China

"I'd go against a tank wit a shank for my dreams" -Dead Prez



Now that the President removed his head from Michael Phelp's ass, it looks like he made his way home to comment on that war that broke out in Georgia. I'm sure our moral authority as a nation will carry a lot of weight in halting the conflict.

I recently caught this documentary called "Tank Man" about the famous Chinese man who stood in front of the tanks in Tiananmen Square. It's broken up in several parts on YouTube. Check this segment around 8:40 for an insight into today's college students in Beijing. When shown the Tank Man photo--one of the most recognizable photographs in the history of the world--they literally have no idea what it is. One guesses that it might be a parade.

I'd probably place the percentage of college-age Americans who can identify it below 25% since it didn't occur in the last five minutes, but Chinese citizens have an excuse for their ignorance. China has a memory hole apparatus that makes MiniTruth look like Nader's Raiders--all with the help of Google and Yahoo! who collaborate to ban search results in the country.

Don't expect any athlete to make a significant statement about human rights. Chinese athletes would probably get shot--Americans probably have a rider in their Speedo contracts never to open their mouths to say anything other than how great their products are.

The Olympics aren't a time for politics. Save that for the public square.