The parade goes on and on. Don’t think I’m going to make it to the end. Just watched parts of the opening ceremony. Don’t think I would have enjoyed it as much if I was in the stadium but I thought Danny Boyle did a fine job. China was a tough act to follow. It was mostly great teevee. My favorite part was the faked helicopter arrival. Disappointed that I didn’t see a skydiver land in the stadium though.
NBC’s coverage is a disaster. Viera and Lauer talk too much. And then they added Costa? I’m done for today.
I probably won’t watch that much of the games. I’m not a summer Olympics person. I like the diving and some of the gymnastics. And of course, I really want to see the dressage event this year. Anybody know when that airs?
Otherwise, I’m a winter Olympics fan. Ski jumping and luge runs interest me more than foot races and broad jumps.
[All my threads are open.]
Thoroughly Pizzled
Honestly, I would have been happy if they just did a rock concert.
SiubhanDuinne
NBC’s coverage is horrible every time, summer or winter, it doesn’t matter. Just awful, always. And yet, they keep securing the US broadcast rights. If I were a lot more interested in the actual games I’d probably invest in some kind of satellite service, but I’m not so I won’t.
Suffern ACE
Summer Olympics has been ruined by pro basketball and that swimsuit volleyball. When Parkur finally gets in and they add a few more sports like kabbadi and Turkish oil wrestling, we might be able to break the hold that beach volleyball and basketball seems to have over the coverage.
freelancer
@SiubhanDuinne:
At least it isn’t Fox.
jwb
@SiubhanDuinne: If I was more interested, I’d look into how to fake my IP so I could watch the Canadian or British broadcast.
lamh35
Personally, I like the Parade of Nations. Love how some of the nations wear cultural garb and stuff. Also I just like to see how even the littlest “nations” manage to send athletes to the events.
But I’m a bit uncool.
S. cerevisiae
Yeah, the winter Olympics are my favorite but I’m a Minnesota boy.
Hill Dweller
The Parade of Commercials.
sb
We are taping the opening ceremony here on the West Coast as part of our master plan to avoid commercials and other annoyances.
I love the Summer Games but hate, hate, hate the commercials. So that’s a challenge.
Libby Spencer
@lamh35: I usually like the parade for the same reason but not liking the camera staging this year. And good Lord I wish Lauer would shut up.
Libby Spencer
@sb: Most the commercials are more irritating than usual this year as well.
Suffern ACE
@lamh35: Yeah. But it would be good to have a better research crew to give the trivia on each country. Maybe instead of Costas, they could have Trebeck quizzing Geography Bee finalists on the third longest rivers or fifth largest cities from each country.
Some Guy
You are very kind. I thought those ceremonies were completely incoherent. Oh well. It doesn’t matter, just a lot of fun before the work starts.
Maldives – “lowest in altitude, highest in literacy.” That is golden.
freelancer
Chik-Fil-A chief of PR dies of massive coronary. (via memeorandum)
Guy probably was like “Fuck, my CEO is putting this company on the wrong fucking side of history and moral business decision-making.” and it drove him to a fatal MI.
Either that or he was thinking, “Fuck, how do I square this with non-Batshit people who just like chicken?”
Either way, the guy is going to become a wingnut martyr.
lamh35
Man, I’ll tell yall what the African nations are always sharp in their cultural attire, but I may be biased.
Some Guy
@lamh35: Senegal was just beautiful.
Tehanu
We are track & field fans – a dying breed, I fear – and American coverage of those events is just plain dreadful. We DVR and fast-forward through everything except the actual events, but even then, you hardly get anything — it’s always “Oh, look, the American sprinter came in 17th!” The chauvinism is utterly disheartening and you’re lucky if you even see anything more than one winning throw in a field event. We were in Italy in 1987 for the World Championship of track & field and we were absolutely dumbfounded to find that Italian TV showed everything, including the qualifying rounds, and focused on the stars of the sport rather than just the Italian participants. So we’ll watch the track events when they start next week, but we don’t expect much, and we’ll probably have the mute on most of the time so we don’t have to listen to the announcers’ totally ignorant blather.
Cacti
Winter Olympics are the games of white, wealthy and upper middle class Europeans and North Americans.
The summer games are far more egalitarian. Anybody can run and jump. Not everybody can drop 2 g’s on snowboarding gear and 60 bucks a session for lift tickets.
