Olympics!

OK, so Chicago is really trying to have the Olympics here in 2016. It seems like forever and a day away, so why are we stressing about it so much right now? Well, apparently, they like to choose the city like 7 years in advance. So the debate has begun. Mayor Daley appears to be intent on getting the Olympics for Summer of 2016. He's a man who loves to publicize Chicago and it's amenities as much as possible. To me, however, it seems as though Daley is looking at this situation through rose colored glasses. Daley has proposed an 80,000 seat venue to be built in Washington Park, turning it into a 10,000 seat multi-use stadium after the Olympics. The way he sees it, the park is big enough to even have that large of a venue built on its ground. But what's more important, having the venue in that neighborhood, it would give countless jobs to unemployed people. My feeling, though, is that the majority of the jobs aren't going to go to the people who live in that area--I don't think Mayor Daley would be too fond of having the Olympic contestants and viewers be greeted by the lower classes of Chicago. Even so, the venue would provide jobs, it's just a matter of to whom.
In class last week, we had a discussion about the Olympics coming to Chicago. I said that I don't think it's a good idea because we have so many internal issues that need to be ironed out first. But someone else said that the Olympics would be good because it would force the city to get itself together, to hurry up and fix these problems. And that's a good point. Because would the city really be working so hard on its public transportation dilemma if they weren't trying to get in shape for the International Olympic Committee? To me, it's more a matter of the Mayor's priorities. If it takes having the Olympics here for him to get himself together, then does he have his priorities straight? Would he really be so passionate about giving jobs to the residents around Washington Park? Would the public transportation crisis weigh so heavily on his shoulders? I'm not so sure, but at least he's doing something about it now.
So maybe having the Olympics in Chicago would be a good thing. It would surely bring in lots of money for the city. Since it would be the Summer Olympics, Navy Pier would be in full operation, and with all the added tourists, it would definitely make a huge profit. The city would benefit greatly, I think. But would it be a case of the rich getting richer and the poor getting porrer? Would the profit of the Olympics be distributed to neighborhoods that need it? The city is more than just downtown and the Loop, but it seems as though that's where all the money goes. The nice places just get nicer while the rundown parts of the city stay as is, usually getting worse. Would Daley be able to get his priorities straight after having the Olympics--that is, if it turns out that way?
Hopefully, things will get better after the Olympics, if we have them. For Atlanta, the 1996 Summer Olympics actually did help the city. The housing used for the competitors turned into the residence halls for Georgia State University, and later Georgia Institute of Technology. The city made use of venues initially built for the Olympics. However, throughout the duration of the Olympics, there was a dire need for better transportation. The city hired bus drivers who didn't know the geography of the city; some of the drivers had no idea where they were going and had to ask Atlanta natives for directions. But in the end, the Olympics are considered a success for Atlanta. Let's hope, if we win the bid, that the results can be similar for Chicago.