Beijing Olympics in Context

From the Los Angelos Times:

For the last seven years, through clouds of construction dust, thousands of meetings, millions of man-hours and an unprecedented political mobilization, China has waited for today.

At $43 billion, the Beijing Olympics, which begin today, represent one of the most expensive coming-out parties in history. And the belle of the ball has a lot to be proud of. China has risen from poverty and social chaos to engineer one of the most impressive economic success stories ever.

From Wired.com:

With a single day to go before the Olympics, both government and independent readings suggest that Beijing's air is getting worse.

And if the winds don't change, this could wind up being one of the most polluted Olympics in modern history, with more particulate matter in the air than Atlanta in 1996 or possibly even notoriously smoggy Los Angeles in 1984.

~BT