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Massive construction projects are taking place in preparation for the 2012 London Olympics, when athletes from a couple hundred countries will jet in from every corner of the globe, as will countless spectators. With that in mind, this latest eco-concern is a little like worrying about the carbon output of the Zippo you’re using to light Burning Man. From The Australian:

Iran has threatened to boycott the London Olympics unless the organisers replace the official logo, which Tehran claims spells out the word "Zion".

The two metallic characters, named Wenlock and Mandeville, were unveiled on Wednesday night after a rigorous 18-month design process involving 40 focus groups. Apparently hewn from the “last drops of steel” left over from constructing the final support girder of the Olympic Stadium, the one-eyed creatures are intended to help young people relate to the Games. Bolt from the blue: the Olympic mascot Wenlock, left, and the Paralympic mascot Mandeville strike an Usain Bolt pose But branding experts last night called them “a calamity” and accused Olympic bosses of wasting thousands of pounds on their creation. Stephen Bayley, the prominent...

THE burqa boxers are coming. Young women are training in Afghanistan to fight in Islamic dress at the 2012 London Olympics. Wearing hijabs beneath their headguards and clothes that cover their bodies, 25 female pugilists are preparing for their bouts in gruelling training sessions at Kabul’s Olympic stadium, once the scene of public executions by the Taliban. The team, whose ages range from 14-25, were recruited by their coach, Fadir Sharify, a former professional boxer. He persuaded the girls’ families that it would not be inappropriate for them to take to the ring. The 2012 summer Games will be the...

Olympic history was made Wednesday morning, but it wasn't the kind New York City backers were hoping for. In the fourth round of voting, the International Olympic Committee chose London, England, as the host of the 2012 Olympic Games, making London the first city to be selected to host the Games on three occasions. New York City was eliminated on the second ballot of an unusually competitive contest. Paris had been considered the front-runner heading into Wednesday's voting. video at link

For Immediate Release SNIPPET: “Enforcement action threatened at Tablighi Jamaat mega-mosque site Newham Council “doing the right thing at last” says Cllr Alan Craig. “Compulsory purchase of site must be next step” Islamic group Tablighi Jamaat (TJ), some of whose supporters in Walthamstow were convicted of planning airline terrorist atrocities last week (see note below), has been threatened with enforcement action by Newham Council over its continued unlawful use of the ‘mega-mosque’ site at West Ham, close to the London 2012 Olympic stadium. TJ has erected a temporary structure on site and has been using it daily without planning permission...

http://www.christiantoday.com/article/christian.councillor.calls.for.action.against.megamosque.group/24166.htm "Christian councillor calls for action against ‘mega-mosque’ group" SNIPPET: "A Christian councillor is calling on an east London council to take action against the Islamic group planning to build a ‘mega-mosque’ close to the site of the 2012 Olympics." by Jenna Lyle Posted: Thursday, September 10, 2009, 14:04 (BST) SNIPPET: "Tablighi Jamaat has come under the close observation of intelligence services in recent years over suspected links to terrorism, despite the group’s insistence that it does not preach violence. This week it emerged that the leader of the airline plot terrorist cell regularly attended a Tablighi Jamaat-controlled mosque in...

Police have been handed 'Chinese-style' powers to enter private homes and seize political posters during the London 2012 Olympics. Little-noticed measures passed by the Government will allow officers and Olympics officials to enter homes and shops near official venues to confiscate material. Breaking the rules could land offenders with a fine of up to

In his first interview since a photo surfaced showing him smoking from a marijuana pipe, Michael Phelps said yesterdaythat the intense public scrutiny has him contemplating whether he will swim in the 2012 Olympics. Phelps, who said that he "clearly made a mistake" and that the past week has been both embarrassing and uncomfortable for him, spoke with The Baltimore Sun inside Meadowbrook Aquatic Center after finishing his daily workout. While he still has goals he wants to achieve in the sport, he said, he's going to discuss it with his family and his coach, Bob Bowman. "This is a...

A haunting video showing an “obituary” of the main opponent to the “mega-mosque” proposed for the 2012 Olympic site has appeared on YouTube, but the subject of the film has vowed to continue his fight against the huge development. The video, In memory of Councillor Alan Craig, shows pictures of the Christian People's Alliance councillor with his wife and two daughters, aged 5 and 6, and promises: “To God we will all return.” It was posted on YouTube apparently in response to Mr Craig high-profile campaign against the building of a 12,000 capacity mosque sponsored by the ultra-conservative Islamic sect...

