The new forums will be named Coin Return (based on the most recent vote)! You can check on the status and timeline of the transition to the new forums here.
The Guiding Principles and New Rules document is now in effect.
[The Olympics] Rio 2016! (Maybe)
Atomika
Live fast and get fucked or whateverRegistered User regular
Live fast and get fucked or whateverRegistered User regular
https://youtu.be/q9gL33ze4REWell, tough shit. And by that I mean, "It will be tough to swim through the pools of literal shit that will be used for events in Rio."
To understate the problem by some great measure, Rio de Janeiro ain't ready for this. What, you may ask, is the trouble in tropical paradise? Surely, the IOC has learned their lessons after back-to-back embarrassments in Beijing and Sochi, right? Can it really be that bad? I'm here to assure you, no, . . . it is far, far worse. And here's why!
The Rio economy is nearing a state of depression
Brazil’s economy contracted 5.4 per cent in the first quarter from a year earlier, highlighting the challenge facing interim president Michel Temer as he tries to end the country’s worst recession in more than a century. Economists say the once high-flying emerging market is suffering a deep recession that is starting to show characteristics of a depression.
Goldman Sachs economist Alberto Ramos said a depression was defined as a recession that lasts eight or more straight quarters in which there is a decline in real GDP of 10 per cent or more. He said Brazil`s recession had been running for two years and had reduced the size of the economy to the level of late 2010 with a decline in real per capita GDP of 9 per cent.
“Given its exceptional depth, breadth, and duration, the ongoing cyclical contraction of real activity [has] acquired some of the characteristics of an economic depression,” Mr Ramos said in a note.
Brasil's latina female president has just been impeached in what may be a right-wing, racist, sexist, capitalist coup
This morning, Brazil’s first female president, Dilma Rousseff, was removed from power following a Senate vote in an impeachment proceeding that lasted 20 hours. She will now be tried in the Senate on charges of fiscal irresponsibility.
The country’s new interim president, Michel Temer, wasted no time on Thursday in announcing his new cabinet. And they all have one thing in common: they are all men. Despite Brazil having 107 million women, Temer’s government will mark the first time since the 1970′s that the Brazilian cabinet features zero women.
The disgusting poop water might kill you
The AP reported last year with two investigations based on independent water-quality testing. The first, published in July, found that in certain venues, Olympic athletes are “almost certain to come into contact with disease-causing viruses that in some tests measured up to 1.7 million times the level of what would be considered hazardous on a Southern California beach.” In December, a second round of tests showed that the Olympic waterways teem with viruses and bacteria even far from land.
And if it doesn't, you'll probably wind up with Zika virus
The summer Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro should be postponed or moved "in the name of public health" due to the widening Zika outbreak in Brazil, more than 100 prominent doctors and professors said Friday in an open letter to the World Health Organization.
"We make this call despite the widespread fatalism that the Rio 2016 Games are inevitable or 'too big to fail,' " the writers said in the letter addressed to WHO Director-General Margaret Chan. "Our greater concern is for global health. The Brazilian strain of Zika virus harms health in ways that science has not observed before.
Facing a financial crisis, the Rio Olympics organizers cut $500 million from the budget just six months before opening ceremonies
The grandstands for watching rowing and beach volleyball at the Rio de Janeiro Olympics are to be reduced in size to cut spending as Brazil's economic crisis hits home, Olympic officials said on Tuesday. The number of volunteers has also been cut from around 70,000 to 50,000 and the total of cars slashed by 20 percent to 4,000 from an original estimate of 5,000, Rio 2016 spokesperson Mario Andrada told reporters.
Which might lead to many of the venues not being completed on time, if at all
In particular, they’re having a hard time getting the velodrome built in time to host track cycling events. Organizers had to cancel two indoor test events in the velodrome in March and April because, uh, there was no velodrome to hold them in. The first track cycling races to be held in the arena will be actual Olympic races, which is obviously a bad idea, and that’s assuming the thing even gets built.
“I’m very unhappy about that,” Cookson said. “The progress still seems to be incredibly slow. We now believe we don’t have any time for any proper test events and that’s very, very worrying.
The infrastructure never existed to handle the expected influx of tourism, and the new stuff being built is shitty and falling apart already and killing people
A 150-foot elevated cycle path section in Rio de Janeiro collapsed this morning after it was hit by a wave, killing at least two of the five cyclists who fell into the sea. The 2.4 mile long Tim Maia Cycle Path—completed in January at a cost of $12.7 million—was one of the many infrastructure projects undertaken in anticipation of this summer’s Olympic games.
Brasil seems dangerously okay with gang rape
The scandal erupted last week when a 38-second video was posted to Twitter, showing the victim naked and unconscious while male voices bragged about "at least 30" people having sex with her. Police have said they are trying to identify at least 30 people involved in the incident. No arrests have been made so far.
The lead investigator on the case was removed over the weekend amid criticisms of bias against the victim. The case is now being handled by the police unit for crimes against minors and the state's department of social services.
In Brasilia, police used pepper spray on protesters who tried to march on the Supreme Court with bouquets of flowers and signs denouncing what they called a "culture of rape" in Brazil.
