Back in '84, I remember the whole nation being whipped into a frenzy in anticipation of the Summer Games in LA. Now, they're not even front page news. Is this because the Olympics aren't in the U.S. of A this time around, or is it something else?

I subscribe that the typical American's interest level in the Olympics has coincided perfectly with the fall of Communist Russia. We have no one to root against anymore. Every American victory back in the day was ten times as sweet if they beat the Pinkos. Now that we have no real natural "enemy", the games have lost their lustre.

What also adds to our lackadaisical attitude toward the games is the overall acceptance of other cultures which is prevelant in today's society. Good for society, bad for the Olympics. Back in the day, there was no doubt in anybody's apple pie-eating, Chevy driving, American minds that the Russians were evil personified and ate their young.

Now, I know that the USSR boycotted the Summer Olympics in LA, but the national fervor against Communism didn't die because of that. We stood united against East Germany, as if it's atheletes were Russia's surrogate representatives and not their own people. So it would seem logical that we rooted for democracy, and against Communism back then.

But we obviously don't know, since China is still very much Communist. We have no bones to pick with China, though.

So I think that the popularity of the Olympics in this country fell with the Cold War.

Discuss.