Olympics

[xane]

Originally posted by old.RedVenom
Now call me a idealist, but rather than spending this money on a stadium to raise the one communities mindset, wouldn't it be better spent raising the overall conditions?

Housing projects to move people from the gutter to somewhere they can take pride in their surroudings.
Education to raise peoples levels of ability and interest in bettering themselves.
Employment to raise self-esteem amongst parents and give children a brighter future.
Healthcare, can always do with a helping hand. Drugs, crime, the police force....

Housing projects = olympic village (which is sold off afterwards)
Education = sports facilities, ideal for the underprivileged to excel themselves
Employment = building the damn thing in the first place needs to employ an awful lot of people
Healthcare = removal of drug dealers from the general area

All you need is an excuse to do it ...

Q.E.D.

 

[old.RedVenom]

All those things can't be done without the huge spending on a sports center?

And well done, you've successfully rejuvinated one area. What about the rest of the country? One step at a time, but its going to take several years to get to the state your inferring, with the Olympic village, etc. Wouldn't this investment be better spent on more immediate returns?

 

[xane]

Originally posted by old.RedVenom
Wouldn't this investment be better spent on more immediate returns?

No, because the same people and same old attitudes will decimate it back to square one within a few years.

It takes a huge social unheaval to rid an area where crime has become generally accepted as "normal" everyday life. Pumping money into endless welfare schemes achieves nothing if all you do is keep citizens alive simply for the drug lords to exploit, a sea change of attitude is required.

I certainly don't propose closing down projects because they are not worth it, but an area like East London is just firefighting against the relentless tide of urban delinquency, it needs more than a regular social project to push it upwards and reverse the trend.

And I certainly wont argue against another equally deprived area making a similar bid, I just need to point out that East London is just as valid as any other.

 

[Tom]

Living in Manchester (although on the west side of the city, not the east side), I can see the improvements in east Manchester already. We have:

City of Manchester Stadium - Man City's new football ground
Velodrome - venue for cycle racing
General improvements to roads and housing
Massive supermarket next to stadium providing many jobs

There is also the completion of the M60 ring road, which has made it possible for businesses to locate themselves around that way.

The commonwealth games were a huge success, everybody who took part, from competitors to taxi drivers, all enjoyed themselves. It was very well organised, and brought in a fair wad of cash from tourists and people working on the games. It also put Manchester on the map.

The arguments put forth here are pretty much like those people who say we shouldn't have a space program. We don't live in a Utopia, its never going to be possible until we have an unlimited source of cheap, clean energy, so lets just strive towards improving ourselves. The Olympics is one of those events that can help do that.

 

[Maljonic]

my sentiments exactly

 

[Daffeh]

Vote RV for President/Chairman/Glorious Leader!

 

[old.RedVenom]

You missed out Fuhrer

 

[Daffeh]

well that goes without saying....as does Comrade

 

[PR.]

The british public are always so fucking negative. When we were going to be doing the Manchester Commonwealth Games everyone was "oh thats going to be shit, us brits can't do anything special, blah blah blah"

If you don't like it try living in one of those countries you never hear anything from that never participate in anything just keep themselves to themselves.

I like our country doing things like this, I'm sure over time they will make that money back from tourism, and people from all around the world flocking to the venue.

Of course the £2billion could be spent elsewhere but so could the £15-£35 a month you spend on broadband access or the £1000 you spend on your PC's you could give that to charity? Or perhaps if the government said "We put NI up 50% but don't worry its all going to the homeless" you wouldn't have a problem with that, because afterall its going to someone who needs it?

 

[Any]

Originally posted by Maljonic
Birmingham is defo the best place; the only place that makes any sense for the most people in our country to be able to visit.

But it just doesnt sound as good. Running for the 2012 Olympics are Moscow, New York, Paris and, Birmingham! :-p

And its not like we live in a huge country, most of us can get to London just as easily as Birmingham. Who doesn't live close to a motorway or airport?

There will always be people who think the mony could be better spent elsewhere. But there is a lot more to solving problems than just throwing a lot of money at them.
Xane = correct

 

[Ash!]

