Zika's Spread Helped Along by Brazil's Deep Poverty

I've been tweeting Olympics news with the #ThirdWorldGames hashtag, and you can see why after reading this piece at the Los Angeles Times.

Here, "Brazil defeated the mosquito that spreads Zika once before — few expect it to do so again."

Raw sewage runs through drainage canals, there's no running water in homes, and families don't have enough money to buy their own bug spray pesticides. It's a choice between fighting mosquitoes or putting food on the table.

#ThirdWorldGames: Green Water Spreads to Water Polo Pool

Following-up from last night, "#ThirdWorldGames: Olympics Diving Pool Turns Green, Mysteriously."

Now water polo players are complaining of burning eyes.

That's what you get for playing the Olympics in a Third World shithole.

At WSJ, "Rio 2016: The Green Water Spreads to Water Polo Pool":

Rio 2016: The Green Water Spreads to Water Polo Pool - WSJ https://t.co/x5isF39taJ

— SnewsHound (@SnewsHound) August 10, 2016

RIO DE JANEIRO—The Rio Olympics’ green-water crisis claimed another victim: the water polo pool.

Officials scrambled to contain the new embarrassment, which shocked television viewers and spectators Tuesday when the pool hosting the women’s 10-meter synchronized diving finals turned a deep, bright green. Wednesday, even as officials insisted they had the problem under control, they acknowledged that the problem was also affecting the adjoining water polo pool, which also displayed a greenish tint.

“Yesterday mid-afternoon there was a sudden decrease in the alkalinity of the pool,” said Mario Andrada, spokesman for the Rio 2016 Organizing Committee. “Obviously, the people in charge of maintaining the pool and of checking could and should have done more intensive tests.”

Andrada said the pool color would get back to normal “very shortly.” However, he added, Wednesday’s rain in Rio was complicating things.

Several possible explanations emerged on Wednesday, though not all seemed to fit together.

FINA, swimming and diving’s world governing body, said the change occurred, because “the water tanks ran out of some of the chemicals used in the water treatment process. As a result the pH level of the water was outside the usual range, causing the discolouration.”

FINA also added that its sport medicine committee had deemed the water safe for competition...

Well, maybe not.

At WaPo, "Water polo players complain of burning eyes after Rio officials attempt to treat green pool water."

#ThirdWorldGames: Olympics Diving Pool Turns Green, Mysteriously

Yes, "mysteriously."

At the New York Times, "During Diving Event, Pool Transforms From Crystal Blue to Garishly Green":

Why is the diving pool water green? @vickihallch tries to get to the bottom of it. (The question, not the pool.) https://t.co/9BQv44wiXL

— National Post (@nationalpost) August 10, 2016

RIO DE JANEIRO — An unsettling thing happened at the Olympic diving pool on Tuesday: the water inexplicably turned green, just in time for the women’s synchronized 10-meter platform diving competition.

Officials said they did not know what caused the trouble, exactly. But they declared the water had been tested and was not dangerous. It was an unsettling sight, appearing to become greener and murkier as the day went on, having been a lovely light blue on Monday.

The British diver Tom Daley, who won a bronze medal in the same pool the day before, posted a photograph on Twitter showing the contrast between the colors of the pools. “Ermmmm – what happened?” he said.

The adjoining pool at the aquatic center, used for synchronized swimming and water polo, remained its normal blue color, which made the extreme greenness of the diving pool all the more striking.

Meanwhile, diving practice went on as planned, and so did the women’s synchronized event. Competitors generally said that the swampiness of the water did not put them off their form, although they found it weird and puzzling.

“I’ve never dived in anything like it,” said Britain’s Tonia Couch, who finished fifth, along with Lois Coulson.

The situation overshadowed the news conference after the event, with reporters more interested in the state of the water than in the quality of the diving. Officials released a brief statement that did not address the main questions: what had happened, why had it happened so quickly, and why wasn’t there a simple explanation, given that this is the sort of thing that commonly happens to swimming pools?

