Below the Open Thread fold... A little music from one Beck or another...

We'll start off with a little humour from a transplanted Canadian and an official Ambassador for the Vancouver Olympic Games, Stephen Colbert, on an odd Olympic recession and the results:

A recent snapshot of the Olympics going on in Vancouver:

Olympic City Tries To Rise above Recession

“You have to predict the unpredictable”, says Dave Cobb, deputy chief
executive of Vanoc, the committee that has put together the 2010 Winter Olympics.

Were it not for the unpredictable, the games, whose opening ceremony
took place late on Friday, might be remembered as a model of good
housekeeping and environmental stewardship.

The sporting venues
were built on time and on budget. A new subway line links the airport
to the city centre. The athletes’ village, with a view over one of
Vancouver’s many picturesque waterways, sets high standards in energy-efficient construction.

However,
unforeseen events have taken the shine off these accomplishments. An
unprecedented economic boom pushed up labour and material costs during
the early preparations. Then the recession hit. Most recently, the
weather has dampened the Olympic spirit. Vancouver has had its warmest
start to a year ever, and rain has kept revellers off the streets for
the past few days.

The recession hits home for Team USA:

Tonight's (Tuesday, July 21, at 11:30 pm EDT) Colbert Report will have Dr. Aaron Carroll talking about single-payer health reform.

Dr. Carroll is a board member of Physicians for a National Health Program, an organization of 16,000 physicians, medical students and health professionals who support single-payer national health insurance.