Canada Should Not Participate in the 2022 Winter Olympics

[RogerWilco]

Originally Posted by Sliver

I don't think it would make us look strong. It would make us look like pouty little bitches.

Would you attend a party thrown by a gang that kidnapped your son/brother and refuses to let him go? While they still have him chained in a concrete room ####ting trough a hole in the floor? Serious question.

[RogerWilco]

Originally Posted by GirlySports

We can't boycott first, same reason we couldn't declare a genocide first. We don't want to be left holding the bucket. It's the US or bust.

You have to look after your own. We cant depend on the US for everything. We should be boycotting the Olympics and placing as many sanctions that we can. But our current leader is too much of a ##### to do any of that. So we will continue to be the worlds bitch.

[GirlySports]

Originally Posted by RogerWilco

You have to look after your own. We cant depend on the US for everything. We should be boycotting the Olympics and placing as many sanctions that we can. But our current leader is too much of a ##### to do any of that. So we will continue to be the worlds bitch.

Like China cares about our sanctions. That would just hurt Canadians as the rest of the world moves forward.

[RogerWilco]

Originally Posted by GirlySports

Like China cares about our sanctions. That would just hurt Canadians as the rest of the world moves forward.

That is just victim mentality and its sad.

[CaptainCrunch]

Originally Posted by GirlySports

Like China cares about our sanctions. That would just hurt Canadians as the rest of the world moves forward.

At the same time, we have to accept that unless we're going to sit here and say that Canadians getting snatched off of the streets and run through a kangaroo court is something that we can live with.



We talk with pride about how Canada should lead the rights on specific things like this, or in terms of the genocide or the treatment of the protesters in Hong Kong. I guess that's just false bluster.


And maybe the idea that Canada was good at forming coalitions based on doing the right thing is another false narrative and on the international stage we really are nothing.



If it takes pain in this case, then take the pain.

[CroFlames]

Originally Posted by CaptainCrunch

At the same time, we have to accept that unless we're going to sit here and say that Canadians getting snatched off of the streets and run through a kangaroo court is something that we can live with.



We talk with pride about how Canada should lead the rights on specific things like this, or in terms of the genocide or the treatment of the protesters in Hong Kong. I guess that's just false bluster.


And maybe the idea that Canada was good at forming coalitions based on doing the right thing is another false narrative and on the international stage we really are nothing.



If it takes pain in this case, then take the pain.

The noble thing is to stand up for what’s right.

But they make all our stuff. We can’t piss them off unfortunately.

[RogerWilco]

We can get cheep #### elsewhere.

[Joborule]

Originally Posted by RogerWilco

China may not care if we go or not, but lets be clear. The premier event of the winter games is the ice hockey tournament. If NHLers are allowed to go the tournament is basically meaningless without the Canadian Team. This would be a huge story. If it was the summer games no one would really care, but the winter games?

This will only matter to Canadians, and Canadians only.

Canada is irrelevant on the political stage worldwide. If Canada was to boycott the Olympics, it would be noted, but it won't make a difference to the quality of the games itself.

I don't see Canada boycotting the games, since they would do nothing else outside of the games to showcase their displeasure with China. It comes off fairly hallow when you're still supporting the Chinese economy as normal, but not sending your amateur athletes to a special athletic event the whole world will be taking part in.

Based on China's record, they shouldn't have even gotten the games in the first place if we're gonna make the Olympics political. But that's an IOC issue, and they - as well as FIFA - don't care about that at all. They just care about the money.

[Mr.Coffee]

Originally Posted by RogerWilco

We can get cheep #### elsewhere.

Can we? Why aren’t we?

[Mr.Coffee]

Canadians need to start caring about the economy.

It needs to be the #1 laser focus for all Canadians and like yesterday.

This country is in big trouble. I hope people aren’t hanging onto this quality of life and thinking it’ll last. We can’t compete in this world with Canadian priorities. That’s just a fact. So, people need to wrap their head around things like a ####tier life if you’re going to go #### around with China.

Seriously- you will get what you’re asking for and I’m not even providing an opinion if that’s right or wrong- it just is. Get ready to be made an example of by China for making the kinda grand stands people are banging for in here. We are the perfect country for China to make an example of. We don’t matter, we think we do, and they can send a message to the world if we screw with them. So if we do, get ready for life to be worse and really dig into that idea and get comfortable with it. Because that is reality. Our comfortable little lives here are insanely dependent on China. So many examples.

