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See the original image at cbsnews.com —

International Torch Relay May Be Scrapped

cbsnews.com — The IOC will consider scrapping the international leg of the Beijing Olympic torch relay as a result of the anti-Chinese protests that have dogged the event. Its path around the globe already has been marked by protests against China's policies toward Tibet and Sudan.

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  • SirPopper, on 04/08/2008, -27/+72One World One Dream! FREE TIBET!
    • tisk, on 04/08/2008, -12/+37One World, One Dream, One Cliche Statement!
    • thecheatah, on 04/08/2008, -1/+11I'll TAKE IT!
      • childoftheatom, on 04/08/2008, -2/+11Hello China? I have something you may want, but it's gonna cost you...that's right....all the tea
    • GothAlice, on 04/08/2008, -3/+6I can has Anonymous? We are legion! Uh… sorry, wrong cause. I'll sit over ther.
    • plarp, on 04/08/2008, -2/+12NO BLOOD FOR STUFF!
    • Seidoger, on 04/08/2008, -1/+27I'm pretty sure that if the Olympics were held in the USA this summer, there would be protests as well..
      • Waiting2awake, on 04/08/2008, -0/+2 Maybe, but this one was a final between Beijing China and Toronto, Canada.

    • Chompy, on 04/08/2008, -6/+13Tibet isn't the only issue on China's doorstep. See Darfur, the Firewall, execution vans, etc.
      I'm glad they're going to cancel this, and I hope the entire farce is ruined. Screw China, screw the IOC, and screw the Olympics. Any false patina of honor or legitimacy it ever had was destroyed the instant the Games were awarded to Beijing.
      • wazzledoozle2, on 04/08/2008, -3/+1How is china any more responsible for Darfur than any other nation?
        • Chompy, on 04/08/2008, -0/+3Because they've been providing funds to the government responsible for the genocide there, and continue to do so.
        • godplaysdnd, on 04/09/2008, -1/+0its called a free market. just so happens that one side has the money to buy guns and ammo
      • globaltracker, on 04/08/2008, -7/+0Screw you! What the ***** has the U.S., and for that matter, any other country, done on the Darfur crisis? If the U.S. was determined to deal with the Darfur issue, who is to stop them? The U.S. invaded Iraq without any U.N. resolution, didn't they? If China's stance on the Darfur issue is purely for oil, that pales in comparison with the U.S.' ongoing occupation of Iraq and the millions of Iraqis who died as a result. All you ***** idiots think you have the moral high ground, you are merely delusional. A good medicine for you would be a mirror through which you will see how fugly you really are. China is what it is, a fast-growing power, economically and militarily, with its share of problems. Deal with it, suckers!
        • diggduggjoe, on 04/08/2008, -3/+1Darfur is none of our business. Aside from offering to mediate or offer a safe place for talks to take place, we have very little to offer. We can expand the confict with more bloodshed or try to bribe them. It is sad, but there is not much we can do to make everyone in the world play nice. We have our own problems to deal with.
          • Chompy, on 04/09/2008, -1/+2Hey, sorry if some us favor sanctions against a country that is essentially funding a genocide. I wouldn't want you to have to pay $29.95 instead of $24.95 for a toaster-oven.
    • lamiaconfitor, on 04/08/2008, -6/+7look, this will be an incredibly unpopular statement, but screw China and Tibet, one is a politically extremist the other, religiously extremist. I can think of comparisons, but they were stated..
      • godplaysdnd, on 04/09/2008, -0/+0why not throw in the iraq war and call it an orgy?
    • StaticThunder, on 04/08/2008, -1/+11Free Tibet offer only valid with purchase of Tibet of equal or greater value. Some restrictions may apply. Offer not valid on Tibets made by certain manufacturers. See store for details.
    • artliquide, on 04/08/2008, -0/+4"U.S. Olympic Committee Chairman Peter Ueberroth said in a statement the event was "an important moment for the city to show its character, hospitality and commitment to peace and tolerance." "

      They should practice what they preach.
    • Ragzouken, on 04/08/2008, -1/+1One vision, one purpose: THE TECHNOLOGY OF PEACE!
    • Rahodeb, on 04/08/2008, -1/+5One world, one dream, one centralized government to control your lives...
    • Takfam, on 04/08/2008, -1/+2So, is "Free Tibet" the new "Random GLaDOS quote" to get dugg up?
      • herecomes, on 04/09/2008, -0/+1Free Tibet, boycott China, it's all good.
    • amdforever, on 04/08/2008, -6/+2You people seriously need to read a Chinese history book. Tibet has been a part of China for many years.

      Recent violence is caused by Tibetans going nuts there. They were rioting and breaking ***** everywhere. Every government would have done the same.
      • StaticThunder, on 04/08/2008, -0/+7And China wasn't dressing its soldiers in orange robes (there's a nice photo of that) for staging to implicate the monks and justify the use of lethal force.

        I'm sorry, assembling and rioting are two different things. I wasn't there, but forgive me if I don't take China's word on that. I'm sure the students at Tienanmen were a real danger to life and limb too, and not just an embarrassment to the party.
        • Wrangler76, on 04/09/2008, -1/+0You're right, they weren't. That photo was debunked a while ago. A picture of soldiers in the open holding monk robes from years ago doesn't mean they were China set up the riots in 2008. It's not even China's word that they were rioting. Monks didn't riot. The unemployed, the youth, and the criminal did. Foreign journalists reported on it. And Tibetans can tell a Han Chinese from their own.

