Quote:
Originally Posted by Itse
I think the idea that boycotting the Sochi games would have no effect is ridiculously naive. Would boycotting Sochi change the Russian anti-gay policies right now? Propably not. The long-term effects are however a very complicated matter.
The world is not a place where actions are isolated; everything affects everything.
LGBT rights have become one of the main human rights battles of the first part of this century. Many people will notice if there are boycotts over these issues in the olympics, and many of those people will be affected by it to some extent.
The LGBT issue, like most human rights issues, are ultimately a question of public opinion. Public opinion is historically often moved by example, and respected organizations and public figures taking a strong stand on issues can have a huge impact.
Also, public opinions are swayed by politicians, who are affected by money. Boycotts are bad for the sponsors. They take eyes of the product and they put stains on the image they're trying to build.
You can't win a human rights battle overnight, but doing the right things many times over will eventually move things the right way and make persecuting LGBT minorities a less worthwhile pursuit for power-hungry politicians looking for an easy target.
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Only if nobody is watching...and Canada boycotting the Olympics would have a negligible effect on viewership, thereby lowering ad prices on the NEXT Olympic games...and that's at best. And thats only if NO one in canada watches a minute of action. The IOC already has their money for these games, so it wouldnt hurt them until negotiating rights for the South Korea games.
You want to make a statement to Russians about their policies? You hit them where it hurts...dont purchase any of their products. Boycott THEM not the games. Otherwise you do nothing more than hurt the athletes slated to go there who just want to compete rather than get into some dispute over something they have zero control of. Again if individual athletes wish to take a stand, I say all the power to them and support them regardless. But for those who wish to complete their lifelong dreams, it would be nothing short of selfish to disallow them to go and fulfill all they have trained so long and hard for.
Also...out of curiousity, what if anything is being said in Finland in regard to this debate?