Reflections on the Olympic Closing Ceremony

Photo credit: Rob Baxter

This commentary also appears at Earthpages.org

Well it’s come and gone. The 2010 Winter Olympics are history.

Once again I felt compelled to watch the closing ceremony, not because I like seeing massive amounts of money spent on superficialities, but because I was curious to see how my country chose to spend them.†

Granted, the whole thing is open to debate. I get that. I mean, some say we need “spectacles” to keep life interesting, even though people are freezing to death on the streets and aboriginal teens are killing themselves because of the grim desperation that poverty can bring.

Others say that spending money on the Olympics stimulates local economies. In addition, many corporations involved in their overall production benefit. I get that too.

But what I don’t get is why the artistic director of the closing ceremony dished out every idiotic stereotype about Canada known to mankind. To spend significant sums of money on massive images of bears, log cabins, and Mounties in red ceremonial uniform seems misguided.

That’s not Canada at all. That’s just a silly cliché that, so it seemed, the opening ceremony hoped to eradicate.

Contradiction?

You bet.

Waste of money?

Well, let’s just say that I don’t agree with Marshall McLuhan’s dictum that “The medium is the message.”

I believe that part of the message is content. And in my opinion, the content of the closing ceremony was a bit of a joke. And not a good one, as intended.

Having said that, it wasn’t all bad. Neil Young and Michael J. Fox were highlights. And William Shatner was… well, William Shatner. That is, overblown but delightfully so.

How ironic, however, that these stars made their fortunes south of the border and basically left Canada to live in the USA.

Bottom line?

Even these greats came off a bit thin because, as I say, the medium isn’t the only message. Content also matters. And despite their best efforts, these three stars sent out a message that Canada is a nice place to visit but, by gosh, we wouldn’t want to live there any more.

–MC

† Opinion – Olympic opening speaks volumes

Sometimes Satan comes as a man of peace – Bob Dylan

You know, as a practising Christian I try hard not to judge others.

But there’s always the reality of people who are not sane and really quite bent on evil.

If you think I’m being xtreme, just take a look at this document. It’s a letter of agreement signed by Adolf Hitler and the British PM Neville Chamberlain.

And we know what Hitler did shortly after.

As Bob Dylan put it:

Sometimes Satan comes as a man of peace.

Note: Handwritten portions have been moved toward center to fit into this blogspace.

How to tell a great leader from an evil genius…

I was browsing through A Critical Dictionary of Jungian Analysis and came across an interesting passage that got me thinking…

Jung’s main theoretical contribution to group psychology lies in his claim that it is the influence of insufficiently integrated archetypal tendencies that leads to mass phenomena such as fascism.

And that really is the bottom line.

A great leader weighs all the options and acts with his or her mind connected to the heart. But a tyrant doesn’t give a damn because he or she’s in the grip of some strange power beyond themselves, a power that Jung called an ‘archetypal influence.’

In short, the one is in control, whereas the other is controlled and wants to pass that lack of personal autonomy onto others… sort of like a disease.

Speaking of diseases, I wrote a poem called “The Disease” a long time ago, several years before 9/11. It was this kind of thing that I was alluding to.

just slightly ahead of my time…

just slightly ahead of my time…, originally uploaded by earthpages.

What’s the news? Well, today I worked like a beaver adding the very best news feeds available in all sorts of innovative categories. Check out the “News” tab at earthpages.ca and earthpages.org!

History repeats

history repeats, originally uploaded by earthpages.

Rod Serling – Interview Pt 1

I never knew Rod Serling was this intelligent! Fascinating and candid account of the relationship between ads and TV.

Rod Serling – Interview Pt 1

einstein’s missing variable

einstein’s missing variable, originally uploaded by the last man on earth.

love is the answer… assuming, of course, you’re dealing with sane individuals…

Look familiar?

Dr. Seuss – The Zax

Depeche Mode – People are People

People Are People

I remember when this was state of the art. Still rings true…

A free alternative to costly commercial word-processors

I’ve been trying out “Writer” from www.openoffice.org and so far am very impressed.

It’s freeware and sort of fun but not cheesy. A good alternative to those costly commercial word-processors.