          "What I saw was calculated targeted violence against an ethnic group, or I should say two ethnic groups, primarily ethnic Han Chinese living in Lhasa, but also members of the Muslim Hui minority in Lhasa. And the Huis in Lhasa control much of the meat industry in the city. Those two groups were singled out by ethnic Tibetans. They marked those businesses that they knew to be Tibetan owned with white traditional scarves. Those businesses were left intact. Almost every single other across a wide swathe of the city, not only in the old Tibetan quarter, but also beyond it in areas dominated by the ethnic Han Chinese. Almost every other business was either burned, looted, destroyed, smashed into, the property therein hauled out into the streets, piled up, burned. It was an extraordinary outpouring of ethnic violence of a most unpleasant nature to watch, which surprised some Tibetans watching it. So they themselves were taken aback at the extent of what they saw. And it was not just targeted against property either." "At one point, I saw them throwing stones at a boy of maybe around 10 years old perhaps cycling along the street. I in fact walked out in front of them and said stop. It was a remarkable explosion of simmering ethnic grievances in the city." http://www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/asiapcf/03/20/tibet. ...
          • StaticThunder, on 04/09/2008, -1/+2Please explain the Buddhist monks that went missing. That was not simply quelling ethnic violence. They were hunting down and removing people who were suspected of organizing a protest.
          • StaticThunder, on 04/09/2008, -1/+2I'm sorry, this is just going to get into a similar debate like Israel and Palestine. I look at this and say "what happened to the people who fled with the Dalai Lama in 1976 and then returned" and you say "look what the Tibetans did to the Han"

            I hate this *****. What I want is China to improve its human rights record. I think they deserve a black eye until they do it. Taking over and displacing a native ethnic group that doesn't want you there is not doing them a favor.

            Anyone who challenges China's authority, be it Taiwan, or the Dalai Lama, winds up with a world of hurt. Its one thing if Tibet gets to make its own mistakes, but this is nothing but escalation. Also, I still haven't seen an explanation of that photo in the first place. So it was a forgery? Please cite.
        • Wrangler76, on 04/09/2008, -3/+0Hey, even if they are monks, if they are suspected of organizing a riot, they can be arrested! In videos released on even Youtube, you see several monks around along with mob while they are looting and beat Chinese citizens! The monks didn't show any violence themselves, but it IS fishy to see monks walking around a violent mob! What does that even have to do with me pointing out you easily believed some BS photo from a propaganda website just because it was Anti-China. Want the explanation? Here: http://thinkpossible.gaia.com/blog/2008/4/dharma_o ...
          But if you don't want to click that link, I can just simply explain why the photo was NOT proof of soldiers pretending to be monks for these riots and instigating them. First, the caption on the anti-china website said: "This is not an uncommon 'tactical move' from the Chinese government,
          as could be seen on the back-cover of the 2003 annual TCHRD Report ". The Digger that uploaded the article just loved ***** with the description to make this photo seem recent though. Second, why the hell would the Chinese military have these monk outfits IN PUBLIC VIEW if they intended for the soldiers to pretend to be monks? They are not complete morons at the propaganda game. In the photo, you can see goddamn civilians walking around them. That would be the stupidest thing to do. Whether CHina actually does this is up for debate, but so far there's no proof aside from conspiracy theories. But I can tell you now that you can distinguish a TIbetan from a Han Chinese.

          What does disappoint me though is how thousands of Diggers didn't even read the website and easily discover for themselves that the photo was a complete scam. Just because it's anti-china does not automatically mean it's real folks. ALso, read "THe CIA's Secret War in Tibet". It provides a lot of indepth info on how the CIA funded/trained Tibetan guerillas and basically sparked the 1959 revolt against CHina, which failed BECAUSE OF LACK OF SUPPORT FROM THE TIBETAN POPULATION.

          http://buddhism.kalachakranet.org/images/Chinese-s ...
        • StaticThunder, on 04/09/2008, -0/+3I think you're about as biased as you think I am. I'm happy China is getting a black eye over this. Its well deserved.

          Arrested and tried is not the same as imprisoned for decades or tortured and killed without any sort of due process -- which there is documentation of. I think you're only seeing one side of the issue as well.

          I'm not sure what the CIA operation has to do with Chinese atrocities, other than saying "they committed them too". That still doesn't absolve anyone. It just leaves more people smelling like *****.
          • Wrangler76, on 04/09/2008, -0/+0Well, it has a lot to do with it, because a lot of people seem to think that Tibetans overwhelmingly wanted to separate from China when even the 1959 revolt (8 years after China took Tibet back) was extremely weak even with CIA support. I have seen your other comments and you seem to be part of those that think that.

            And I'm definitely not as biased as you. I am actually skeptical of everything I read. That's the difference. I hate China for their human rights abuses, but their response to these Tibet riots have been anything but viscious, and the "protestors" (a.k.a. rioters) have been anything but reasonable yet people still bash China on this particular issue. And hey, if you loot dozens of stores and help assault buses of innocent people as well as children, you would get imprisoned here as well. If you instigate the riots that cause this along with millions of dollars of damage, yeah you should imprisoned for decades. Whether these people will be tortured or killed is up to debate even if CHina has done it historically. And hey, Bush vetoed the waterboarding bill which means Americans can and do torture as well! I'm sure the American government does even more shady things, but because they are more developed, they have learned to cover their tracks better.

            Really, I hated China for its human rights abuses, but Digg as well as the ignorance I have seen on Youtube and other forums has really made me embarrassed for my fellow people. I mean, here, we have free media that is supposed to be our bragging rights against CHina and other nations with state-controlled, biased media. Yet our media is just as biased, full of politics, and believed even more easily by the population, whereas over there, the population KNOWS they are getting bias from their state-controlled media.

            I mean I see Diggers commonly insulting the general population for listening to CNN/FOX on issues about Obama, Iraq and other internal affairs, but when it comes to China, they seek no other source than from what they hear from mainstream media, which is just as biased about China! So in short, these riots have really opened my eyes to how ignorant our own society is. Everytime I get digged down for speaking the truth by people who choose to not even comment to respond because they can't, I get even more disappointed.
          • StaticThunder, on 04/09/2008, -0/+1This has been going on for decades. You still can't excuse human rights abuses because Tibetans are lashing out, or because we also do things that we shouldn't.

