Snapshot

Nearing the end of its epic journey through every corner of the UK, the Olympic Flame began its 70th and last day of travel at the Hampton Court Palace. 

It's been a bad week for Mitt. Always slightly out of step with the public at large, Romney chose to address the NAACP on Wednesday, drawing jeers from the audience for his remarks. In an interview following the speech, Mitt said he had expected to be booed. 

Matthew Pinsent, the UK's gold-medal rowing champion, bore the Flame onto Her Majesty's rowbarge, which the Queen christened Gloriana during her Diamond Jubilee. 

American sources have expressed concern that Assad's government motives for surrounding the city of Aleppo is to deliberately and systematically wipe out the population in that town. This concern has not driven the US government to act unilaterally, perhaps demonstrating some wisdom gained following the disastrous impact of the American decisions in beginning the Iraq war on international relations. 

Deliberately provocative speech? Ah the good old days of the Republican debates when the candidates were tripping over themselves to woo various groups of Americans. Perhaps Mitt's utter rejection by the Jewish community he brown-nosed so basely during the debates hurt his feelings, and he didn't want to risk it again. 

This stately vessel carried the Flame down the Thames, rowed by 16 proud Britons on the long oars. Seven torchbearers carried the flame while on the Queen's barge. Ending today's journey at the Tower Bridge, the Flame will next be seen when it appears at the Opening Ceremony.

The alternative is even more distasteful on Mitt's part, so we'll leave it at that. Mitt was up for another rejection anyway, as Condoleezaa Rice flatly responded to "leaks" to the Drudge Report that Mitt was eyeing her as a running mate by stating, again, that she has no interest in the VP spot.

The UN chief of human rights, Navi Pillay, has issued a plea to all parties to keep the civilian population out of the conflict. William Hague, the British foreign secretary, is said to be "deeply concerned" over the troop movements of the government forces in Syria, describing the situation in Aleppo as an "utterly unacceptable escalation of the conflict."