On a rainy Friday evening, a French self-portrait freak show was on display on the Paris Sein River. Hot-air balloons brought an Olympic ring of fire into the cloudy sky and singer Celine Dion descended from the Eiffel Tower as the Summer Olympics in a century, with a four-hour-long, rule-breaking opening ceremony that unfolded along the Seine River. Then there came the French satanic verse thing, with a repugnant parody of Leonardo Da Vinci’s famous fresco ‘The Last Supper’ , which isn’t really a French thing, featuring drag queens, and gay Jesus, a controversial self-described ‘love activist’ who played Jesus, this sparked fury among the Catholic church and far-right politicians, while supporters praised its message of tolerance and inclusive. The unprecedented ceremony on the Seine River, which drew millions of viewers around the globe, included a montage celebrating Paris bubbly nightlife and reputation as a place of tolerance, pleasure, and subversiveness. “Anything less would have seemed a betrayal of the pride the French capital takes in being a home to humanity in all its richness.” Wrote the AP. On X, the question was posed on X : How would you describe this Olympic opening ceremony? The answers were not a total surprise… , ranging from bizarre, disturbing, irrelevant to the Olympics, Disturbing !!! I am so confused right now., Disgraceful, Crap, Nauseating. Degeneracy. The last Olympic Games, and Blasphemous… “
Controversy reactions, from bishops, churches, and political leaders. Even Ahmed el-Tayeb, the head of the Grand Imam of Al Azher, the biggest Islamic school based in Egypt; describes it, as anti-religion, and anti-human decency. The Paris Olympics was a cocktail drink prepared by someone already drunk! The moment for the organizer was a celebration of diversity and the table on which Butch spun her tunes as a tribute to feasting and French gastronomy.
The rain didn’t hinder the celebration. A few heads of state came to town, as Paris opened its ethnocentrism narrative, forcing its satanic version on the rest of the world, with an open-air theater on the Seine River; French landmarks monuments used as stages for singers, dancers, and fashion artists. “In France, we have the right to love each other, as we want and with who we want. In France, we have the right to believe or to not believe. “In France, we have a lot of rights. Voila,” said the audacious show’s artistic director, Thomas Jolly. In France, the capital of secularism a man can be a woman, or (it) and instantly be accepted, he/she/they can wave a drag queen flag, but can’t wave the Palestinian flag or wear a hijab in school or work!. So much for “ Liberté, égalité, fraternité”. Blasphemy is celebrated in France and many French see it as an essential pillar of freedom of speech in a secular society. A four hour of mishmash spectacle of anything goes, images, of images, copy of a copy of what Jean Baudrillard defined as “hyperreality” , “the generation by models of a real without origin or reality”; the bankrupt modern life that lost its baring and big narrative, replacing it with smaller narratives, that celebrates nothing in particular, no human values that we all could share all valued. This drive-thru cultural expedition, Paris Olympic where 85 boats parading on the Risen river, representing 206 countries and territories, where Russia and Belarus, were banned, (ouch) but Israel a country that still dropping bombs over schools, hospitals, and UN safe areas, with a death toll According to that researchers, reach 186,000. was allowed. Israelis athletes got special security, seeking protection in the Italian boat, eyes were kept on Yemen, Irani and Iraqi boats. The American as usual had the biggest boat, with the most athletes 592, followed by Franc with 573 athletes. The spirit of the Olympic is explained in its creed, “The most important thing in the Olympic Games is not to win but to take part, just as the most important thing in life is not the triumph but the struggle. The essential thing is not to have conquered but to have fought well.” Now it’s all about money, celebrating winning self-indulgence and cultural superiority, although Paris tried to have a coast-conscious Olympic budget, they will spend at least $8.87 billion. That isn’t extravagant compared with the $17 billion that London spent in 2012, the estimated $28 billion that Tokyo spent in 2021 or the $24 billion that Rio de Janeiro spent in 2016. The three values of Olympism are excellence, respect, and friendship, I believe that the Paris Olympic Ceremony achieved one value of the three, but I don’t know which one!
Ahmed Tharwat/ Public Speaker
Producer/Host of the Arab American TV Show BelAhdan
As how with an accent for those without one!!
Minnetonka, MN
Blog at: ahmediatv.com
Working g on his documentary,
The Coptic Grave
ahmediatv@gmail.com
