Let the Torch Run and Run

Below remarks from Nevius at the SF Chronicle, and I include them because I smile and disagree that the torch is not working. Let the torch run. The interest in the games has not been this heated since the '68 games in Mexcio City and the protest by the American black athletes after the assassination of Martin Luther King. The games are politics. The torch is politics. Extinguishing the flame is grand prankster behavior. And Nevius opines that the Beijing cadre is not listening. I know they are listening extremely closely. They are sleepless. Shame works on these aparatchiks. They blame each other for their humiliation. What do they think, if at all? They can brutalize Tibet and we won't notice? They can ignore the voices of their own one billion people? This is easy. The torch lights up the problem for the century. China is a world power with the political maturity of a toddler and a leadership that is in disgrace. Gentlemen, Go. Meanwhile, the torch runs and runs, headed to Mt. Everest in May or June. In Tibet. Brilliant staging.







Extinguish torch before someone gets burned
C.W. Nevius
Tuesday, April 8, 2008

Let's face it, the reaction to the Olympic torch relay for the Beijing Olympic Games is getting worse, not better. So far there have been riots in Paris and police clashes in London. On Wednesday, the Olympic torch will be in San Francisco, and the entire city is anticipating the worst. Is there anyone who isn't dreading the possibility of something awful happening?
It seems there is no way out. But there is.
Cancel the torch tour.
Not just the San Francisco portion, all of it. The tipping point came on Monday when Tove Paule, the head of the Norwegian Olympic Committee, called for the tour to be stopped.
"Should violent demonstrations occur in all the places the torch relay is visiting," she said, "it is not a positive thing. It's a shame, because the athletic achievements we will see will disappear in the politics."
She's right.
Understand, there is no bigger fan of the Olympic Games than me. I've been to eight of them and get a lump in my throat at every Opening and Closing Ceremony. I would be totally against canceling the Beijing Games, or a boycott by the United States. I don't even think the Americans should boycott the Opening Ceremony.
But this torch run is nothing more than a PR stunt invented to build interest in the Games. And this year it has gone wrong. Why stubbornly cling to the idea of carrying a flaming stick through the streets, when it only serves to ignite confrontation?
Protesters hope to pressure China into addressing its human rights record. But is anyone in China paying attention?
Paule was in Beijing during the London protests and said that as soon as they began, Chinese television cut the signal and the televisions went black.
And it isn't likely that things will get better after the torch leaves here. There are reports of problems in India, where Tibetan protesters have already attacked the Chinese Embassy and Indian authorities have shortened the planned route.
And just wait until the torch makes it way to Tibet. Think there might be a problem or two there?
Look, Monday's protest on the Golden Gate Bridge was about as effective and safe as you are going to see. On a sun-splashed San Francisco day, three climbers scaled cables on the Golden Gate Bridge, unfurled two banners with the precision of an America's Cup crew, then came down peacefully to turn themselves over to authorities.
Given the scenic backdrop of one of the most famous bridges in the world, the San Francisco protesters knew that their "Free Tibet" banner was going to be broadcast on every news show in the country.
"The idea is to get the message out, but make sure it is clear that this is not an extreme or violent action," said Lhadon Tethong, a native Tibetan who lives in New York and traveled to San Francisco to coordinate media coverage for Team Tibet. "Our intention was not to massively tie up traffic."
And that's great. But as the determined zealots have shown in Paris - and a day earlier in London - if you are going to have someone trot down the middle of the road with a burning torch, it is almost impossible to stop disruptions. Tethong says she was in London in the days leading up to the Sunday run and personally met many of those planning to protest.
"But when I saw the protesters on TV," she said, "I didn't recognize any of them."
It is the unmistakable sign of an event that has taken on a life of its own. Despite all the organization and planning, it is entirely possible that splinter groups may take over the San Francisco torch run with the same kind of extreme tactics seen in London and Paris.
" 'Don't touch the runners,' " Tethong says Team Tibet told its supporters. "It is not about the runners. But whatever else happens is not in our control."
Of course, you've heard city officials say that San Francisco is ready for the protests. But officials in London and Paris also were confident.
And frankly, Monday's protest on the bridge didn't do much to build anyone's confidence about security. Surely there was enough time, as three people laid out their gear, attached to the cables and hopped up on the safety railing, for someone to notice that something was amiss.
Luckily, this group was committed to keeping things as calm and peaceful as possible. Traffic on the bridge was slowed, but not stopped, and there were no conflicts between the climbers and police.
"When you're not blowing things up," Tethong said, "every once in a while you have to take your message to the sky."
That's a lofty goal, and one to be applauded. Unfortunately, this protest has taken on a life of its own. It started as an Olympic flame but it is turning into a firestorm. Put it out before something unforgivable happens.
C.W. Nevius' column appears on Tuesday, Thursday, and Sunday. E-mail him at cwnevius@sfchronicle.com.