00:04 John Daub: Greetings everybody, welcome to Tokyo. Those are the Olympic rings and just in the distance is the Olympic Stadium. I'm going to take you there in a second. Behind us is the Olympic Museum, which is pretty neat. We've already been in there once. How you doing everybody? Believe it or not, the Olympics would be taking place at this very moment right now. We'd be in the middle of it.

00:32 John Daub: We would have had an amazing opening ceremony in this stadium right here. The entire world would have come and seen how amazing Japan is. Why I love this country so much. Why I love this city so much. What makes Tokyo so special. We were all looking forward to it. And then a pandemic hit just a little bit over six months ago really. And the whole world has changed.

00:57 John Daub: I still cannot believe that the Olympic Stadium, despite it being one year before the Olympics here and the stadium being done, they still have it fenced off. Maybe to prevent people congregating there. I'm not really sure, but we can't actually go in to check out the stadium, but we're gonna walk around it and discuss something very important. Something that's been in the news quite a bit. Will 2021 the Olympics actually happen? And what are some of the things that you should know? Can you come to Japan in 2021 at all? There's a lot of questions that people have.

01:31 John Daub: It's kind of neat to take a look at the vibe around the stadium. I mean, it's just for me kind of overwhelming because I expected there to be thousands and thousands of people. There's a massive storm that seems to be coming into Tokyo as well, so we might get caught in the rain. There's even a baseball game, I believe, going on over at Swallows Stadium across from the Olympic Stadium. But because of social distancing, they can only allow about 5,000 people into the stadium, which is crazy.

01:59 John Daub: How are you doing, everybody? This would be, I think, the third day of the Olympics. And it's going to be taking place in the summer of 2021. We all know the story by now. The question is, should we have the Olympics at all? My answer is yes. Yes, because we want to have it. And one year is an eternity in my feeling.

02:29 John Daub: We've seen two waves already in Japan. There might have been more or less, if you're pixel searching at just all the little teeny things, there might be two or three waves, three or four waves, I don't know. But we were in the middle of a second really big wave, mainly because Tokyo is testing a lot more. So it's probably not as big as the one in April, although it looks like it is. It's just Japan is testing a lot more. And that, my friends, is the key to 2021, testing. And we're going to discuss this in a minute.

03:00 John Daub: But before we do that, I want to say thank you to all of you who have been with us as we cross the street now. All right. Say goodbye to the Olympic rings for now. We'll be back. Wow. I did not. For me, it just I'm blown away because I've made episodes here. When the stadium started construction, when the stadium was under construction a year ago, announcing how exciting this is going to be. And now I'm here today when the Olympics should be taking place. And it's just surreal to me right now.

03:34 John Daub: Let me take a look. Let me show you right now some of the information that I have. And next week, I'm going to give you a more thorough update. Currently here in Japan, this is as of July 22nd. So it's changed a little bit. This is from NHK's website today. So NHK is a little bit behind. There's 26,473 people. 52 are severe and less than a thousand have died. 20,000 have been discharged, meaning they're OK. So the numbers in Japan are pretty reasonable.

04:05 John Daub: Compared to places like the United States and other countries, Brazil, India, where things are really spiking right now. And NHK, of course, still puts in the Diamond Princess, which seems like an eternity ago that that was docked in Yokohama. Here is the second wave that I was telling you about. You can see it peaked around the middle of April and then it went down because everybody was staying in place or staying home. There was pretty much a panic here in Japan. And in the sense that really everything was starting to change.

04:38 John Daub: Then the country went back to work. And look what happened. Two weeks later, three weeks later, it started to go up at the end of June and July has been a really tough month. Tokyo especially, I think, is more than half the numbers here. So Tokyo has to get its act together. But still, if we compare this to worldwide numbers, it's nothing like the rest of the world. However, it's still a lot. It's still very, very concerning.

05:09 John Daub: And after this, after we go around the stadium, I think I'm going to be going over to Shibuya if the weather holds on. And then I'll be able to give you another update on an idea that I have. Are masks actually working? It's something that a lot of people are asking. Of course they are. But how important are they? So let's walk around the stadium. And I see that a lot of people are here. Definitely share your two cents. Should 2020 be a go? Or should 2021 happen?