“To ensure a high quality field of play is mandatory to the Rio 2016 organizing committee,” the statement said. “Water tests at Maria Lenk Aquatic Center diving pool were conducted and found to be no risk to the athletes’ health. We’re investigating what the cause of the situation was.”

The statement also said, “We’re pleased to say the competition was successfully completed.”

Officials at the news conference declined to take questions from the news media about the water.

Steve Henderson, who owns AAA Pool Service in Santa Rosa, Calif., said that although he was not an expert on Brazilian swimming pools, there were two likely causes: a sudden algae bloom, which could be eradicated by zapping the pool with extra chlorine overnight; or a chemical reaction between chlorine and a metal in the water, most likely manganese.

“If they have manganese in the water, you will get a reaction depending on level of chlorination,” Henderson said. He said that it was a normal occurrence, as even a slight imbalance can cause a violent color change, and not a cause of alarm.

Still, he said, he found it puzzling that officials at the Games did not have a better explanation...

More.

How Brazil's Lula Conned the World — #ThirdWorldGames

From Mary Anastasia O'Grady, at WSJ:

The 2016 Olympic Games kicked off in Rio de Janeiro on the weekend without major incidents. That seemed a near miracle after weeks of grim reports about shoddy construction, an unprepared security detail and monstrous traffic jams. Whether the athletes, visitors and Cariocas (as Rio residents are known) can get through the next two weeks without a catastrophe remains an open question.

It wasn’t supposed to be like this. Then again, when Rio won the competition in 2009 to host these games, Brazil wasn’t forecast to look like it does today—with a budget deficit equal to some 8% of gross domestic product, inflation near 10%, two years of economic contraction and a cesspool of corruption scandals.

In 2009, President Lula da Silva of the Workers’ Party (PT) had been at the helm for more than six years and was somewhat of a world rock star. His hip rhetoric denigrated the economic liberalism of the 1990s while hyping a new and improved brand of socialism with a samba twist.

Much of the region bought Lula’s 2.0 version of big government. Concerns about the return of left-wing Latin populism and its potential damage to entrepreneurship and economic growth were met with assurances that this time would be different.

Lula was a man of the left but he wasn’t Hugo Chávez, conventional wisdom explained. A November 2009 Economist magazine cover story was titled “Brazil takes off.” It cited a forecast by the consulting firm PwC that by 2025 São Paulo would be the world’s fifth-wealthiest city. Most of punditry agreed: Brazil was on course to take its rightful place as a world economic superpower.

Lula stepped down after two terms in 2011, handing power to his PT successor, President Dilma Rousseff. The 2016 Olympics were supposed to showcase the socialist paradise he had cultivated: an urban utopia mixing affordable housing, national industrial champions and orderly public-transportation networks to provide a tranquil—and environmentally approved—living experience.

Instead, at the Olympic Village, just weeks before the opening, sinks fell off the walls and there were various other plumbing disasters. The Australian national team fled from its quarters upon arrival because it found, among other things, exposed electrical wires next to indoor puddles of water. Guanabara Bay, the venue for open-water swimming and sailing races, is a giant petri dish of bacteria. A new metro line that was supposed to take visitors to the games ends eight miles short of its promised destination.

The Rio security company that was hired to screen spectators was fired 10 days ago for noncompliance with its contract. Organizers scrambled last week to hire and train a replacement team.

The world seems stunned. It shouldn’t be. Rio is a microcosm of Lula’s Brazil, where bureaucracy runs things from the top down and human beings are an afterthought. The only thing missing in this Rio analogy—so far—is the corruption that flourished at the federal level during 14 years of PT government...

Still more.

The Produnova Vault

This is interesting.

It's called the "vault of death."

At WSJ:

The Produnova vault is a gamble only a handful of women’s gymnasts are willing to make https://t.co/fX092NX1GJ #Rio2016

— Donald Douglas (@AmPowerBlog) August 7, 2016

And there's more about India's Dipa Karmakar here, "Assignment Asia: Conquering the 'vault of death'."

