And so it ends

The Olympics Games are now behind us. For anti-Communists, the regime's clampdown on free expression (BBC, Between Heaven and Earth, CNN, Boycott 2008 Communist Olympics, Epoch Times, NRO - Media Blog, and the Washington Post) and foreign press (CBC) is no real surprise. Nor are MSM's blind assertions that the Games were "a resounding success" for the cadres (Washington Times, although the Post had a similar column).

The real shock is that said assertions were wrong. These Olympic Games failed to do what the Communists asked of them (Epoch Times).

Every praiseworthy comment about the opening ceremony was matched with condemnation for the blackballing of Wang Peiyi. Their success in winning more gold medals than anyone else (although the United States won the overall medal count) was tarnished by the gymnastics scandal (Epoch Times). Add to that the fact that so many rural Chinese tuned the Games out, and what you have is something far less than the propaganda extravaganza the cadres wanted.

Even those who acknowledged a well-run show were put off: Tom Boswell (Washington Post) called it "soulless" while Tom Humphries (Irish Times via Boycott 2008) referred to it as "hermetically sealed."

Then, to top it off, the final day came with a message from Washington ripping the cadres for refusing "to demonstrate greater tolerance and openness" (London Telegraph via Boycott 2008) - definitely not the send-off the regime wanted.

For the Communists, the question is as follows: was it worth it? Was it worth the ruined lives and angry citizens (Boycott 2008)? Was it worth the inevitable corruption scandals? Based on the above, the answer is clearly No.

These Olympics will do nothing to stop Falun Gong from demanding the right to practice without prison, torture, or murder-for-organs (Boycott 2008 and Epoch Times). They will not silence investors furious over the cadres fleecing them (Epoch Times). They will not make people forget about Tibet (Epoch Times).

If anything, the Games have led the rest of the world to pay more attention to Communist China's military ambitions (Washington Times) and espionage activities (Ottowa Citizen via Small Dead Animals) - exactly where the cadres did not want any prying eyes.

For the Communists, it's back to business as usual, including propping up the ever more embarrassing Korean colony (BBC, BBC again, and One Free Korea). Whatever glow they have from these Games is pale and short-lived. These Olympics were supposed to add years to the life span of the regime; it would be lucky to get days for it.