[MacNNUK]

As shown on UK TV News, BBC & SKY.



Just how sinister were those Chinese "Smurfs" surrounding the Olympic Torch bearers as they ran through London.

Just who was talking into their earpieces, were they controlled direct from Beijing ?

Actually you can see the "Smurf" controller at the rear, talking into his hand.

Secret police ?

No doubt they were also there to present a cohesive Chinese backdrop to any photo's.

Totally scuppered by the protestors.

I note with interest that Chinese CCTV9 (on SKY) News programmes only showed the Chinese bloke, with the flame, standing on top of the aircraft steps.

Of course, absolutely no airing of the protests in London.

Then of course, such protests in China, or Tibet, would be met with massive Police and military force.

Having said that, the THREE rings of Police around the flame is a bit overkill, note the Yellow jacketed UK Police with their protective cycle helmets and eye protection. (visible in close up photo's)

Thank God for democracy.

[Yose]

Thanks for posting this.

Is this the first time the torch has had to have such forceful protection from the public/protestors? This issue is really hard for me. I visited Dharamsala in January and was lucky enough to be there with a communist Chinese born/raised/educated Canadian. Being able to talk to him at the same time as the Tibetans really showed me how deep this mess in Tibet goes... There has been at least 28 years (age of my friend) of education in China that Tibet has always belonged to China yet obviously the indigenous people who live there... or have fled from there disagree (and quite forcefully this last month... even 50 years after occupation/liberation).

That said... the image of this symbol of the Olympics in all that it represents being so surrounded by guards... well I think it says enough.

[Shaddim]

This is no surprise, England has more than it's fair share of nutters.

[Krypton]

I tuned into BBC News 24 on Sunday morning to see the fluorescent yellow policemen thumping some protesters who tried to get aboard the Olympic bus.

[Apemanblues]

Originally Posted by Shaddim 

This is no surprise, England has more than it's fair share of nutters.

*Raises hand*

[Nivag]

Originally Posted by Krypton 

I tuned into BBC News 24 on Sunday morning to see the fluorescent yellow policemen thumping some protesters who tried to get aboard the Olympic bus.

Did you see the footage of the ITV cameraman getting stamped on by the police after they pushed he over? A tad over the top, seeing as he wasn't directly in front of the torches path.

[Krypton]

Sadly I did not

The whole thing was frankly bizarre; those running with the torch looked apprehensive and anxious.

[olePigeon]

The U.S. does not recognize Tibet's independence. It'd be too hypocritical for the U.S. to condemn China given how the U.S. treated the Native Americans.

[analogika]

Originally Posted by olePigeon 

The U.S. does not recognize Tibet's independence. It'd be too hypocritical for the U.S. to condemn China given how the U.S. treated the Native Americans.

Bullshit.

Just as I don't think it's hypocritical for Germans to criticize human rights violations in Abu Ghraib because of what happened during the Third Reich.

[mitchell_pgh]

Originally Posted by olePigeon 

The U.S. does not recognize Tibet's independence. It'd be too hypocritical for the U.S. to condemn China given how the U.S. treated the Native Americans.

It's SO much more than just Tibet... it's the numerous human rights violations.

I will not be watching the Olympics...

[mitchell_pgh]

Originally Posted by analogika 

Bullshit.

Just as I don't think it's hypocritical for Germans to criticize human rights violations in Abu Ghraib because of what happened during the Third Reich.

That's silly... Germans have EVERY right to criticize human rights violations... I guess I have no right to comment about Tibet because of what the US did to Native Americans?

[Wiskedjak]

While I agree with the Dalai Lama that the athletes shouldn't be punished by boycotting the games for China's wrongs, I will be boycotting them myself and not watching the televised coverage.

[olePigeon]

Originally Posted by analogika 

Just as I don't think it's hypocritical for Germans to criticize human rights violations in Abu Ghraib because of what happened during the Third Reich.

That's just foreign policy, it doesn't reflect the respective countries' citizens' view on human rights. I agree 100% that everyone should be outraged when it comes to human rights violations.

Human rights violations aren't enough for the U.S. to do anything, there needs to be financial recourse. Unfortunately for Tibet, they don't have huge oil fields or some other resource to financially justify invading Tibet. Plus, if the U.S. did invade, I'm sure China would call in all their debts. So the U.S. has to resort to "diplomacy," which will go nowhere. China sees the hypocrisy in the U.S. demanding sovereignty for Tibet when the U.S.' has to deal with sovereignty issues with Native Americans.

[lpkmckenna]

I gave up on the Olympics long ago. It just has no reason to exist. Holding sporting events in places like Nazi Germany, Soviet Russia, or modern China is beyond the pale.

[Mithras]

I loved this sentence from the NYTimes article:

Despite heavy security, at least one activist got within a meter of the pack of Rollerblading police officers crowding around the torchbearer.

[MacNNUK]

I see the "Smurfs" wore identical dark glasses in Paris, so as not to be identified ?

Yet again, CCTV9 ignored the protests totally.

Apparently the runners had an excellent reception on the streets of London & Paris !!

I'm sure I recognised the main vociferous pro China demonstrators in Paris from London the day before.

I just wonder what the Chinese population make of any Internet reports they can find.

[Sherman Homan]

How the Chinese Olympic logo was created:
How the Beijing Olympics Got Its Logo

[peeb]

Originally Posted by analogika 

Bullshit.

Just as I don't think it's hypocritical for Germans to criticize human rights violations in Abu Ghraib because of what happened during the Third Reich.

Do Jews in Germany live on reservations?

[peeb]

Originally Posted by Sherman Homan 

How the Chinese Olympic logo was created:
How the Beijing Olympics Got Its Logo

How the Olympic torch was invented (not a joke).
BBC NEWS | Europe | The Olympic torch's shadowy past

[Sherman Homan]

Where does the BBC get that stuff?
wikipedia: Olympic Flame - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The Olympic Flame, Olympic Fire, Olympic Torch, Olympic Light, Olympic Eye, and Olympic Sun are all names for an important symbol of the Olympic Games. Commemorating the theft of fire from the Greek god Zeus by Prometheus, its origins lie in ancient Greece, when a fire was kept burning throughout the celebration of the ancient Olympics. The fire was reintroduced at the 1928 Summer Olympics in Amsterdam, and it has been part of the modern Olympic Games ever since.

[peeb]

The Berlin olympics appears to have been the first modern one with the torch being carried by relay runners from Olympia to the site of the games.

[gradient]

Originally Posted by Sherman Homan 

Where does the BBC get that stuff?
wikipedia: Olympic Flame - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Uhh..... that wikipedia article supports what the BBC says.

The modern convention of moving the Olympic Flame via a relay system from Olympia to the Olympic venue began with the 1936 Summer Olympics in Berlin, Germany.

[MacNNUK]

The Nazis introduced it.

The Chinese Nazi's now perpetuate the tradition, to their own ends.

[MacNNUK]

Once again the Aussies show the way, by banning the "Smurfs"

[philm]

Originally Posted by MacNNUK 

I just wonder what the Chinese population make of any Internet reports they can find.

The BBC web site is now accessible in China after years of being blocked. See:

BBC NEWS | World | Asia-Pacific | The challenges of reporting in China

[paul w]

Originally Posted by MacNNUK 

The Chinese Nazi's now perpetuate the tradition, to their own ends.

Yet you show no fear of the apostrophe nazis.

[MacNNUK]

They're different Nazis !!

[peeb]

Originally Posted by paul w 

Yet you show no fear of the apostrophe nazis.

In modern usage, the apostrophe means "Look out! Here comes an 'S'!"

[Monique]

Originally Posted by analogika 

Bullshit.

Just as I don't think it's hypocritical for Germans to criticize human rights violations in Abu Ghraib because of what happened during the Third Reich.

What are the German people today have to do with the third Reich. The German of today are peaceful and live in a very democratic society on which we should take example.

As for the torch it is a shame the protesters did not succeed in extinguishing it. They still have a chance in the U.S.

If the world leaders had some guts they would all boycot the opening ceremonies not the games because the athletes deserve to participate in it.

