Vancouver 2010 Olympics Start Friday - A Citizen's Point of View

There are mixed emotions when your City wins the Olympics.

I was there - in GM Place when the announcement came through - Vancouver won the right to host the 2010 Winter Olympics! I cheered! It was so exciting to be there among other Vancouverites! I thought the Olympics were quite something! I had watched the Olympics ever since I can remember - every single one!

Then . . . the Olympics came to town. Well . . . if anything could sour a person is to witness the politics and government arrogance associated with the Olympics.

We had hosted, in 1986, a world fair. It was fabulous! Lots of construction on the site where it was held - it took a very long time to build. Then it arrived! Amazing to see all the world come to Vancouver and demonstrate their culture! Unbelievable! It lasted several months and anyone who wanted to attend could.

The citizenry was included for Expo '86.  VANOC seem bent on antagonizing as many people as possible.  Instead of obtaining co-operation, VANOC created animosity.  A person who now lives here said that compared to the Calgary Olympics where the citizens were thrilled to see the Olympics come to their City, Vancouver's atmosphere is quite different - all because VANOC just didn't see the citizenry as an important component to their success.  Actions talk a lot louder than words!

Construction went wild in this City! Governments saw it as an opportunity to raise more taxes and development was uncontrolled. Every single piece of ground in the downtown core had construction on it or beside it. No - not for the Olympic venues - those venues  were being built elsewhere - in Richmond, in Whistler, in North Vancouver and West Vancouver. This was only high rise construction! For what? At one time, I counted over 15 cranes in the downtown core alone! What a way to sneak in a lot of development quickly - bring the Olympics to town.

Roads were closed or there was limited access for years now. Quality of life decreased substantially. What were once beautiful sites from our bridges, became obliterated with huge and many more high rises. The mountains - well, they may as well not be there because you can hardly see them anymore. We're in an earthquake zone and yet a 60-storey apartment/hotel complex was built! Our trees are being cut at an alarming rate and, generally, the City has suffered a tremendous down turn in the quality of living in this wonderful part of the world!

Politicians and senior bureaucrats seem to forget one important thing . . . . they have no money! All the money they handle is ours! They've been spending like drunken sailors on parties, sending government people to Beijing for multiple weeks and to other parts of the world, hiring advertising agencies, consultants and who knows who else - of course, they would never tell you how they spend our money.

We have very good press people and they do dig up the information. It's not pretty! One headline which appeared in our paper, "Fat cats scoop up best Oly tickets" by Michael Smyth in The Province - here's what it said:

" . . . all the fat cats and freeloaders attending the Games on your tab have snapped up some of the best and most expensive seats available."

How much?

Our own Provincial Government: $940,680 on some of the priceist and most exclusive seats and suites available including $449,200 for executive suites at various Olympic venues which include prime viewing, en-suite bathrooms, catered food and bar service, etc. A total of 3,244 tickets.

Other government levels:

Federal Government: $447,000
BC Hydro: $616,000
ICBC: $405,000
BC Lotteries: $396,000
City of Vancouver: $340,000
City of Richmond: $200,000
City of Whistler: $37,000

$3.3 Million - this is just for tickets - think about the billions it has cost the citizens of this country in tax dollars to build the venues, pay for security, hire the huge numbers of people, etc. to execute this plan . . . the list is endless!

Who are these tickets for?

Unlike Expo 86 when everyone and anyone who wanted to attend could, the Olympics seem to be mainly a government party paid at taxpayers' expense! 

The real positives of this exercise are the sacrifices made by the atheletes and their families - the culminating moment - a point in time when they will have an opportunity to shine!

Yes, it's true there are some multi-millionaire athletes who simply shouldn't be allowed in the Olympics - remember it was for amateur athletes - because they are taking the place of those who are still amateurs. Remember how the rest of the world was angry with the USSR for supporting their athletes through government paid programs. Now, the world has followed suit, not with government funding but from large corporations - same thing. However, even they, if they wish to get a medal will have had to train hard, albeit in much more luxurious spaces.

They've trained and they cried - they've laughed - and they're thrilled to be at the Olympics!

The torch has gone across our country for months now, generating support and enthusiasm - people are very excited to carry the torch for a little while . . . lots of people have been given that chance!

The City if filling with media from all over the world - they'll feel right at home here because, in our city, we have enormous cultural diversity blended in mutiple metropolises and foods from all over the world are available here in our thousands of restaurants.

We have some new facilities which people will be able to use for many years to come. The City has spruced up the landscape a bit.

It's Monday - the Olympics begin Friday - and there's excitement in the air. Athletes, trainers, coaches and others are arriving daily, hourly now - you can feel it in the air!

For those athletes and their families who have made such great sacrifices for many years, it will be a rare experience. There will be a lot of entertainment spread throughout the venues and there will be a chance to see the athletes up close on our streets.

After all, the Olympics still carries with its name an aura of the human spirit that not even the most corrupt can tarnish!