Posted on 08/28/2004 5:16:27 PM PDT by Hildy
America's biggest Olympic hero yesterday accused George Bush of exploiting the Athens Games for his own political advantage in the run-up to the presidential election. Carl Lewis, who won nine Olympic gold medals in athletics in a record-breaking career, condemned Bush for using the presence of Iraqi and Afghan teams in Athens in a television advertisement to boost his chances of re-election.
Criticising Bush for linking his foreign policy with the two countries being allowed to compete here, Lewis said: 'I felt that was disingenuous. It is funny that we boycotted the 1980 Games [in Moscow] in support of Afghanistan, and now we're bombing Afghanistan,' he told the Athens News yesterday.
'Of course, we've invaded Iraq and are in there and are using it for political gain. It bewilders me, and I understand why the Iraqi players are offended.
'To support the players or the community is fine, but for political gain I disagree.'
Iraq's footballers, who unexpectedly reached the semi-finals here, made clear last week they disliked the advertisement and regarded American soldiers in Iraq as occupiers rather than liberators. Bush was planning to visit the Greek capital and attend yesterday's football final if Iraq had been involved, but they lost in the semi-finals last week. He was also criti cised for misusing without permission Olympic symbols, which are protected emblems.
I think he's just doing his Paul Robeson imitation.
Didn't he snitch on a friend to Stalin who then had the friend executed?
Think he gets horny watching JEffin' embracing the ambulance chaser?;)))
I figured you for a young "whipper snapper" when you said you had never heard of him.
You joined when you were 17. Now, I'm impressed.
What kind of guy would pose like this?
I guess the acting career isn't going too well for Carl.
Before I clicked on this thread and had only seen the title, my heart stopped. I thought Paul Hamm had said something stupid. In a way, he reminds me of Dubya. Both have had to put up with so much crap from huge media onslaughts against them and crazy ass foreigners against them simply because they're Americans.
Anyway, here's a word of advice to Mr. Care Lewis: shove it!
Guess he's not returning back to the good ole U.S. of A. huh?
To Carl: Track is a very insignificant sport. How do I know? If it were significant, it would be on every Monday night. The average American couldn't care less about your sport or your opinion.
Don't ya wish people like this would be spit on and called babykillers?
Yeah, I remember that ad. Maybe part of Carl's deal was that he got to keep the shoes...
Carl should move to Kanada. I'm sure he'll be welcome there.
Mark Spitz won seven in one year.
Gee, I wonder what political party Carl belongs to?
Yeah, they were attached at the hips.. yuck!
Who in the hell cares what this egotistical fag thinks or says anyway..
steroids may impair one's judgment.
"Shame on you Carl for exploiting President Bush for your own political reasons."
This one is a legend in his own mind - that is what is left of it.
Does anybody have the audio or video clip of Carl Lewis "singing" the Star-Spangled Banner? It was perhaps the worst rendition ever, and something which ESPN and sports fans have mocked him for years over.
Never mind, I found the audio clip of it. The person who uploaded this clip said "it sounded like a cross between a woman giving birth and a mass slaughter of chickens."
http://users.rcn.com/pkatcher/audio/carllewis.mp3
I see Carl "gold medal' Lewis, has never even been to Afghanistan to see for himself how we have bombed the country back to the stone age...so much for credibility...he peaked long ago....
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