I can't believe anyone is criticizing a 14-year-old boy who represented the UK by advancing to the finals in the diving competition. Shame on you!

There would be no Olympics without a full complement of competitors. Those who fall short of winning a medal are part of the show, too, and without their presence, a first-through-third finish in any event would be meaningless. Also, please keep in mind that simply by qualifying for the trip, each athlete has already demonstrated a world-class level of accomplishment in his/her discipline.

A few of the most memorable moments in every Olympiad have been provided by competitiors who showed courage and spirit while falling short of the medal stand. But all the participants deserve our respect, even those who qualify, arrive, and compete with neither success nor especially dramatic failure.

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Geez, the eight minutes (or so) of the closing ceremony allocated to the London organizers for "previewing" their turn at hosting four years from now ~ how lame!

I was especially embarrassed for Jimmy Page, reduced to miming his guitar part on an unplugged Les Paul while some young pop diva lip-synched her attempt to duplicate Robert Plant's vocal on that old overdone Led Zep hit. The sound quality was noticably inferior to everything else that evening, too, which only emphasized that sequence's overall mediocrity.

No Olympic host-country has ever spent the money that China just did, and none is likely to ever do so in the future ~ not "adjusted for inflation," anyway. But as far as the opening and closing ceremonies are concerned, more than simple overspending was involved in creating some truly impresssive moments. The director and his associates certainly put all that money to excellent use, resulting in showcase festivities were every bit as tasteful as they were overwhelmingly spectacular.

Vancouver and London should not feel that their inability to match Beijing's astronomical spending level handicaps them. It certainly shouldn't be taken as an excuse for a lackluster showing, because good taste doesn't cost money, and operating on a modest scale is no excuse for the of corniness we had to endure while that doubledecker bus was on the stadium floor.

True, an artistic director with proven skills should not be expected to work for free, but given the availability of a reasonable paycheck, qualified candidates should be falling all over each other for the opportunity to create a great show for the world stage. If patriotic pride isn't enough incentive, the promise of worldwide exposure and acclaim ought to attract someone who really knows how to put on a show.