The Dark Side of the Olympics

     VICE takes an in-depth look at the British public's reaction to The Games in London and the negative impact it's having on certain people's lives. While many politicians and advocates of the Olympic Games see the 10-day athletic spectacle as a huge asset to the host country's economy and pride, there is - as VICE calls it - a dark side to the Games.

     The issue becomes one of gentrification versus regeneration. East London - home of Olympic Village - is generally regarded as the poorer, more ethnically diverse side of London. While organizers claim that the Games have regenerated the area and created wonderful infrastructure and green space for citizens to utilize after the Games, many of the original inhabitants of the neighborhood have expressed an Olympic gentrification, where increased property values are slowly starting to squeeze them out of the area to make room for upper-income individuals and families looking to take advantage of the trendy "new" neighborhood.

One thing that's great about the Olympics is all the fabulous regeneration in East London. We went to meet all the lucky locals, such as the residents of the Carpenter's Estate, who have been evicted from their homes to make way for the Games. Some of them even got moved to Stoke! Lucky them. Marginally more hyped about the whole thing are the competitors in the Boris Johnson themed "wiff-waff" tournament (that's ping-pong to you, me, and everyone besides Boris).

It's not just politicians, capitalists, sportsmen, and protestors who are obsessed with the Olympics. Pornographers, gangsters, and alien conspiracy theorists are pretty excited about it too.

The 2012 London Olympics have been billed as "The Greenest Games the World Has Ever Seen," but, well, it's not as simple as that. In part 3, we take a look at the claims corporate sponsors are using as a PR stunt to cover up their checkered environmental and humanitarian pasts. Meanwhile, a monster has been spotted eating birds in the River Lea. We call in a cryptozoologist to investigate.

Rule Britannia scours the UK to partake of all the sordid offerings of this green and pleasant and messed-up land. Please politely enjoy the absolute best of Old Blighty.

What do you think?