05:39 John Daub: No, overwhelmingly, the Japanese here in Tokyo do not want the Olympics to take place. I think it's about 28% of the people. But I can understand that because we're looking at the situation right now and it's very easy to do. We live in a world of right now. And as I said, a year is an eternity with something like this. Testing can be improved tenfold where you can just come in, you take a quick test, and three minutes later you're discharged. Either safe or not safe.

06:21 John Daub: We don't even know if there's a vaccine in a year. What's the situation going to be like? The problem, I think, with the Olympics is that it's become too commercial. And people have contracts, people are paying money, and they're losing money. The Olympics, for a very long time, have been under the microscope. For decades, really. Since 1980, pretty much. And Tokyo is in the middle of it. But politically speaking, which we don't do here, Tokyo does not really have those kinds of implications. Everybody loves Tokyo.

07:15 John Daub: So these questions that we're asking, I think, are very much rooted in the situation right now. And trying to see into the future, touching your crystal ball and looking deeply into it. I don't see anything. And is that the problem? Is that why people are a little bit worried about the Olympics? Let's get in front of them. And we can take a look at the gates here. Gosh, we've walked around this so many times. I was hoping that they would have removed the gates here. But they're a lot shorter than they were before.

07:54 John Daub: This is gate G, the Aoyama Gate, for any Olympians watching. You would have been hanging out around here, maybe, getting a nice cold beer. I'm just saying. There's the Aoyama Gate. So we're going to walk around the stadium here, hang a left, and then go around to the front of it, I guess. It's going to take about 15 minutes. We're in the middle of Japanese summer. It's extremely hot. And we're asking the question for those joining us and getting the notifications. Welcome. Should 2021 happen? I'm saying yes.

08:43 John Daub: I'm saying, why cancel it? Why even think about this until we get through the winter? But a lot of it has to do... Is that the mascot for Shinjuku? Hold on a second. That's the mascot for Shinjuku? That's creepy. Did anybody know this? Shinjuku had a mascot? I don't know. Just saying. So there's masks to consider. There's vaccines to consider. There's tapering down the Olympics radically to consider. There's just the athletes coming and the media to consider. There's a lot of different scenarios that we can consider. To cancel the whole thing out of fear?

09:41 John Daub: Yeah, maybe I think tourism might not be a thing. But having the Olympics gives us hope and canceling it pretty much dashes hope. And then the next Olympics is in 2022 in Beijing, which is going to be very politically charged. And I think that not having these Olympics would be really bad. If testing is really, really good, you test it before you get on and you test it when you get off. People arrive in advance of the Olympics for 10 days to two weeks before. Train here.

10:26 John Daub: I don't think that it can be. I think that's too radical to say cancel. I look at from the point of view of businesses and business owners here. If nobody comes, they're going to hurt anyways. Let's look at both sides. It is super humid. I didn't know 2022 would be in China. Really? They're having the Winter Olympics in Beijing. And I can tell you the story about this because I've been following the Olympics very closely. Everybody canceled that at the 2022 Olympics out of the bid. Only two countries were in it. Beijing, China and Almaty, Kazakhstan.

11:28 John Daub: And it seems like Almaty is a really cool place. And I think that the Olympics should have been held there. But Beijing won by I think it was like 44 to 40. It was such a narrow victory. Despite Beijing having all of the infrastructure to hold the Olympics. Kazakhstan lost by just a little bit. And it would have been awesome to see Kazakhstan hold the Winter Olympics. Almaty is known for its comedians, believe it or not. I don't know if you know much about Kazakhstan. But the comedians of Almaty, Kazakhstan are a thing.

11:56 John Daub: Beautiful. I love what Kengo Kuma did with the stadium. I could look at it all day long. Including that hotel across the street. So 2022, only two countries wanted the Winter Olympics. China and Kazakhstan. Crazy, right? Everybody in the Olympic Committee I think wanted to go back to Europe. And that didn't happen. It went to China. There's nobody to blame except for the rest of... I mean... I don't know why there would be any political politicism of the 2022 Olympics. Because nobody else bid. You have to give it to China. And the Olympics is supposed to be something that's beyond politics. Right?

