U.S. lawmakers push corporate sponsors to shun Beijing Olympics

For once I am very proud of Congress....

The Biden admin should lead by example and announce that the United States will not be attending the Dictatorship Games. Other countries would likely follow.

NBC would not have any reason to broadcast (Or pay the IOC for the rights).

Sponsors would not have any reason to advertise on something that is not being shown.

Beijing would not get the free air time to parrot "Chinese Socialism" (You can be rich, but you will never be free.) They also would not get the attention and credibility that totalitarian dictatorships so desperately crave.

And the IOC might just get the message about awarding the games to Dictators to oppress their citizens and that threaten the sovereignty of their neighbors.

zichiToday  10:56 am JST

Trump would never have prevented TEam America from going to Beijing.

It is a difficult concept to understand for non-Americans here.

Sounds like the UK is enthusiastic about the Beijing Olympics.

P. SmithToday  12:17 pm JST

If’s really weird that American “conservatives” think you have to be from a country to understand what’s going on in that country. We know this is erroneous logic, though.

It is erroneous logic in your opinion, isn't that true?

Let us NOT mix Politics with the Olympics, if we start doing that soon we will start fighting and shooting at each others during the games, congress is opening the door to fights & violence at the games.

The US will have to find something worse than genocide. Genocide itself apparently isn’t enough to dissuade American corporations.

@quercetum

As the US was founded on genocide and slavery, it is not in a position to criticize.

Nike is the company that blocked a bill criticizing forced labor in Uyghur.

Hello Kitty 321Today  06:09 pm JST

As the US was founded on genocide and slavery, it is not in a position to criticize.

I thought the US was founded on protecting life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness?

And we had to fight Britain to get those. And Britain started the whole slave thing in the colonies, so we get a pass on that.

Politicians will ruin everything if you let them, weaponising sport, trade and tourism. They will build borders around every nation, locking you in and others out.

The Xinjiang camps are an atrocity, just as the presidentially-approved camps at Guantanamo Bay were.

Politicians need to stick to politics and dispute with other nations within the political sphere. Back off out of our lives, our commerce, our culture and our sport. We elect you to keep the lights on, not to place restrictions on us. Your democratic mandate only goes so far. You are not our parents because we are not children. You are not our jailors because we are not criminals. We are not your toy soldiers. That era has passed.

Republicans caring about muslims????!!!!!! Gimme a break.

Tom Cotton is the sort of person who, 150 years ago, would be using black slaves to work on his cotton plantation.

If the Olympics are good enough for Sochi, then it's good enough for Beijing.

It's heartening to see so many who opposed the England football team making anti-discrimination protests at the Euros with their keep politics out of sport mantra, lining up here to say the same about Beijing 2022.

Heartening.

Quite right, everyone should boycott the Genocide Games. A disgusting display of corporate greed putting profit before morality.

And yes we all should be pressuring companies not to source from China and stop feeding the beast. Query the manufacturer of all your major purchases where they are made and where the parts came from. Challenge them on their policy, many have corporate anti slavery statements on their web sites, ask them why they are supporting slavery?

If they are inundated by thousands of individuals questioning them each day they will be forced to act. The power is in our hands, use it or be complicit.

Pick your poison on dealing with Islamic extremists:

Concentration camps with forced labor, sterilization, re-education brainwashing propaganda. Genocide.

Spend trillions bombing countries and killing innocent civilians to counter terrorism. War.

War and genocide are not the answer. What would Japan do?

GdTokyoToday  09:41 am JST

The Biden admin should lead by example and announce that the United States will not be attending the Dictatorship Games. Other countries would likely follow.

Exactly. Not surprising how the libs here won't touch this subject. Don't want to hurt the feelings of their CCP comrades.

I have to agree with this statement from the Visa representative: "As long as the governments allow the athletes to attend the Games, we as Visa will be there to support and sponsor them," she said.

It's not up to the sponsors to tell the athletes to stay home. It's up to those athletes' governments. Pretty simple.

I'm all for it Boycott China!!! **Republican Senator Tom Cotton, a vociferous critic of China, berated the companies and said that each came "with orders not to say anything that could offend the Chinese Communist Party." **Does China own the companies? Are the companies afraid of being banned from China by speaking out?

What gets me is that after China pretty much broke every promise that they made in order to get the 2008 Olympics (more govt. transparency, attempt for more equitable treatment of minorities, hands off Hong Kong till 2047 etc.) the IOC awarded them another one for 2022.

We shouldn't even be in this situation on whether to boycott or not.

When boycotts and the like are brought up, I question the purpose. Is it to improve the situation in China or a way to look or feel self-righteous? (And by improving the situation in China, I guess I mean creating a more democratic country.) Which is the better thing to say to China, "You are evil", or "Show us how good you are".

War and genocide are not the answer. What would Japan do?

A good question, quercetum. But maybe "What does Japan do?" is more interesting. I don't think it causes conflict, which is probably better than what some other developed countries do.

As China is having Olympics in Japan, I don't think it's good for Japan to have Olympics in China.

Stop falling for this US vs. China conflict, not anyone problem but their own.

I don't think it's bad for Japan to have Olympics in China.

Jesus, just one typo can change the whole phrase.

But maybe "What does Japan do?" is more interesting. I don't think it causes conflict, which is probably better than what some other developed countries do.

If Japan had bombings by terrorists, I wonder how Japan would handle it. There must be a better solution than dropping bombs and putting masses in camps.

What does Japan do? It's the chance to shine on world stage - every Japanese gold medal is a David slewing Goliath story - and only a year after the summer games while Olympic fever is still hot. I don't see Japan boycotting 2022.