I just learned that Boston's bid to host the olympics in 2024 has been dropped. Some people are sad, and some are glad.
I have listened to details about the proposals and the arguments against it, and I realize that I'm a bit angry about what has happened. I wish the people who wanted to host them here had been more open, worked better with the public, and provided some real alternatives to the problems the olympics have caused in other cities in the past.
People working with huge amounts of money seem to end up doing strange things, such as forgetting that the olympic games are a community event. They forget that secrecy and back room deals are only going to alienate that community - the people who live in the city doing the hosting.
But when I step back, I see that perhaps I'm expecting too much. After all, business has a tradition of competition, rather than collaboration. So it may just be a bit too difficult for people who are used to pressuring for deals from others to turn around and open up, drop the pretenses and level with the public at large.
But beyond that, I see much larger forces at work here. I may sound like I'm harping on this a lot these days, but the fact is that we now have over 7 billion people on the planet! I strongly believe that this has an major impact on everything, even this.
That's because the more people who want to see (in person) or watch (on TV) the olympic games, the greater amount of money is involved in hosting the games and providing coverage around the world. And the more money is involved, the more money becomes the central focus of the olympics, rather than the athletic achievement.
It's like a layer cake where the cake is the money and the athletics is the frosting. It's not being done for the athletics anymore, it's being done for the money, the jobs, the economic stimulus, the reputation of the hosting city as a place for economic investment, etc.
I have listened to details about the proposals and the arguments against it, and I realize that I'm a bit angry about what has happened. I wish the people who wanted to host them here had been more open, worked better with the public, and provided some real alternatives to the problems the olympics have caused in other cities in the past.
People working with huge amounts of money seem to end up doing strange things, such as forgetting that the olympic games are a community event. They forget that secrecy and back room deals are only going to alienate that community - the people who live in the city doing the hosting.
But when I step back, I see that perhaps I'm expecting too much. After all, business has a tradition of competition, rather than collaboration. So it may just be a bit too difficult for people who are used to pressuring for deals from others to turn around and open up, drop the pretenses and level with the public at large.
But beyond that, I see much larger forces at work here. I may sound like I'm harping on this a lot these days, but the fact is that we now have over 7 billion people on the planet! I strongly believe that this has an major impact on everything, even this.
That's because the more people who want to see (in person) or watch (on TV) the olympic games, the greater amount of money is involved in hosting the games and providing coverage around the world. And the more money is involved, the more money becomes the central focus of the olympics, rather than the athletic achievement.
It's like a layer cake where the cake is the money and the athletics is the frosting. It's not being done for the athletics anymore, it's being done for the money, the jobs, the economic stimulus, the reputation of the hosting city as a place for economic investment, etc.
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