            I really don't care if Tibet wants to be part of China or not, but I think they should be allowed to decide for themselves, without stacking the voting box with Chinese immigrants that ar encouraged to relocate there and displace the native population. I care that people are being imprisoned, raped, tortured, with no transparency. I'm upset that the Bush administration tortures too, but we're not holding an olympics this year. If we were, do you think people wouldn't be protesting?
          • Wrangler76, on 04/10/2008, -1/+0Really, so do you think that because some natives protest every year to get their land back, we should hold a referendum for them? Obviously that does not happen, since there are plenty of other types of people living in Tibet (and America/Canada) right now who have made their homes there. What do you think voting will do? The world will just accuse the CHinese of rigging the votes, or intimidating voters beforehand to try to skew the votes. Wait, so only if a country holds the olympics, there should be protesting against their human rights issues? Nice logic there. And, China has been improving it's human rights issues and it's atrocities are not restricted to TIbet, but people are really saying FREE TIBET because they think some tyrant dictatorship is holding onto an innocent population trying to get free when that is note the case.
      • herecomes, on 04/09/2008, -0/+2Who ***** cares. China sucks. Bunch of lead paint baby poisoning, dog poisoning, mega-polluting, dog torturing, prisoner torturing, student-killing, no-free-speech, crappy-ass-manufactured products that break in 2 days *****.
    • wazzledoozle2, on 04/08/2008, -2/+2So all you diggers now support a one-world government? Not to mention global conformity through "one dream"?

      And how would Tibet being free work with the whole one-world, one dream thing? A free Tibet would make that two.
      • herecomes, on 04/09/2008, -0/+2"One dream" refers to our common dream of inexpensive anatomically correct female robots for all.
    • quiggibub, on 04/08/2008, -0/+2That's funny. My dream involves flying.
      • prophetpimp, on 04/08/2008, -0/+2My Dream Involves Me and a Harem full Beautiful girls from each and ever country participating in the Olympics..
    • xhlokx, on 04/08/2008, -2/+1http://www.michaelparenti.org/Tibet.html

      know what you guys are really protesting for!
      • StaticThunder, on 04/08/2008, -1/+2How many times are you going to repost that link and argue that two wrongs make a right?
      • xhlokx, on 04/08/2008, -2/+1both sides are wrong. read the article and be enlighten. know both sides of the story.
        • StaticThunder, on 04/08/2008, -0/+3Things that happened in Tibet 400 years ago are not relevant, and do not justify current events.
  • 3tcp, on 04/08/2008, -1/+107Just the international part? Scrap it all or keep it all. It shows bad form for the IOC to only carry the torch through areas where people who protest can be shot on site.
    • ElAssoWipo, on 04/08/2008, -0/+51IOC never had what you could call a "good reputation". They've been accused of taking bribes as far as I can remember. And in my case that's pretty far.

      Plus it's all a joke anyway. ***** fast food chains sponsoring Olympic athletes... How about a peace concert sponsored by Halliburton?
      • jonohull, on 04/08/2008, -4/+20The idea of the Olympics used to be friendly competition between countries in the world. Taking away the torch thing isn't going to help the problem of countries or protesters doing stupid things. It's like lowering the standards in school so everyone looks better.
    • roosterjm2k2, on 04/08/2008, -0/+6Yeah, I think they kinda missed the point...
    • Xanadude, on 04/08/2008, -1/+3Comment of the Day. Kudos, 3tcp.
    • DangerCollie, on 04/08/2008, -1/+6I was wondering if there was anyone else who felt like the Olympics were past their day? It's starting to remind me of the Miss America pageant of sports. Old, dorky and no longer relevant. Run by people mired in the past and devoid of any real meaning by the soul-sucking addiction to the corporate teat.
      • 3tcp, on 04/08/2008, -0/+2For athletes, it is still the pinnacle of achievement to compete in the Olympics. Its probably a bigger deal in other countries where they don't have NFL, NBA, NHL, MLB and the college equivalents of each to entertain them.
      • avengingturnip, on 04/08/2008, -1/+3The Olympics jumped the shark when the NBA sent its 'Dream Team'. It was only meaningful when it was about amateur athletics.
    • acegi, on 04/08/2008, -1/+2true olympic died with the 80's
      people enjoy overflow of entertainments nowadays. some skinny guys running towards the finish just doesn't cut it anymore.
    • globaltracker, on 04/08/2008, -6/+1Spreading lies about China only shows how ignorant and arrogant you are. Lies repeated a thousand times are still lies. For all you haters out there, go visit China and see for yourselves. China has tons of problems, but that is just like any other country on this earth.
      • Xanadude, on 04/08/2008, -0/+5Well done, comrade. You get an extra ration of rice this month.
        • globaltracker, on 04/08/2008, -3/+0Kudos to you, *****. You get an extra round of banging in the backend by your government for China-bashing.
          • 3tcp, on 04/09/2008, -0/+3You seem to be confused, in the US we don't hand out corporal punishment to people who speak their minds. Have you been brainwashed into believing that free speech is worse than government enforced politeness and state loyalty?
      • stretch611, on 04/08/2008, -0/+5Yes, after all China is a wonderfu country. Thanks to its benevolence, The Chinese people have:
        State run media.
        Rampant censorship.
        Violent force used to quell protesting.
        Massive pollution due to a lack of any environmental standards.
        Food Items/Manufactured goods containing mystery chemicals thanks to easily bribed govt officials.
        • globaltracker, on 04/08/2008, -3/+0Well, you care to list what the benevolent U.S. government has to give the American people, particularly American Indians?
        • Wrangler76, on 04/09/2008, -3/+0USA:
          Mainstream media that is biased and controlled by politics - believed by the vast majority of the public
          Violent force used to quell protesting - 92 race riots (sent tanks, apcs and the marines - some died, thousands arrested)
          Massive pollution due to... well its greedy, materialistc population
          Food items/manufactured good containing mystery chemicals due to lack of corporate responsibility and lack of adequate government safety checks - (see: FDA recall page - lots of American companies there)
    • xhlokx, on 04/08/2008, -5/+0http://www.michaelparenti.org/Tibet.html
      please read this history article about tibet. know what your protesting for!
      • StaticThunder, on 04/08/2008, -0/+3Reported as spam.
        • Wrangler76, on 04/09/2008, -5/+0Can't handle the truth?
          • StaticThunder, on 04/09/2008, -0/+5I saw it the first 4 times, and read it. I think its really funny how you think you can justify one form of violence by citing another. Its not as if China is acting in self defense when it tortures nuns.
        • Wrangler76, on 04/09/2008, -3/+0FYI, it's not justifying an eye for an eye. It's called perspective and knowledge. People have the right to know about these things, so why try to cover it up? Why the ***** would you report it as spam when it isn't? A lot of people think that TIbet used to be run by peaceful monks that had a happy population when the reality is the opposite of that.
          • StaticThunder, on 04/09/2008, -0/+2Because he's posted the same link, in the same message FIVE TIMES. What are you, stupid? Check his comment history.
          • 3tcp, on 04/09/2008, -0/+1Let's assume you are right and it was run by a bunch selfish bastards. That doesn't mean it will be the same way when they get their independence. The PRC was run by a bunch of stupid ass holes in the 50's whose incompetence killed tens of millions of people. That isn't proof that the prc is currently run by a bunch of stupid ass holes.
          • Wrangler76, on 04/10/2008, -1/+0And what's your point Static? You post the same anti-china ***** in every related article? And not everyone is on DIgg as much as you are to be able to see that's he's been the posting the link. The report spam function is better used if he does it 5 times in the same article by the way. He gets buried anyways by retarded diggers.

