An In-Seine Poop Joke
Or why I think the ongoing efforts to make the Seine swimmable for the Olympics are misguided but sweet.
June 23rd came and went, and I didn’t hear reports of any politicians swimming in the Seine, nor of any civilians defecating in it.
Back up a few months, maybe even years: the plan has been for Olympic events with long distance swimming like triathlon to do so in the Seine, a river that looks like a fresh bottle of Yoo-Hoo. France has spent literal billions to clean the Seine for Olympic athletes to conceivably use, but every check ahead of the games has shown that the water isn’t yet safe enough for humans to put their bodies into it.
Instead of moving on to plan B, Mayor Hidalgo and President Macron keep doubling down on the Seine swimming plan, even going so far as to pledge to take a dip in the forbidden chocolate fleuve on June 23rd, 2024. French tax payers, pissed that their money is being wasted, have protested by promising to, uh, relieve themselves in the Seine ahead of the swim. And I don’t mean number…