Birmingham name besides. Why London though ?. Yes every one does live near a motorway or an airport. Why should everyone fork out to travel to the capital though. Its like the National Football stadium, the FA have insisted that all FA Cup semi finals should be played there when it opens. Now imagine if it was a Newcastle, Leeds, Liverpool and Man Utd semi final line up. Is it really fair to expect all those sports fans to travel south ? IMHO no it isnt. Now if its central England then fine

 

[Maljonic]

Originally posted by Ash!
Birmingham name besides. Why London though ?. Yes every one does live near a motorway or an airport. Why should everyone fork out to travel to the capital though. Its like the National Football stadium, the FA have insisted that all FA Cup semi finals should be played there when it opens. Now imagine if it was a Newcastle, Leeds, Liverpool and Man Utd semi final line up. Is it really fair to expect all those sports fans to travel south ? IMHO no it isnt. Now if its central England then fine

it's not really a question of why London over anywhere else though. The City of London has put itself forward to host the Olympics; the country hasn't put London forward.

Originally posted by Any
But it just doesnt sound as good. Running for the 2012 Olympics are Moscow, New York, Paris and, Birmingham! :-p

And btw, Birmingham does not sound silly; take it you've never been to stinking LA? It's just another name to most people in the world you blinkered fool

 

[Any]

Originally posted by Maljonic

And btw, Birmingham does not sound silly; take it you've never been to stinking LA? It's just another name to most people in the world you blinkered fool

Of course i wasnt being serious I think Birmingham would be just as good a venue as London.

 

[Maljonic]

Originally posted by Any
Of course i wasnt being serious I think Birmingham would be just as good a venue as London.

I did put a smiley at the end too so you didn't think the same of me

 

[Tom]

I'd feel much safer going to London than LA. Last time I was there, the hire car woman said not to stand outside with your bags, alone.

 

[Maljonic]

Originally posted by Tom[SHOTTEH]
I'd feel much safer going to London than LA. Last time I was there, the hire car woman said not to stand outside with your bags, alone.

or Birmingham...

 

[kameleon]

Originally posted by Tom[SHOTTEH]
Living in Manchester (although on the west side of the city, not the east side), I can see the improvements in east Manchester already. We have:

City of Manchester Stadium - Man City's new football ground
Velodrome - venue for cycle racing
General improvements to roads and housing
Massive supermarket next to stadium providing many jobs

There is also the completion of the M60 ring road, which has made it possible for businesses to locate themselves around that way.

The commonwealth games were a huge success, everybody who took part, from competitors to taxi drivers, all enjoyed themselves. It was very well organised, and brought in a fair wad of cash from tourists and people working on the games. It also put Manchester on the map.

The arguments put forth here are pretty much like those people who say we shouldn't have a space program. We don't live in a Utopia, its never going to be possible until we have an unlimited source of cheap, clean energy, so lets just strive towards improving ourselves. The Olympics is one of those events that can help do that.

Agreed, and while it was nice having my street cleaned 4 times a day (its now back to once a day) it would have been nice for some of the money to have been spent on improving conditions for the less fortunate citizens of our city. [/rant]

 

[bodhi]

I cannot believe people are still seriously suggesting Birmingham as a good Olympic venue. This is the city with loads of signs telling you how to get round it, but very few telling you how to get in. There is a reason for this. Birmingham is the shittest place in Britain by a long long way. It even has "ming" in its name for fuck's sake.

And when you've finished moaning incessently about Brum's "ideal central location", think about this. The Olympic Games attract a great deal of people from other countries, and will be beamed out across the world. Birmingham is deeply unsuitable in this respect for three reasons.

1) No matter how much you protest, London is easier to get to for these people coming in from the four corners of the globe.

2) There is no way in hell that the M6 could cope with all the extra traffic.

3) Do you honestly want people who have never been to our country before's first experience of our great land to be fucking Birmingham? This is the city which looks like an absolute shitehole on Midlands today, so god knows what it would look like on the Olympic coverage. All of a sudden there will be people from Ethiopia thinking they have a better standard of life than we do.



So can we cut the Brum chat now pls? Dundee would probably be a better venue than Birmingham. And that's saying something.

 

[Summo]

Can I just say I've been to Birmingham several times and I vote for Bodhi.

 

[kameleon]

Manchester has proved itself capable of hosting a major sporting event - so why anyone would want to pick brum is a mystery to me. They don't even speak english ffs.

 

[old.Fweddy]

How about Stoke?

 

[Lester]

Wooot!!

*knocks down shop*

*builds olympic village*





















for "village" read " 3 flats.

 

[Embattle]

A lot of the negativity comes from how this government, and past ones, manage to always go zooming past budgets and normally end up with an overpriced turkey.

 

[Maljonic]

Originally posted by kameleon
...They don't even speak english ffs.

neither do most of the people taking part... though Brum was just an example really...