At the risk of sounding unpatriotic, I hope Chicago doesn't get the 2016 Olympics because they're too expensive, too political, too greedy, too ruthless and the world will still hate us win, lose or draw.
Somewhere along the way, we forgot the games were designed to foster goodwill.
Now, it's all about professional athletes striving for endorsements and to hell with conscience.
There, I feel much better.
Friends say I'm being too calloused, too ... unpatriotic. So I asked someone who should know, someone who has traveled overseas, who coached at the 2002 World Basketball Championship, the 2003 FIBA America Men's Olympic Qualifying Tournament and the 2004 Olympic Games.
He's Gregg Popovich, Merrillville grad and coach of the four-time NBA champion San Antonio Spurs -- with a degree in Soviet Studies from the Air Force Academy, by the way.
Simply put, have the Olympics lost their luster?
"I can tell you. It's a huge deal. The world still goes crazy over the damn thing," Popovich said. "You wouldn't believe how nationalistic these people are. They go crazy and when the Olympics come, it's the same nationalistic, competitive spirit. Athletically, they live for it.
"I went to the basketball Final Four this summer in Berlin and you can't believe it. The two Greek teams that were in it were from the same country and had two separate areas in the gym where if you let them at each other, there would be death."
Do we have that same fervor in the good ol' US of A?
"In the United States, I think it depends upon your perspective," Popovich added. "I'm an old-school Olympic lover. I still think of the Olympics as being track and field."
At the 2004 Games, Popovich was first assistant to coach Larry Brown. Allen Iverson was suspended one game for blowing off practice, and America finished third among 12 teams. It was downright embarrassing.
"When we lost, it was a devastating feeling. It still is," Popovich said. "When we came back and won (in 2008), it was great, having that feeling we're back on top.
"As far as the competitive spirit, I think it's still there."
Of course, we needed to send our pros to play their young pros who've been paid for years. Popovich was against it at first, then realized it's what fans wanted on the world's grand stage.
My point is, everyone in uniform now is out to break the bank. Bringing the world closer together is the farthest thing from their minds. Even if the United States finished last in every sport, other countries wouldn't admire us more.
"They love to beat the hell out of us," Popovich said. "It's not just in basketball. In general, we've been on top for so long. We're everywhere in the world. It's our military. It's our government's positions.
"Athletically, we've been great in a lot of sports for a long time. And if they can beat us in anything, it makes their year."
You want a bonding experience, buy a puppy.
"Iran and the United States, for example, are at odds with each other, but the people have a lot in common and share a lot of the same goals. It's governments that are wacked," Popovich said.
"They're not going to change their policies because of the Olympics. It's naive to think so."
Chicago. Madrid. Tokyo. Rio de Janeiro. We'll know Friday who wins the 2016 bid.
Brazil's leaders say they need their first Olympics to raise the self-esteem of their people. Tokyo is so over-populated, you can't sit down. Madrid already lost the 2012 bid.
That leaves Chicago, where the Cubs and White Sox play. More bad infrastructure.
This column solely represents the writer's opinion. Reach him at al.hamnik@nwi.com.