Yutsano
@lamh35: I love the Parade of Nations too. For a vast majority of the athletes this is the highlight of the Olympics. So they get to enjoy loud cheers and a celebration of their presence. The joy is on their faces.
Male swimmers are nummy. Also. Too.
@freelancer: Obummer’s Deat Squad strikes again!!
Suffers Ace
@Some Guy:for many european countries the track suit is cultural attire.
Scamp Dog
I’m hoping to catch some of the fencing competitions–I started fencing when I was in grad school, and kept it up for a number of years after.
Right now I’m trying to figure out how to use NBC’s iPhone app for the games. First impression: Total PoS. It took me several minutes to figure out how to get away from the trivia/photos/random nonsense page, and now the main page has apparently locked up.
Cacti
@Tehanu:
I heart track & field. There are fewer pure forms of competition than a foot race. No refs, no clocks, no whistles, no time outs. Skill against skill alone.
cmorenc
If Mitt isn’t prominently in the stands watching his wife in the Dressage competition, IMHO that’s going to off-put far more people than attending and providing a vivid image of his intimate connection to the gilded effeteness of Dressage and extremely expensive dancing horses. Ducking out on showing himself will be seen as cowardice by most people rather than understandable political pragmatism. Going to watch his wife compete is actually one thing I and many folks would think more of him, not less for doing. Not that I’ve warmed one bit to most of the rest of Mitt.
Some Guy
I love lots of it. Team volley ball (not beach), swimming, gymnastics, track & field. I do hate the commentary, it is SO lame.
muddy
There’s no Chris Hayes on the weekend on msnbc the next 2 weeks, I has a sad for that.
Cacti
@lamh35:
And despite our wealth, the USA always manages to sport opening ceremony duds that look like hot garbage.
NotMax
@freelancer
He might have finally been goaded into googling ‘Santorum.’
SiubhanDuinne
@freelancer:
Yes, there is that.
@jwb:
Easier to go to my neighborhood bar and sip wine for a few hours once every four years.
muddy
What is the role of the young person in front of each group holding, what, is that a bouquet ??in paper with white gloves on? They don’t seem to match the althletes racially, are they British?
Grumpy Code Monkey
Really dug the opening bit, especially when the rings came together — that was pretty spectacular. Although I kept wanting to stuff a sock in Matt and Meredith’s mouths. Jesus quit talking about how wonderful the music is and let us listen to it.
I remember when Costas was one of the best sports commentators on the air; now he’s just painful to listen to. And that crap during North Korea’s entrance was fucking embarrasing. The first rule of comedy is that if it’s funny, it’s not in bad taste.
It wasn’t funny.
Dreading the kind of gymnastics and T&F coverage we’re going to get, if we get any of it. We do TWC for internet and digital phone, and even though we dropped the TV package we can still get local TV and the major networks, which means if it ain’t on NBC, we won’t be able to see it.
And I’m with Tehanu — I want to see the competition dammit, whether or not there are any Americans competing in that event.
Calouste
@lamh35: Every IOC member state can send a male and female runner and a male and female swimmer to the Olympics regardless of how good they are, and I believe the organization will foot the bill.
SiubhanDuinne
@lamh35: I love watching them and seeing the different outfits. Some of them are just stunningly beautiful. Some are bland. And some are just … perplexing.
Yutsano
@muddy: I recall there being children escorts for the Opening Ceremonies in Vancouver. Maybe that’s a thing now.
freelancer
@NotMax:
Maybe it was when the results of a Google Alert said that Santorum was proud to be in Chick-Fil-A and then googled Santorum.
artem1s
looking forward to finding some coverage online of sailing and rowing. Beijing site had streaming of almost everything marginal. not so much the popular stuff; had to endure TV coverage for that. Don’t know if that is the case this year in London. so far the coverage does not make me hopeful. I had forgotten how much Costas makes me want to poke sharp, pointy objects through my eardrums
Soonergrunt
I for one like the beach volleyball. I also like the regular volleyball. I don’t have a lot of use for the summer olympics as a whole, anyway, having grown up in Colorado and Wyoming. The winter olympics are my thing.
Bobsled, luge, skeleton, downhill skiing, slalom, giant slalom, super g, hockey, and so on and on and on.
The only events more boring than track are field ones.
NotMax
Does Saudi Arabia get two separate slots in the procession, one for each gender?
Can’t have them unmarried women in proximity to the menfolk, don’tcha know.
