Online Message Board: What Do You Think of the 2002 Olympics? So what's on your mind with the 2002 Winter Olympics? Is the traffic as bad as you thought? Do you agree with the judges that gave the Canadian skaters the silver? How's the coverage? We want to hear what you have to say. Please keep it clean. Note that all messages are reviewed before going live! Here's what others have to say:

Get over it -- Jack of Madison, WI

Many large cities are insecure about their place in the world. New York, San Francisco, and New Orleans don't have this problem. Milwaukee, San Jose, and Salt Lake City do. Don't be bothered by what someone else says about your city. We are what we are, and we ain't what we ain't. The Games are going great, bringing pleasure to millions of us. Forget about it.   

Denver Post Article -- Meredith of Magna, UT

After reading some of the comments from others I was surprised to find that some Utahn's actually agreed with Mr. Paige's article! Perhaps they need to pick up some change of address forms at the post office. I also don't buy Mr. Paige's attempt to excuse himself by saying he was only joking. How stupid does he think we are? You don't joke about things like that. For whatever reason he said those things, it was an AWFUL thing to do.  

"Wood" someone get it right? -- Alan of Holladay, UT

I would imagine that many folks in the Denver area do not subscribe to the opinions stated by Woody in his inflamatory article. Yes, the Denver Post is receiving more attention than usual because of this, but, the real benefit is going to be realized by Utah and Salt Lake City. There are literally thousands of reporters here who are portraying the Olympics as they see them, not based on pre-conceived notions of Utah and the LDS faith. Now, I am most definitely NOT a mormon, and one of the best aspects of the Olympics is being able to go downtown and not have propaganda (from the LDS church) shoved in my face, unlikes some other religions ie. Jehovah's Witnesses, amongst others. The games are capturing the true essence of Utah, whether it be the beautiful snow-capped mountains, the down-home (some say backwards) feeling of the community, the friendships that are developing at venues, in the Olympic square, and all over Salt Lake. It seems as though Woody is suffering from attention deficit disorder. Since Denver is the "big brother" to Salt Lake, Woody is expressing some of Denver's feeling that the "little brother" (Salt Lake) is stealing the thunder of Denver and Colorado as a whole. Well, Woody, there is enough snow to go around both states, enough friendly people to inhabit 2 cities, and enough similarities that Salt Lake and Denver should try to work together to promote the intermountain region, skiing in both states, and the overall goodwill that people in this neck of the country show.  

LINDA EDER-GOLD -- carry of fairfield, CT

LINDA EDER was the artist who sung GOLD that Kristy Yamaguchi skated to in the opening ceremonies of the 2002 SALT LAKE WINTER OLYMPICS.  

Anti-Gravity -- Sara K. of Salt Lake City, UT

At the beginning of each medals ceremony, there is a talent that many people are being denied. Anti-Gravity is an extremely talented, strong group who bring the fine art of dance, and gymnastics to Salt Lake City. I am sure that much of Salt Lake, and the world would greatly appreciate the broadcasting of Anti-Gravity. It is not all about the quick performance of a traveling band. Anti-Gravity is just as entertaining and needs the credit that they deserve. Please show Ant-Gravity!  

With Friends Like Woody, Who needs Enemas -- Scott of Monroe, WA

Mr. Paige's comments were intentional, and purposefully chosen and misleading. I'm sure he wanted to increase his readership through use of his inflammatory remarks. He succeded, but at what cost. Certainly no cost to him, but a potentially enormous cost to the great state of Colorado in loss of potential tourism and invalidation of Colorado's tourism ad campaign in Utah. The Denver Post and people of Colorado should have more sense than to give Mr. Paige the opportunity to represent their views to the world. With friends like Woody Paige, who needs enemas.  

Paige is Sorry! -- Bonnie of Draper, UT

Mr. Paige, You've demonstrated a total lack of objectivity and judgment. Your prejudice and poor attitude has obfuscated the fact that Salt Lake City has been an accommodating host for the 2002 Olympic Games. Athletes, americans and international visitors have all expressed praise for SLOC and the people of Utah. Traffic and the weather have been clear and after attending several events in downtown Salt Lake, and Temple Square, I did not receive or even notice a single religious pamphlet (except for the anti-Mormon literature which is always present). Allusions to Jell-O, White Salamander letters and polygamy are tired and feeble attacks on Utahns who've received high marks for friendliness and hospitality. Polygamy was repealed by the Mormon chruch about a century ago. The reference to 'funny underwear' is sub-moronic! Comments like that rank right up there with 'the Pope sure wears a funny hat' and 'those Jews wear goofy beanie caps'. In you apology you say 'I'm sorry I hurt you'. You are sorry, a sorry excuse for a human being and journalist. It's ironic that you imply that Utahns feel superior to non-caucasians when you use 'humor' and 'satire' to shield your own bigotry and disdain for Utah and its LDS population, which only insults our intelligence. In short, your attempt to besmirch the LDS Church and Utah have only confirmed that you and the Denver Post produce a paper that does not meet the deplorable standards of the tabloids! You and the entire editorial staff of the Denver Post should be fired for letting that article go to print. P.S. "One resort ... with beginners slopes" Time from SLC to any of 10 ski resorts = 30-90 minutes Time from Denver to ANY ski resort = 3-4 hours HMMM..Are you jealous or what?!  

