Editor's note: Anthony Moretti is an associate professor at the Department of Communication and Organizational Leadership of Robert Morris University. The article reflects the author's views and not necessarily those of CGTN.

Western "leaders" continue to show how weak they are in their ability to criticize China. Much like a gambler having no legitimate hand to play, Western politicians are beginning to be crowded with a strategy they hope will allow them to show strength where there is none.

What are they almost certain to do? Refuse to travel to Beijing for the 2022 Olympics.

You read that correctly. In an effort to demonstrate their anger at China and to show their disdain for the country's human rights record, political leaders in one democratic nation after another are threatening to...not show up to a sports event. They somehow believe they will be missed as thousands of athletes compete in the world's most important global sports event, the Olympics. Worse, they appear to sincerely believe that not traveling to Beijing will send a powerful message to the Chinese government that it had better start doing what the West wants it to do. 

Mighty tough men and women, these people are. Mighty tough, indeed.

Of course, the media in their countries can be guaranteed to offer effusive praise for any talk of a boycott; journalists love controversy, and here is one handed to them on a silver platter. 

As we process the almost delusional quality of these boycott ideas, we must recognize how rich it is to bring up the topic of human rights as a human rights disaster plays out inside multiple democratic nations. Almost daily, we see pictures and videos showing men, women and children fleeing war or economic devastation, and desperate to start a better life in the U.S. or the EU. They find an armed military ready to use force to prevent them from doing just that. In addition, other men and women suffer from daily discriminatory and hostile acts - quite often targeting people of Asian descent - in one country after another.

We must remember that throughout the cold war, the West, and most especially the U.S., repeatedly criticized the Eastern Bloc for denying their citizens the opportunity to seek freedom elsewhere.

No longer.

Now, as people flee inhumane conditions largely resulting from political, military or economic decisions emanating from Washington and other Western capitals, they instead are met by barbed wire and military personnel ready to stop them.

On top of this, there is an absence of tolerance toward people who do not "look like me," meaning they are part of a minority group. What has happened to the notion of democratic lands opening their doors to and then welcoming other people? Acknowledging this, how can any leader of any of these countries maintain a straight face as they complain about human rights conditions in China?

It should come as no surprise that the U.S. appears to be leading a coordinated effort to get countries such as the United Kingdom, Australia and others to support a diplomatic boycott. The Washington Post was first to report about 10 days ago that U.S. President Joe Biden was considering skipping the upcoming Olympics.

Within days, and this cannot be a coincidence, public statements from a few U.S. allies about a likely diplomatic boycott began appearing in the news. For now, no country has committed to such a boycott, which adds further credence that the U.S. is the ringleader in this effort.

When the diplomatic boycott is announced, we should respond with a shrug of the shoulders. I say "when" because these political leaders would look even weaker than they are if they threaten to skip the Olympics, only to change their minds and decide to make an appearance.

They are hypocrites for believing that their boycott will do anything meaningful; they would be even more hypocritical to speak of a boycott only to not follow through with one.

The reality is a diplomatic boycott of the Beijing Olympics will mean nothing and will do nothing. It is the equivalent of the little boy who gets mad at his playmates, picks up his ball as he begins to cry, and storms off for home. Convinced he has proven to his friends that they must play only by his rules, he ignores the reality that the other children have kept right on playing. The absence of the spoiled brat is quickly forgotten.

That will be the reaction of the global sports community to any diplomatic boycott.

Remember, the athletes from those nations will be in Beijing, as will various sports officials from those countries. While the absent politicians will be sitting at home wagging a finger of anger at the Chinese, the athletes will carry on; as they affirm the (albeit imperfect) virtues of the Olympics, they will not shed a single tear because their president, prime minister or leading political figure will remain home.

(If you want to contribute and have specific expertise, please contact us at opinions@cgtn.com.)