12:54 John Daub: This is the subway station many of you would be arriving at. This is the Oedo Line. And just one lady came out. That's it. It's just so bizarre to me. There is a new emoji by the way. Can anybody find it? So I'm looking in here for some of your comments. Try not to get political because our moderators will take care of you. Can't see the Olympics now would be giving up hope for the world, writes in Robin Smith. I thought Kazakhstan is in the middle of the desert. Yes, but they have a winter. And Kazakhstan is not all desert. Almaty looks like a really nice town.

13:55 John Daub: So there's the Sendagaya Gate for the stadium right there. We're walking around the stadium and discussing the Olympics. The Tokyo Olympics are definitely off, writes in S. Sakura has found the new emoji with ramen. Olympics was being used to prove which countries are stronger. Happened in World War II. I'm not wrong. It's an interesting point of view. I'd love to go to the Olympics, but I don't think I can handle the heat of summer. So maybe they should have moved it to October.

14:32 John Daub: Why does it have to be such a definitive? I guess because NBC is footing the bill so much for it that they have to get their way. I don't understand why Tokyo can't be more flexible. Why not hold it in 2022 and have the Olympics like summer and winter? Why not delay it one more year? For me, I just can't understand why they just have to cancel it altogether. We've had the Olympics when we changed to this every two year format. And the rain is starting to come down a little bit. That's Shinjuku, the Dokomo Tower in front of us.

15:08 John Daub: We had the Olympics, you know, every four years, winter and summer in the same year. I thought that was good. But now they've moved it to two and two. And we're just going to have two and two again. But one year we'll have both of them. To me, I just don't see the problem except for contracts and business. For the athletes, they don't want to wait another year. So there's got to be a way. But people just dismiss it as no go.

15:30 John Daub: So I'm giving you all a chance to sign off here while I walk around the stadium and show you a little bit here. The world will be looking at the U.S. in 2021. The U.S.'s COVID case numbers in 2021 could ultimately determine if the Olympics could happen. That's probably true. I can't imagine the Olympics without the United States. But OK, they finished this Olympic... This entrance to the stadium here. Interesting. I'm glad that they finished it. Kind of blends in with the... Looks like it's just been renovated. Kokuritsu Kyogijo Station. That's where you guys would have been coming out from.

16:11 John Daub: Nashi Broad writes in here, honestly, the IOC has been so corrupt anyway. They should shut down the whole thing altogether. No more Olympics ever? Mmm. October is perfect in Japan. For the typhoons. Just putting that out there. It's raining in Japan. That's right. That should be the new name for the new channel. Raining in Japan. U.S. case numbers may determine whether or not the U.S. will be involved since other countries seem to be getting it taken care of.

16:46 John Daub: It could end up something like countries that haven't gotten it right just can't go in person. This is not the Tokyo Metro, but the Toei Subway Line. It's the one run by the city of Tokyo. There's two subway systems here. These are really great, really great comments. Let's walk around the stadium. We're almost to the other side. This is the other arena. There'll be some Olympic venues held in this one. But this was built in 1964 for this Olympics. And I don't understand why we needed a new stadium.

17:15 John Daub: I bet you Japan is kicking itself. We had a stadium debacle. We hired an international architect. I don't know why. Because Japan always feels like they don't have the courage or they lack... They don't want to show being strong on the world scene or... For whatever reason, they hired somebody to design a stadium that looked so... Doesn't even fit Japanese culture at all. They had it ended up canceling that and hiring Kengo Kuma, who is one of Japan's top architects, who should have been the architect to begin with. Ended up losing a couple of billion dollars, I believe, on that deal. So the Olympics have been kind of unlucky from the start.

18:06 John Daub: These are great comments, everybody. Thanks for writing in your two cents. If we get a vaccine by late this year, early next year, it should be safe enough to have the Olympics next year. Only time will tell. I think so too. But guess for the money side, the time is now. The next Olympics will be 2022 in China for the winter ones. How convenient for them. I get too political here. How about having only athletes come? I think that that's a possibility.