THE Red Arrows have been banned from performing at the 2012 London Olympics as they are too BRITISH. Barmy organisers claim the popular RAF display team’s military background “might offend other nations”. The decision has left pilots, who were set to perform their best-ever display at the opening ceremony, in a state of outrage. One said yesterday: “We have been simply blown away by this decision. “For years we have talked about performing a display at the Olympic Games and how magnificent it would be. “It never crossed our mind we would be banned from the event.” The Arrows, officially...

It has been called a puerile mess, a health hazard, a disastrous waste of £400,000... and even the London 2012 Olympics logo. The logo which cost a reported £400,000 After a week in which the new logo sparked nationwide ridicule, hostile questions in the House of Commons and a series of epileptic fits, it seems that only one question remained unanswered: exactly whose bright idea was this? It can now be revealed that the man who led the design team that created the logo is Patrick Cox, the executive creative director of Wolff Olins, an Islington-based brand consultancy with links...

The designers of the controversial London Olympics logo claim that they intended it as only the first part of an "evolving branding package". The chunky, geometric shapes spelling out the date 2012 are supposed to be a "blank canvas" that will be filled with diverse images, photographs and sponsorship messages over the next five years, they say. The2012 logo is to be filled with a range of images Many of the images used to "infill" the shapes will be created by the public, who will be encouraged to enter competitions held every six months, with the winner chosen by online...

THE controversial 2012 London Olympics logo was rocked by another blow last night — after it was ruled too dangerous to view on-screen. An animated version of the symbol used on TV and the internet had to be dropped because it could trigger fits in thousands of people. The £400,000 logo, a graffiti-style spelling of 2012 in shades of pink, blue, green and orange, was branded “hideous” when it was launched on Monday. And Olympics bosses were left squirming with embarrassment after an epilepsy group reported 12 cases of people collapsing through looking at it. Epilepsy Action warned that 23,000...

Ready, set, go: from the Observer nine days ago: "Olympic costs set to double: Londoners face huge tax rise". Oh, come on. Only double? You can do better than that. Remember the 1976 Olympics? Well, no, you probably don't, unless you're in late middle age. But they were held in Montreal. I'm a Montrealer and our 2006 tax bill is projected to be the year we finally pay off the debts on the games. The '76 Olympics were opened by the Queen, just like the London Games will be, and the city built a big stadium in the East End,...

A MASSIVE mosque that will hold 40,000 worshippers is being proposed beside the Olympic complex in London to be opened in time for the 2012 Games. The project’s backers hope the mosque and its surrounding buildings would hold a total of 70,000 people, only 10,000 fewer than the Olympic stadium. Its futuristic design features wind turbines instead of the traditional minarets, while a translucent latticed roof would replace the domes seen on most mosques. The complex is designed to become the “Muslim quarter” for the Games, acting as a hub for Islamic competitors and spectators. “It will be something never...

A MASSIVE mosque that will hold 40,000 worshippers is being proposed beside the Olympic complex in London to be opened in time for the 2012 Games. The project’s backers hope the mosque and its surrounding buildings would hold a total of 70,000 people, only 10,000 fewer than the Olympic stadium. Its futuristic design features wind turbines instead of the traditional minarets, while a translucent latticed roof would replace the domes seen on most mosques. The complex is designed to become the “Muslim quarter” for the Games, acting as a hub for Islamic competitors and spectators. “It will be something never...

The government has been urged to relax gun laws which make it illegal for Britain's top pistol shooters to train in England, Scotland and Wales. Home Secretary Charles Clarke has given special permission for pistol events to be staged at the London 2012 Olympics. But British team members face having to do all their 2012 preparations abroad. "It would be fantastic if they were given the ability to compete on a level playing field," said British shooting's performance chief John Leighton-Dyson. "I would like to think reasonable people will be able to have reasonable discussions and come to reasonable...

2008 presidential hopeful Hillary Clinton has failed in her first major foreign initiative - a high profile bid to bring the 2012 Olympic games to New York City. Hours before this morning's announcement that London would host the 2012 games, Clinton was pulling out all the stops to bring the sports extravaganza to her constituents back home. Mrs. Clinton told reporters in Singapore, where the Olympic committee was meeting, that the Big Apple "exemplifies Olympic values every single day. Living in New York is like living in an Olympic Village - you have every language from every corner of the...

SINGAPORE, July 8 -- Baseball and softball were dropped Friday from the Olympics for the 2012 Summer Games in London. Each of the 28 existing sports was put to a secret vote by the International Olympic Committee, and baseball and softball failed to receive a majority required to stay on the program. The other 26 sports were retained. "I think they've made a big, big mistake," said Tommy Lasorda, the former Los Angeles Dodgers manager who managed the 2000 U.S. team to the gold medal at the 2000 Sydney Games. "Baseball is played by all countries now and softball, too....