Hillary Clinton whiffs in first visit to China as Secretary of State

Back on February 15, I wrote about the need of the Obama administration to hold abusers of human and religious rights accountable. How is the new administration doing? Consider this comment from new Secretary of State Hillary Clinton during her recent visit to Beijing, China:

"Human rights cannot interfere with the global economic crisis, the global climate change crisis, and the security crises."

In other words, it will be business as usual when it comes to holding China accountable for its atrocious human rights record. Clinton did make some comments about having frank discussions with China about this issue, but I have not heard many specifics.

Money triumphs over blood....again.

IOC dropped ball on Iraq but picked it back up

We are only days away from the Summer Olympics in Beijing, China, and controversy continues to be a huge part of the build up for the Games.

From the moment the International Olympic Committee chose China to host the event, it seems like conflict began. Obviously, many were upset with the choice because of the country's lousy human rights' record.

There are hundreds of ways to illustrate China's abuses, but the IOC felt the time was right to give the country a world stage to present what it is all about.

I know the cornerstone of the Olympic movement is that the Games are supposed to transcend political ideology, but the choice of China is a dubious one at best.

The IOC recently made another shaky decision when it upheld a ban on the Iraqi Olympic team. Earlier this year, the Iraqi government disbanded the country's National Olympic Committee for a variety of reasons, including a power struggle between Shiites and officials from the Saddam Hussein-era Olympic Committee.

The IOC upheld the ban and criticized the Iraqi government for what it called "serious interference" with a committee that is supposed to be autonomous.

Fortunately, officials resolved the crisis so Iraq will be sending at least some of its team to Beijing.

If this resolution hadn't happened, then it would have been another black eye for the IOC.

The IOC's position that national Olympic committees should be free of governmental interference is commendable, but their punishment of the Iraqi athletes was misguided.

If ever there was a country that needed something to rally around, it is Iraq.

The power of the Olympic Games has been diminished somewhat in recent years because of the end of the Cold War.

However, for small, struggling countries like Iraq, the Olympics remain a powerful force that can unite a country.

An excellent example of this happened during the 2004 Summer Olympics when the Iraqi team received a rousing ovation from an international audience during the opening ceremony.

This was the team's first event after the fall of Hussein, and it was a glorious moment for those athletes and the nation. Remember, Iraqi Olympic athletes were tortured during Hussein's years when they did not perform well at the event.

For that one moment, all Iraqis could savor a brief moment of brotherhood that they likely had not felt in a long time.

Of course, since then, the fighting in Iraq has continued, and there have been few opportunities for citizens there to experience what they felt back in 2004.

It was not that long ago when it was America that needed to be unified and an event in the 1980 Winter Games provided just that opportunity.

At that moment, America wasn't feeling that good about itself. Our country was coming out of a decade that saw the public get splintered by events such as the Vietnam War, the Watergate scandal, and the disastrous Jimmy Carter administration.

America needed a pick me up and got it from a scrappy group of amateur hockey players. Going into those Olympics, nobody thought the American team had a chance to earn a medal much less win the gold.

However, that is exactly what happened. The "Miracle on Ice" unified Americans from all economic and ethnic backgrounds.

Iraq needs a moment like this now. Fortunately, the IOC changed its mind.

China a lousy choice to host Olympics

For better or worse, the Olympics remain a premier event on the global sporting landscape.

Every four years, the best athletes from around the world come together to compete for pride, country, and medals.

The event has lost some of its luster in recent years because Olympic organizers have allowed it to become more and more commercialized.

It is no longer as special as it used to be.

Despite this fact, the competition between cities to host the event remains fierce.

Beijing, China, was selected to host the event this summer, which proves once again that the International Olympic Committee (IOC) cares little about how abusive a country is regarding human rights.

Make no mistake, this is all about money. China's population is more than one billion, and the IOC must be absolutely giddy about the opportunity to tap into that market.

However, in doing this, the organization is closing its eyes to the Chinese government's abuse and persecution of its own people.

Recently, the U.S. State Department released its annual report about human rights practices around the world.

The report labeled China as an authoritarian human rights abuser and cited as examples alleged torture of citizens, state control of daily life, and tight control on religion, according to multiple media outlets.

The State Department’s report included details about alleged torture techniques including electric shocks, beatings, and use of shackles. The report included a graphic account of the "tiger bench" form of torture that forces a person's leg to bend sometimes until it is broken.

Of course, reports like this involving China are nothing new. These types of abuses have been known about for years.

Despite this, the IOC rewarded China with the Olympics, and if we know anything about the Olympic stage, it is that it will give the host nation the opportunity to drown the world with propaganda regarding how great their culture is.

Expect no different from the Chinese. The big question is whether or not the world media will have the guts to put the Chinese government under a microscope and provide a well-rounded idea of what it is like in that country.

The answer to that question is not easy because China continually clamps down on freedom of the press.

The selection of China as the host country has generated considerable controversy and some athletes may boycott the event. However, that would be a mistake.

When it comes to sports, boycotts just don't work. In 1980, the United States led a boycott of the summer Olympics that were being held in Moscow.

Though some other countries joined the boycott, it really didn't affect the event.

The Soviet Union and other communist countries retaliated in 1984 when Los Angeles hosted the games, but their presence was not missed.

Of course, the selection of Moscow as an Olympic city was another example of the indifference the IOC has shown through the years toward governments who mistreat their citizens.

The most infamous example of this was when the games were awarded to Berlin in 1936, and Adolf Hitler attempted to exploit the event for propaganda purposes.

However, the great U.S. track star Jesse Owens completely upstaged him by winning four gold medals.

Regarding this year's games, the bottom line is Chinese officials will attempt to exploit the event in a vain attempt to show the world that they really are good guys.

I sure hope the world won't be gullible enough to buy what they are selling.