18:51 John Daub: I think that competing nowadays with technology, with virtual reality, with different kinds of cameras, with 8K. I think that there's... And I'll be here bringing it. I'll be here. I'll be showing you around too. So it's not like we don't have any eyes on the Olympic Games should they be taking place in 2021. But if you ask me, are you asking me? Anyone asking me? What do you think? I think I've been telling you that for about an hour. It seems like an hour. It's 20 minutes in.

19:28 John Daub: Move the Olympics to October of 2021. And that's it. This is what they should have done anyways. 2021, October. Get out of the summer. People don't have summer holiday. Who knows if the NFL is going to be going this year. We don't even know about next year. So maybe we should put the focus on the athletes. And the athletes who want to come can come. And the athletes that don't want to come don't have to come. I think that that's also a possibility.

20:01 John Daub: I think if you come here two weeks in advance, you train here in Tokyo. And you're monitored before you go. And you're monitored before the events come in. And everybody stays together. Then I don't think that there's a reason why that this can't be such a problem. John, you should stream while in the Olympics. PTG, I would be streaming right now if the Olympics were here. I'd be going outside the events. Talking with people. Having barbecues and eating street food outside of all the venues. I'll be eating the Olympic rings. That's what I would be doing right now if we had an Olympics to go to.

20:41 John Daub: Now we're underneath the Olympics here. The stadium. This is a walkway that people can walk on. But for some reason today. And we're going to get caught in a massive rainstorm. It's already starting to come down. It takes me about an hour to ride my bicycle here from the other side of the city too. We'll be okay. It's just weather. As my friends in the UK say, it's just weather. Alright, let's cross the street here. Let's go inside the stadium for shelter. I'd love to. That wall's too high.

21:27 John Daub: Maybe they should hold the Olympics earlier and make it happen so the infections don't stretch out to the next year. That's a possibility too. I don't know. I think that the earliest it'll take place is next year now. They've set the date. And if it's all or nothing, I think that that's ridiculous. And I can't wrap my head around why it has to be like that. I can't understand. I was in Tokyo two years ago. So you know how hot it is in the summer. That's what they call the rainy season. Shuyu. Too many commercials, John.

22:10 John Daub: Are the people getting refunds for the tickets? People in India bought packages worth tens of thousands of dollars. I don't really know about that. I have a feeling that maybe no. I have a feeling that the people who got the tickets. I know that there was an email that I got. I didn't read it because I gave up on getting the tickets because it was a pain in the neck. All I know is that the tickets to get in for the opening ceremony were about $3,000. And I wasn't going to be. I just didn't see. Oh, the wind is coming in. I always pick the best days to live stream at the stadium.

22:58 John Daub: By the way, I have the postcard club right here for two people. I'm going to keep it dry for you. To Rodney and Joshua and USA and a penny in the UK. It's going in the next mailbox here by the stadium on a rainy day. So you know where it came from. That's really cool. Eugene Holbert. Thank you, Eugene. And Luke. I also want the Olympics to stay in Japan. You've shown us so many people and local businesses that really deserve increased tourist attention. I'm just waiting to join in on the support. Luke, you're awesome.

23:46 John Daub: I think there's a lot of people who are thinking the same thing. I walk around. And I'm always thinking about my friends who own local businesses and have been relying on the tourist industry. And now no longer. Oh, that place looks good. This place was not here last time I walked by the stadium. It's pizza place. Let's get out. Let's get to the back to the other side. Looking for a mailbox. So we're walking around. Those of you joining us walking around the Olympic Stadium talking about whether or not.

24:19 John Daub: And that's a well-known ramen place across the street from the National Stadium. They might have been here during the first Olympics. They look like they were here during the first Olympics. That building looks like it's a... Thanks a lot, bus. Oh, wow. So the rain is really coming down now. So it seems like most of you want the Olympics to take place. But are not willing to stay home and watch them on TV. Whereas many of the Tokyoites. I think they said 28% are in favor of having the Olympics. And that means a whopping little bit over 70%. The vast majority of people do not want the Olympics to take place.

