The first time I recognized the boycott wars was the 1980 Moscow Olympic Games. I was too small to understand it entirely, but I remember adults discussing that strong Western teams wouldn’t be participating.
The next time was the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles. However, this time, the Soviet Union boycotted the American-held Games as revenge.
Even Crimea wasn’t enough to ban Russia from everything. Now, my country is excluded from most sporting events on the national level; only conditioned personal participation is possible.
Most Russians don’t buy it. I mean, they blame the West, not Putin, for it. So, I think it is necessary to limit Russia’s opportunities to feel like we are a part of the global community – I mean, Putin’s regime opportunities – from participating in various events worldwide as a nation. I think this is right: evil must be punished in any way possible. Yet, only a few Russians feel like this is the regime is to blame. Most of them ‘blame it on the boogie,’ i.e. the West.
As to Israel, let me put it straight: they fight a defensive war, not an aggressive one, like Russia. So, hell no! I would entirely ban all HAMAS institutions from any participation in anything international as I believe they are an Islamic fascist regime that must be destroyed once and forever.
Should Russia & Israel be banned from everything ?
This is false equivalency and it’s disappointing that most younger people don’t seem to understand. Israel and Russia are completely different situations. Ukraine didn’t launch a surprise attack on Russia; Ukraine didn’t use rape and murder as tools to traumatize the innocent, Hamas did.
Having said that, Netanyahu is turning Israel into a rogue state to be shunned by decent people everywhere. Moreover, this criminal has dragged the US and Germany down with him. China and Russia are right to say that North America and Europe are hypocritical to support one bunch of gangsters while condemning another. Why is bombing apartment buildings in Rafah moral while bombing apartment buildings in Odessa a war crime?
I’ll just come out and say it: Putin & Netanyahu should have adjoining cells in The Hague. But that ain’t going to happen. Neither man will face justice for the innocent lives destroyed. That’s not to say either will survive, one will go to jail for Trumpian levels of corruption and the other will fall out the damn window.
The sad part of this is that if the US and Europe kick Israel to the curb the nation will cease to exist. Hundreds of thousands of innocent people (Jews) will be brutally butchered by several militias and nations. So, we are stuck with a racist who will never see a cell in The Hague and if he can puzzle it out, he’ll never see a cell at all.
Should Russia and Israel be banned from everything?
I fully understand that sports people and artistes, who have been painstakingly honing their talents, and are blameless as far as their country’s disgraceful behaviour is concerned, are rather miffed at being banned from taking part in competitions and other events. If that were to happen.
But the fact remains that someone like Putin has always, and will always, use every ounce of his top athlete’s success to promote his propaganda. And remember, those Russiansportsmen and women have to do as they are told. Otherwise, they mysteriously fall out of 6th floor hotel windows.
It’s no different with Israel. Whilst sympathising with the tragedy and disgrace of the Hamas attack last year, the wanton killing and destruction of women and children and their homes and hospitals, and deliberate attacking and destroying of life-saving aid to Palestine should mean immediate disqualification from any Israeli attendance at any cultural event, like the Eurovision Song Contest.
But it doesn’t happen that way. The U.K. has done a reprehensible U-turn regarding the 2024 Olympic Games, originally voting for no Russian participation, but now changing their tune completely. And of course, Israel was allowed to compete in that Song Contest. Utterly crass decisions, as crass as Britain cosying up to both Russia and Israel.
Countries like Russia, and there are others of course, have always undermined the ethics of the Olympic movement, including the institutionalised doping – you cannot ever separate the state from sport, or indeed any art or culture.
It was in my lifetime that South Africans were banned from all sorts of sport for decades, because of its internal apartheid policies. But if you invade, or attempt genocide, that’s OK now.
Ban them all.