EURO 2008

*Cough cough*, I think I can’t describe which embarassment my national team has given me during these last days… being the World Champions is not easy, and yet I had no real good feelings since the beginning. I don’t know what is going to happen on tuesday, but I hope the match to be a wonderful one.

In addition to this… tonight I have read an article on a famous italian newspaper’s website: www.gazzetta.it , here there were listed all the strangest and funniest things said in and about Euro 2008. Many of them made me laugh, other ones made me deeply think about the Italian team.

One of them is apparently a txt message sent by one player to a world champion who is now at home (and they are few)…, this message said: “We are in physical good conditions, but we enter in the field with fear”…

WHY?

Boycott or not Boycott

that is the question…

Well, to me the answer results easier than expected and it is: yes, boycott. I am referring to Beijing Olympics obviously and I do answer this way because of a very simple reasoning I did.

Having the possibility to host and organise the Olympics is among the greatest honors a government can be attributed to by the International Community. It has, for this matter, multiple meanings, especially when it is attributed to developing countries as China is. China is actually experiencing incredible fast economic growth and such growth and the wealth derived by it should be equally distributed among its population. Still during these last weeks, it seems Tibet’s monks are not considered at all to be part of the PCR, and this is not with no doubt a new. Their freedom and liberty is daily suppressed and their rebellion is the historical most natural consequence of Chinese bad government and repression. 2008 has begun as the Olympic year, the year thousands of athletes and fans were passionately waiting for, the year in which China would have shown the world its new face. A face made of modernity, economic wealth, supremacy. China has finally had its own Olympics and therefore the chance to demonstrate the world what is able to handle; but what is it showing in reality?

To me, it is showing actual no gratefulness fot this chance. The Olympics are a stage that shouldn’t be seen as only a matter of sport, but it should be also seen as a possibility to give the entire world the view of a different possible future, better future. For this purpose China is failing from every perspective.

I personally like very much the Olympics and as me there are another billion people who are looking forward to see them, but at which price? Olympics have been already boycotted for what I can say were less important matters than the violation of fundamental civil and human rights, so it should be of no surprise to see political institutions and athletes refusing to go and silently approve those actions perpetrated by the Chinese Government. I know this statement can be seen as being provoking, but I did it just by purpose. I wonder what will be, if any, the first country to open its eyes and take a strong decision such as that one of boycotting a permantent UN member’s Olympic party.

Here I post an image I like very much, it is from an artist called Lishaa and it precisely gives the impression those Olympic Games are giving to the public: enjoy.