Some Guy
@artem1s: You know what is so weird about Costas? That interview with Sandusky. Costas did an incredible job of interviewing him. He only had a half hour to prepare, he was called and offered an interview.
AND . . .
I still remember him referring to Australians as “plucky” in the opening ceremony of those games, and now I have the Maldives crazy opposites quote from this year.
So there is that.
Suffern Ace
@Cacti: our national costume is blue jeans and a t shirt. Or chaps and holsters. I don’t know if we can do that, though.
The prophet Nostradumbass
How about a west coast thread?
Corner Stone
It’s sad how the Olympics have followed the tried and true path of being nothing more than an MNC commercial writ large.
I’m just surprised they haven’t started calling them the “2012 AT&T Summer Games”, or the “Kiss Your Mom P&G Summer 2012 Games”.
Mr Stagger Lee
I love the singing of the children(noticed that “Anglo-Saxon” diversity eh Mitt) loved Branaugh’s speech from The Tempest.
different-church-lady
The absolute nadir of Olympic talkiness was the 98 winter games when Seiji Ozawa conducted Beethoven’s Ode to Joy using performers on five continents over satellite hookups — an utterly impossible feat if you understand the technology involved — and the commentators did… not… shut… up… for… even… ONE… second… of it.
lamh35
so why did Mittens have to be mentioned along with FLOTUS and the “Official” delegation?
And of course Costas mentions that “no matter what ur politics” Mittens “saved” the Salt Lake Olympics.
Fuck u Costas.
muddy
I thought it was funny that most of the countries were doing a lot of waving and flag waving. The US team was doing a lot more filming the venue, filming each other, and not much waving. Is waving uncool?
ChrisNYC
So they showed Romney and mentioned the (verboten!) RAFALCA.
Weaselone
Costas made certain to thank Mitt Romney for saving the Salt Lake City games.
Hill Dweller
Costas and Lauer doing an infomercial for the Romney’s when they were shown on camera. Costas claimed that ‘no matter your political persuasion, you have to admit Romney saved the ’02 Winter Olympics”. Nothing about him infuriating the entire country.
The First Lady was shown for seconds, but they said nothing about her.
different-church-lady
Personally I think it’s a little cheap that Sir Paul didn’t write something specific for the Olympics.
burnspbesq
Dressage competition starts at 5:00 a.m. Eastern time tomorrow.
pseudonymous in nc
The music for the parade was set to 120bpm to keep people moving. Lots and lots of Underworld, which is always a good thing.
Corner Stone
I’m wondering what private finishing school all the US Olympians are apparently enrolled in.
Soonergrunt
@muddy: Cool doesn’t have anything to do with it. They’re taking pictures of themselves and each other taking part in an extremely rare opportunity that will not come again for the vast majority of them.
Kristine
@Cacti:
At least a few of the sports–biathlon comes to mind–have their roots in northern European military training/exercises.
it snows there a lot. Everyone skis and skates.
Some Guy
OK, Great Britain has gold armpit patches on the costume. Is this Doctor Who?
freelancer
@The prophet Nostradumbass:
I think you’re in it.
sb
Looking forward to beach volleyball (Go Kerry!), looking forward to the distance events (we’ve got our best triumvirate of marathoners in eons running), the water events are always cool as well as the gymnastics, great soccer games… jesus, what’s not to like about the summer games?
Other than, you know, the coverage and crass commercialism.
muddy
@Soonergrunt: I just found it different than most of the other countries, some of them had cameras, but they were all waving away.
The British are waving a lot.
Corner Stone
@Soonergrunt:
Bullshit. They’re simultaneously posting it to their Facebook or Twitter feed.
It’s just PR/Branding.
maya
@different-church-lady: Same thing in 2002 Mittlypics in SLC. Couric and Costas talked over everything that was going on in the opening ceremonies. Everything. And to boot, Couric had on a big freakin’ red head band that just bled over the entire screen. You’d think they’d learn something eventually – but nooooo. Fookin NBC.
Valdivia
@Hill Dweller:
so glad I missed that. ugh.
daveNYC
Parade isn’t bad. The athletes tend to be crazy hot. especially the Turks. that Tirkish flag holder lady. Damn.
+6
pseudonymous in nc
I’ll be up early tomorrow to watch the cycling road race, and the velodrome will be one of the best venues throughout. I won’t be watching beach volleyball, aka NBC Bikiniball, but I will watch the indoor version. I won’t care too much about the swimming or gymnastics, either. But judo, archery, weightlifting, badminton, hockey… gawd, there’s so much to watch, so many great stories that don’t need to be matched with vaseline-lensed profiles.
