[time-nuts] Whoops

[GandalfG8 at aol.com]

When the clock stops in your hallway, it's a nuisance,  but not a big deal. 
You get some new batteries, or you wind it up again, and you  carry on with 
your life.

But when the Olympic Clock stops – the clock  that counts down the days, 
hours, minutes and seconds to the next Olympic Games  – _well, that's mighty 
embarrassing indeed. _ 
(http://www.usatoday.com/sports/olympics/2011-03-15-1599900376_x.htm) 

Earlier  today, the clock read 500 days, 7 hours, 6 minutes, 56 seconds. It 
continues to  read exactly that. Argh. Urgh. Eep. Etc.

International humiliation over  technical faults before the games have even 
begun is exactly what we didn't want  to happen – especially as it was just 
a day ago that the clock was unveiled in  Trafalgar Square by Lord 
Sebastian Coe and Boris Johnson.

If this isn't a  bad omen, we don't know what is. Though to be fair, the 
steel clock is made by  Olympic sponsor Omega and not really the 
responsibility of London's Olympic  Planning committee. That said, this stuff still 
shouldn't be happening... 500  days, 7 hours, 6 minutes, 56 seconds before the 
games.

Omega has since  announced that: "We are very disappointed that it has 
stopped working. It's  obviously a technical fault and we've got people working 
on it now." Best get on  it quick, Omega men – the world is watching. 
Literally.