            Hey 3tcp, I'm just saying that people have the right to know. People think that because they are monks, that they were lovely and great when it was really a slave system that many Tibetans were happy to get out of, which is why the revolt in 1959 failed so horribly- they had no support from the population. Maybe you should get a clue. Just a thought :
  • SuperJimmyJimbo, on 04/08/2008, -9/+13Anyong
  • TheUngod, on 04/08/2008, -31/+11Maybe it's just me, but I don't think protesting in this way is going to make China free Tibet. It's just going to make it hard for the athletes and take the spotlight off of them. The olympics shouldn't be so politicized.
    • craineum, on 04/08/2008, -4/+13Its sometimes hard to reach people... and I am ok with them using something that almost everyone is familiar with to get attention to something that needs it.

      I think the hate/killing/suffering is more important than some sporting event. But that is just me.
      • TheUngod, on 04/08/2008, -8/+4Of course it's more important, but you're acting as if these relatively childish demonstrations are going to actually help.
        • urothane, on 04/08/2008, -0/+7Was it a childish demonstration for Rosa Parks to sit in the front of the bus? the point of a demonstration is take a stand and say what needs to be said. You need to do it in the most visible way possible, but...and this is a big but...it has to be non-violent or you are no better than the oppressors.

          The sad thing is so many of these protests are being conducted in such a way that they cross "personal space" lines. Those being protested knee jerk react to that breach with physical action and it escalates from there. Sometimes the protesters get too physical and even violent. This will not win a battle much less the war on oppression.
    • JerodSlay, on 04/08/2008, -4/+4It's just you
    • MalaysianMafia, on 04/08/2008, -2/+19or maybe, just maybe, we shouldn't be throwing a ***** sports party in a country thats murdering people because of their religious beliefs?
      • CedEx, on 04/08/2008, -6/+2You realize they are rioting right? Causing violence and letting it go uncontrolled is not a good way to get talks started.
        • bambooshoot, on 04/08/2008, -1/+2Actually it is. I'm not saying being violent is right, just that you're wrong :)
      • TheUngod, on 04/08/2008, -3/+3While you are correct, it is what it is. It's there, and it's not being moved. I'd like to see something more constructive done personally instead of empty symbolic gestures. But really, good luck freeing Tibet by stopping the olympic torch. I'm sure it'll help somewhere down the road.
        • StaticThunder, on 04/08/2008, -0/+2Educating the largely ignorant public by co-opting a global media event is probably about as constructive as we're going to see in our lifetimes.
      • diggrnumber1, on 04/08/2008, -3/+7you realize that the u.s. is currently occupying a country that has 15 times the population of tibet. and also you realize that china is tied with canada as our largest trade partner. sure, china doesn't have a great government, but who are we to criticize them when we rely on their cheap slave (and sometimes child) labor for sustenance?
        • Cannon49, on 04/08/2008, -3/+5The US is Canada's largest trade partner but nice try ... you almost had it!
          • diggrnumber1, on 04/08/2008, -3/+3you're right, the u.s. is CANADA's largest trade partner? read my post again: it says "china is tied with canada as OUR largest trade partner." which was true. last time i checked, canada was only insignificantly higher in total trade with the u.s. than china. I just checked the most recent data and YTD (this year), it appears that that has changed. canada is now clearly our largest trading partner, with china 2nd:
            http://www.census.gov/foreign-trade/top/dst/curren ...

            either way, you don't know what you're talking about. canada's largest trading partner has no relation to my post at all. i was talking about OUR largest trading partner.
        • StaticThunder, on 04/08/2008, -0/+1You're right. I don't have enough outrage to spare for two targets, only one.
    • bicyclethief, on 04/08/2008, -2/+9If the call for human rights in China is just, why not?
    • GothAlice, on 04/08/2008, -7/+6You are an idiot. Of any event in the world, none is more political and bureaucratic than the Olympics.
      • Apophis574, on 04/08/2008, -3/+3The point of the Olympics was to be something where everyone came together and ignored their differences (political or otherwise). But more and more people are making is political which has now ruined the whole damn thing.
        • StaticThunder, on 04/08/2008, -3/+3When they rewarded a country that has a history of killing people who speak their mind, the IOC made it political.
        • Apophis574, on 04/08/2008, -1/+1lol. It's way more than that staticthunder. Go farther back.
        • StaticThunder, on 04/08/2008, -2/+3Shoulda's and woulda's don't change the facts of the matter. The IOC made a huge mistake with this. THEY made it political, the "more and more people" are just making it clear that the IOC is completely bereft of a conscience.
          • Apophis574, on 04/08/2008, -3/+1lol. I love how people dont read...
          • StaticThunder, on 04/08/2008, -3/+3I love how people expect me to guess what they are talking about instead of composing a complete thought.

            Go further back? Spell it out for me. What justifies rewarding a country who kills students and monks for protesting?
          • GothAlice, on 04/08/2008, -1/+3Hmm… I'm thinking that further back the NAZIS made it political ('proving the worth of the Aryan race' and all) and that's why others pushed so hard for a black man to win. It's -all- about the politics.
          • Apophis574, on 04/08/2008, -1/+2Ok, I'll spell it out.
            The Nazi's made it political by trying to prove they were the superior race. The whole Cold War era, USA vs USSR. And now China and the events in Tibet. There's 3 for you to try on. Maybe you can think (or maybe not) about how the olympics has been ruined by more than current events...
            Thinking is good... Education is good... Expanding the topic is good...
          • StaticThunder, on 04/08/2008, -1/+2Learning to address people coherently is good to. Thank you. Now I'm not sure how any of that is relevant unless you are trying to prove that the whole thing has been political for a long time. That I agree with. It doesn't excuse the current situation. If anything, it explains it.