As for cameras and phones: every big team was snapping and filming away. They’re creating unique mementos for themselves, not branding moments.
Cassidy
Arctic Monkeys do a good cover.
Corner Stone
Seeing as how The Beatles have exactly 2 songs I will willingly listen to, maybe I am a little thankful for the constant NBC chatter over everything.
catpal
@Weaselone: shouldn’t Costas be Thanking the Us Taxpayer for the $1.5 Billion – that is what really Saved those Olympics.
Thanks to all for the play-by-play commentary.
NotMax
@lamh35
There’ll be a little something extra in Bobby Costas’ next pay envelope, courtesy of Comcast and GE.
different-church-lady
@Cacti:
That could have something to do with… uh… which countries get snow.
Wag
I’ve got to give NBC a little credit. When they come back from an ad they do show all the small countries that walked in during the break.
different-church-lady
OK, the birds on bikes are kinda cool. This ain’t as bad as I thought it might be.
Steeplejack
@Corner Stone:
Pray tell, what are your two favorite Beatles songs?
Some Guy
@Wag: True. Costas is unbearable, but I would not want to have to fill air time for hours on end for a ceremony like that. I am sure I would be horrible to listen too as well. Still. Dude gets on my nerves.
Omnes Omnibus
@different-church-lady: Birds? As in women or as in avian?
Steeplejack
@Wag:
They completely skipped Uruguay to get to the United States faster. Bastards.
ETA: Oops! Skipped Uruguay to linger on the United States longer.
Corner Stone
@Wag:
They were looking for the public restrooms. Not sure how they got past the guards with the tall furry hats.
Some Guy
Did the Queen have a heart attack after those fire works? Those were cool!
PurpleGirl
Rmoney will not be attending the dressage events. That’s HER sport. What a louse.
Corner Stone
@Steeplejack: “Let it Be”, and I’ve forgotten the other one.
Some Guy
I am digging the peace theme with the Olympic flag. Well done.
NotMax
@Some Guy
Worse than the pompous drone of Howard Cosell?
Origuy
@cmorenc: Ann Romney isn’t competing. Their horse is being ridden by one of the other co-owners, Jan Ebeling.
PurpleGirl
@different-church-lady: Well, isn’t it Jamaica that fields a bobsled team?
ETA: The first took part in the Calgary Games in 1988. They also took part in the 1992 and 1994 winter games but not 2006 or 2010.
Omnes Omnibus
@PurpleGirl: To be fair, Anne never shows up for his events either.
Some Guy
@NotMax: Well, no. But if you are going to break out the Cosell, that is like the nuclear option.
NotMax
@Corner Stone
Traditionally made of bearskin.
freelancer
For those on the West Coast, Barbados comes out to a remix of more Underworld. Sweet.
The Dangerman
West Coaster here; wonder how the National Health Service played to the righties?
OK, I think we’re headed to the LSD trip part of the ceremony here…
ETA: Can we send the NBC announcers downrange in the archery events tomorrow?
sfinny
@PurpleGirl: I read about this and had an immediate response of ‘what a jerk’. After thinking about it I realize that he may be trying to distance himself from the whole elite thing, but really for me it was just a response to the idea that a husband of many years would just dismiss something important to his spouse. Jeez, can you imagine the family vacations?
Steeplejack
@Corner Stone:
Okay, good to know. Not one of my favorites, but they’ve got a deep catalogue. Don’t know if I could pick one favorite, but I’ve been listening to “No Reply” a lot lately. Great chord changes, and there’s nothing like upbeat angst.
Steeplejack
@Some Guy:
True dat. Massive first-strike capability.
hilts
@Corner Stone:
Even Frank Zappa was more charitable towards the Beatles than you. He actually liked 3 of their songs Paperback Writer, Strawberry Fields Forever, and I Am the Walrus.
Gex
@catpal: Yes, but what we are really supposed to appreciate is how that IS his selling point. MITT is able to bilk taxpayers and funnel it to his friends, i.e. “Save the Olympics.”
I can agree he is able to bilk taxpayers.
NotMax
@sfinny
The family that sprays together the doggie diarrhea off the car, stays together.
Cassidy
Fuck all this contrarian, “I’m too cool” bullshit. The Olympics are fun and amazing and the torch lighting kicked ass.
