Our beloved Dr. J. (who really is the nicest guy, provided he isnt’t electrocuting you with force lightning, in which case your opinion may fairly differ) grouses that the Olympics’ opening ceremony had a very pro-Leftist feel to them.

The Czar has also seen many other similar comments, including shock over the American athletes’ made-in-China anti-American apparel to the refusal of the IOC to allow the Israelis a moment of silence in remembrance of 1972.

Anti-American and anti-Israeli pro-Leftism has always been associated with the Olympics, and lest we forget, the Olympics were started as a progressive pipedream in the first place. The founders of the modern Olympics honestly thought that the Olympic Games would be a brilliant substitute for warfare: that nations would compete on the sporting field, not on the battlefield. Nice, even though warfare still continued to be the main politics by other means, and in most respects, warfare got nastier and costlier since the Olympics came around—but this isn’t their fault.

The Olympics, especially in 1972 (tragically), 1980 (foolishly), and 1984 (regrettably), have been used as political levers as though the original ideals never existed. The concept of multi-nationalism, in which all players are equal until proven otherwise, is very much another façade of Progressivism—everyone knows which countries are going to win medals, and it always seems to be the same ones. The Cold War refusal to boot doped up sorely needed communist athletes is the same mentality that doesn’t want to offend sorely needed Muslim countries who have vowed to walk out if their flags are lowered for Israel. It’s also the same mentality that allows allegations of corruption, union influence peddling, and missing funds to occur in each and every Olympics with no real improvement—acceptance of this is integral to Leftist progressivism: it’s okay to have haves and have nots, so long as the haves are the folks in charge.

This of course doesn’t make the Olympics less important or less exciting to watch. Like any ritual event, it takes on a life of its own. And the course correction inherent to the Olympic progressivist nonsense is the real stories of athletes triumphing over incredible odds. It’s the athletes indeed who make this drama all the more worthwhile, opening and closing nonsense not mattering as much.

The Czar of Muscovy

Божію Поспѣшествующею Милостію Мы, Дима Грозный Императоръ и Самодержецъ Всероссiйскiй, цѣсарь Московскiй. The Czar was born in the steppes of Russia in 1267, and was cheated out of total control of all Russia upon the death of Boris Mikhailovich, who replaced Alexander Yaroslav Nevsky in 1263. However, in 1283, our Czar was passed over due to a clerical error and the rule of all Russia went to his second cousin Daniil (Даниил Александрович), whom Czar still resents. As a half-hearted apology, the Czar was awarded control over Muscovy, inconveniently located 5,000 miles away just outside Chicago. He now spends his time seething about this and writing about other stuff that bothers him.