London isn’t congested enough

London Named as 2012 Olympic Host City | Culture & Lifestyle | Deutsche Welle | — Paris should be thankful they didn’t get this event. Who needs it? I’ll be avoiding London like the plague during this period.

London was announced as the host city for the 2012 Olympic Summer Games, beating Paris in one of the hardest fought and closest bidding campaigns in the history of the games.

London has beaten Paris to the finishing line in the race to become the host city of the 2012 Olympic Games. The English capital becomes the first city to host the games for the third time.



  1. Miguel Lopes says:

    Why avoid it? Because of the unlikely possibility of terrorist attacks? C’mon! It’s 7 years away, there’s still time to catch Osama and make peace in the Middle East…. At least the latter…

    Anyway it’s bound to be much more secure than Athens, and nothing went wrong there. I hope terrorists have learnt in 72 that attacking a world event like the Olympiads is no good PR for *any* cause!

  2. John Wofford says:

    I agree, but for different reasons. RE: The terrorists aspects: I fully expected terrorist attacks on two large venues this year; the Super Bowl and/or George’s big party, The Inauguration. Neither failed to materialize; perhaps, just maybe, all that Homeland Security stuff and the Patriot Act had some major effect on these guys.
    But think of the stress, the danger and the expense of just getting around the place, especially during the events themselves, not to mention the months leading up to the Big Daze.
    Attending the Olympics would bear no resemblance to anything I might call fun.
    And yeah, they drink their beer at room temperature, and it’s this evil, foul tasting, black concoction. And they like it!
    Nope, I’m not going.

  3. Steve says:

    I was glad Madrid didn’t get it. The one thing I don’t like about Barcelona is that the 1992 Olympics have left it too Americanized. I don’t want the same influence in Madrid.

  4. Chris Benard says:

    No Miguel, not because of terrorists. Apparently GW has beaten that into you. Dvorak was was noting how freaking congested London is at any time. They literally have to pay a congestion fee just to drive in the city proper. With the olympics, there will be an immovable mass of steel in the city streets. I too, would avoid it like the plague.

    Dvorak rules! Keep up the great work on twit too John! *makes Dvorak ERRRR sound while saying “It’ll never work” *

  5. Ed Campbell says:

    Uh, Brother Wofford. Unless you haven’t been to the UK this side of, say, 1970, cellar temperature beer is offered about as frequently as the stuff too cold for human taste buds.

    If you only drink the pallid horsepiss that passed for beer in tins, anywhere between Milwaukee and St. Louis, you needn’t know the difference. But, the explosion of micro-breweries in the US says something else about folks with tastebuds.

  6. Thomas says:

    Feel sorry for the athletes. LA has nothing on the smog in London. I can’t imagine running the marathon in that stuff.

  7. TwelveTwo says:

    Ignore all that,

    they are offering same day contract haulage!!

  8. ME says:

    Another city ready to have another large financial problem. … How many cities that have host the Olympics made money!? …

    How many of you still watched the Olympics?

  9. Capeche says:

    London’s used to terrorists, thanks to the IRA (and lots of their Irish-American supporters). Now it’s got an Al-Qaeda attack.

    Beyond all that, it’ll be a cool place for the Olympics, and I’m looking forward to it myself.

  10. James Hill says:

    Why avoid it? Because of the unlikely possibility of terrorist attacks?

    Famous last words.

    The base problem is that, with Englands large Arab population, Britions feel a need to put up with their shit. Hopefully today’s attack will get them on the right course.

    James Hill

  11. Miguel Lopes says:

    Yup, famous last words alright, quite unfortunately… See my comment to the post regarding the attacks…

    I don’t actually think there’s *a lot* of arab crap going around, though. (There’s some, of course, but little of it) Usually Arabs are a nice people to live with. We have them here in Portugal, with no issues to speak of. I know a few. Honest working people, going about their lives just like you and me. No problems. Radicals just want the population at large to target them (why do they identify themselves so promptly?) and then harvest the few Arabs that rebel against that backlash. Vicious circle. Pure and simple.

    BTW, for centuries, the Iberian Peninsula was invaded by the Arabs, before my country was formed, and they are still remembered and respected – to this day! – for their religious and political tolerance!!!! Really!!

    You get radicals in every religion and race. Catholics get them. Protestants, Jews, Hindis, you name it. Religion and race are not the point, just a distraction…

    I’m still optimistic about 2012, however. 7 years is a long time. A lot will happen.

  12. Angel H. Wong says:

    The sad thing is that I actually rooted for Paris to win since I remember that the French some years ago had an iniciative to declare all international sport events as something of a free broadcast thing and knowing them it would have become a reality.

    I trully despise Samaranch for giving NBC sole broadcast exclusivity of the Olympics. IT really killed my interest in the event the fact that NBC ONLY shows american athletes and “curiously” athletes wearing NIKE clothing. I also noticed that every time the US athletes get a beating, they quickly switch to ANY event where there US athletes aren’t sucking; I even began to like olympic boxing since thanks to NBC it’s kinda pleasant to hear ppl in the background yelling “USA!” “USA!” until a tiny Cuban boxer knocks the American one to the ground.

    I still wonder what keeps NBC from renaming it as the “MSNBC America vs the world Nikelympics.”

  13. AB CD says:

    Giving NBC the contract has helped the Olympics since now cities know upfront they are getting $400 million or more, and makes it easier to put up a bid. That said, cities rarely make money when you count the money spent on security and traffic improvements. It’s probably great for homeowners looking to rent though. Didn’t Denver actually reject the Olympics after being chosen?

  14. John Wofford says:

    Mr. Campell, I understand that not only people but nations and cultures change with time. I was last in England in 1965, Portsmouth, actually, as crew aboard an American guided-missile destroyer. I was a bit younger then, and put back to sea accompanied by memories of pubs, old ladies trying to pick me up and something called “bitters”, than managed to live up to it’s name in every way. And yes, people change; it’s been years since I drank my last beer.


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