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Is it “Bye-bye Olympics” now?

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Twinkling with Ninfa R. Leonardia

Is it “Bye, bye Olympics” after all? From the international news coming, there seems to be a lot going against the possibility of the international games, famed for generations and participated in by so many countries, to be cancelled or postponed. I hope the news in the coming days will belie this and tell us that all is clear, that there is no stopping the famous jousts among countries that had become all the more popular with the introduction of the media called television.

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But we cannot blame either the officials or the participants if they have doubts about going on with it. Who knows that one athlete from any country, who unknowingly carries the virus, manages to join the competition? What havoc that will cause internationally! Not only will the athlete himself or herself be a pariah, but their countries will get blamed  for sending them! But I am sure thousands, even millions of people worldwide are praying that it will be held, and I join them. They could be a distraction for any other problem, except for this one that is not only highly contagious, but also deadly in many cases. I still had some hopes until I saw an item on TV saying “Bye, Bye Olympics”. Sigh!

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Well, better times may come soon, with the various vaccines being produced and made available to all countries that may, hopefully,  stop this COVID “invasion” in its tracks. If that happens, we may hope for the games to take place, albeit at a different time. If that happens then, our athletes should not stop practising, just in case they need to compete. In the meantime, let us be thankful for the invention of television, that can take our minds off from this China-virus that has spread and claimed  so many victims already.

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But let us also be grateful, and acknowledge the work of those who produced the vaccines that, so far, seem to working successfully against it. I am not  sure which country was able to bring out the most effective vaccine, but whoever the scientist or the medical genius who produced it, will go down in history like Louis Pasteur, and other  names of the ones who gave us such medicines as penicillin and streptomycin, that were able to counter the virtual  death sentences for patients before their advent.  As they say, “Science marches on”, and let it deal with any other pandemic that may descend on humanity, in the future.

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Oh dear! As if we didn’t have enough trouble with a pandemic that continues to rage and frighten people all over the world, here come news of two countries on the verge of war, if not already in the midst of it. Why have Israel and Palestine suddenly become so antagonistic to each other? The latest I heard was that more than a hundred people have been killed in Gaza by Israel’s air strikes. Worst for us media people, was the report that Israeli warplanes had struck at a building housing journalists representing the biggest and most popular news agencies. The report did not, however, provide names of the victims, or their media entities.

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On a lighter note, I knew our Manny Pacquiao is popular as a world renowned boxing icon, but I did not realize how much until  I chanced upon a title boxing fight on TV, where his picture was prominently shown near the boxing ring. I think Manny is admired by other boxers for being a clean fighter, and a humble person, never bragging about his conquests. Actually, I think he is a very shy person, too. After one of his fights in Las Vegas that I had attended, several people, mostly women, flocked around him for autographs. And he obliged them all.

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But one daring female, a very gifted one in the breast area, who was also wearing a very tight T-shirt, wanted him to sign his name on her T-shirt, and in front! The poor guy looked embarrassed and hesitated, but the other girls egged him on, so he complied, but held the pen very gingerly, trying not to touch any of the twin peaks he was to sign. All the others applauded when he finally did , and I het that woman never washed that T-shirt until now.

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I know that thousands of our people have already been vaccinated, at least with their first doses, but would you believe that only one percent of the population of Japan had undergone vaccination as reported Saturday? How come? Japan is not a backwoods country, it is as modern as any in the world, but why the delay, or hesitation in the inoculation of its people? Do they not have enough cases for them to worry much about vaccinations? Maybe our country has complied with the vaccination campaign better than some others? I can say that because I already had my first dose and just waiting for the next. And don’t be afraid, folks. As our president himself said, “It’s not painful”. Just don’t look while you are being pierced. They use very fine needles these days and really, it’s not painful at all!*

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