            Now again, how does that excuse the IOC for choosing China as the host country?

            And if it HAS been political, than what is the problem with a protest?
          • Apophis574, on 04/09/2008, -0/+1I don't know anywhere in this thread where I said it was excusing them.
    • StaticThunder, on 04/08/2008, -4/+2Too bad for the poor athletes, and yes, its just you.
    • artliquide, on 04/08/2008, -1/+3You know, I respect the athletes who train for years just to qualify for the Olympics. However, maybe the Olympics wouldn't have a political slant if the committee didn't claim its purpose is to promote worldwide peace. It's not Monday night football. It's an international event that has, over the years, symbolized global unity. So, it's political by nature.
    • Hangly, on 04/08/2008, -0/+2It's a political event. That's why athletes represent their respective countries and not just themselves.
  • JerodSlay, on 04/08/2008, -10/+40[Boycott]
    • MacEnvy, on 04/08/2008, -5/+10Eh. Boycotting the Olympics never did any good (it's been done a few times before, look it up). It really only punishes the athletes. However, I fully support these protests, and if I was in SF I'd be out there too.
      • laserblazer, on 04/08/2008, -4/+12They punished the athletes by letting a murderous regime host the Olympics.
      • WNW3, on 04/08/2008, -1/+5Are athletes the same as jocks? I hate jocks.
      • herecomes, on 04/09/2008, -1/+0Are you ***** me? We boycotted the Russia Olympics in 1980, and look at them now. Practically a ***** democracy. All because of the boycott.
        • godplaysdnd, on 04/09/2008, -1/+1so the economically crippling afghan war had nothing to do with it aye?
    • Unit134679, on 04/08/2008, -5/+6[Boycott]
      • herecomes, on 04/09/2008, -1/+0Set it to music this time. Preferable something with a full orchestra.
    • diggrnumber1, on 04/08/2008, -9/+5this is getting ridiculously hypocritical. we shouldn't even be talking about a boycott of a country that has done so much for our economy. the chinese are willing to work at incredibly low wages to give americans goods. it's like having slaves, except the only difference is that the slaves can actually improve their economy and living conditions eventually through hard work. maybe if we had an embargo on them, it wouldn't be so hypocritical. but even then, it's hypocritical to criticize the occupation of tibet when we are currently occupying iraq, a nation of 15 times more people.
      • artliquide, on 04/08/2008, -1/+7Yeah, that's why I try not to buy anything that says "made in China", besides the fact that they've been cutting corners, poisoning our kids with lead lately. Time to buy from manufacturers in our own countries.
      • zeromous, on 04/08/2008, -4/+4I dugg up both your comments. Mainly for seeing the true issue here, and providing a solution (don't let China dictate human rights with cheap production for the world).

        I wish hippies and busybodies would work that hard to clean up their own backyards (US/UK in Iraq,economy etc).
        But sure, its easier to make someone else look like the boogyman, so you don't have to deal. Typical lazy attitude from hippies and busybodies if you ask me.
        • diggrnumber1, on 04/08/2008, -2/+1china isn't dictating cheap production. their economy was in the ***** until a couple of years ago, so their wages were naturally low.
          • zeromous, on 04/08/2008, -1/+2yeah uh WOOOOOOOSH. hopefully you are posting from an accredited or state funded education centre, as that would imply you are merely naive, and not just plain daft.
        • StaticThunder, on 04/08/2008, -1/+3But they artificially pegged their currency to the dollar, which then keeps them low.
          • zeromous, on 04/08/2008, -0/+1North America and half the world is just an enabler to China.
            The blood is most likely on our hands too.

            Jumping around and waving hands about an auxilary issue (like Free Tibet) is not helping.
            The issue exists because we enable the giant cahones China is showing right now.
          • diggrnumber1, on 04/08/2008, -0/+1it would still be low even if they hadn't done that. it would help both the u.s. and the chinese economy if they unpegged their money.
          • StaticThunder, on 04/08/2008, -0/+2With that statement, I agree diggrnumber. I would like them to do that. Of course eventually market forces will force them to.
      • kootron, on 04/08/2008, -2/+2You're right. These people protesting shouldn't be allowed to protest because their government is doing something similar. No one is allowed to speak out unless their governing body shares their beliefs.

        • diggrnumber1, on 04/08/2008, -2/+3i never said they weren't allowed to protest
          • zeromous, on 04/08/2008, -1/+1They should probably just do more protesting about the atrocities committed on their behalf, the ones that make doing something about places like Darfur and Tibet impossible.

            You know the ones that keep china production rolling
            The ones that keep the oil flowing
            The ones that manufacture arms and expensive killing machines

            I could go on.

            I swear if one more ***** grey haired douche stops me on the street and tells me I should be angry about Darfour, while he's doing nothing using the power invested in him by being a citizen of a democratic country that permits such atrocities I'm going to scream right in his face.

            Because that's all he's doing about the problem. Standing on the street, yelling at people randomly instead of people who should be accountable to him


          • mtmozart, on 04/10/2008, -0/+1Add FriendSend ShoutJ. S. (diggrnumber1)
            Just joined Digg on March 19th, 2008 to spew CCP party line.
      • StaticThunder, on 04/08/2008, -2/+4It would be hypocritical for Condoleeza Rice. It would be hypocritical for Bush. Its not hypocritical for me who thinks all those things you've listed are abominations.

        Frankly, I don't WANT China's "help" with our economy. I'd like the U.S. to have a manufacturing base and for Chinese workers to be better compensated.
        • diggrnumber1, on 04/08/2008, -3/+1would you use a magic wand to accomplish this?
          • StaticThunder, on 04/08/2008, -1/+1If you bothered to actually READ, I was addressing the idea that its hypocritical. Would you like a blindfold so you never encounter a statement that you don't agree with as you pat yourself on the back for realizing that these problems are big ones?
          • zeromous, on 04/08/2008, -0/+2I'm with Static. We can all get along, but I think the magic wand here is Multilateral everything
            production, war, economic action, trade.

