  Watching the Olympic Opening Ceremonies, something struck me during the announcement of the U.S. team, then was forged solid with the announcement of the Cypriots: Whistles in most countries are signs of disapproval, not the equivalent of applause. However, Katie Couric remarked that the Cypriots received the second "warmest" reception thus far, behind the United States.
I luv ya', Katie, but that wasn't warm; that was scathing. Again, this goes to our total lack of understanding of foreign culture. First, the struggle between Turkey and Greece over Cyprus is long-standing and bitter. The island is virtually halved between these two cultures, neither of which actually want to claim it as its own, but both of whom are more than willing to add gas to the fire. As well, Greece has been a bit put off by the U.S. since our backing of a junta in the late 1960s or early 1970s, spawning the ELA (see an earlier post about Greece setting free accused terrorists). Couple that with the current international stage and you see where I'm going with this. While Greeks are welcoming of Americans, they are not welcoming of America. How many of the fans in the stadium for the Opening Ceremonies separate the U.S. Olympic Team from the U.S. government? Probably few, especially when you consider that, for most countries, the Olympic effort is a governmentally-coordinated effort.
We here in the U.S. and many other countries boo to express our displeasure, while we clap and holler and whistle to show approval and support. In many other countries around the world, it's the other way around. It's yet another showing of ignorance of the U.S. around other cultures, along with clouding the meanings of the signal for "come here" and the OK sign across international borders. Heck, in Wrigley, what sounds like boos to the non-Cubs fan, is actually a shower of "Alou"s. You just can't go off the general impression of a noise to determine the meaning and emotion behind it.
I do have to admit, in the interest of fairness, that I don't know the motivation behind the noise-making during the Parade of Nations. They could well have been showing their support. It could well have been Greeks showing their support of the Cypriots as a whole, Greek and Turkish alike. They could also have been really excited about the cadre of athletes who would take home a load of medals, regardless of their government's foreign policy. Then again, it could be raining pigs this very minute. urlLink Read more! 
