After years of waiting, on 8/8/08, the 2008 Beijing Olympics are here! Now I have to say, I was really impressed with the opening ceremony even though President Bush looked a little bored after sitting there for 4.5 hours. If you haven’t seen it yourself, you really need to see it in HD since it’s spectacular.
One of the best things I like about the Olympics other than that it’s in China, is that nearly every event including qualifiers and preliminary action is available for streaming online through NBC’s website. Some of the events you’ll never see on TV even with the many many hours of coverage are badminton, fencing, judo, and air pistol / rifle. Even without the commentary (and mispronunciation of every Asian and European name), the coverage is as good as it can get without actually being in the stands. Ok, half of the matches feature scrubs from countries you’ve never heard of, but at least you’ll know those countries exist instead of just seeing the American teams all the time.
Speaking of countries that don’t exist, it appears that India still hasn’t discovered sports. With a population of over a billion people, they sent a “whopping” 56 athletes to Beijing. Unfortunately they’ve only won 3 total medals since 1980 and really don’t have a chance to win one at all this year. Now let’s compare them with Taiwan (Chinese Taipei) which has 50 times fewer people and they won 5 medals in the 2004 Olympics alone.
Frank Costanza: But you see my point here? You only hear of a hen, a rooster and a chicken. Something’s missing!
Mrs. Ross: Something’s missing all right.
Ok, it’s time to get back to watching the Olympics. Nearly 20 hours of coverage within 2 days so far. Dish Network’s DVR recording NBC, CNBC, and the USA Network all day and overnight is the best.
Notice in the second Bush picture the old guy sleeping behind Bush and Mrs. Bush yawning. Oh the thrill of the Olympic Games.