Mr. Woody: Attack and Parry -- Doug of Macon, GA

Mr. Woody, I live in Georgia, but I grew up in Salt Lake City and called Utah home for 30 years. So it is with great pride that I watch the Winter Olympics and smile at how far this once little cow town has come. Then I read your column from Tuesday, February 12th titled, Colorado, Real Winner of Games. It was forwarded to me by my sister who lives in Utah. First I've gotta ask you, who pooped in your cornflakes buddy? Why so hateful, spiteful, and mean? You obviously had no intention of masking your dislike for the Mormons. You managed to include just about every known stereotype out there in your article. You must be so proud of that accomplishment. Do you write about Blacks, Jews, Muslims, or any other ethnic or religious group the same way? Who did you last offend? Being a journalist myself, I must admit your lack of objectivity was surprising and the contempt that poured from your computer keyboard made me wince. I couldn't help but say to myself, "what is this guy thinking?" Go ahead and think it but don't write it down for public consumption for hell's sake! You certainly have the right to formulate any opinion about anything or anyone and the right to state that opinion regardless of its callousness or offensive nature, but to publish it in a city newspaper to which thousands of Mormons subscribe is nothing less that idiotic. Your circulation dept. could soon be jumping down your throat if cancellation notices by the thousands begin pouring into their P.O.Box. Did you think ALL Mormons lived only in Salt Lake? Did you think that just maybe many of your readers in the Denver area are also Mormons? Guess not. But then again there wasn't much thought put into your column on Tuesday was there? This was your chance to get back at those damn Mormons for knocking on your door one Saturday afternoon and getting you out of bed. This was your chance to rip these people a new one for using their religion to do such horrible unspeakable things as.......mmmm....... ohhhhhh...........whatever terrible disgusting things they've surely done to incite your anger. You have the power of the pen to put people in their places and by golly it was time the Mormons felt the wrath of the Woody! All kidding aside, bigotry is an unsavory character trait. Most people choose to keep theirs hidden from public view. You should have made the same choice. After reading Mr. Woody's apology I sent him this note: Thank you Mr. Paige (I'll no longer call you Mr. Woody), Apology accepted. Mormons, because of their very different views about religion and life in general, are easy targets for ridicule in today's less than conservative society. I watched the other night as Bill Mahre on ABC's "Politically Incorrect" spewed inaccuracies and falsehoods about the Mormons on his program as if it were fact. No retraction. Not even a wink wink nudge nudge. It happens. Mormons are used to it, but it doesn't mean they aren't hurt by it or angered when it happens. Your recent column was thoughtful and had a much different tone from the previous one. I hope it was genuine. I do think however, your punishment for the original article should be the requirement that you spend the next 7 Saturday evenings listening to the Mormon missionary discussions! Now THAT is a good attempt at humor. I hope you're laughing. Sincerely, and no longer wishing you pain and pestilence, Doug Long Macon, Ga.   

Woody! -- John of Los Angeles, CA

I can't even believe that this man still works at the post...I would have let him go the last time this happend.  

Reminds me of a joke -- Diana of San Jose, CA

I heard (when living in Utah for a few years)... Why doesn't Salt Lake City have a professional football team? Because then Denver would want one, too! Sounds like Denver is suffering from a case of the green monster (aka jealousy).  

Add him to the list! -- Mark of Salt Lake City, UT

Jimmy the Greek was fired for making racial comments about blacks. Gary McCord was fired for making derogatory comments about women golfer's breasts & called them all lesbians. Why not fire this misinformed bigot? At least the first two were actually credible figures at one point in their careers.  

Judging -- Gaylen of SLC, UT

I really enjoyed the olympic coverage until the skating controversy. The media obsession has put me off the other events and been a disservice to the other competitors. So how is judging for figure skating any different than NBA officiating? Get a life.  

