Here's what to watch for at the London Olympics Today

1. OPENING CEREMONY: A celebration of British culture, with a touch of Shakespeare, pop music, James Bond — and even some farm animals. A huge worldwide audience will tune in for the extravaganza, which starts at 4 p.m. ET.

2. WHO WILL LIGHT THE TORCH? Bookmakers are now convinced it will be Sir Roger Bannister, the first man to break the four-minute mile. But is there another mystery contender?

3. WEATHER: Will the famous English rain blight the opening ceremony? It's been hot and sunny all week in the British capital — but a little wet this morning.

4. REFEREE DIES: A Turkish boxing referee has been found dead in his London hotel room. It appears he suffered a heart attack. Autopsy results expected later Friday.

5. ROMNEY FALLOUT: What will Londoners make of Mitt Romney's implication that the city isn't ready for the games? Will it draw them together?

Fencer Mariel Zagunis chosen to carry U.S. flag at Opening Ceremony

By Maggie Hendricks

Two-time Olympic gold medal-winning fencer Mariel Zagunis will get the honor of carrying in the United States flag during Friday's Olympic Opening Ceremony. 

She was chosen by her Team USA teammates. 

Previous flag bearers have included runner Lopez Lomong, wrestler Bruce Baumgartner and decathlete Rafer Johnson.

"I'm extremely humbled by this incredible privilege," said Zagunis in a statement. "As an athlete, I can't imagine a higher honor than to lead Team USA into the Olympic Games, which are the pinnacle of sport and a platform for world peace. I am tremendously proud to represent my sport, our team and, most importantly, the United States of America."

I am getting a great deal of enjoyment out of all of these political ads on television. Not only Obama and Romney, but all of the other "privately" sponsored ads as well. I almost look forward to them appearing on our TV. How is that possible, you ask?

I keep the controller, in hand, mute button at the ready, and the more proficient I get at hitting that button, the less audio I get. I have my button hitting time down to a mini-second.

Oh, the peace and quiet during those commercials, only an occasional hum of our air conditioner unit, or perhaps a car passing by our apartment.

I'm beginning to find out to, that many of the new "reality" shows on TV are much better with the sound off. Especially  some of the one-hour shows. Sixty minutes of quiet, so refreshing. No talking, no music, no drama, no yelling, no arguing, and that's just what was on the TV.

My biggest problem now, after watching all these political ads, Obama talking about Romney, in a negative way, and vice versa, is it better to hit the MUTE button, or just turn the whole set off? Actually, with the quality of the new shows, all the commercials on and between shows, political ads, might just be best to get rid of the TV. No, I guess I better wait till after football season, yea, the Olympics too. Just gotta keep that MUTE button handy. Whoops, commercial, CLICK.

The Olympic Torch - Some history

LONDON – When the most famous flame in sports winds its way through the streets of London before entering the Olympic Stadium and providing the 2012 Games with one of its most iconic images, it will be seen as a touching gesture of symbolism, grace and a nod to the ancient world.


Yet while the torch relay began once again at the historic site of Olympia on May 10 and is an integral part of any Games, its modern incarnation comes laced with sinister undertones that can be traced back to Adolf Hitler's Nazi Party and the controversial 1936 Olympics in Berlin.

Many of those witnessing the final journey of the flame July 27 will have little idea that its origins do not lie in ancient Greece, and was instead formulated as a major part of the Nazis' plot to shift international opinion in their favor.

"There had been no such torch relays in the ancient Games or, for that matter, in any of the 10 modern Summer Olympics preceding the Berlin Games," wrote renowned author David Clay Large in his outstanding book, "Nazi Games: The Olympics of 1936," which was published in 2007. "The torch relay was one of but many ways in which the Nazi Games helped define the modern Olympic experience as we know it today."

The torch relay would play a major role in the propaganda offensive backed by Hitler and orchestrated by Dr. Joseph Goebbels. In the lead-up to the Games, the Nazi Propaganda Ministry supported a relay of the Olympic flame that would not only provide spectacular footage for Olympia, the 1938 film that was used to promote the Nazi ideal ahead of World War II, but could also be used for significant political and public relations benefit.

Cattle Guards

For those of you who have never traveled to the West or Southwest, cattle guards are horizontal steel rails placed at fence openings, in dug-out places in the roads adjacent to highways (sometimes across highways), to prevent cattle from crossing over that area.  For some reason the cattle will not step on the "guards," probably because they fear getting their feet caught between the rails.

A few months ago, President Obama received a report that there were over 100,000 cattle guards in Colorado .  Because Colorado ranchers had protested his proposed changes in grazing policies, he ordered the Secretary of the Interior to fire half of the cattle guards immediately.

Before the Interior Secretary could respond and presumably straighten him out, Vice-President Joe Biden intervened with a request that before any guards were fired, they be given six months of retraining.

Passed on without further comment....