Here’s just one. Real estate in Vancouver. Goodbye. Decimated. Liquidation world. Guess who that also impacts? People in Calgary. What about oil and gas? Yes, connected to China. What about trade relations with the United States? Impacts from China. What about just about ####ing everything? China.

So I mean, sure, stand up to them. But buckle up not just for the retaliation punch, but a bullet. There’s brave, and then sometimes there’s just really stupid. But I’ve learned our country is the latter.

[GirlySports]

Ship has sailed. There was no secret what China is. We decided to prop them up in the 80s after their catastrophic failed policies in order to tap into that massive market. It's not like they suddenly started treating Uyghurs badly. We didn't punish them after Tiananmen. We decided to deal with a country with no rule of law. China has not changed. They are still running that place like it's the Ming Dynasty.

[RogerWilco]

Sorry, you guys are right. Lets do nothing over China kidnaping our citizens at will. As long as I can get a fairly cheep iPhone.

[CaptainCrunch]

Originally Posted by Mr.Coffee

Canadians need to start caring about the economy.

It needs to be the #1 laser focus for all Canadians and like yesterday.

This country is in big trouble. I hope people aren’t hanging onto this quality of life and thinking it’ll last. We can’t compete in this world with Canadian priorities. That’s just a fact. So, people need to wrap their head around things like a ####tier life if you’re going to go #### around with China.

Seriously- you will get what you’re asking for and I’m not even providing an opinion if that’s right or wrong- it just is. Get ready to be made an example of by China for making the kinda grand stands people are banging for in here. We are the perfect country for China to make an example of. We don’t matter, we think we do, and they can send a message to the world if we screw with them. So if we do, get ready for life to be worse and really dig into that idea and get comfortable with it. Because that is reality. Our comfortable little lives here are insanely dependent on China. So many examples.

Here’s just one. Real estate in Vancouver. Goodbye. Decimated. Liquidation world. Guess who that also impacts? People in Calgary. What about oil and gas? Yes, connected to China. What about trade relations with the United States? Impacts from China. What about just about ####ing everything? China.

So I mean, sure, stand up to them. But buckle up not just for the retaliation punch, but a bullet. There’s brave, and then sometimes there’s just really stupid. But I’ve learned our country is the latter.

I think that we all get that. However at the same time, that punch is either coming today or tomorrow or 6 months from now or 5 years from now. If we don't establish a push back position with an expectation retaliation, its going to be, well it already is going to be a Chinese national strategy that they will hang over our head, and we'll have to bow every single time.



Frankly we let this happen. We continue to send funding to China for infrastructure, continue to allow Chinese nationals to buy companies. Do these stupid jump programs with Huwei even though they're pretty much a key piece of the People's Liberation Intelligence Services. At the same time we blindly allow China to buy influence with well paid mercenaries like John McCallum (sp?) and others. We let them spy on us electronically, and do massive amounts of electronic and corporate espionage.



We let their "citizens" run cash for access fund raising events for political parties. We have MP's enrich themselves by doing business with them. We let them buy up swaths of our resources. So we've put ourselves in a position of eternal blackmail. We allowed ourselves to kneel before the Dragon.



But at the same time, the same leverage that they have with us, we should be exploiting with them. But then again that would only matter if Canada mattered on the World Stage. We've deluded ourselves as Canadians into believing that we were the wise suggesting middle power that could advise other countries and build coalitions where needed. But we can't.


At this point if we sit here and say, its ok to kidnap our citizens, and its ok to murder and do genocide as a state. Then every time China has a temper tantrum, we've set the precedence, they'll rattle more kidnapping or economic consequences in our face.



Stop sending any kind of grants or infrastructure dollars to China. Stop letting them manipulate the real estate and resource markets in this country to their benefit. Stop letting them establish their espionage networks in this country, stop letting them establish "unofficial ties" to Government officials. Start encouraging Chinese competitors and partnering up with them as a slap at the Chinese.



Are we going to let them whip us continually while we're on our knees in front of them. Or are we willing to act like a sovereign state and take the blow standing up.


China needs energy and hard currency, that's also for sure, they need it to buy things like next generation fighters and ships and feed their troops. Because China certainly has a military interest in Energy Self Sufficiency in their own region. That has to be address at some point by the Americans.



