Japan Refuses To Cancel Or Postpone Olympics

You left out Who Cares.

American Olympic athletes, who train hard for years, care about it, R1. They should not have to risk getting COVID.

Don't hold them is pretty much "who cares"

We had tickets to a bunch of events - all the ones involving hot guys we can gawk at.

When they postponed last year, and kept the schedule in tact for 2021, we were fine with that, and relieved.

Then, they canceled all tickets held outside of Japan, as if that is a way to reduce spread of COVID. Literally every other country holding tickets to the Olympics is more fully vaccinated than Japan. Their keeping it local will make this a superspreader event.

You can't postpone the Olympics six months (that would made them winter olympics).

I'm surprised how badly Japan dealt with covid, in a lot of european countries the restrictions are low and they are able to contain the pandemic.

The did a pretty bad job

It is very surprising, R5. I always looked up to Japan's sense of organization and hygiene. Most of them wear masks regularly and don't get physically close - no hugging, etc.

But when the shit hits the fan, and it did, the bureaucracy eats itself, with everyone passively looking at each other to fix it.

My 80 year old Japanese mother-in-law in Kobe, got lots of mail about vaccines, with no concrete information, just a bunch of mixed messages and 'stay tuned for the next mailing'. Finally, the mail came with a list of 200 places in Kobe she could go to get a vaccine. She started calling, and nobody answered. The one place that did answer told her she had to come in physically to make the appointment. She waited in line for 5 hours just to get an appointment. Not a vaccine, just an appointment date to come back six weeks later to get her vaccine at the same place.

It's June 4th, and she still has to wait another week to get her first Pfizer shot.

If the highest priority among Japanese is facing this kind of bureaucracy, Japan is not doing this right. They are at 2% vaccinated nationwide, with the Olympics coming in two months.

You can’t put athletes’ bodies in suspended animation in the interim. The Olympics must be held this summer no matter what. We know how to protect people from Covid, so there’s no excuse.

r6, Japanese are held back by small dick energy.

Even if there's a disaster, when Suga calls a snap election soon after, the LDP will still retain control of the government. Zero electoral competition means government that doesn't need to care about public opinion or ... consequences of bad decisions, really.

Japan's ramping up vaccination.

Yes they should hold them, perhaps limit viewers. But these athletes have been training nonstop for years for their chance at gold. Let them play their sports.

Hold the events without any spectators.

Although, I don't know how safe the accommodations are where the athletes will be staying.

Make sure all the camera crews are vaccinated and all of the support crew for those competing as well as the athletes themselves.

Is it true that if they cancel them, the entire Japanese Olympic Committee will need to commit harakiri in order to save face?

I think it's fine to hold the Olympics because they have really strict rules about infection control, distancing, masks, testing, quarantine etc. Plus a lot of the athletes probably have been vaccinated by then and there will be NO people in the stadiums watching the athletes in person so there is very little chance of the Olympics causing more infections among the general public. If it turns out an athlete is infected they will be quarantined and isolated.

If they’re having male and female categories, cancel them!

R6 Holy shit that's bad. And I thought we were slow here in Norway. Everyone aged 65 and over have been vaccinated here plus many younger people in risk groups. The vaccine places have lists and they call people when it's their turn. Usually the bureaucracy is bad here in Norway, but the vaccination has been surprisingly effecient. Our problem is that it's still slow because we don't have enough doses. Especially since we stopped using AZ and J&J. We only use Pfizer and Moderna now.

[quote] You left out Who Cares

That's me. I watch no sports anyway so since NBC doesn't have a single program I want to see I'd lose nothing if they go on, but I'd gain nothing if they were cancelled.

[quote]and kept the schedule in tact for 2021,

Oh deal.

they are going to open up fully

Maybe it was a dolphin?

Sorry I'm a gay man.

I don't care about sports.

My understanding is that it is the IOC (International Olympic Committee) has contractual discretion and final decision about whether the Olympics can be cancelled and they are refusing to cancel it even though 70% of Japanese citizens want it cancelled.

They should just postpone it until 2022. We can have both Olympics in the same year like it used to be. Big deal.

I would say postpone but their recklessness has me uncaring if its cancelled.