Well, the 2010 Winter Olympics are finally over. The Canadians should be proud of themselves, both for putting on the extravaganza and for their showing..  Previous to these games, they had not won Olympic gold on their “home and native land.”  Now they’ve won 13, close to realizing their national goal of “owning the podium.”  I used to think I was one of the few in the area that knew the words to “O! Canada,” but by now I’m sure I’m not the only one thoroughly sick of a song I used to like.
The USA media would have us believe we “won” these olympics by accumulating 37 medals. an impressive and, s I understand it, record total.  But only eight of them were gold.  Germany and Norway each had more golds, so I  guess if there’s a winner, it depends on how you count.  If you just count golds, Canada won.  If you use some other scoring system, like 3 points for a gold, 2 for a silver and 1 for a bronze, I imagine one could get a variety of winners, depending on the weight given each type of medal.

But the American’s accomplishment should not be belittled.  We scored in sports for which the podium had been only viewed from a distance by US athletes.  Specifically, I refer to the skiing events, bobsledding, luge figure skating and ice dancing, to name but a few.  Previously the Russians had owned the podium in the figure skating and ice dancing events, but no more, probably due to a drop in state support.  The improvement in bobsledding was remarkable.  Most of have heard of the Jamaican sled that made the olympics a few olympiads ago, but how many realize they defeated the US sled?

Austria and Switzerland have always been the countries to beat in downhill skiing, but the Americans pulled in their share of medals, despite the fact there is no financial support for skiing from the US Olympic Committee.  In the X-game events, Shaun White dazzled everyone that watched him. When these events were introduced, I wondered about their appropriateness.  After all, the original olympics in antiquity were between warriors that stopped fighting long enough to determine who was best at the various battle skills.  But there can be no denying that Shaun White, for example, is a marvelous athlete.

The hockey tournament was highlighted by the strong showing of the Swiss team and the two games between the US and Canada.  I’ve been watching hockey for nearly 60 years, have seen the Soviet Red Army team on a number of occasions including a game against Czechoslovakia in person, the NHL-Soviet series in 1972 on TV and have never seen such hard fought, almost flawless hockey.

the speed skating was interesting.  In the 1500 meter race, won by Apollo Ohno, there were comments before the finals that the South Koreans might skate as a team, which is illegal but unenforceable.  Of course, there were Canadian voices making some of these accusations.  Sure enough, on the next to last turn one of the Koreans grabbed Ohno and another shoved him out of the way so that the Koreans were at that point, heading toward the finish line, the Koreans were 1-2-3.  Then, an ironic twist of fate, the two Koreans that had mugged Ohno wiped each other out, and the US, led by Ohno, got second and third.  Then, in the 500 meter race, Ohno was making his patented move from the back toward the end of the race when he put his hand on a skater he was passing, who then fell down.  Ohno finished second to the Canadian winner.  The announcers were saying that Ohno might be disqualified since the skater he put his hand on fell down.  If he hadn’t, there would likely be no disqualification, since the touch was very slight.  Sure enough, Ohno was disqualified.  The nationality of the skater that fell: Canadian.  Anyone for skating as a team?

Of course, both men’s and women’s curling were  thorough embarrassments.

I did like the television coverage, which was on four chanels: NBC, USA, and two different CNBC’s.  They covered manyu events in their entirety, and spent time in many events to show a significant number of competitors and explain what made the higher placers better than the lower ones.  This was a far cry from the usual showing two US entries in a sport, like luge for example, in their performances and then cutting away as they place something like 70th and 71st.

Due no doubt to the strong US showing and the extensive coverage, I enjoyed these winter olympics

Another movie from Cormac McCarthy(Brokeback Mountain, No Country for Old Men), The Road, is no playing on the off Broadway screen at the Fargo Theatre.

The Road of the title is apparently the path taken by the few surviving humans after an unspecified global disaster.  There are apparently few human survivors, and many are sick with an unspecified malady which could be radiation poisoning.  But it could also not be.  The idea of a nuclear holocaust isn’t born out by the fact that everything is damaged, strewn about and in disarray.   In other words, the damage doesn’t seem to be in any way localized.  In the beginning, thee ae fires which continue on a smaller scale.  Read More Here

To our students, faculty and staff:

After reviewing the details of NDSU’s adjusted appropriated budget for
2009-2010 it is apparent that our tuition revenue will not meet budget
projections. I believe two major factors have contributed to this:
lagging tuition collections and a greater number of tuition waivers.
Therefore, the budget shortfall amounts to approximately $1.8 million.

To ensure a balanced appropriated budget, I am issuing a temporary
hiring freeze. I am asking that there be no new hires and that no vacant
positions be filled until further notice. However, as we review our
spring tuition revenues, we will revisit this decision.  In the
meantime, we will increase our tuition collection efforts and we are
reviewing our tuition waiver process.

Reviewing our budgeting process is an important step in maintaining our
university commitment to excellence.

I appreciate your support and I will continue to keep you informed.

Richard A. Hanson, Ph.D.
President

The Chicago Tribune

reports on a brutal baseball game between the US and China that featured five American batters getting hit by Chinese pitches:

Our relations with China were nearly broken at the plate.

A near-brawl with our Olympic hosts in a baseball game won 9-1 by the U.S. team Monday night resulted in an unexpected outbreak of tension for the international pastime.

Three members of China’s team were ejected from the game.

Two collisions at home plate led to an injury to a Chinese catcher and a confrontation with another.

An American player was then hit in the head with a pitch. He was rushed to a hospital, where he was diagnosed with a concussion.

“That was the last straw,” said U.S. center fielder Nate Schierholtz, another of the principals.

Alternative to the Fargo Forum