Civil liberties campaigners “have urged police not to crack down hard on small traders suspected of breaching strict rules on the use of Olympic logos and words,” according to Rosa Silverman of the London TELEGRAPH. The restrictions mean that “only official sponsors are allowed to display images of the Olympic rings,” or use the phrases “London 2012” and “Olympics.” But critics have “branded the London Olympic Games and Paralympic Games Act 2006 that brought in the ban as ‘chilling.’” Former U.K. Labor Sports Minister Richard Caborn, who “took the legislation through Parliament, defended the Act as both necessary and successful, and pointed out that no-one had yet been prosecuted over it” (London TELEGRAPH, 7/17). The AP’s Jill Lawless writes, "The guardians of the games are vigilant about protecting the integrity -- and the commercial clout -- of the Olympic brand.” But they “can't stop the irreverent spirit of artists and craftspeople, who have responded to the games with a cheeky mix of celebration, skepticism and satire.” T-shirts for sale in London street markets show “a masked and hooded youth sneaking off with one of the five Olympic rings.” Another T-shirt “depicts The Beatles crossing a London street in the famous photo from the cover of ‘Abbey Road,’ the Olympic rings tucked under their arms” (AP, 7/17).
