional duty, yet vote for Democrats.  Federal laws aimed at making voting easier is currently being argued--vehemently--in the Senate, and its odds of passing are not good.

Democrats had better think real hard before voting to abolish the filibuster as a way to get its agenda passed before the 2022 midterms.  If the Senate falls into GOP hands, they might wish they still had the filibuster.  Maybe that's why Biden has been reluctant to use the political "f-word" in his vocabulary.

Meanwhile. the COVID-19 virus is slowly becoming a bad memory for many of us who have already been vaccinated.  But there are still those who, for whatever the reason, refuse to mask up or take it in the arm.  Most, if not all, of these folks would rather believe what Tucker Carlson and the rest of conservative talk media tell them about the pandemic instead of the government.

Trump's responsible for this, too.  It was he who bungled the seriousness of the pandemic with an "everything's fine" approach, and with second-guessing every bit of scientific evidence presented by his experts.  He ended up contracting COVID one month before the election and has since been vaccinated, but he's still considered by his fans as the major reason they're putting their lives at risk. 

President Biden and his team have done a great job with getting as many needles into American arms as possible.  His biggest challenges are yet to come with getting the stragglers to take the vaccine before the Delta Variant becomes a big problem.  Or that by the end of the year, more people will be asked to get a booster shot as the original vaccine wears off.

This may be 2021, but the shadow of Donald Trump still hovers over the United States.  Despite Biden's best efforts, Trump has weakened the federal government and sickened the American people to the point of no return with his antics during his administration.  For the twin variants of the virus and in politics with his version of the truth, we must still keep an eye on Donald Trump.