Olympic Collectors Go for Gold

But many make far less than they'd hoped from collectibles

(NEWSER) - With money tight, many are seeking to part with collectibles they’d hoped to hold onto—and reaping smaller rewards than they’d expected, the Chicago Tribune reports. “I wanted my daughter to have some sort of family heirloom. It can’t be that way right now,” said a woman selling her Beanie Babies collection, which she’d hoped would help with college tuition, for just $100. More»

A look back at a successful 2 weeks

(NEWSER) - The 2008 Beijing Olympic Games wrapped up today with a star-studded fireworks-filled extravaganza worthy of its opening, Reuters reports. With 51 golds, China easily topped the medal rankings, capping a near-flawlessly-executed couple of weeks that saw smog lifting, transport worries evaporating, and Tibet protests dwindling. Still, arrests and suppression of free speech marred China's image, say critics. More»

And other updates from the chaos

(NEWSER) - Police are struggling to restore order on the streets of London after three days of rioting and looting. Here are some updates from the Telegraph's exhaustive coverage:

• David Cameron seemed to criticized the police effort , saying it needed to be “more robust,” and saying that the number of officers on the street tonight would swell from 6,000 to 16,000, with all police leave canceled.
• In an ironic turn, the Iranian Foreign Ministry has urged the British police to “show restraint” and said it would ask human rights organizations to investigate the fatal shooting that precipitated the riots.

Gymnast Dong Fangxiao was just 14 at the time

(AP) - China was stripped of a bronze medal from the 2000 Sydney Olympics today for fielding an underage female gymnast, with the women's team medal now going to the US. The International Olympic Committee acted after investigations by the sport's governing body determined that Dong Fangxiao was only 14 at the 2000 Games. Gymnasts must turn 16 during the Olympic year to be eligible. More»

Alleged culprits weren't Nazis, they were just 'ordinary thieves'

(NEWSER) - The five men arrested for stealing Auschwitz’s infamous sign aren’t neo-Nazis, they’re just "ordinary thieves" who were working for memorabilia collectors, police say. “There is a huge market on the internet for this kind of stuff,” said one expert in Holocaust studies. “Many of the collectors are in the United States. Even such things as faked World War Two Jewish ghetto money can fetch thousands.” More»