25:29 John Daub: And I can understand that because it's all based on the current situation right now because nobody can see what it's like in a year from now. But imagine and even if we do have a vaccine, that's a nice looking car. And even if we do have a vaccine, it's going to take some time before... Before we can... There's a stadium right there. Before people are vaccinated. I just don't think that it's going to be the same Olympics. But I don't see why they should cancel it. I'm taking your questions right now. Looking at the live stream chat.

26:20 John Daub: It's nice and dark underneath here. No crows. Alexi writes in here. I just feel like if the Olympics take place, the tourists come to see it. It's going to blow up Japan's rate. I thought about this as well. But let's say that people stay only in Tokyo. Let's say there's no traveling to other parts of the country. Just Tokyo for this. Yeah, I think Tokyo's rates are not going to get any worse than they are. But if people come early and they stay at home and those that have come down with infection are cared for before the Olympics start. It's going to keep the numbers down.

27:06 John Daub: But whether or not the Olympics take place, there's always going to be a risk. Unless there's a vaccine or we have... You know, but everyone's going to be taking precautions. We have masks. We have plastic face shields, masks. The stadium, which is pretty cool. You can see into it now. The stadium will have. It's naturally cooled. So there's no air conditioning going around. It's pretty neat. You can see it now. I've only been in there once.

27:52 John Daub: Yeah, it's not the best weather to be live streaming it. But here we are. Nothing can stop me. Sound like a crow. Come crows come. I summon lightning. Look at those clouds. Looks like the end of the world's coming. It's not that much fun for the gimbal. Chelsea's had seen. Chelsea is very moody. We don't want her to get an upset. And now we're back to the Olympic rings. You can see over there in the corner up in the front, which we can't get into is where they have the new National Stadium sign made of wood. It's pretty neat looking sign.

28:51 John Daub: That is the Shinjuku mascot. That's so creepy. You are the thing that makes nightmares. Okay, this is one of these things in your closet that opens a door and sucks your life out of your nose. Puts his worm friends in your ear. Kind of creepy mascot. Who came up with that mascot? Somebody in the entertainment district. That is not a creepy mascot. It's not just me, right? Every you all think it's pretty creepy. All right. I think we can huddle into the Japan Olympic Museum. That's my bicycle right there, by the way.

29:49 John Daub: Yeah, DN writes in creepy. Let's give John some likes for streaming in the rain. Yeah, because it's turning into a real stream. Look at this. Like this stream here. Can swim down to the stadium. What do the five Olympic rings symbolize? I don't know. I think world unity. Maybe I think each one of these colors is in every single flag in the world. That's why they didn't pick brown or orange. I guess even the pirate flag is represented. So we cannot forget about every single country and those without countries. The pirates. That flag has been represented.

30:50 John Daub: This here is the Olympic torch from the 1998 Olympics in Nagano. So they put in all the torches. I think that's from the 1964 Olympics and the Sapporo Olympics. Yeah, the '72 Sapporo Olympics. Some of you might not have been alive for that one. I was minus two years old. And this one is the '64 Olympics. They really knew how to make them back then. They all look like sake cups to me. I don't know. Look at that. They have the five rings cafe. It's pretty nice.

31:52 John Daub: Everybody gets their photos right here with the stadium in the background. All right. So this is the Olympic Museum. Oh, there's the torches. But there's like nobody in there because of social distancing. So inside there you can see the two Olympic torches. And those are the uniforms that the Japanese Olympic team will be wearing for the opening ceremony they look like sailors and flight attendants. I think that's the uniform from Emirates. No it's got to be. I think that looks like the uniform for Emirates airline just saying.

33:09 John Daub: All right so last chance here if you like this kind of content give me the thumbs up and I don't see too many more comments on the Olympics being held what do you guys think anyone want to sound off before we give this a heave ho it's raining here in Sydney out of sympathy what is that Astro Boy I'm with you I hope for next year will they change their uniforms when they have it John I don't know have a great day and night everybody Ramsey silent gets the feeling that we're at the end of this really I was going to walk all the way to Shibuya for you but guess not.

