Protesting the Olympic Torch...

know1

....is just an asinine thing to do.

I do not support China or the things it does that make people want to protest, but come on - these people are hassling the poor person whose dream it was to run with the Olympic torch.

China doesn't care if protestors block the way and scream things at some poor schmuck who was lucky enough to be granted the honor of running with the torch.

dunkman

know1 wrote:

China doesn't care if protestors block the way and scream things at some poor schmuck who was lucky enough to be granted the honor of running with the torch.

couldnt agree more... if anyone thinks that the leader of China is sitting somewhere watching it and thinking "hey that guy put out the torch... perhaps i should remove from Tibet...hmmmmmm man putting out torch is indeed a formidable foe." then they are sadly deluded.


phone calls from Bush, Brown, Putin... pffttt!!! what they need is a man putting out torch!

catefrances

so what? you just sit on your arse cause you dont think it'll make a difference? thats bollocks and you know it. if you believe in something then you act upon those beliefs. you dont say oh she'll be right ...cause it generally isnt right in the end. you can't have principles and not act on them.

inmytree

I think it's fine to protest the torch...

the olympics have turned into a money-making venture anyway, so protesting the symbol of this money-making venture makes some sense...

It's nice that some think it's asinine, those protesting may disagree...

dunkman

catefrances wrote:

so what? you just sit on your arse cause you dont think it'll make a difference? thats bollocks and you know it. if you believe in something then you act upon those beliefs. you dont say oh she'll be right ...cause it generally isnt right in the end. you can't have principles and not act on them.

you protest at suitable political events that involve Chinese diplomats... or organise demos through the streets of certain cities at certain times and have a collective show of disdain for the Chinese government rather than a few haphazard attempts at stuffing out an Olympic flame..

i'm ok with people protesting all the way down the route of the torch... i think thats how good protests work... but crazy folk running from the crowd and attacking a sportsperson so they can try and wrestle a torch off them is both pitiful and pointless.


reminds me of the story about some shitty London college writing a letter to Saddam Hussein asking him to stop bombing the Kurds... i bet he was shitting himself ... "ohhhh nooo a letter from Islington Musical College!!!!! I must stop killing these people or they will never stop writing angry letters!!

the letter was signed by about 74 students... big deal

yellowsnowbetter

ok....so i want to make sure i understand the "protest" concept.

if i want to protest gas prices.......i should approach the cashier who is granting me access to put gas into my car.

i think i understand........attack the weakest.

catefrances

dunkman wrote:

you protest at suitable political events that involve Chinese diplomats... or organise demos through the streets of certain cities at certain times and have a collective show of disdain for the Chinese government rather than a few haphazard attempts at stuffing out an Olympic flame..

i'm ok with people protesting all the way down the route of the torch... i think thats how good protests work... but crazy folk running from the crowd and attacking a sportsperson so they can try and wrestle a torch off them is both pitiful and pointless.


reminds me of the story about some shitty London college writing a letter to Saddam Hussein asking him to stop bombing the Kurds... i bet he was shitting himself ... "ohhhh nooo a letter from Islington Musical College!!!!! I must stop killing these people or they will never stop writing angry letters!!

the letter was signed by about 74 students... big deal

so were sitting here discussing the inanity of snuffing out the olympic torch. so... if we're discussing it and are already aware( i would think) of the atrocities committed by the chinese government, then imagine someone who was completely oblivious to what china gets up to, watching the telly and questioning what it is they are seeing? they ask why this is happening. they go find out. they discover a conscience they never knew they had. their mind is awakened and they start to protest in whatever way they see fit. that to me is the reasoning behind the actions weve seen on our tvs these past days.

LikeAnOpeningBandForTheSun

It has embarrassed China slightly, not that they give a shit.

whoever protests inside china has balls.

dunkman

catefrances wrote:

so were sitting here discussing the inanity of snuffing out the olympic torch. so... if we're discussing it and are already aware( i would think) of the atrocities committed by the chinese government, then imagine someone who was completely oblivious to what china gets up to, watching the telly and questioning what it is they are seeing? they ask why this is happening. they go find out. they discover a conscience they never knew they had. their mind is awakened and they start to protest in whatever way they see fit. that to me is the reasoning behind the actions weve seen on our tvs these past days.

if anyone only knows about the Chinese situation as a result of this TV debacle then i think rather than protest against the Olympic torch they should protest about their own lack of education.

ajedigecko

MrSmith wrote:

It has embarrassed China slightly, not that they give a shit.

whoever protests inside china has balls.

i agree, not about embarrassing china, but protesting inside china.....that takes courage on another level.

catefrances

dunkman wrote:

if anyone only knows about the Chinese situation as a result of this TV debacle then i think rather than protest against the Olympic torch they should protest about their own lack of education.

you could be right about that dunk. but you know as well as i do there are millions of people who get ALL their info from the telly. it is the strongest influence on how these people form their opinions and what those opinions will be.

