Endopolis

Leading up to the Olympics, I was really getting tired of it all. I was sick of the Beijing-has-dirty-air stories, and sick of the Michael Phelps and Dara Torres profiles (among the myriad other athlete stories that start flooding the airwaves in advance of the Games). I was ready for the whole thing to be over, and it hadn't even started yet.

Then I turned on the tube Friday night for the opening ceremonies. Wow. The art, the symbolism, the show... it was all really amazing, and I watched every minute. I even forced Jo & Nathan to watch it the next morning. They were as transfixed as I was. The show gave me goosebumps again on Saturday, just as it had on Friday night.

So I've kept an eye on the TV all weekend, watching various events. I'm particularly fond of swimming, but I took in some gymnastics, beach volleyball, volleyball, cycling, etc. It's all been pretty good so far. The 4x100 freestyle relay in which the US team came from behind to win (and was filled with French trash talk) is the best swimming race I've ever seen. Fantastic.

Last night I caught the Bob Costas/GW Bush interview (watch it) from the NBC studio, which was actually pretty decent. Costas asked our Dear Leader some good questions about China and Russia.

Then something struck me: In the shot of Bush sitting at the TV-studio desk, Chairman Mao's visage standing tall over Tiananmen Square was also looming over Bush's right shoulder. There was Mao, smiling upon the square and into the American TV cameras. The square was bustling with cars and people in the background. It's really something that NBC was able to set up shop at all (no matter how much they paid), host the President of the USA in a studio, and have a TV host ask some decent questions about the state of things between the US and China... what a long way we've come, just in my own short lifetime.

Michael Phelps may be winning a bunch of gold medals, but I couldn't help but feel that this weekend we've been witnessing the birth of a new Chinese Century. There's probably a rocky road ahead, but it sure will be interesting to watch unfold. 

Posted by senders at 10:45 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

The state says there are more than 800 fires burning in Northern California. We've had our share of them locally, which is really strange especially this time of year. Fires in the Santa Cruz Mountains and in both Santa Clara and Santa Cruz counties have all sent smoke billowing into the sky, all visible from various Santa Clara Valley locales.

Since Friday of last week, smoke has started filling the valley, casting an eerie, heavy haze over things. I can't see the hills around the valley, which is really rare. From time to time, it smells like a campfire outside. Air quality warnings are in effect for the whole region, and being outside generally just stinks right now. Firesare burning on both ends of the SF Bay, so no matter which way the wind blows it's not doing any good. On this NOAA analysis, you can see the smoke blowing out to Utah. Today, you can see wisps of smoke on the visible satellite image blowing to the southwest.

Most of the more recent fires were caused by a weird dry lightning storm that blew through the area on Saturday. We just don't get that kind of weather here very often, especially in June. On Saturday, we were down at the beach and got to talking to a local family. They swore they had seen a funnel cloud over the water, and at one point it was hailing on the beach while temps were in the mid-90s. We all remarked that we'd never seen anything like it in this area.

Crazy. I hope it all stops, and soon. 

Posted by senders at 02:00 PM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

A big story out of Australia didn't get a lot of attention in the US this week, but it should.  The government formally saying "sorry" for decades of repressive policies against Aborigines was a momentous occasion for the country. It was also controversial, as you might imagine, but the event seemed to be a national party of sorts. In one story I read, a woman equated it to the feeling in Germany when the Berlin Wall fell.

Watch Prime Minister Kevin Rudd's full speech to parliament. Another good clip here sets the full scene.

As an American, I don't understand all the complexities or history behind this week's event, but it sure was moving. And, it could be emulated here. Sen. Sam Brownback of Kansas recently added an amendment to a landmark Indian health care bill that would issue the first-ever formal apology to Native Americans for the US government's history of not honoring treaties. It doesn't go far enough, but is long overdue and I hope it passes. Can you imagine President Bush standing up before Congress and apologizing? Neither can I.

After watching the video and stories come out of Australia, I tried to remember the last time I was so moved by the actions of a government and subsequent response by the general public. Perhaps it was after 9/11 and it felt like, at least for a few days, the nation would come together to solve problems that were much bigger than us. We all know where that went, but you have to wonder what kind of effect an event like what happened in Australia could have. Brownback's bill won't do the same here in the U.S., but it sure would be nice to have a dose of good news to rally around and be proud of.

Posted by senders at 03:18 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)