The Opening Ceremony is often explosive, as if half the budget for the Games goes to pyrotechnics. And the Parade of Nations can drag on long enough to make us regret all the wars for independence through the centuries.
But the opening is also the start of a colorful celebration of the things we human beings have in common, not the things that tear us apart.
Cynics may focus on the scandals and the conflicts. Fortunately, each Olympiad brings us new tales of inspiration, along with a few things we're happy to see and hear every four years.