diaTribe » olympics http://bandannaclub.com/blogwp The diaTribe blog is our occasional take on life, the universe and everything. Observations on current affairs, the environment, politics, humour and music/gig reviews. Travel diary and extreme sports stories, along with the usual rants/raves are also chucked in for good measure. Sat, 07 Feb 2026 19:21:49 +0000 en-US hourly 1 Olympics British Style http://bandannaclub.com/blogwp/2012/07/15/olympics_british_style/ http://bandannaclub.com/blogwp/2012/07/15/olympics_british_style/#comments Sun, 15 Jul 2012 03:17:10 +0000 Phil http://bandannaclub.com/blogwp/2012/07/olympics_british_style/ ... more »

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In view of the ongoing heavy rains in the UK, representatives of the British government and the London Mayor’s office have met with the emergency committee of the IOC to propose a number of 11th-hour changes to the upcoming London Olympic programme.

London’s Mayor Boris Johnson has announced that all Olympic staff will be undergoing SCUBA lessons this week and his office are currently in the process of buying up wetsuits, fins, masks and snorkels from every dive shop in and around the Red Sea. Supplies of diving equipment in the UK have already been appropriated and set aside for use by visiting dignitaries, due to their virtually-unused and near-new state.More ... »]]> http://bandannaclub.com/blogwp/2012/07/15/olympics_british_style/feed/ 0 Rant: Cyclones, Earthquakes and the Olympics http://bandannaclub.com/blogwp/2008/05/13/rant_cyclones_earthquakes_and_the_olympics/ http://bandannaclub.com/blogwp/2008/05/13/rant_cyclones_earthquakes_and_the_olympics/#comments Tue, 13 May 2008 14:06:00 +0000 Phil http://bandannaclub.com/blogwp/2008/05/rant_cyclones_earthquakes_and_the_olympics/ ... more »

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What a noticeable difference between the responses of the Burmese military junta to the recent devastating cyclone that ravaged large parts of the Irrawaddy Delta and the Chinese government response to the 7.8 earthquake that hit Sichuan province earlier this week.

Both countries have been run by totalitarian regimes masquerading as one-party “democracies”. Both governments have a long history of human rights violations and both have not hesitated in the recent past to use lethal force against their own people while the rest of the world mutters “shame” and continues to do not very much at all.

More ... »]]> http://bandannaclub.com/blogwp/2008/05/13/rant_cyclones_earthquakes_and_the_olympics/feed/ 0 Rant: 2012 Olympics Carnival Goes Critical http://bandannaclub.com/blogwp/2007/12/11/rant_2012_olympics_carnival_goes_critical/ http://bandannaclub.com/blogwp/2007/12/11/rant_2012_olympics_carnival_goes_critical/#comments Tue, 11 Dec 2007 14:45:00 +0000 Phil http://bandannaclub.com/blogwp/2007/12/rant_2012_olympics_carnival_goes_critical/ ... more »

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Insane!

That’s the only adjective to describe today’s news in the Evening Standard (and briefly on the Beeb before it seemed to mysteriously vanish!) that “The organisation in charge of keeping the costs of the 2012 Olympics down is to receive a £10 million bonus in recognition of its success”.

OK…let’s just rewind slightly…

Did I imagine it or isn’t the Olympic budget currently under scrutiny – largely because the estimated cost has exploded to a gobsmacking £9.3 billion – more than 4 times the original estimate (with 5 years still to run)?

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