#ThirdWorldGames — Hope Solo FTW!

Well, I don't follow women's soccer that much, and I thought Hope Solo was a prima donna.

But this is a riot.

At LAT, "Solo quiets the crowd and France in record-setting 1-0 win":

Solo quiets the crowd and France in record-setting 1-0 win https://t.co/0wI1qkOLT4

— L.A. Times Sports (@latimessports) August 6, 2016

BELO HORIZONTE, Brazil -- Hope Solo is arguably the best goalkeeper in women’s soccer history. But she’s clearly not the most popular.

For the second time is as many games at the Rio Olympics, Solo was booed mercilessly every time she touched the ball Saturday. And for the second time Solo answered the taunts with a shutout in a 1-0 victory over France on a goal from Carli Lloyd in the 63rd minute.

With the victory the U.S., the three-time defending Olympic champion, moved a big step closer to winning its group and earning a quarterfinal date in Brasilia against a third-place team. France, on the other hand, needs at least a tie to finish second in the group and win a quarterfinal trip to Sao Paulo, where it would play the winner of Group F, likely Germany or Canada.

Both teams have one game left in group play Tuesday, the top-ranked U.S. against Colombia on the edge of the Amazon jungle in steamy Manaus and No. 3 France against New Zealand in the colonial port city of Salvador.

That picture would be far more jumbled if not for Solo, who was making the 200th appearance of her international career, the most by any goalkeeper, male or female, in history.

The Brazilian crowd was in no mood to help her celebrate the milestone. Each time she touched the ball the crowd booed loudly – or as loudly as a crowd of about 10,000 people can boo – then chanted “Zika!” each time she took a goal kick.

Last month Solo, who said she had considered skipping the Olympics because of the Zika virus, posted photos of herself on Twitter wearing an anti-mosquito mask and holding a bottle of insect repellent, angering many Brazilians.

Solo later apologized but the apology wasn’t accepted by everyone...

She apologized?

Okay, but the tweet's still up, heh. No wonder they hate her.

Not sharing this!!! Get your own! #zikaproof #RoadToRio pic.twitter.com/y3d8hnuEjk

— Hope Solo (@hopesolo) July 22, 2016

I'm not planning on watching that much of these games, but I'll watch kick-ass women's soccer. These women are rad!

Gisele Bündchen's Legs Do the Walking at #Rio2016 Opening Ceremony (VIDEO)

I know. I blogged the boring Olympics last night.

I didn't even watch, and I'm glad.

But the world went crazy over Gisele Bündchen, it turns out. So here's a little roundup of reactions, heh.

First, watch, at NBC Sports, "Gisele Bündchen kicks off the Opening Ceremony with the final catwalk of her modeling career."

And see the hilarious reaction at BuzzFeed, "This Is Just an Appreciation Post for This Marvelous Woman Called GISELE BÜNDCHEN":

Hi guys, let’s talk about the most important part of the opening ceremony.

Also, at London's Daily Mail, "Gisele uses her final catwalk to honor Brazil at #Olympics #OpeningCeremony. Woah."

And, "Tom Brady reveals why he missed Gisele's starring role at #Rio2016 #OpeningCeremony." Well, he's married to the woman, heh.

At CBS News Boston, "Tom Brady Praises Wife Gisele’s Role In ‘Incredible’ Olympic Opening Ceremony #Rio2016."

And here's a review, at NYT, "Even on NBC, Rio's Colors Can't Be Airbrushed Out."

Lucca Poni and Her Child in South Sudan

At the Los Angeles Times, letters to the editor, "The price of being a girl in South Sudan":

Child brides being sold for cows: The price of being a girl in South Sudan https://t.co/XjbtCuQayw pic.twitter.com/UFwgiimPOm

— Los Angeles Times (@latimes) July 30, 2016

To the editor: On the front page of The Times this week was one of the simplest, yet most spectacular photos that I, a designer, have seen. (“What daughters are worth,” August 1)

The portrait of Lucca Poni and her child in South Sudan accompanied a fine article by Robyn Dixon on young girls’ plight in that part of the world.