The prophet Nostradumbass
Matt Lauer is a fucking idiot, goddamn what a moron.
Omnes Omnibus
@Cassidy: Can’t beat Ali in ’96, but what can?
PurpleGirl
@sfinny: About two weeks ago there were stories about the family vacation and how he added in “games” or competitions he could win after one of the daughters-in-law bested him in something. It didn’t sound like he does stuff for fun, just for the points against someone else… but a daughter-in-law, too?
Steeplejack
Okay, ending with the Beatles’ “The End.” That’s good. Not enough to make up for teh suxxor that preceded it, but a nice palate-cleansing sorbet.
ETA: Uh-oh. Wobbling shakily into “Hey, Jude.” I spoke too soon. Comrade Mary, I’m sorry–I should have heeded your warning!
Cassidy
@Omnes Omnibus: I don’t know, man. I think…I don’t want to spoil it for West Coasters.
Some Guy
The torch and fireworks were awesome.
Narcissus
The Olympic cauldron kicked ass.
artem1s
torch was pretty cool. organizers always seem to find a new way to get that done in a fantastic way.
my fav is still the archer shooting the flaming arrow
lamh35
Ok, Sir Paul was a bit pitchy
Punchy
OK, sorry if this has been mentioned before, but in the very beginning, they go thru all the Olympic “flag”/banners that are iconic to each Olympics.
They skipped 2 of them (and I know this cuz I rewound and played and rewound again a million times)….the 1984 LA games and 1996 Atlanta games.
Personal slight, trademark infringement, or WTF?
muddy
@Some Guy: So were those copper “petals” that the kids were carrying with each delegation the same as what was on the torch? DId they put those ones on there or was it a second set? Those torches rising up were beautiful.
Cassidy
@muddy: It was the ones from each delegation.
Some Guy
@muddy: I don’t know, but I loved that. The communal aspect, on the floor rather than up high, I thought it was beautiful.
different-church-lady
Well… this is unfortunate.
TooManyJens
@Cassidy: Agree about the torch lighting. Really nice job. I enjoyed most of the opening ceremony, except that Lauer and Costas wouldn’t stop talking.
Some Guy
@TooManyJens: I thought it had really nice moments, but long sections of weirdness.
I just love watching the parade costumes, hoping for some cool ones, but really looking forward to “flight attendant look-alikes” or Fantasy Island vintage.
Cassidy
@TooManyJens: God, I’d have given someone a gold medal if they could have made them shut the hell up.
pseudonymous in nc
@muddy:
Yep. Designed by Heatherwick. Gorgeous, and totally in keeping with the mood of the whole thing.
different-church-lady
@Some Guy:
Sounds like an Olympic opening ceremony.
Narcissus
Meredith Viera just said that the queens appearance was the money-shot of the night.
BillCinSD
@daveNYC: Neslihan Demir Darnel, born on my 22nd birthday. 6’1″, outside hitter, married, one child
El Cid
Another completely unpredictable nut and there’s nothing we can ever ever do to prevent this stuff.
With the solemn reverence for which we sacredly threaten Dixie Chicks when they use free speech incorrectly, George Washington died on the cross so that such men as these might have guns.
sfinny
@PurpleGirl: Hey my family is hyper competitive but we generally leave the same evaluation to the Pirates Cave minigolf results. Unfortunately my brothers beat me out on the last venture. By one.
Wag
They did mention Uraguay but only in passing.
Wag
Spoiler alert
Awesome. Breaking I to “Heroes” as the Great Britian team walks in. Fantastic.
Darkrose
On the west coast, we’re still on the opening ceremony. I actually like it. It’s over the top and kind of cracktastic.
Besides, I wouldn’t have met my wife if not for the Web, so thanks, Tim!
TooManyJens
@Darkrose: Maybe I wasn’t paying enough attention, but I couldn’t figure out what the “4 decades of British music” retrospective with the weird frame story really had to do with the Net.
Lavocat
A couple of late arrivals from the Vatican City contingent, The Fighting Monsignors. Of course,they’re competing in Tae Kwon Do. Who the hell ISN’T competing in Tae Kwon Do?
Steeplejack
@Narcissus:
I know. Eww. Keep fucking that chicken, Meredith (to coin a phrase).
different-church-lady
@Darkrose:
Whereas here on the east coast they just awarded the last medals and extinguished the cauldron.
The Dangerman
@Darkrose:
It’s cool that a Geek got such high recognition.
BillinGlendaleCA
@Lavocat: The Koreans?
