Four thoughts about the U.S. Olympic uniforms.

First, they’re ugly. Ugly in a special kind of way.

Not long ago (on BagNews Notes, I think — it’s one of my favorite sites), I wrote a comment mentioning the concept of “camp,” referencing Susan Sontag’s essay “Notes on ‘Camp’.”

[T]he essence of Camp is its love of the unnatural: of artifice and exaggeration. And Camp is esoteric — something of a private code, a badge of identity even, among small urban cliques.

[My emphasis. The reason will emerge later.]

As Sontag observes, “camp” is a sensibility. Possessing the sensibility, one can take pleasure in existing phenomena; or one can create new phenomena aimed at tapping the sensibility of others. Camp is about the feeling that something is “so bad it’s good” … but not so bad that it’s irredeemably revolting. It’s about being so close as to be teetering precariously … but not quiiiiiiiite over-the-top.

These uniforms are so bad that they’re nothing but bad. They’ve definitely ceased teetering and gone waaaay over the top.

Second, they’re inappropriate.

I tried for a bit to find quotes from some of the Olympic athletes regarding the uniforms. I used to be an athlete and I know I would feel humiliated if asked to wear something like that on any occasion except, maybe, Halloween. And I was just a “regular guy” sort of athlete. Maybe elite athletes who have spent their entire lives training for an occasion like the Olympics feel differently.

Third, they’re totally appropriate.

The uniforms were designed at an elite fashion house. The jackets look like something that might be worn at a yacht club dance. Apart from sneakers, what young man wears white shoes? The very large “look at me” badge on the jackets isn’t an emblem of the U.S.A. or of the Olympics. Rather, it’s the logo for a multinational corporation, the equivalent of what one might see on a driver’s outfit at a NASCAR race. The uniforms for the U.S. team were, of course, made in China.

In other words, these are uniforms representing the 1%, the rulers of America. And every time an athlete appears in one of those uniforms, she or he will be pissing on the 99%. Welcome to America!

Fourth, they’re deeply embarrassing.

See points 1, 2, and 3 above.