/ No Games

A Friend Sent Us This…

For No Games supporters an inspirational quote from the late great Molly Ivins:

“So keep fightin’ for freedom and justice, beloveds, but don’t you forget to have fun doin’ it. Lord, let your laughter ring forth. Be outrageous, ridicule the fraidy-cats, rejoice in all the oddities that freedom can produce. And when you get through kickin’ ass and celebratin’ the sheer joy of a good fight, be sure to tell those who come after how much fun it was. ”

See you at the rally at City Hall 5:30 today!

7 Commments

  1. lets not just rally against the games but also at the polling place lets get rid of the aldermen who voted to have us hold the bag for the olympics but also voted for the horrible meter fiasco.

  3. Wow just checked out the site for the first. I am amazed how short-sighted and self-serving “no games Chicago” is. Has there ever been such a quest to achieve nothing?

    If Chicago loses, you will celebrate the status quo? and then will your next project be to remove Millenium park? Tear down the L? Close the University of Chicago? Rid the Loop of employers?

    1. Even though I am rather skeptical of Rachel’s claim, I have sympathy with her view, and might even side with it.

      See my article about NGC: http://platypus1917.org/2009/09/20/the-sport-of-protest/

      NGC *may* have some positive effect for the future of Chicago, but with the way in which the group is organized, it is unlikely. It is too loosely knit, and not organized through anything substantial or permanent. Wouldn’t this make more sense as a working-class operative? Why are there no unions involved?

      Plus, what is No Games Chicago fighting–the way in which the Olympics manifests in *all* cities, or just the local concerns of Chicago? If it is the latter, than I do not understand all the fervor NGC has created. Shouldn’t we be putting all our efforts in organizing to fix Chicago rather than nay say a temporary issue? It would seem to have way more long term effects than NGC could ever brew up.

      And, just for the record, Allan, you *should* feel bad about deflecting the games to Rio. They in no way are any better off than Chicago, and suffer even greater problems in terms of crime and corruption. This is why I agree with Rachel when she says NGC is “short-sighted.”

  4. Rachel,

    As a famous television character would say, “Mel, kiss mah grits!”

    The status quo is to allow this Mayor dictate how our City should be run with little to no input by the citizens. We are about changing the status quo and making certain that our City has the resources it needs to function six years from now, instead having to fund building venues for the Olympics. Your statement is ridiculous.

  5. Short-sighted and self-serving? I’d hardly say this group is how you describe it, Rachel. If anything, we just care about the future of Chicago, and not for this city to go excessively billions of dollars into debt, like other Olympic host cities have done. We still will push for improvements to Chicago, but not at the cost of pushing the city further into debt, or allowing the status quo of city government to continue.

    You must really be naive about all the harm Daley has done to the future of Chicago, and is continuing to do. How about the fact the mayor and city council have already put taxpayers on the hook for cost overruns? I’m not ashamed to say I want the games to be in a city other than Chicago, and hopefully Rio de Janeiro will rightfully win its bid to host the 2016 games. What’s so bad about wanting our city’s government to invest in TRUE improvements for Chicago, and NOT the Olympics, an event that could possibly put us billions into debt for decades to come? (i.e. considering the fact it took Montreal decades to pay off its Olympic debt, and Vancouver and London already face serious deficits due to budget overruns)

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