A doping scandal is rocking the Olympic competitions, and many athletes (primarily from Russia, China, and Kenya (shocking, I know)) may be barred from the event
On June 17th, the IAAF will take a call on whether to continue or revoke a ban on Russian athletes participating in track and field events at the Olympics – a decision that is fervently being awaited throughout the world.
No worries, though, right? I'm sure they'll all sort this out in *looks at watch* . . . ten weeks??!?!
:bigfrown:
Okay, maybe not.
U-S-A!
U-S-A!
U-S-A!
Atomika on
+2
Posts
Holy fuck did everything go horribly wrong.
Choose Your Own Chat 1 Choose Your Own Chat 2 Choose Your Own Chat 3
Except that Brazil could desperately use that money in infrastructure - which is why the place nearly went up in flames during the Cup.
That being said, when they do come around it fills me with joy to watch every bit of coverage i can find on the Summer Games. Something about the entire world competing and the general atmosphere of human cooperation/competition and the amazing stories that come out of the games just really makes me excited to get home every night and pull up a couch with my girlfriend and cat and watch all Olympics all the time.
"Rowing? I dont care about rowing! ...but.....TELL ME MORE! Tell me all about the un-even bars! OHOHOH WAS THAT BADMINTON?!?! Turn that shit up!"
I just hope Rio doesnt have to pay too high of a price for hosting these games...
pleasepaypreacher.net
I think it's too late for that.
They can't even finish the infrastructure for the games, things like roads and such. I doubt they have the money for mosquito annihilation.
pleasepaypreacher.net
pleasepaypreacher.net
That's one thing that Rio will hopefully force a fix on. Given how corrupt the IOC is, though...
They'll just put it in Dubai, I mean worked for the world cup what could possibly go wrong?
pleasepaypreacher.net
Montreal, 76.
Yeah, and they just finished paying for it a couple of years ago
This is an outrage
Just look at what happened with the last Winter Games bid. Norway ends up pulling out because it's too expensive and because the IOC delegates are complete assholes. And suddenly they are left going "Um, who is gonna host this thing?" and very few takers.
Alot of countries and cities are getting wise to what a bunch of bullshit the whole thing is. Never pays for itself, huge hassle, insane demands, giant debt, etc, etc. And many of the remaining places that still want it either can't afford it (see - Rio) or have huge issues on top of that (see - Rio).
I really think the whole thing is a business model that fundamentally doesn't work and it's currently limping along solely off this insane idea of prestige and lots of sexy corruption.
I hope that Rio can get its act together and that it isn't as horrifying as it's looking like it might be, but if it does end up being the literal shit-show, I'm hoping it is at least enough to get more influential people to question the IOC's decisions and initiate a change.
Law and Order ≠ Justice
London seemed to be a step forward by using a lot of existing infrastructure and using temporary stadiums where it wasn't needed permanently. But so much for that.
Its not that bad if its in a world city - Beijing, or London, or Los Angeles for instance. The US could host the World Cup like next month if need be because of existing infrastructure. The problem is when they try to put in some place that is in need of development as if additional, specialized development needs will fix that.
QEDMF xbl: PantsB G+
and the frustrating thing is that this type of event could actually be a major force for good if the desire was there--the IOC could mobilize a lot of effort and money into adding and improving infrastructure in places that need it
Or lining the pockets of corrupt local government. In the abstract it would be nice if countries got paid to host but who'd have sent anything to Sochi?
Same for winter olympics, really.
I think you guys are drastically overestimating the effects that a global spread of a new mosquito-borne (also sexually transmitted) disease would have, especially since most of the developmental problems are mental in nature. They can still run and enjoy a crisp cool Coke, so what's the big deal?
This is the way the world ends.
This is the way the world ends.
Not with a bang but with a whimper.
Though it might be from all the athletes banging and spreading Zika around the world.
Seriously though, if my event took place anywhere near that water I'd politely "nope" right the fuck out. A shot at a medal isn't worth swimming in literal shit.
Then again, I stopped watching the Olympics when they decided to not include sports I enjoyed on the broadcast. Boxing? Fencing? Wrestling? HaHaHa watch six hours of track and field where people run quickly in various sized circles and we fill the time with dead air and fake controversy about the countries of origin, possible gender discrepancies, doping and 80% commercial breaks.
Edit: I do wish they'd have a formal simple opening and closing ceremony instead of trying to turn it into a superbowl halftime show. They're getting so very very bad. It's like we can't have nice things as a species without eventually dunking them in glitter and then sodomizing them until they fall apart.
Well, no offense, but I have a feeling the kind of athlete to make it to the Olympics is way more competitive than that.
Like, if they were given a choice, a bunch would unequivocally go.
There's a pretty famous study of elite athletes where they were posed a simple scenario:
Imagine that you were offered a new performance enhancing drug. This drug is completely untraceable, and if you take it, it will guarantee that you win a gold medal. The tradeoff - the drug will kill you in six months. Do you take it?
A very large number of the athletes surveyed responded yes.
not questioning the veracity of the statement - just wondering if there is any reasoning behind this.