# Final opinions about the 2012 London Olympics. **URL:** \ **Category:** The Game Room\ **Created:** [January 24, 2014, 6:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/final-opinions-about-the-2012-london-olympics/679638 "2014-01-24T18:53:04Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 7\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![even\_sven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/dfb087/32.png) [@even\_sven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/even_sven)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2014, 5:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/final-opinions-about-the-2012-london-olympics/679638/21 "2014-01-26T17:56:44Z")
I was in China (though far from Beijing) for the Olympics, and it’s hard to convey just how meaningful and exciting the event was for ordinary Chinese people. The improvements that people have seen to their lives over the past decade are absolutely astounding, and Chinese people are proud of what they have achieved, even with the faults that everyone is well aware of. Nobody had to be forced to give their best for the opening ceremonies. People were freely competing for the honor of being involved in one of the biggest events the nation has seen in modern times. While China has some pretty big problems, it’s not like the place is North Korea where you get thrown in a camp for the slightest provocation. The idea that Chinese people march in lockstep is laughable. China is huge, and full of unruly, opinionated people with a strong distrust of authority and a habit of protesting with whatever means are available to them, as Beijing desperately tries to maintain some kind of order using the clunky, outdated ways they have to wield power. So yeah, my vote is for China. I don’t think an Olympic game has ever touched so many people so deeply. ---
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2014, 6:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/final-opinions-about-the-2012-london-olympics/679638/22 "2014-01-26T18:12:35Z")
In terms of spectacle, really, Beijing and London were both a blast and I’m not sure what there is to choose between the two. It will be interesting to see if Rio can match them. Tokyo in 2020 might be a lot of fun. ---
**Author:** ![AK84](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/85e7bf/32.png) [@AK84](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AK84)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2014, 6:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/final-opinions-about-the-2012-london-olympics/679638/23 "2014-01-26T18:19:00Z")
> [@Novelty\_Bobble](#): > > No, you are not alone in that. I can’t help but imagine that multiple beatings were either administered or at least plausibly threatened to get that level of precision. > > I recall watching the Beijing ceremony and being impressed, I watched the London ceremony and being _moved and delighted_. :rolleyes: The London Olympics was an awesome event and the organiszers deserve plaudits for that. The opening ceremony? A very pedestrian effort. NHS and Voldemort? Come on. ---
**Author:** ![Novelty\_Bobble](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/a3d4f5/32.png) [@Novelty\_Bobble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Novelty_Bobble)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2014, 10:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/final-opinions-about-the-2012-london-olympics/679638/24 "2014-01-26T22:00:40Z")
> [@AK84](#): > > :rolleyes: The London Olympics was an awesome event and the organiszers deserve plaudits for that. The opening ceremony? A very pedestrian effort. > > NHS and Voldemort? Come on. Tastes may vary of course. However, to describe it as “pedestrian” is frankly laughable. I’m as cynical as the next man and particularly so where my my own country is involved but the opening ceremony was by far the most entertaining one that I’ve ever seen. Imaginative, inventive and amusing but hey…it passed you by. Can’t please everyone. ---
**Author:** ![Idle\_Thoughts](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/838e76/32.png) [@Idle\_Thoughts](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Idle_Thoughts)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2014, 10:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/final-opinions-about-the-2012-london-olympics/679638/25 "2014-01-26T22:55:05Z")
Moving this over the the Game Room, since we have one. ---
**Author:** ![AK84](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/85e7bf/32.png) [@AK84](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AK84)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2014, 11:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/final-opinions-about-the-2012-london-olympics/679638/26 "2014-01-27T11:44:33Z")
> [@Novelty\_Bobble](#): > > Tastes may vary of course. However, to describe it as “pedestrian” is frankly laughable. I’m as cynical as the next man and particularly so where my my own country is involved but the opening ceremony was by far the most entertaining one that I’ve ever seen. Imaginative, inventive and amusing but hey…it passed you by. Can’t please everyone. True that tastes vary. But, Beijing was a case of doing things which have never been done before and peoples jaws did not lift from the floor all evening. London? “Eh, lets get this over with”. I’ll admit that the Torch lighting ceremony was cool. ---
**Author:** ![Gyrate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gyrate/32/3588_2.png) [@Gyrate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gyrate)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2014, 11:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/final-opinions-about-the-2012-london-olympics/679638/27 "2014-01-27T11:53:57Z")
> [@DeptfordX](#): > > Speaking as a Londoner, i really enjoyed the whole thing _and_ I still think it was an appalling waste of billions of pounds. Same here. The funding issue was very badly handled and the government is pouring more millions of taxpayer money to convert the stadium for the use of billionnaires. Not happy about that. But it was a great games all around, and apart from the last five minutes the opening ceremony was awesome - moving, deeply inventive and a warts-and-all tribute to real British culture (both the solemn and the silly). HUGE props to Danny Boyle for that. Now if only he’d left out Paul Fucking McCartney, it’d have been perfect… [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/final-opinions-about-the-2012-london-olympics/679638.md?page=1)