Gian
I stopped watching during the winter olympics in Japan. the US broadcast just plain sucked. THere was live hockey, live US hockey even. the canadians got to watch it
we were treated to “shopping in Nagano”
fuck that.
Omnes Omnibus
@Lavocat: I’m not.
Cacti
@different-church-lady:
Right, because here in the good old US of A, people of all demographics enjoy skiing and snowbo…
Nope, it’s pretty much just yuppies and yuppie spawn.
Sammy
I heard on some tv show that to see the dressage events you have to subscribe to a special channel. Didn’t listen to hear the name of the channel because I wasn’t planning on watching even if it is free.
Omnes Omnibus
@Cacti: If you grow up in the mountains, alpine skiing isn’t that expensive. If you grow up where there is snow, nordic skiing is quite cheap. Living near snow really helps.
Lavocat
And, WTF? No baseball or softball this year? What was it replaced with? Round-robin goat-fucking?
I mean, C’MON!
On the same note, if I were a Brit, I’d be pissed about there being no rugby or cricket.
I guess I’ll just have to console myself with some women’s beach volleyball.
Omnes Omnibus
@Lavocat: Rugby was in the Games in 1900, 1908, 1920 and 1924. The US won in ’20 and ’24.
Lavocat
@BillinGlendaleCA: Actually, I just discovered that a local family (Upstate NY), from a town over, is actually competing in Judo @ the Olympics. However, as we watched the Parade of Nations we noted a large percentage of people in TKD. Kinda weird.
I did TKD for a while until I broke enough bones to decide I’d had my fill.
Lavocat
@Omnes Omnibus: I thought so. However, the emphasis seems to be on “was”. Some of these events look like real yawners.
Ash Can
@Lavocat:
How ’bout it! That blows dead goats.
Omnes Omnibus
@Lavocat: I’ve heard talk of rugby sevens being introduced to the Games. I am not in favor. Sevens is fine as a summer substitute for proper rugby – by which I mean Union – but that is it.
Wag
Little know fact– Tug of War was once an Olympic sport.
burnspbesq
If there was an uglier uni than the Czech Republic, I missed it.
AnotherBruce
@Corner Stone: Christ, just about the most trite Beatle song ever. How about, Tomorrow Never Knows, Ticket to Ride, Piggies, She’s a Woman. Fuck dude, you know shit all about the Beatles.
BTW, Star Man by Bowie was an inspired choice. As was the love given to the Specials.
Yutsano
@burnspbesq: I guess ours aren’t ugly. Just tacky as sin.
burnspbesq
@Yutsano:
We do tacky better than just about anyone.
Chet
I wonder what became of the Bob Costas of the ’80s, the guy who used to do baseball with Tony Kubek and NFL pregame with Ahmad Rashad. That guy was a fantastic sportscaster, but today’s Costas makes any event unwatchable.
burnspbesq
@Chet:
It could be much, much worse. We could be listening to Piers Morgan if Fox had won the teevee right.
Death Panel Truck
@Libby Spencer: All commercials these days are annoying. I don’t watch a lot of TV, but when I do I mute the commercials. I’m waiting for someone to invent a system to do it automatically.
Comrade Luke
Well that was cool. Now for two weeks of TV coverage of only sports the US is good at. Enjoy, everyone!
Corner Stone
@AnotherBruce: I know that I hate the fucking Beatles. What else do I need to know about them?
eco2geek
Good Lord, who knew there were that many countries sending athletes to the Olympics. You’d have to be an athlete just to stand on your feet for that long.
Meredith Vieira mentioning the Queen and using the phrase “money shot” in the same sentence — now there’s a gaffe!
Allen
Can anyone ‘splain to me why the Czech’s wore PVC Wellies in the parade. If anyone was to be wearing Wellies, shouldn’t it be someone from Yorkshire? And WTF is it with Glastonbury Tor? Not much of a Tor.
Morat20
@Allen: Apparently? They were inspired by John Cleese.
So said the NBC voiceover morons, so take it with a grain of salt.
But according to them, the Czechs wanted to “honor London” and apparently they find Cleese funny and very British, so they went some Python-esque inspiration.
Which, if true, buys the Czechs a lot of love from me. :)
Alex E. Jones
Yeah, that was really retarted of them to skip Uruguay. These dumb asses need to understand that WE, the audience, wish to see ALL of the countries in the parade. That is the classy thing to do.
@Steeplejack: