Paper Monitor
13:53 UK time, Monday, 21 May 2012
A service highlighting the riches of the daily press.
Thousands of people have been enjoying the spectacle of the 8000-mile Olympic torch relay, so it is no surprise to learn that a number of torchbearers have put their gold-coloured torches up for sale on a popular online auction site.
Here, charity worker and community gardener Sarah Milner Simonds explains to ³ÉÈËÂÛ̳ Breakfast why she hopes to sell her torch.
The Mirror, which describes the sellers as "cashing in on their once-in-a-lifetime privilege" suggests that some from people angered by the sales.
The Timeshas penned headlined "The Price of Competition":
"The Olympic spirit is all about competition but not really about price competition. These are difficult economic times and the profit on offer must be attractive to many of the bearers of the Olympic Flame. But if they hold on to the souvenir, surely the memory of the day they took part in the Olympic ceremonies will gather interest over time, much more so that the short-term profit realised by an online transaction."
Writing in the same paper, , although he describes it as "tacky" and "rather ungrateful". But he points the finger at the IOC, arguing that the symbolism has little to do with ancient Greece but is rather something that is pursued with gusto by the IOC's commercial unit to make money. "By continuing to fabricate the notion that the torch connects ancient and modern," he writes, "the IOC has helped to create a brand measured in the billions of dollars."
He concludes:
"The torch relay is a marketing wheeze, not some quasi-religious ceremony. So let's not get too sanctimonious about those who try to sell the flaming thing on eBay."
Londoner David Stanley writing in the Daily Telegraph's letters page is also concerned about .
Mr Stanley, along with his children, had been hoping to collect the 29 different Olympic 50-pence pieces that were released by the Royal Mint last year. He writes that so far, he has only received one - a coin illustrating the sport of shooting - in his change. "Funnily enough, they are available on websites for between six and 10 times their monetary value," he writes.
Paper Monitor recalls neighbourhood kids returning from school recently clutching commemorative coins that had been handed to each pupil. One told Paper Monitor that his might be worth a bit more than 50p one day.
Your humble columnist will now be checking eBay to see if said lad is seeking to top up his pocket money.
The 