            Hmm makes one wonder...could globalism actually be the answer? Are these just pains of that process?
            That I don't know...but the hopeful eventuality is current wealth is distributed more equally by market forces rather than by war.
    • xhlokx, on 04/08/2008, -0/+0http://www.michaelparenti.org/Tibet.html
      please read this history article about tibet. know what your protesting for!
  • nem0, on 04/08/2008, -15/+6Aren't the Olympics supposed to transcend politics?
    • feonixphlame, on 04/08/2008, -0/+8tell that to the nazis. theyre the ones who came up with the idea for the torch relay to begin with, for the 1936 olympics in berlin.
      http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/7330949.stm
      • Pyrorunner, on 04/08/2008, -2/+3Hitler also came up with the idea for Volkswagen. Are those inherently bad? A little off topic to the response of this post, but has anyone thought about how giving the Olympics to China actually made the injustices that they are doing to their own people and the world community come to the forefront? If anything, it's good to look at issues from many different perspectives.
        • LokitheComplex, on 04/08/2008, -0/+4I actually kind of agree with you. Just because something has a murky past doesn't mean its all bad. And its too early to say whether these Olympics are good for China or not. But the Olympics do appear very corrupt.
    • LokitheComplex, on 04/08/2008, -1/+2You mean like a King or a Dictator or a Central Committee or a Pope or a Mullah?
      I'd have more respect for the IOC if I could buy another Olympics or vote for a different one.
  • GorgarFanClub, on 04/08/2008, -34/+8Does anyone really care? I don't even know where Tibet or Sudan are on the map. lol Do they have Oil?
    • form3hide, on 04/08/2008, -2/+16Maybe when you get out of your mom's basement, you'll be more aware of the world around you. Just because you aren't directly affected by Tibet/China, doesn't mean you're not indirectly affected by it.
    • JangoFett, on 04/08/2008, -1/+16I personally believe that US Americans are unable to do so because uh, some people out there in our nation don't have maps and I believe that our education like such as South Africa and uh, the Iraq everywhere like such as and I believe that they should our education over here in the US should help the US, should help South Africa and should help the Iraq and the Asian countries so we will be able to build up our future for our children.
    • SwedishNinja, on 04/08/2008, -2/+5You're probably just a troll but instead of calling you a "*****" and suggesting you copulate with a pineapple, I'll give you the benefit of the doubt and try to enlighten you in a non-condescending way. Sudan does have oil. That's why China is in a mess with them. Tibet was an autonomous region in Asia that was annexed by China some time ago. Look it up on Wikipedia or something.
      • CedEx, on 04/08/2008, -0/+3Tibet was its own country, then it was taken over by someone, then released, then taken over by another country, then left to itself, then taken over... the cycle is vicious, and extends back thousands of years ago and includes many countries.
      • globaltracker, on 04/08/2008, -2/+0Go read up on history, you arrogant *****. Tibet has been part of China for centuries. Quoting Wikipeidia as your source is laughable. How many countries recognize Tibet as an independent country? None.
    • Nougat, on 04/08/2008, -0/+1/sarcasm
    • MrBill79, on 04/08/2008, -1/+3About the last part: This is why people hate Americans.
    • RainNIU, on 04/08/2008, -0/+3Wow. You guys really don't get a joke. Basically an American ripping on American politics and you still want his head?
    • Hangly, on 04/08/2008, -1/+1Each man’s death diminishes me, For I am involved in mankind. Therefore, send not to know For whom the bell tolls, It tolls for thee.
  • fani, on 04/08/2008, -26/+20Although I agree with exposing China for its human rights and other abuses and to free Tibet, mixing politics and Olympics is a bad idea.
    Olympics is about athletes, not politics.
    • aethelberga, on 04/08/2008, -5/+24The Olympics is barely about athletics. Countires pour as much money as they can into supposed amateurs, purely for prestige on the world stage. If it weren't about politics, they would say the names of the three winners as they mounted the podium, not the person's country.
      • LokitheComplex, on 04/08/2008, -0/+2Amateurs that aren't very good are band. I find that very sad. They take themselves far too seriously.
    • RudeTurnip, on 04/08/2008, -3/+16The Olympics (TM) is all about big business and really, really, dirty politics and corruption. You might be referring to the original Olympics from a couple thousand years ago.
      • BESTenemy, on 04/08/2008, -0/+2Original Olympic games were about showcasing athletic superiority (back when human strength and agility were the backbone of the army) while avoiding bloodshed. It was a substitute for war - a way to compete and make political statements in a peaceful manner.
    • dreicher, on 04/08/2008, -1/+6The Olympics are about many things; including human achievement and world unity. The olive branch crown bestowed on victors signify hope and peace, the five intertwined rings represent the unity of five continents, releasing doves after the torch lighting, etc. The games are political in nature. There are many avenues for athletic showcase - the Olympics is (and always has been) about more than that.
    • trogdor282, on 04/08/2008, -3/+15Olympics is about: (In order of descending importance)
      1. Money
      2. National prestige
      3. Steroids
      4. Money
      5. Olympic village monkey sex
      6. Politics
      7. Athletics
      • diggduggDOOM, on 04/08/2008, -0/+6I'd like to hear more about #5.
      • IEatHamburgers, on 04/08/2008, -0/+1Where does shiny medals go on that list? It has to be somewhere.
        • HomerS1, on 04/08/2008, -0/+1medals are a great help for #5. The more medals you have the more #5 you can get.
    • StaticThunder, on 04/08/2008, -1/+5What RudeTurnip said. There are plenty of things that are just about athletes. The Olympics is not one of them.
    • kurtwinter, on 04/08/2008, -6/+5Ohh... poor athletes whose only contribution to mankind is their ability to jump hurdles and pole vault. ***** them. This is about the subjugation of an entire nation, the exile of a great leader and the abuses against the people by a freedom hating commie pinko dictatorship. I feel so bad for the athletes. No chance at a Wheaties box.
    • LokitheComplex, on 04/08/2008, -0/+8Anything that is a multi billion industry is political.
    • IphtashuFitz, on 04/08/2008, -2/+10Tell that to the 1980 United States "Miracle on Ice" hockey team. They were a bunch of true amateurs taken from universities around the country who beat the Soviet team that was "amateur" in name only. The Soviet team was made up of the best players within the Soviet Union at the time, and their sole purpose was to win every hockey game they played. That was their job. If that's not politics then I don't know what is.
    • Motocompo, on 04/08/2008, -1/+5Olympic Teams represent the country they are from. Like it or not, the actions of the athletes themselves reflect upon the nature of the country they support.
    • IHaveCrayons, on 04/08/2008, -0/+3The Olympics are always about politics.
  • jimmyleeca, on 04/08/2008, -9/+1It is only wise to cancel the torch, for both IOC and China. Chinese people will finally realize there are so many unfriendly people around the world. They will finally realize they can't survive without getting tough.
    • StaticThunder, on 04/08/2008, -1/+3Yeah, maybe they can start shooting people who shoot back, instead of just Buddhist monks.
      • jimmyleeca, on 04/08/2008, -2/+0thanks for your suggestion about shooting buddist monks. maybe they should seriously consider your suggestion.
      • Wrangler76, on 04/09/2008, -1/+0You IDIOT. They shot only a dozen or so people who were part of the violent rioters burning down shops, attacking other non-Tibetans, and looting. GET A CLUE.

