Seems the Olympic Committee has asked to review Bush's ad. Some commentary from Salon... ____________________________ Bush "Victory" ad infringes on reality, if not law A sunny new Bush-Cheney campaign ad touting the participation of two new free and democratic countries at the Olympic games in Athens -- Iraq and Afghanistan -- is more than just ironic, given the fighting that is raging in Najaf and the bombs that are going off at voter registration centers in Afghanistan. The ad also skirts the bounds of legality. The United States Olympic Committee, which has exclusive rights to the words "Olympic" and "Olympiad," as well as Olympic symbols such as the five interlocking rings, has asked the Bush campaign for a copy of the ad so the U.S.O.C. can evaluate whether its copyright has been infringed. A U.S.O.C. spokesman, Darryl Seibel, told Salon by phone from Athens Friday that the committee had not made a judgment yet because the Bush campaign has not yet given it a copy of the ad. Asked if he'd ever heard of the World Wide Web, where the ad can be accessed in seconds off the Bush-Cheney campaign site, Seibel demurred, saying that official channels had to be followed. Contacted for a response, Bush-Cheney spokesman Scott Stanzel -- while professing little knowledge of the matter -- suggested that perhaps it is not illegal to use "Olympics" in the plural. Sure enough: the Ted Stevens Olympic and Amateur Sports Act of 1999, which grants the U.S.O.C. its rights, says the committee has exclusive use of the words "Olympic and "Olympiad," but not "Olympics" in the plural. Technically legal or not, the ad certainly violates the spirit of the law, which is to prevent the Olympic brand from being diluted and sullied by political or commercial uses. Even worse, perhaps, is the ad's gossamer treatment of the "freedom" that it says Bush has brought to Iraq and Afghanistan, countries on the brink of failure and chaos. "Freedom is spreading throughout the world like a sunrise," the narrator says as an American-looking female swimmer dives into a pool. An underwater camera shows her gliding, missile-like, through the water, sunlight shimmering through the water. The narrator continues: "And this Olympics, there will be two more free nations (the flags of Iraq and Afghanistan flash on the screen) and two fewer terrorist regimes. With strength, resolve and courage, democracy will triumph over terror (shot of the American-looking swimmer emerging from the pool, her fist clenched in victory). And hope will defeat hatred." Okay, for starters: Iraq and Afghanistan barely have any women at all competing in Athens, much less swimmers. With armed Taliban still roaming Afghanistan, and Islamic fundamentalism on the rise in Iraq, it's a safe bet that any Iraqi or Afghan woman who dared to appear in public in the kind of bathing suit featured in the Bush ad would find herself either raped or flogged. Of the two Afghan women competing in Athens, one is a runner who has to train in long sweat pants and a head scarf. Meanwhile, Iraqi Olympian Alaa Jassim, a runner from Baghdad, frequently cannot train at all because of "street fights and bombings," according to her official Olympic biography. The title of the Bush ad is "Victory."
i think this goes with it...Iraq soccer players objecting the ad campaign. --- ATHENS, Greece - Iraqi soccer players reacted angrily Friday after being told that their nation's Olympic participation was mentioned in TV commercial by the re-election campaign for President Bush. The players called on Bush to stop using them to win votes in the United States. “Iraq as a team does not want Mr. Bush to use us for the presidential campaign,” midfielder Salih Sadir was quoted as saying. “He can find another way to advertise himself.” However, the Iraqi Olympic delegation accused journalists of deliberately provoking an angry response from their players. “Our purpose is not to politicize the football team in any way,” Mark Clark, a consultant for the Iraqi Olympic Committee, said. “It seems the story was engineered.” The flags of Iraq and Afghanistan appear in the Bush commercial ahead of the Republican National Convention, to be held in September. A narrator says: “At this Olympics there will be two more free nations—and two fewer terrorist regimes.” Another Iraqi player asked: “How will (Bush) meet his God having slaughtered so many men and women? He has committed so many crimes.” But Clark insisted journalists were wrong to take advantage of the athletes. “It is a little naughty,” he said. “The players are not very sophisticated politically; they are a little naive. Whoever posed these questions knew that the reaction would be negative. “It is possible something was lost in translation. It’s a free, new Iraq, and the players are entitled to their opinions but we are disappointed.” Iraq’s soccer players once lived in fear of Uday Hussein, son of toppled dictator Saddam Hussein, who used to beat the soles of their feet or throw them in prison for slip-ups on the pitch. Under current coach Adnan Hamd, they have defied the odds to reach the quarterfinals at the Athens Olympics, where they will play Australia on Saturday. Hamd said, “The American army has killed so many people in Iraq. What is freedom when I go to the stadium and there are shootings on the road?” Clark expressed hope that Iraq could play on without further political waves. “Any success we ... have here could be beneficial in the broader picture,” he said. "But we are here to play football." ------
How soon those guys forget the torture Saddams son put them through. Maybe after a while they began to like it. They should thank Bush every day they wake up and before they go to sleep.
Another angle on this I've heard (it is only speculation but totally plausible) is that the soccer players's or their families have been threatened by the Muslim fundamentalists to posture so or fear ultimate retribution upon return to Iraq.
I read an article about the Iraqi team in ESPN the mag. They're upset because our troops are still there for one. Another big thing that has them mad is that one of Uday's henchmen is incharge of the program now. He's already skimming money off the top, he caused their coach to quit, the players have to buy their own equipment, and their pay has been withheld. Where does this other angle come from giddy?
Do you really believe that they'll ever forget something like that? The fact that you would think that they probably liked it is insulting and demeaning. What a sick f**k. They should also thank shrub for bringing more war to their country. I don't think shrub and his mindless minions get it. The Iraqi people want freedom and peace,but I doubt they ever wanted the American government's agenda shoved down their throat. If he can't manage his own country properly what makes you think he can succeed in Iraq. And how soon you forget that if shrub's father had finished Saddam off the first time, that alot of people would have been spared years of torure and death. What a selective memory we have. If there is anyone they should thank, it's their god for letting them survive the most difficult time of their lives and doing something good for others. And they should also be thankful that shrub is not their leader.
They seemed to be happy Saddam was gone months ago in a Sports Illustrated article I read. I'm guessing, like mentioned, they wish we were already out.