But to just shrug and tell China that its ok to kidnap citizens and run them through show trials while enslaving and enacting genocide because of the economy just feels wrong and a bad strategy because all that we're doing is encouraging them to continue to black mail us and subvert us forever.

[transplant99]

Originally Posted by RogerWilco

Sorry, you guys are right. Lets do nothing over China kidnaping our citizens at will. As long as I can get a fairly cheep iPhone.

Cheap.

To the point however, its not "let's do nothing", it's "there is nothing" we can do. Not that would make one bit of difference anyhow. China doesn't play by our rules, and if we want to do business with them (which is absolutely necessary at this point), then we do have to play by theirs.

If you want to get China on a level playing field, there is one way and one way only......and that is economically. Canada is in no position to do so however. We are a small fish in a great big pond.

Again...the only thing that occurs by not going to the Olympics is you hurt the athletes and coaches who have been training for them for years and years. In some cases the majority of their lives. It causes China zero embarrassment because....they don't care.

On top of which, politicizing sports is just gross.

You want to make a mark and show China their crap must stop? Get a coalition of G7 or G8+5 countries together and get them all to stop trade with them. That would actually matter and force changes.

Good luck with that.

[Senator Clay Davis]

We couldn't even get the US to sign TPP even though almost every economist said it would hurt China and help the other countries in the treaty. Thinking we could get them to join a boycott, which likely accomplishes nothing, is pretty hilarious. We should be boycotting the IOC and FIFA and organizations like that for continuing to legitimize ####ty countries like China and Qatar that only marginally respect human rights during these sham events, but otherwise are totalitarian countries that like to suppress human rights like its going out of style. But yeah, we're Canada, who gives a ####?

[GirlySports]

Originally Posted by CaptainCrunch

I think that we all get that. However at the same time, that punch is either coming today or tomorrow or 6 months from now or 5 years from now. If we don't establish a push back position with an expectation retaliation, its going to be, well it already is going to be a Chinese national strategy that they will hang over our head, and we'll have to bow every single time.



Frankly we let this happen. We continue to send funding to China for infrastructure, continue to allow Chinese nationals to buy companies. Do these stupid jump programs with Huwei even though they're pretty much a key piece of the People's Liberation Intelligence Services. At the same time we blindly allow China to buy influence with well paid mercenaries like John McCallum (sp?) and others. We let them spy on us electronically, and do massive amounts of electronic and corporate espionage.



We let their "citizens" run cash for access fund raising events for political parties. We have MP's enrich themselves by doing business with them. We let them buy up swaths of our resources. So we've put ourselves in a position of eternal blackmail. We allowed ourselves to kneel before the Dragon.



But at the same time, the same leverage that they have with us, we should be exploiting with them. But then again that would only matter if Canada mattered on the World Stage. We've deluded ourselves as Canadians into believing that we were the wise suggesting middle power that could advise other countries and build coalitions where needed. But we can't.


At this point if we sit here and say, its ok to kidnap our citizens, and its ok to murder and do genocide as a state. Then every time China has a temper tantrum, we've set the precedence, they'll rattle more kidnapping or economic consequences in our face.



Stop sending any kind of grants or infrastructure dollars to China. Stop letting them manipulate the real estate and resource markets in this country to their benefit. Stop letting them establish their espionage networks in this country, stop letting them establish "unofficial ties" to Government officials. Start encouraging Chinese competitors and partnering up with them as a slap at the Chinese.



Are we going to let them whip us continually while we're on our knees in front of them. Or are we willing to act like a sovereign state and take the blow standing up.


China needs energy and hard currency, that's also for sure, they need it to buy things like next generation fighters and ships and feed their troops. Because China certainly has a military interest in Energy Self Sufficiency in their own region. That has to be address at some point by the Americans.



But to just shrug and tell China that its ok to kidnap citizens and run them through show trials while enslaving and enacting genocide because of the economy just feels wrong and a bad strategy because all that we're doing is encouraging them to continue to black mail us and subvert us forever.

Not saying we cannot make a stand, but it's going to hurt real bad. It's like we're 100 feet deep in quicksand and we have to dig our way out. Where do we even start? You think we can stop exporting to China? Just them banning meat and canola hurt us. In this tug of war, China is holding the knife by the handle, we are holding the knife by the blade.

I don't think any politician will take that risk and I don't think citizens have an appetite for it either. We have been accustomed to this way of life, a me first, material first society.