        And Jimmy, you're wrong. Chinese don't realize how there are so many unfriendly people around the world. They realize how many ignorant MORONS there are around the world despite the claims of the moral high ground and bragging about their "free" media which happens to be just as biased as China's even if it's not goddamn state-controlled.
    • JointVenture, on 04/08/2008, -1/+3Dont worry about what Jimmylee says, hes a chinabot with "smallness" issues.
    • globaltracker, on 04/08/2008, -2/+0I understand where you are coming from but I wholeheartedly disagree. The torch relay should go on exactly because all these hypocritical "pro-Tibet" people are trying to paint China as the bogeyman. It is not about the Olympics anymore. It is not about the Chinese government, either. It is about China and the Chinese people. Tibet just happens to be another "convenient" issue for these people to pick on China under the guise of human rights.
  • listrophy, on 04/08/2008, -6/+51The honor of hosting the Olympics, IMHO, should never have been bestowed upon the current Chinese administration.
    • craineum, on 04/08/2008, -5/+10If your going to say that... then I would say that the US should not have hosted the winter 2002 olympics in salt lake...
      • IEatHamburgers, on 04/08/2008, -1/+6That was chosen before the turn of the millenium, before 9/11 and Iraq and the Patriot Act, and even Bush. China's been ***** Tibet for a loooong time.
        • CedEx, on 04/08/2008, -0/+0If you know anything about history, everyone and their mothers were ***** Tibet.
        • OrangeTide, on 04/08/2008, -1/+19/11 happened in 2001. the 2002 Olympics occurred just a few months after 9/11, at the height of the frenzy. It happened AFTER the PATRIOT Act even. You realize Wikipedia is right there if you want a quick and dirty verification of facts before you post moronic statements.
          • IEatHamburgers, on 04/09/2008, -0/+4You think they choose the locations for these things within 6 months of the event? Of course not - even before 9/11 they were building the stadiums, advertising the Olympics on TV, etc. Like you said, Wikipedia is right there if you want a quick and dirty verification of facts before you post moronic statements.
    • WNW3, on 04/08/2008, -1/+6Free Hawaii! freehawaii.org
      • StaticThunder, on 04/08/2008, -2/+1Sure. I'm all for it if the native Hawaiians want to leave.
  • shaunw, on 04/08/2008, -9/+4Did they protest Berlin 1936 like this?
    • chicofaraby, on 04/08/2008, -4/+6Does that matter?
    • mithrasinvictus, on 04/08/2008, -2/+3that was the first time
    • novask, on 04/08/2008, -2/+9Why the ***** would they? The Germans dint start WW2 or the killing of Jews for 3 more years.
    • LokitheComplex, on 04/08/2008, -3/+4At that point Nazi Germany had not murdered as many as China has in the past.
    • jerrycan, on 04/08/2008, -11/+3OMG! Are you comparing China to NAZI Germany?!?!? Nazis killed millions of Abraham's chosen ones! China is just killed a few monkeys of its own kind who were into enslaving their own monkeys. I for one protest against giving monkeys the olympics! [/ENDDOUBLEEDGEDSARCASM]

      HILARY FOR DEMOCRATIC REICH MARSHALL!!!

      LET THE BURYING BEGIN!!!!
      • Railz, on 04/08/2008, -1/+3Mao Zedong killed more people then Stalin and Hitler Combined.
        • jerrycan, on 04/08/2008, -1/+4And yet it is still not enough! [/end sarcasm]
    • turpenine, on 04/08/2008, -1/+1yes they did, but they went on and germany got ***** trounced.
  • willdelaney, on 04/08/2008, -10/+6Whoop dee doo
  • SpookyDIGG, on 04/08/2008, -8/+18Every country in the world should stand together and boycott this olympics, and send a proper moral message to China, and if they won't every athlete should
    • Jinekace, on 04/08/2008, -1/+6Too bad that's not how this worked. The only message that received by the Chinese people from all those protests are "everyone hate us". And believe me, nationalism has never been so high in the mainland. All those protest actually helped CCP to redirect the tension inside(failing economy, environmental issues, human rights, etc). What a pity.
      • antonycao, on 04/08/2008, -0/+0agree with all but the failing economy part...
        small factories moving out of china doesn't equal to failing economy..
    • CedEx, on 04/08/2008, -3/+5Why exactly should the world do this? Do you know the full history of China and Tibet to even be able to form a conclusion? Much of this political situation has its roots formed thousands of years ago.