TrixieCat

dunkman wrote:

you protest at suitable political events that involve Chinese diplomats... or organise demos through the streets of certain cities at certain times and have a collective show of disdain for the Chinese government rather than a few haphazard attempts at stuffing out an Olympic flame..

i'm ok with people protesting all the way down the route of the torch... i think thats how good protests work... but crazy folk running from the crowd and attacking a sportsperson so they can try and wrestle a torch off them is both pitiful and pointless.


reminds me of the story about some shitty London college writing a letter to Saddam Hussein asking him to stop bombing the Kurds... i bet he was shitting himself ... "ohhhh nooo a letter from Islington Musical College!!!!! I must stop killing these people or they will never stop writing angry letters!!

the letter was signed by about 74 students... big deal

While I understand what you are saying, you can't fault people for doing their own small part. Think globally, act locally. A small storm can turn into a monsoon.
However, I have said before, trying to extinguish the flame is not cool. It is spitting in the faces of these kids that are so proud of what they have accomplished.
I also don't think someone riding the sofa and watching the tv is suddenly going to get off their ass and start boycotting all that is Chinese. It just doesn't work that way. Yes, they may get up in arms in their homes, sitting on the sofa, but I doubt it will go farther than that. If they are not aware of the situation in TIbet by now....well...TURN OFF THE TV AND READ A PAPER or go to the library.

catefrances

TrixieCat wrote:

TURN OFF THE TV AND READ A PAPER or go to the library.

hmm well i'd be very cautious about suggesting people read the newspaper as an alternative to watching the telly. theyare just too similar too often as far as i can see. one has to know which papers are worth the effort(and which to avoid..hello murdoch press) and yet upon learning that, to take everything they read with a grain of salt and back it up in the library as you suggested.

Pacomc79

I agree with you on this. Heckling the people who wanted to be a part of the torch relay is retarded. Protest to your hearts content, hang banners what have you, don't mess with the athletes, torch bearers etc. What the hell did that do but want to be a part of the Olympics... It's really not thier fault china is occupied by a government who could give a shit less about the environment or it's citizens.

What people should be doing is calling out the pathetic IOC. Those guys are the reason this thing landed in China in the first place. Let them hear about it and let them hear it years ago when they decided to go to China.

sweetpotato

i think protesting is fine, but trying to grab the torch and/or any other harrassment of the torch bearer or the athletes is wrong, imo. i actually financially support the free tibet group- have for several years now- but i disagree with any violence or other non-peaceful acts used in an attempt to draw attention to the cause. i agree with the dalai lama on this, as i do on most everything else he says. he has threatened to step down if the violence continues.

blackredyellow

I don't really have a problem with it... Like any other cause, awareness is the key, and this definitely one way to get publicity.

However, I really hope that there is no boycotts or disruptions at the games themselves. It's not the athletes' fault of the political actions of China. I guess you could say the same thing about the people carrying the torch, but it's not like they have been training everyday of their lives, and investing all of their resources to get ready to carry a torch.

edit: and the whole attacking the runners/snuffing out the torch thing is retarded... When I said protesting, I was thinking more along the lines of the people who are protesting along the route with signs and things like that.

catefrances

sweetpotato wrote:

i think protesting is fine, but trying to grab the torch and/or any other harrassment of the torch bearer or the athletes is wrong, imo. i actually financially support the free tibet group- have for several years now- but i disagree with any violence or other non-peaceful acts used in an attempt to draw attention to the cause. i agree with the dalai lama on this, as i do on most everything else he says. he has threatened to step down if the violence continues.

well as much as is admire the dalai lama, i see this as an empty threat. though i dont doubt or fault his motivation. im sure he is fully aware of what the tibetan people will lose if he steps down. he is an extremely charasmatic leader and his loss could well be irrevocable.

know1

I respect their right to protest, but I just envision some poor girl in a wheelchair who was granted a wish of carrying the torch being heckled and protested the entire time.

I'm even of the opinion that hanging the banners or waving negative signs at them is just wrong.

(not wrong in the sense of having the right to protest, but wrong in the sense of protesting the wrong thing and ruining someone's dreams)

SoonForgotten2

Sorry, but to say that there shouldn't be protest because of the torch bearer/athletes dreams is ridiculous. We're talking about the well being on millions of people here and no, it's certainly not a new issue but this is as good a time as any to speak up internationally about it. Sorry torch bearers and athletes, better luck next time.

dunkman

SoonForgotten2 wrote:

Sorry, but to say that there shouldn't be protest because of the torch bearer/athletes dreams is ridiculous. We're talking about the well being on millions of people here and no, it's certainly not a new issue but this is as good a time as any to speak up internationally about it. Sorry torch bearers and athletes, better luck next time.

two wrongs dont make a right.

by jumping into the face of an athlete and trying to wrestle a torch off them is analogous to what China is doing in Tibet. That athlete has every right to be proud to carry the torch and obviously as athletes they know what it means... some dufus trying to take it off them is no better than the chinese bully boy back in Tibet trying to remove a Tibetan flag from a student.

protest peacefully and by painting banners and flags, etc etc etc.. but trying to rip a torch from someones hands is antagonistic and infantile.

Kel Varnsen

dunkman wrote:

two wrongs dont make a right.

by jumping into the face of an athlete and trying to wrestle a torch off them is analogous to what China is doing in Tibet. That athlete has every right to be proud to carry the torch and obviously as athletes they know what it means... some dufus trying to take it off them is no better than the chinese bully boy back in Tibet trying to remove a Tibetan flag from a student.

protest peacefully and by painting banners and flags, etc etc etc.. but trying to rip a torch from someones hands is antagonistic and infantile.

Not to mention the torch itself is supposed to be a symbol of peace. If you want to protest the fact that the games went to China, blame the corrupt bastards that run the IOC (since it is not like China wasn't in Tibet when the games were awarded) not some poor guy running with the torch.