Olympians

Of course we are watching the Olympics. Well actually we are watching wall-to-wall advertising interspersed with the occasional 100 meter breast (that's how the commentator says it - "100 meter breast" - made me look up from my magazine, I can tell you). Since much of the advertising is political in nature - after all those November elections are just around the corner - it gets painful quickly so we have to switch off. So we haven't seen much Olympics! I don't understand how beach volleyball made it as an Olympic sport - shoot, you may as well have Olympic frisbee. And I see there's basketball, soccer, baseball, tennis - but no cricket! Come on, why not Olympic cricket, for goodness sake!

The Olympics is more than a spectator sport, it's vicarious viewing. I'd never heard of Michael Phelps until last week, though he's clearly been training for this moment since moments after birth, but now we cheering him on as one of us, an American athletic hero going for gold! Well, good for him, and he is amazing to watch, but at the end of the day I think it's his medal clutch, not ours!