But, I am not going to watch anything and call on all of you not to watch the Olympics this time around. It is very shameful what China is doing in Tibet.

[analogika]

Originally Posted by Monique 

What are the German people today have to do with the third Reich. The German of today are peaceful and live in a very democratic society on which we should take example.

DID ANYBODY BOTHER TO READ THE POST I WAS REPLYING TO goddammit?

[ShortcutToMoncton]

Originally Posted by MacNNUK 

The Chinese Nazi's now perpetuate the tradition, to their own ends.

I guess everyone will just choose to ignore the amusing phrase "Chinese Nazis" then....

greg

[peeb]

You mean you don't think the Chinese are Aryan supremacists?

[torsoboy]

Originally Posted by peeb 

Do Jews in Germany live tax free (while at the same time using public resources), have no laws applying to them, get free schooling and free housing, and build mega million dollar resorts all over the country where no one else is allowed to do so?

Fixinated.

[MacNNUK]

According to the Daily Telegraph.....

Olympic flame guards belong to police units that crushed dissent in Tibet

The Chinese guards of the Olympic flame seen fending off protesters in London and Paris are elite members of the paramilitary units which crushed dissent in Tibet, it has been disclosed.

Officially described as "volunteers" by Beijing, the 30 blue track-suited guards were recruited from specialist squads in the People's Armed Police (PAP), a one-million strong force dedicated to maintaining public order.

The PAP has moved into Tibet and Tibetan-settled areas since the protests against Chinese rule began last month. It has been accused by Tibet support groups of opening fire on demonstrators.

The Free Tibet Campaign called on Britain to explain why PAP forces were allowed to take charge of the torch relay operation.

The hand-picked members of the "The Olympic Holy Flame Protection Unit" are all above 5ft 9in and underwent a rigorous training programme at the PAP special police academy in Beijing last August.

Each has the rank of lieutenant apart from their commanding officer, a major, and each scored highly in military and "political tests" - the latter a euphemism for ideological training.
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"According to the customs of the past Olympic Games, the flame has to be given some protection measures," a spokesman said. "The mission of the attendants is to protect the safety of the flame."

But images of Chinese security forces directing operations on the streets of London have caused alarm. Lord Coe, chairman of the London Olympic Committee, was overheard by Channel 4 News saying: "They tried to push me out of the way three times. They are horrible. They did not speak English... I think they were thugs."

Konnie Huq, the former Blue Peter presenter who was in the middle of one fracas between protesters and the attendants, described how they shouted orders at her and pushed her arm to make her lift the torch higher.

"They were very robotic, very full on, and actually I noticed them having skirmishes with our own police and the Olympic authorities before our leg of the relay, which was confusing," she said.

Australia says that the flame attendants would have no role in the security operation when the torch passes through Canberra next Tuesday. "I have seen what occurred in London and I can tell you that type of security arrangement will not be occurring here," said Michael Phelan, the police chief of Canberra.

The guards, whose training was revealed by a Hong Kong newspaper backed by the Chinese government, had to pass a series of intense physical fitness trials, which included long-distance running and an obstacle course. They have also received extra tuition in subjects far beyond the scope of most police academies.

The classes included international manners and learning how to say "forward", "back", "fast", and "slow" in English, French, German, Spanish, and Japanese. They were also taught basic physics, including how to prevent a flame from going out.

There are a minimum of three attendants at all times. On board their specially chartered Air China jet, at least one must remain awake throughout the night, watching the "Olympic lanterns" that each contain a flame from which the torch is lit.

Their boss has been named by a government website as Zhao Si, though pseudonyms are sometimes employed to protect real identities in such circumstances. "These men, chosen from around the country, are each tall and large and are eminently talented and powerful," he was quoted as saying. "Their outstanding physical quality is not in the slightest inferior to that of specialised athletes."

Matt Whitticase, a spokesman for the Free Tibet Campaign, said: "It beggars belief that personnel from the PAP were allowed on to the streets of London at all, let alone that they were allowed to push the Metropolitan Police around.

"The British government must explain immediately who authorised this unit to scuffle with our own police and whether it knew they came from the PAP when they were authorised to escort the flame on London's streets."