Does Brian Williams have any purpose in the opening ceremonies coverage other than to chime in every now and then about how fucked up or terrorized a country is as its athletes enter the stadium?

I'm just asking. [Update #2: Link added to TV Squad, which obviously agrees.]

Update #1: Oh, please. The entire idea behind the "olympic flame" is that it's lit in Athens, and the same fire burns throughout the journey until it's used to light the cauldron at the Games. The flame even travels with a backup also lit at Athens, in case the torch is dropped or goes out. The pyrotechnics at Turin were nice, but touching the flame to a device that sets off fireworks and causes the cauldron to light itself is not the same. Why even bother?