I had to look twice to be sure it was not a painting.

Photographer Sara Hylton’s attention to subject matter illustrating the article, composition, light and color are worthy of Pulitzer consideration to my mind.

Marty Huyette, Dana Point

That's very nice.

The status of women in South Sudan? Not so much.

Boring Brazil Olympics — #ThirdWorldGames

Heh.

I didn't watch.

Gisele Bündchen's really cool, though.

REVIEW: Brazil Boring... https://t.co/As9nPCVdsX

— DRUDGE REPORT (@DRUDGE_REPORT) August 6, 2016

.@giseleofficial is “The Girl From Ipanema” in Olympic #OpeningCeremony: https://t.co/otphOCsXvH pic.twitter.com/xqSR0vbzBJ

— NBC Olympics (@NBCOlympics) August 6, 2016

And at People Magazine, "Gisele Bündchen Dances Like Everyone's Watching at Rio Olympics Opening Ceremony."

Update Not Watching the Olympics — #ThirdWorldGames

Following-up, "Not Watching the Olympics — #ThirdWorldGames."

Via Twitter:

.@rogerlsimon That's why I never bothered to watch in the first place. Revolting politics and PC inanity. #ThirdWorldGames #Rio2016

— Donald Douglas (@AmPowerBlog) August 6, 2016

Not Watching the Olympics — #ThirdWorldGames

Oh, I'll tune in for gymnastics, swimming, and track and field, etc.

I'm just not watching the opening ceremonies. They're so politically correct it's like pulling teeth. And the show's not even live.

More, from Ed Driscoll, at Instapundit, "NEWS YOU CAN ABUSE: An Incomplete List of Why Nobody Really Gives a Shit About the Olympics Anymore."

#ThirdWorldGames

Heh, I gotta get #ThirdWorldGames trending.

Olympic beach water includes high levels of bacteria found in sewage, tests show. https://t.co/8Exi63ZQ9Z pic.twitter.com/UJs4YZujKg

— ABC News (@ABC) August 4, 2016

And tell me why again we're having a world-class athletic competition in that literal shit hole? #Rio2016 https://t.co/8qn7ccPbTU

— Donald Douglas (@AmPowerBlog) August 4, 2016

Australian coach complains of 'soupy' pool water at #Olympics. https://t.co/MsTd4ZXmzc #Rio2016 #ThirdWorldGames

— Donald Douglas (@AmPowerBlog) August 5, 2016

Brazil Ramps Up Security Before Rio Olympics (VIDEO)

My wife was saying last night that she wouldn't go.

And you can see why!

Watch, at CBS News This Morning, "Rio police battle security crisis as Olympics loom."

That's an excellent report. Brazil's deploying twice as many police and security personnel than Britain did for the London games in 2012.

Jean-Claude 'Baby Doc' Duvalier Dead at 63

One of the most revolting dictators of my lifetime.

At the New York Times, "Jean-Claude Duvalier, ‘Baby Doc’ of Haiti, Dies at 63":

Jean-Claude Duvalier, a former president of Haiti known as Baby Doc who ruled the country with a bloody brutality and then shocked the country anew with a sudden return from a 25-year exile in 2011, died on Saturday.

Mr. Duvalier, 63, died of a heart attack at his home, his lawyer told The Associated Press. President Michel J. Martelly announced the death on Twitter.

Mr. Duvalier continued to defend what human rights workers called one of the most oppressive governments in the Western Hemisphere, following in the footsteps of his father, François, known as Papa Doc, who also died suddenly, in 1971. The son was 19 when he assumed the post “president for life,” as he and his father called it, becoming the youngest head of state at the time.

He never apologized for atrocities, including brutal crackdowns on opponents at the hands of the feared Tonton Macoutes, a civilian militia that left a thousand people, if not more, dead, disappeared or illegally detained in harsh prisons.