Original Article Link -- Todd of Draper, UT

I have discovered a link to the original article written by Woody Paige of the Denver Post. If you are interested in reading the original, go here: http://www.geocities.com/yasmine123452002/index.html   

Email the Denver Post -- Todd of American Fork, UT

I must be one of the 'uninformed' Kevin of Ogden is referring to, but I've got to disagree. I think that people react to public opinion. After all, I highly doubt Woody would have offered an apology in the first place if it hadn't been for the public outcry that made him reconsider what he wrote. As much as I appreciated his apology, I don't think it is enough. I urge you to email the Denver Post (sportsletters@denverpost.com) that you don't think his apology is enough either. Here is what I wrote: Denver Post, As one of the many Utahans offended by Woody Paige’s weak attempt at humor, I appreciated his apology, acknowledging that he went too far. My frustration is not that he had a bone to pick, but that he based his entire story on lies and fabrications that are obviously not true to us here in Utah, but are not so obvious to his readers in Colorado. I’m sure most of his readers picked up on the sarcasm, but probably still believe that the bulk of his sarcastic remarks were based on fact—and that is just not true. He made it up. I’ve been LDS all my life, and I’ve never worshiped a white salamander. Or a seagull for that matter. While I do wear ‘funny underwear’, it is something I hold sacred, and am offended at the casual way Woody trampled on something I hold dear. Traffic here has been great, with few problems at all. I was just downtown last night, walking all over the place, and NO ONE handed me any literature of any sort. Your readers don’t know all of that was fabricated. I am also frustrated at the lack of response by the paper itself. After all, an editor did approve Woody’s story. The Denver Post did print it. Woody took the time to try to make right what he did wrong, but the Denver Post itself hasn’t. Shame on your lack of editorial oversight to prevent the problem in the first place. And shame on you for not owning up to your part of the problem. The paper should step up, admit it made a mistake, print a formal retraction that tells your readers his story was mostly fabricated (sorry—yanking it from your website just doesn’t cut it) and fire both Woody and his editor. Sincerely, Todd Randall Proud LDS Utahan and Fan of the Olympics Please join me in helping get these guys fired! They deserve it.   

Poor Taste -- David of Scottsdale, AZ

There is a difference between a few witty jabs and mean spiritedness. I guess jealousy, envy and intolerence are the disease behind this column. Utah, don't let yourself be distracted by this, or anything like this. This is your party you're throwing for the world and it's WONDERFUL. Enjoy and stay above the muck.  

Wishes for Woody -- Tiffany of Midvale, UT

Maybe in his down-time Woody Paige can hang out outside the Mormon Temple and tell all of the brides getting their pictures taken that they look fat. It's about as funny and appropriate. I have only two wishes for Mr. Paige: May all his Jell-O be gritty and may all his neighbors be Mormon.   

Denver article -- Jesse of Tigard, OR

I would hope that the Denver Post be a little more discriminating and tactful in the content it chooses to publish. The type of content contained in this article would have been inflammatory even in the commentary section of the paper. To allow this to be presented as factual in an otherwise reputable newspaper is inexcusable in my mind. As previously noted it is fairly obvious that the comments in the article were not based on a factual first-hand account of the games, the state or the culture but were in fact a none-too-thinly veiled attack based on whatever bias/hatred/disrespect lies within the author. Please be sure that this type of -- shall we say garbage? -- does not again make it to print represented as fact. That only damages the credibility of the newspaper, inflames those who read the paper and shows the utter lack of contempt for facts that the author espouses.  

Tear that Paige out -- Russ of Provo, UT

Jimmy the Greek got fired for one bigoted comment, even after a sincere apology. Woody spews vitriolic hatespeak and pretends it's bad humor. Maybe the Post can take a "Paige" out of the CBS book. May I suggest that the Post find someone who is competent rather than continue to insult its readers. Simply replacing such a tiny little man with a seriously entertaining journalist might even improve readership.   

Paige sells to home crowd -- Vince of American Fork, UT

It is unfortunate to hear negative comments like the one's written by the reporter in Denver, however having just moved back to Utah after living in Colorado for one year I can understand why this reporter gets away with such an article. There seems to be many people in Colorado who have that type of attitude about Utah. Call it ignorance or whatever but it's the whole you can't find a drink and can't have fun there and the whole lack of knowledge about the LDS church etc. In my opinion the Olympics has been a huge success so far !!! It has just been terrific, and a positive for Utah. For the whole world to get a feel for how beutiful it is here and the quality of the community etc. Is great. Hopefully the Olympics will really open people's minds about Utah and get rid of some of those stigmas people have, just because they do not really know what it is like here. It has been really exciting and fun so far and if you look at the TV ratings etc. It seems alot of other people feel the same. Hopefully all over the world. As far as this reporter goes, he reminds me of a neglected child who has to do something negative to get attention. It is actually kind of sad, but I guess as long as people are willing to grab on to it he will have a job. Anyway, Let's not worry to much about this and just enjoy this probably once in a lifetime opportunity.  

