China gets torched

It's rare that I'm on the same page as rioting French protesters. Granted, I'm more concerned with China's dismal human rights record overall than I am their position on Tibet. But still, it's good to see the international embarrassment this is bringing China.

Officials put out Olympic torch 3 times

PARIS - Security officials extinguished the Olympic torch three times Monday as protests against China's human rights record turned a relay through Paris into a chaotic series of stops and starts.

Despite massive security, at least two activists got within almost an arm's length of the flame before they were grabbed by police. Officers tackled many protesters and carried off some of them. A protester threw water at the torch but failed to extinguish it and was also taken away.
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Some 3,000 officers were deployed on motorcycles, in jogging gear and using inline roller skates. Still, police barely stopped the second rush at the torch, and the attempt to extinguish it with water. Other demonstrators scaled the Eiffel Tower and hung a banner depicting the Olympic rings as handcuffs.

The propaganda coming from Chinese authorities is laughable.

"The act of defiance from this small group of people is not popular," said Sun Weide, a spokesman for the Beijing Olympic organizing committee. "It will definitely be criticized by people who love peace and adore the Olympic spirit. Their attempt is doomed to failure."

Doomed to failure? Who says that anymore? And I think it takes more than a "small group of people" to get past 3,000 officers!

The protesters have been effective in canceling torch relays.

Olympic torch relay cancelled amid protests

PARIS (Reuters) - A relay of the Olympic torch through Paris was cancelled on Monday and the flame was put on a bus at the request of Chinese officials after pro-Tibetan protesters repeatedly snarled its progress, police said.

The Chinese authorities organizing the five-hour passage of the torch decided to give up the road relay after human rights demonstrations in front of parliament and opted instead to speed the flame through the streets on a bus.

Shortly before, the Chinese cancelled a planned reception for the torch at Paris city hall at the last minute after a banner supporting human rights was hung from the facade of the building, mayor Bernard Delanoe told reporters.

"The Chinese officials decided they would not stop here because they were put out by Parisian citizens expressing their support for human rights. It is their responsibility," he said.

If the French can do anything, they can protest!

San Francisco seems to have had a protesting bug for a number of years as well. I can't wait to see what happens when the torch lands there...