Corporate Olympics Meets the Big Fizzle: VANOC Descends like a Ton of Bricks for Alleged Infringement

[William Prest]

It started off full of sound and fury, but after a long slow march from the Art Gallery on Georgia and Howe Streets to BC Place at Beatty and Cambie, it ended in a Mexican stand off between the RCMP, Vancouver Police and Olympic security, the Anti-Poverty Olympic front, various anarchists and left leaning reformists. Though the threat of violence was ever present, it never materialized. Meanwhile, just half a block away on Robson Street, a huge party with ten times more people began to get under way for the opening ceremonies of the 2010 Winter Olympics. The Meet-up for the various Anti-Olympic groups began before the 3 PM stated time and most were purely anti-Olympic. One group had it right in supporting the athletes as we do and welcomed them, but were opposed to the corporate manipulation of the Olympiad for profit at the cost of the poor in BC and Canada. During the meet-up, it was noticed that some anarchists were carrying buckets filled with home-made truncheons, presumably to do battle with the police if and when the police decided to riot.

After the meet-up leaders had given prep speeches, bands made music and dancers danced, the mass of demonstrators began to slowly file out onto Georgia Street in the start of the march to the BC Place Stadium by starting an easterly slow march. The stopped at various intersections along the way and shouted out “Canada's Shame”, Homes, not parties”, “Who's streets? Our streets!” and other slogans under the ever watchful eye of the police on the street and in the air. There were at least three helicopters and two lightweight aircraft buzzing over head. By about 5 PM the group of about 2,000 had made their way to the intersection of Beatty and Cambie just across the street from BC place where a phalanx of cops on horse back and on foot blocked any further progress. A long wait commenced to the opening ceremonies between the police and the demonstrators.

With the growing darkness, rain, wind and cold, busload after busload dropped athletes and dignitaries off in front of BC Place on the opposite side of the police blockade. A few objects were hurled at the police. The police responded by taking videos of the demonstrators with several video cameras. One demonstrator “flipped the bird” at one of the police making a video. The police crushed in toward the crowd in a bid to push them back but failed to move them any more than a foot. Two rows of police lined the demonstrators on both sides. People filed back and forth on the perimeters, some such as myself, taking footage of video, including filming the police in case they should suddenly launch an assault that has been speculated to occur with tear gas, tasers and sonic weapons. None of that happened.

The games inside BC Place opened right on cue at 6 PM Feb. 12, 2010 sharp without a hitch. The ceremony started with a snow boarder snow board jumping right through one of the Olympic rings and successfully landing after making big air. The national anthem was then sung after opening announcements. Athletes from all represented countries paraded with their flags. There was one hitch when the cauldron that was to be lit got jammed and would not rise to its position for lighting. A frantic episode ensued in order to right the problem and after several minutes it was freed and then lit. At the same time, a huge fireworks display began. Outside, the stand- off continued until some of the leaders of the Anti-Poverty Olympics decided that they wanted to march back to the Art Gallery. The demonstrators broke into two groups with a quarter starting to the Art Gallery and three quarters remaining stubbornly at the police blockade. When the Art Gallery group realized that the others were not budging, they turned about and rejoined them, exhorting them to join them in the march back. Clearly there emerged a division in the ranks. The end result, the state 1 and the demonstrators 0. The state had successfully intimidated the group without firing a single shot of anything.

Most other people caught up in the huge, nearly $7 billion circus got to watch the opening ceremonies projected on the west wall of the Sears store across from the Art Gallery. Only the corporations, participating athletes and the elite got to see it live inside the BC place. Outside, hawkers of scalped tickets and those seeking tickets milled around everywhere. The threat of a false flag did not erupt, at least during the opening ceremonies where there was the greatest concentration of potential targets. That means that the missing explosives are still out there and it is anyone's guess how they will now be deployed if such a thing is to happen at all.

For the purposes and intents of the people, such an act would be horribly counter-productive. We are already under the de-facto dictatorship of Stephen Harper who is the world's newest tin-pot dictator. A violent act could contribute to the international horrors of WWIII that is ongoing at this time, an undeclared war against the Islamic world for their resources and the threat that Iran might just get the bomb. Vancouver has become an occupied and militarized city where ordinary people can be pushed around at the whim and leisure of all designated authorities without recourse to defence. This is the point the Anti-Olympic groups are making, but there is a divided leadership. As yet, the adherents are a small group compared to the masses caught up in the party going, fire works and all the tourist traps and venues that abound.

The anti-Poverty Olympic groups is by and large a rudderless ship where the leadership is misdirecting the followers in a confused way, such as when the demo split into two factions. Further, there needs to be a consciousness raising drive to wake up the working class and the necessary actions required to overturn the oppressors of the world. This piece is to serve the purpose to let the world know that there is a terrible inequality here where governments can find $7 billion dollars for these venues during a world wide depression, but not one red cent for affordable housing, feeding hungry children or ending homelessness. Any money raised for the victims of disaster, natural or man-made come form the pockets of the workers and not from taxes like for the war against terror. This is a wake up call. It is not known how much time is left to rise up in action, but it had better be soon.

Links to the videos of the events:

Opening shots: Feb. 12 2010 2:30 PM to 6:30 PM

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5j-lD8uMZ4M

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TANjmfK6pz8

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fm7JgbzA1GM

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Iy-s3_Vc3bQ

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mlOpeO0HaZw

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sikaYsJNZiw

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xNbSIS5s5p4

Feb. 13^Th, 2010: This is to inform you that VNOC has accused me of plagiarizing Olympic material and has censored some of the videos. Further I have been ordered to remove them on pain of losing all the videos I've ever up-loaded from day one. Welcome to Stephen Harper's tin-pot dictatorship where free speech is outlawed in the fascist free zone of the world wide imperialist monopoly for capitalist profit! Censorship of the internet is now a reality in N. America; so why are we so critical of China and Iran?