Dear Commons Community,

Every four years, the Winter Olympics turn some small mountain town or village into a sports mecca for two weeks as athletes from around the globe compete in sking, figure skating, luge, curling, etc.  Today, the 2018 Winter Olympics will open in the isolated, rugged mountain town of Pyeongchang, one of the coldest parts of  South Korea.  In addition to the sports competitions, there is a potential for a lot of political drama. As reported in various media:

“The athletic aspect of these games has been overshadowed in the buildup to the opening ceremony by a frenzied, increasingly momentous fire-hose spray of political developments. The two rival Koreas, flirting with war just weeks ago, are suddenly making overtures toward the no-longer-quite-so-absurd notion of cooperation.

North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un’s sister, making an unprecedented visit to South Korean soil, will now likely attend the same opening ceremony as U.S. Vice President Mike Pence, who’s vowing toughest-ever sanctions on the North. Could they meet? That and other theories have engulfed South Korean media.

Pyeongchang was not supposed to share the spotlight with Pyongyang. This was not supposed to be, as some in Seoul grumble about the “Pyongyang Games,” a play on the North Korean capital’s phonetic similarity to Pyeongchang.”

Let the competition begin!

Tony