Just in Jest? -- Linda of Ogden, UT

I have read with much interest the articles written by the sportswriters from across the United States. Those,including Woody Paige, who declare that they are just writing in jest are in reality revealing their inner self and the grains of what they perceive to be truth. Unfortunately, some who read the articles will accept the written word as the whole truth and will go merrily on their way promulgating the myths and misnomers. The sportswriters, too, will go merrily on their way with little or no accountability for their wake of unconscionable scripts all under the banner of freedom of speech and the forgive all line, "Hey, it was done in jest."   

Utah media coverage -- Kit of Salt Lake City, UT

Just a question for all you outraged Utahns. Why wasn't there the same outpouring of demand for accuracy when the international press reports inaccurate facts that work in Utah (and the Mormons) favor? "Statistics" that say the LDS have 11 million members. Really? How many of these members are inactive and have in fact tried desparately to be excommunicated? "Statistics" that say Utah has a lower divorce rate than any other state in the U.S.? That this is due to the Mormon faith? No, it's due to inaccurate reporting of numbers and the fact that the church doesn't recognize civil divorce only a cancelling of sealings. Just check the U.S. Census. Utah has been consistently above the national level of divorce since the 1970s. So, why aren't you all reprimanding those reporters and coumnists and demanding accuracy? You are a bunch of hypocrites.  

Where is the Article in the Post? -- Steffanie of Logan, UT

I have heard about this article for about three days now. I thought since I had a minute today, that I would look it up on the internet. To my dismay, it is no where to be found. I looked on the Denver Post web site and on KSL, where I originally heard about this article. It seems that maybe the Post is a little embarrassed or just plain chicken. They dared print the article but now with all the attention it has received it has been taken off the web site. Vanished. Of course the apology article is there. Although I don't know that you could call it much of an apology. Nice try though. I did notice that he wrote another nice article about polygamy in Utah. Of course they have none of "those people" in Colorado. It's a Utah thing. I wonder if we should maybe mention some other Utah-isms that he could make fun of, he might be running out of things to make fun of here. Grow some *#@% and put the article back on your site. You should be proud of what you write, after all they did print it. Right Woody?  

Woody's big apology -- Heidi of West Valley City, UT

I just want to say that I think the "apology" from Woody was as big of a "joke" as his article. I can not believe that they let him have a second chance to beat us up. By the way, here is the email that I sent to the post yesterday.________________________________________Let me start by stating the I am not a member of the LDS church. I read Mr. Paige's article today and I have to say that I am totally amazed. If anyone had made those remarks about the LDS church outside the Olympic venue, he would have been called a bigot. I think that the Olympics have brought unity to many nations in this very hard time in history. Utah may have its "own way" of doing things, but that does not make it wrong. Mr Paige would have been crucified if he had written such a rotten article about a foreign country that was hosting the Olympics. He just proved that American are cruelest to each other. Would you have printed his article if he had said the same things about the Olympics in Nagano? Do you believe that they had NO mistakes in their hosting of the Olympics? I realize that we live in a "free speech" country, but he just made this country look like it is full of a bunch of spoiled 2 year olds. He has every right to his opinion, but you do not have the right to allow him to crucify a great state, a prominent religion and a group of volunteers that are getting nothing to stand outside in freezing weather to help anyone WITHOUT prejudice. He is the most bigoted obnoxious man that I have ever read and I am TRULY ASHAMED to live not only in the state next to him, but the GREAT country that he resides in. If you ever let bigoted remarks such as these go to print again, SHAME ON YOU! What ever happened to America's open arm, we accept everyone for who they are. I expect to see an apology print in your paper from not only Mr. Paige for his ignorant remarks, but also from the paper for allowing him to insult so many people. Dennis Rodman was fined $50,000 for making very similar remarks. I wish Mr. Paige had to pay that as well.   

Costas, what a punk! -- Jon of Idaho Falls, ID

Costas has made a very big fool of himself being so negitave about the whole olympics. He has really been a disappointment. I hope that the network realizes that the whole world is watching this guy show his arrogance. He is lucky that this clown from Denver has stolen the spotlight to take it off him.  

Sad Woody -- David of Kaysville, UT

Woody Paige should be required to apologize to the residents of the great state of Utah, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints and Mitt Romney for his abusive attack on one of the greatest Winter Olympics ever. If the man is going to call himself a writer, he should get his act and his facts together.  

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