33:51 John Daub: The five interlocking rings represent the five continents that were present at the 1912 Olympic Games very cool information I think the colors had to do something with everybody's flag was represented in those colors guess what colors in the Olympic ring for Asia what um I'm for it if this means everything is fixed and back to normal but realistically not sure it will happen PMX rates in here that seems to be people's feelings here they'll just hope that the health and well-being of people who will have the chance to compete. Yeah. And Robin Smith. Thank you, Robin.

34:26 John Daub: I appreciate that. All right. I'm going to give you my final two cents after seeing the comments here, I think that this is a really great comments that you guys have all added in to the record. And in a year from now, we're going to look back on this live stream and say, maybe PMX is right. Maybe some of these people that had commented here were right. I think the one comment only time will tell seems to be where we are at right now with the Olympics and the ultimate decision will be made by the IOC, not by us, but I can tell you right now, I want the Olympics to take place. Okay. IOC, you listening? No, it's okay.

35:09 John Daub: And I think it's going to be good for the world. If we do not cancel this because of contracts with corporations, I think we need to keep this going for the people of the world. And if it's safe enough and athletes can come two weeks in advance and be PCR tested and come two weeks in advance and the airplanes, everybody takes precautions with face shields and everybody gets in a vitamin D and stays healthy. Just so many things that we can do to prevent the spread that we are not doing in the United States, for example.

35:39 John Daub: We're looking at the situation as a snapshot of right now, July 2020, and we're looking in the prism of, and we're trying to see in the crystal ball a year in advance. And I just do not see why we cannot hold it in a year being prepared, having better testing, having athletes come early, maybe tapering down seriously the amount of people that can come here, just athletes, trainers. And I think it would be a really good thing to have the Olympics.

36:06 John Daub: I do not think it will spike the rates in Tokyo because people will not be going to the Olympic ceremony and going to the venues like they would normally. I think social distancing will be real. I don't think there's going to be overcrowding. I think you're going to see a lot of things like this with lines on the road that keep everybody at a distance. So if Tokyo Disneyland can open and Tokyo Disneyland can do it, why can't the Olympics? I just don't understand if a year from now, if Tokyo Disneyland has been open now for a couple of weeks, if they can open, why can't in a year Tokyo not be prepared to have the Olympics?

36:46 John Daub: I don't think in a year the U.S. will have the same problems. I think that in a year, the U.S. will have overcome most of it. They're at a very high burn rate, but I don't see that lasting for a year. There is a peak and there's a valley. And I believe in a year from now we'll be in better ways, but that's the optimist in me. I always kind of look at there. I see a mailbox straight ahead. I'm going to go and get that for you, Penny, Rodney and Joshua.

37:12 John Daub: Thanks everybody for watching this live stream. I think it's an important one. I think it's something that we need to talk about a lot. Hey, Leonel son Chua. Thank you so much from the Philippines. Much appreciated. Thunderbeard here. Ah, Thunderbeard. Most Japanese people follow the rules. And I doubt that there would be any problems with hosting Olympics. I think so. I think that it's going to be mostly Japanese attending the Olympic events.

37:37 John Daub: All right. You can see some of the Olympic merch. These two have been so sad and they're not wearing masks. Whatever you do, wear your masks. Mascots are setting an awful example right now. That's my t-shirt. That's my t-shirt in the front. That's the same shirt I'm wearing. I'm going to do another live stream today or tonight. And then another one tomorrow. And then next week, I'm going to be going to Shiga prefecture to film two episodes in this wonderful prefecture.

38:11 John Daub: A lot of people, it's only seven minutes by train from Kyoto to Shiga prefecture. And I think it's pretty neat, couple of stories that I found there and I'll be filming there until the end of the week. Don't worry. I'm going to be practicing all of the things. I have a face shield now, mask face shield, you know, work has to go on. The story has got to continue. And until you all can come back to Japan to visit, I'm going to bring Japan to you. So don't forget to hit that subscribe button as the new channel gets closer to 50,000 subscribers. Awesome. In a month. That's phenomenal. Much love from Tokyo, Japan and the Olympic stadium. Stay safe, everybody.