Indeed, he defended himself as victims of his government pursued cases in Haitian courts on charges of corruption and human rights abuses. Mr. Duvalier had appeared in court and calmly denied any wrongdoing and even asserted the country was better off when he ruled.

“Were there deaths and summary executions under your government?” a judge asked him at a hearing in March 2013.

“Deaths exist in all countries,” Mr. Duvalier replied almost inaudibly. “I didn’t intervene in the activities of the police.”

He regularly dined in restaurants in Port-au-Prince, Haiti’s capital, and attended events at the invitation of Mr. Martelly, whose administration has included relatives and allies of people associated with Mr. Duvalier.

This year, his old political party announced that it would field candidates in elections and opened an office, though analysts were not sure if it was a serious move or a thumb in the eye of the rival he loathed and who succeeded him, Jean-Bertrand Aristide, another formerly exiled president who also returned and still is a political force.

Mr. Duvalier fled the country in 1986, as political repression and worsening economic conditions set off violent unrest in what was then and still is the hemisphere’s poorest country. He asked France for asylum and the United States for the plane that would take him there, an American official said at the time.

His departure set the stage for democratic, though tumultuous, elections. Human rights groups have said that he looted Haiti’s treasury of millions of dollars and has largely lived off ill-gotten gains ever since.

His presence in the country, and the fact that he will now escape trial, appalled victims and human rights workers.

“On Duvalier’s death I’m thinking of the look in my mother’s eyes when she talks about her brother Joel who was disappeared by that dictator,” Patrick Gaspard, a Haitian-American who is the American ambassador to South Africa, said on Twitter. “News of the passing of Duvalier makes me honor my father and generations of Haitians who resisted that vicious dictatorship.”

More.

Narendra Modi Victory Heralds New Era in #India

I saw this at Pamela's earlier, "Astounding Victory for Modi in India Election":

The results are in and they are astounding. Magnificent. Narendra Modi did wildly better than even the best projections. The BJP (Modi’s party) won over 50 percent of the seats ALONE, without even their handful of ideologically aligned allies.

Despite what the cretins in the media and the Islamic apologists in the political arena tell you, there is major change afoot. I have been seeing it here in the States, and we see lights of hope and truth beginning to blaze across the world.

And here's WSJ, "Modi Election Win Heralds New Era: Hindu-Nationalist, Pro-Business BJP Candidate Narendra Modi Marks Sweeping Shift."

It's a big deal. The BJP dislodged the Gandhi, Congress Party machine that's ruled india for 60 years.

More at Telegraph UK, "Narendra Modi wins India election with landslide victory."

And video from Euro News, "Dramatic shift in Indian politics with Modi set to win landslide election victory."

Rio Olympics Preparations 'the Worst'

Hmm...

At NYT, "Preparations for Rio Olympics ‘the Worst,’ Committee Official Says":

RIO DE JANEIRO — A top International Olympic Committee official on Tuesday called Rio de Janeiro’s preparations to host the 2016 Summer Olympics “the worst I have experienced,” adding to a growing chorus of doubts about the city’s ability to get ready for the Games without international help.

“We’ve become very concerned, to be quite frank,” the official, John D. Coates, who is vice president of the committee, told reporters in Melbourne. “They really are not ready in many, many ways.”

The remarks reflected similar criticism from the Olympic Committee’s president in mid-April, when the body announced that it was sending outside experts to Brazil to monitor progress and speed up work in Rio.

“This is unprecedented for the I.O.C. to be sending in people like this,” said Mr. Coates, who has made six visits to the city and called the situation in Rio worse than in Athens in 2004.

However, he ruled out moving the Olympics to another city.

“There can be no Plan B; we are going to Rio,” Mr. Coates said. “We’ve just got to make sure that we help the organizing committee deliver Games that will enable our athletes, the athletes of the world, to perform to the best of their ability.”

Keep reading.

Well, Third World Olympics: The racist imperialist advanced nations will no doubt bail 'em out.