Another day, another take on the Ryan Lochte story that is surely the most telling tale to come out of the Rio games so far.
This is Dave Zirin in The Nation, with an article entitled “Ryan Lochte Is One of Many Privileged First-World Tourists—and Brazilians Are Fed Up”. His conclusion:
What’s truly remarkable is that the US swimmers have managed to do something that no Brazilian political official has been able to do: unite Brazil’s Olympic critics with Brazil’s Olympic organizers.
The truth about what happened will undoubtedly come out. Most likely the true story will be something smaller and grimier than any of the above issues discussed. But if nothing else, the swimmers have unlocked a feeling in Rio that goes back several hundred years. It’s the feeling of a country that is sick and tired of being the punching bag, the laughing stock, and the spittoon for debauchery of the Western world.