The opening ceremony for the Olympic Games in Sochi was a lesson in Russian history with a positive spin. Since Russia has quite a bit of history under its belt, we received quite the spectacular opening ceremony, no less than London or Beijing. While there was one embarrassing technical glitch, when the red ring -- the one representing the Americas -- failed to open and remained a snowflake, Russian President Vladimir Putin, from his perch in the new Olympic stadium, was able for a moment to enjoy a world with Russia at its center, and without America to boot. On second thought, maybe the technical malfunction was actually intended, motivated by Putin's rivalry with the United States
Putin declared the games open a little after an enchanting performance of Swan Lake, performed to the music of Tchaikovsky. The Russian composer's music can soften any person, even Putin. Tchaikovsky, at least for a short while, allowed us to forget the Russian president's homophobia and his support for the Syrian regime. It's a shame Putin forgot to demand a rendition of Tchaikovsky's Symphony No. 2, nicknamed "Little Russian," a reference to the "Little Russia" moniker Russians gave Ukraine. Not only is it an amazing symphony and relevant to current affairs, it also coincides with the historical-patriotic evening we were treated to. There was, of course, criticism over the selective manner in which Russia told the world about its past. But what did we expect? That they would highlight the Stalin regime and the gulag? Or that maybe we'd hear the echoes of Brezhnev and Chernenko billowing down on us from the sky, preaching the need to return to the days of communism? Meanwhile, what we did get out of the sky were cosmonauts, the Soviet astronauts who bestowed great honor on the nation in their time, much like they did two nights ago. And if anyone doubted Putin's abilities, we learned that Sochi broke the record for births on the day of the opening ceremony: 24 boys and 10 girls. Even at the minute the ceremony began, at 8:14 p.m. Moscow time, Dr. Olga Torenko announced that "a son was born." We told you that Putin controls everything in Sochi; even the births.
