What the IOC teaches us

Friday’s opening ceremony at the London Olympics proceeded without any moment of silence for, or other tribute to, the Israeli athletes who were murdered at the Munich Olympics by Palestinian terrorists 40 years ago. There was, however, a moment of silence for the victims of the two world wars and other international conflicts. Thus, IOC President Jacques Rogge was lying when he claimed that the decision not to honor the victims of the Munich attacks was based on the view that “the opening ceremony is an atmosphere that is not fit to remember such a tragic incident.”

Rogge was less dishonest, but equally loathsome, during a meeting with two widows of Munich victims. According to their account, when asked whether his decision was “because [the murder victims] were Israelis,” Rogge didn’t answer.

One of the widows says she told Rogge that “you didn’t hear the voice of the world.” The Frenchman responded, “Yes I did.”

He’s right, I fear — the “voice of the world” probably was, as ever, against Israel. But how deplorable of Rogge to rub the widows’ noses in it. Better not to have met with them than to add insult to injury.

It’s tempting to say that the widows’ plea fell on deaf ears. But it’s more accurate to say they fell on contaminated ones.

Rogge and the IOC have, however, performed a real service — they have reminded Americans why we should fiercely guard our sovereignty and resist further encroachments on it by international bodies. Rogge and the IOC have made it clear that they are either personally anti-Israeli or unwilling to stand up to the many nations that are (it comes down to the same thing). Rogge and the IOC have demonstrated the ability of anti-western Arab nations and their many sympathizers to control international bodies, even to the point of eschewing simple human decency. They have also shown, by banning the politically incorrect Greek twitterer, their unwillingness to tolerate free speech.

The IOC’s values are not the values of America, at least not yet. But they are the values of the many other international organizations that seek, with the help of American leftists, to take more and more control of our lives and our fate.

Unless we want one day to be in the position of those hapless Israeli widows, begging for favor before a French bureaucrat (or worse), we must cede nothing more to these bodies.

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