Piers Morgan, Bradley Wiggins and Colm Quinn

If Piers Morgan has any redeeming features, I am yet to discover them. From what I have seen on the media he comes across as a thoroughly nasty man. Recently, he has taken to twitter to attack Team GB's gold medal winners that don't sing the national anthem.

As well as this, he is also attempting to guilt trip future athletes, by donating £1,000 to Great Ormond Street Hospital Children's Charity for every athlete that sings the national anthem, the message being: Don't sing the anthem, and GOSH have missed out on a thousand pounds you unBritish heartless monsters. It's easy to make gestures like this when you're worth (in financial terms) $20 million, but at least Great Ormond Street are benefiting from his mean spiritedness.

In response to this one quick witted chap posted this:

This tweet got some RTs and has now been falsely attributed to Bradley Wiggins.

Who knows why an athlete doesn't choose to sing the anthem? Does it matter if they don't? It's a personal choice, and should be left that way.

Certainly, Piers Morgan, one of Britain's worst exports, shouldn't get to define what patriotism and national pride mean.

Someone's set up a JustGiving page for Great Ormond Street in response too.

Love the sports, hate The Games

So, the Olympics is nearly upon us, and as I've said before, I am excited by them. But this is more for the sporting side - I love watching and playing sports. But the spectacle of The Games itself (am I allowed to call them that?) with organisation by LOCOG is, in my opinion, appalling. 

From the big sponsors like Coca Cola and McDonalds whose products are all about a sporting, healthy lifestyle, to the draconian "brand police" enforcing copyright, right down to a local village magazine. 

As Natalie Haynes said "At no point does it seem to have occurred to them, in their mesmerising arrogance, that every London council tax payer is also one of their sponsors, and has been for years. It also hasn’t occurred to them that they could always have simply spent less on their massive school sports day, instead of tanking billions and then telling us we should count ourselves lucky that McDonalds, Coca-Cola and Adidas will pick up a tiny bit of the tab."

It seems to me that Martin Polley was spot on when he said "While one can understand the need to protect commercial concerns, the games, which were sold to Londoners as inclusive, community-enhancing and all those nice things, are taking on the feel of an authoritarian imposition on peoples lives, rather than something to be celebrated."


Not to mention Saudi Arabia's ban on female athletes (why are they welcome then?); the cock ups with security; more human rights infringements; the refusal to have any commemoration for the Munich Olympic murders 40 years ago; the "Games Lanes";

Of course, I'd link to the Olympics site, but then LOCOG want to change how the internet works, from their Terms and Conditions:

"Links to the Site. You may create your own link to the Site, provided that your link is in a text-only format. You may not use any link to the Site as a method of creating an unauthorised association between an organisation, business, goods or services and London 2012, and agree that no such link shall portray us or any other official London 2012 organisations (or our or their activities, products or services) in a false, misleading, derogatory or otherwise objectionable manner. The use of our logo or any other Olympic or London 2012 Mark(s) as a link to the Site is not permitted. View our guidelines on Use of the Games’ Marks."

Even if the "spirit of the Olympics" is more of a modern, noble idea (the Olympic Torch was started by the Nazis; and the Olympic Rings may be made up of five colours that you can find on all the flags of the world, but blue used to represent Europe, green Australasia, red America, yellow Asia and black Africa. I like the retcon better) I do like the ideal, and am looking forward to seeing Olympic tennis and judo live. 

However, I've come to conclude that whilst I love the sports, I hate The Games.

Olympic Torch Relay in Salisbury

I know that there are many valid criticisms of London 2012, but I am still excited by it, and have been looking forward to it since it's announcement. I enjoy sport - both taking part, and watching others, and it was in that spirit I wanted to see the relay. One of my friends described the relay as a once in a lifetime opportunity to be underwhelmed, but I thought it was good fun! Everyone was in a good mood, and were happy, and obviously as school projects, there were a lot of children with homemade flags, and looked very sweet.


Here's the start in Salisbury (which I was also leased to see - I wondered how the flame was transported):

It was a jolly atmosphere, and I lamented not being with any capoeiristas, it was just the mood for an impromptu roda! The relay finished in Hudson's Field, where there'd been things going on all day, and I walked up there to see what was happening. With the crowds of people (which were nice to see) there was no chance of keeping up with the relay, so I missed seeing it arrive in the field. But the events were good - I enjoyed the band that were on the stage (alas, I don't know who they were, but they were rocking the stage).

I got to have my picture with one of the torches:

Whilst one of those valid criticisms alluded to is the way the events been sponsored, it was good to see a tent with lots of local businesses - yummy homemade confectionary, cheeses, sausages, charities and The Wiltshire Tea Company, who are serious about their tea (in a good way!).  Can't wait to be a bit richer and buy some of their produce (especially the Japanese Wild Cherry which smelt *amazing* and must be brewed for 45 seconds, and not a second either way!). Which will also go nicely in my new teapot from my lovely girlfriend.

I didn't stay for the fireworks - the band changed and were covering pop songs, which weren't enough to keep me, especilly as I was on my lonesome and had had my fill, so I strolled home.

It's easy to be a critic all the time, and sadly these Olympics have provided much fuel. But why not take these moments, whilst still being mindful of the criticisms, and just enjoy them?