YouTube - Tibetan protesters attack handicapped torch bearer

Originally Posted by independent_thinker2002 I swear McCain found the one person who, if President, has the potential to make George W. Bush look good in history's eyes.

Jfuh,

I, for one, believe that the acts of the "protesters" have gone way too far. The Olympic torch is a cherished symbol whereby sport is placed "at the service of the harmonious development of man, with a view to promoting a peaceful society concerned with the preservation of human dignity." The torch, which belongs to all of the world's peoples, represents a quest to bring to fruition the loftiest values of human society.

Sadly, its bearers have literally been mugged by those seeking to gain control of the relay wound its way through the streets of Athens, London, and Paris. Peaceful protest along the sides of the Olympic route would be one thing. Such protests have been a recurring feature in free societies, in which the balance between the law and public expression has been meticulously respected by the protesters. Civil disobedience has been about creating inconvenience but not harm to persons.

The ugly spectacle of those seeking to seize possession of the torch through physical force is entirely another matter. It is a display that is inconsistent with peaceful protest and civil disobedience. It is an exhibition that speaks for the worst of the human experience, no matter how the individuals responsible try to disguise their actions with high-minded words or how often they try to profess their commitment to non-violence. Actions speaker louder than words. Acts of violence in the name of non-violence are entirely contradictory.

"Using the torch this way is almost a crime," Gunilla Lindberg, an International Olympic Committee (IOC) member from Sweden observed. "I am saddened that such a beautiful symbol of the torch, which unites people of different religions, different ethnic origin, different political systems, cultures and languages, has been attacked," IOC head Jacques Rogge stated. I agree with them.

What the world has witnessed is not peaceful protest over China's policies. Instead, it has experienced nothing less than a number of lawless individuals seeking to exploit political events in order to directly attack the Olympic Movement itself and the ideals it holds dear. In its upcoming Executive meeting, I very much hope that the IOC will stand firm and maintain the torch relay. To do so would be to demonstrate that brute force cannot vanquish the aspirations represented by the Olympic torch.

Over time, the IOC's unyielding stance will be vindicated and the "protesters" long forgotten. Nearly a decade after anti-trade anarchists rampaged through the streets of Seattle, students of history looking back at their rabid outburst of violence find it noteworthy in how little it accomplished. Trade liberalization has proceeded, tens of millions of additional people have been lifted from poverty from increased trade and overseas investment, and economic integration remains one of the more robust forces shaping the global landscape.

The Olympic Movement, too, will survive those who challenge it. It will do so, precisely because it espouses ideals that have universal human appeal: peace, harmony, and human dignity.

Originally Posted by DeeJayH what a hysterical OP

Originally Posted by niftydrifty was the handicapped woman ever "beaten?" I watched the video and she never was. did it happen off camera?

Originally Posted by ludahai Of course, you would probably hail as heros the Chinese students who assaulted pro-Tibet protesters in San Francisco a few hours ago.