[CaptainCrunch]

Originally Posted by GirlySports

Not saying we cannot make a stand, but it's going to hurt real bad. It's like we're 100 feet deep in quicksand and we have to dig our way out. Where do we even start? You think we can stop exporting to China? Just them banning meat and canola hurt us. In this tug of war, China is holding the knife by the handle, we are holding the knife by the blade.

I don't think any politician will take that risk and I don't think citizens have an appetite for it either. We have been accustomed to this way of life, a me first, material first society.

We can't take a stance, because we won't take a stance, that's pretty clear. Canadians need to stop thinking that we're some beacon of light in the world in terms of human rights, or standing up for the right things. We are a zero power, a virtue signaler that really does nothing, and we very little credibility with our friends and allies.



As for the whole we shouldn't hurt the athletes and coaches that have trained for it. This is going to be harsh but in the grand scheme of things the Olympics bring a bunch of money and prestige to China, its a sporting event. If athletes and coaches look at attending this even though two Canadians were snatched off of the streets and kangeroo courted, and the Chinese commit genocide. I certainly won't be cheering for the athletes and hoping that they do well. I'll lose a lot of respect for them and the Canadian Olympic team. Sorry that's just me. But putting athletic competition over doing the right thing is wrong.



If the NHL went over, and Canadian Players participated, I'd be done with the NHL and the Flames.

[Flamenspiel]

There you have it from Newsweek and confirmed by other news services:

“A multi-national boycott could have a ripple effect into China's economic forecast that could lead to a mammoth financial loss for the country. China has already built a high-speed rail line to connect Beijing to Yanqing and Zhangjiakou, which are the other two cities scheduled to host events for the 2022 Games.“

Oh , and TVs are made in Mexico now( the good ones, Sony and Samsung), so no worries there you guys can all get your fix without buying China made.

[GirlySports]

Originally Posted by CaptainCrunch

We can't take a stance, because we won't take a stance, that's pretty clear. Canadians need to stop thinking that we're some beacon of light in the world in terms of human rights, or standing up for the right things. We are a zero power, a virtue signaler that really does nothing, and we very little credibility with our friends and allies.


As for the whole we shouldn't hurt the athletes and coaches that have trained for it. This is going to be harsh but in the grand scheme of things the Olympics bring a bunch of money and prestige to China, its a sporting event. If athletes and coaches look at attending this even though two Canadians were snatched off of the streets and kangeroo courted, and the Chinese commit genocide. I certainly won't be cheering for the athletes and hoping that they do well. I'll lose a lot of respect for them and the Canadian Olympic team. Sorry that's just me. But putting athletic competition over doing the right thing is wrong.


If the NHL went over, and Canadian Players participated, I'd be done with the NHL and the Flames.

NHL is going for sure. As I said, the only difference between not going to Korea and going to China is money. Everything else is the same. The break in the season, not taking advantage of the lull in February, the travel, the time zone, everything.

The thing is that not only is Canada not against the IOC and FIFA they are great supporters. Canada is hosting the 2026 World Cup. Toronto would accept to host a Summer Olympic Games in a nanosecond. Calgary is not hosting in 2026 only because Nenshi was put it to a plebiscite. He could have easily just gone for it and Calgary would have won.


Canada LOVES playing along with these organizations.

Originally Posted by Flamenspiel

There you have it from Newsweek and confirmed by other news services:

“A multi-national boycott could have a ripple effect into China's economic forecast that could lead to a mammoth financial loss for the country. China has already built a high-speed rail line to connect Beijing to Yanqing and Zhangjiakou, which are the other two cities scheduled to host events for the 2022 Games.“

Oh , and TVs are made in Mexico now( the good ones, Sony and Samsung), so no worries there you guys can all get your fix without buying China made.

So what? China can print money. They don't care about white elephants and wasted train lines. China would love it even more if they won all the medals.

[Fighting Banana Slug]

So much depends on the goal of the boycott.

If it is to take a moral stand, then by all means, have at it, as there are more than enough examples to justify taking a stand against China.

If it is to make any difference on how the games are viewed or if is to change China’s behaviour? I think it is largely an empty gesture and basically pointless.

What I don’t really understand, is the issues surrounding Meng’s extradition. How strong is the US case? This seems to be driving most of the conversation (at least when it comes to the Michaels), that I would prefer Canada to address that issue head on.