      If the world is going to boycott the Olympics for internal politics, then every country in the world has its faults.
      • girlpirate, on 04/09/2008, -0/+1feel free to boycott the Vancouver 2010 Olympics. I'm not looking forward to that ***** at all.
    • RainNIU, on 04/08/2008, -0/+1Athletes make a living through sponsorship. You have a gread idea, but it will never work. Basically you're asking athletes to skip the biggest show in the world for a political agenda. Athletes have mortgages too.
    • globaltracker, on 04/08/2008, -4/+0You are assuming every country but China has the moral high ground. How retarded can you be?
    • soccerbud, on 04/08/2008, -1/+1what do you think would happen if half the world decides to boycott the olympics?
      China sure ain't going to improve its human rights. In fact, you just pissed off the CCP and 1 billion some odd Chinese people

      Guess who's gonna become the scapegoat and receive the wrath of the CCP and the Chinese?
      I think Tibet would be pretty high up on that list ...
  • sgyoung, on 04/08/2008, -4/+29WORST OLYMPICS EVER!
  • Hetman, on 04/08/2008, -6/+17Does anyone watch the olympics anymore. I do not know anyone who does. If you want to boycott china boycott the goods they sale you not the olympics. Boycotting the olympics is not going to do anything to hurt China. If you stop buying their goods that would help like 1000% more than anything boycotting the olympics would do. I personally wouldnt boycott the olympics but that is because it will not accomplish anything.
    • uncertain, on 04/08/2008, -3/+7I certainly agree boycotting Chinese goods will do a lot more harm to them, but boycotting the Olympics will embarrass them mightily. And that would hurt them in their pride, which they have far too much of. They're all about saving face, and this would lose face big time.
      • Jinekace, on 04/08/2008, -1/+2So China lost face and pride, then what? Give you all their tea for the free Tibet?
    • max420, on 04/08/2008, -0/+8I watch winter olympics, because of olympic hockey... but summer olympics are lame. As for boycotting chinese products... Good luck, almost everything is manufactured there.
    • kurtwinter, on 04/08/2008, -2/+3It will help to show that we might have to endure Chinese products, but we don't have to kiss their asses too. ***** them.
    • TitanX13, on 04/08/2008, -1/+2while i do watch the olympics. agreed a mass boycott of their goods could be helpful.
      for the longest time people tell me how china is going to a super power and how they are the fastest developing country. well, no speaks about how full of crap they are. violence, mass censorship,pollution everywhere(including where the olympics are going to be held) and so much more crap
    • Takfam, on 04/08/2008, -2/+1Boycotting the olympics hurts the olympic athletes more than anyone. Boycotting Chinese products hits the target quite nicely without the collateral damage of dedicated athletes.
    • HomerS1, on 04/08/2008, -0/+2Olympic telecasts have been reduced to
      20 hours per day of sidebar stories no one really cares about much less watches.
      3 hours 59 minutes 50 seconds of cute womens sports (gymnastics, volleyball, etc).
      10 seconds of 100m dash.
  • dreicher, on 04/08/2008, -3/+25Typical. Let's not entertain the idea of punishing China by (as a world community) saying "No games for you!". No, let's get rid of the ceremonial lead-up because we chose an ass-backwards, brutal, communist regime to host the Olympics and money has changed hands. How about the IOC man's up and says, "Dear China, we will find alternate venues for this Olympics. Call us when you get your ***** together."

    Wouldn't it be a nice show of world solidarity to break the Olympics up and have events going on simultaneously at venues spanning the globe?
    • Spire3660, on 04/08/2008, -6/+3Why does everyone think they have a right to dictate to China what their policies should be? The olympics are about unity, not causing strife, leave your political baggage at home. It is neither moral nor right to address the issues in this manner.
      • Railz, on 04/08/2008, -1/+3I bet you also think we should stop the genocide in Darfur.

        whoosh
    • IphtashuFitz, on 04/08/2008, -0/+8The Olympics are a truly international event, so boycotting them outright doesn't really punish China but instead makes those countries who boycott it look foolish and only harms their own athletes who trained for years to compete.

      Boycotting the opening ceremonies is a much bigger deal politically because it's where the leaders of many nations are expected to be, and it's also meant to showcase the host city. It's also one of the events that's watched live by the most people around the world, so any boycotts there would be very public. It would be a huge snub directed specifically at China to boycott the ceremonies, so that's what I'm really hoping a lot of countries do.

      I also hope that all the pressure convinces even one or two of the big corporate sponsors to pull out, as that would also be a huge snub aimed directly at China. Without funding from the sponsors China would have foot more of the bill of hosting the events, so that's a rather direct economic snub that I'm sure would embarrass them.
  • omgTHEPATRIOTS, on 04/08/2008, -4/+18Hmm.... lets see what we are protesting here:

    Tibet, Taiwan, Xinjaing, flagrant human rights abuses, exporting poison products, flagrant environmental abuse. In particular, the flagrant environmental abuse should be THE issue because the smog is so bad in Beijing it will be unhealthy and even dangerous for the athletes and attendees. So yes, I do support a full boycott, for the Tibetans and for the safety and health of the athletes.

    http://whoisterrorizing.us -- NOT MADE IN CHINA!
    • dargon, on 04/08/2008, -4/+4While I'm not supporting the actions China has taken in Tibet (especially the recent ones) lets not forget that before China took control, Tibet was not exactly a nice place. I was ruled by a religious elite and if you weren't a part of them, you were roughly the equivalent of something on the bottom of their shoes. Slavery and other vile practices were rampant. China may not be treating them all that good, but there are some things the Chinese don't do.
      • StaticThunder, on 04/08/2008, -1/+2"I'm not supporting the actions China has taken in Tibet"

        So while not actually saying China has done anything good with Tibet, your argument is two wrongs make a right?
        • Wrangler76, on 04/09/2008, -3/+0He's saying that saying that Tibet returning to being a theocratic, third world country, controlled by leaders who controlled their population through religion and slavery is a bad idea. Is this getting through to you?

        • StaticThunder, on 04/09/2008, -0/+3No, I'm afraid its not. Imprisoning, torturing and murdering Buddhist monks for decades doesn't sit well with me, and saying Tibet is bad enough on its own doesn't justify China making it worse. And thats before I get to Fallon gong and Taiwan. You want to fix something, fix yourself first.

          If Tibet was its own country, then China wouldn't be getting a black eye over it. By the same justification, America should be in Iraq forever too. Export our McDonalds over there. Make it a nice vacation spot. Take the oil.
          • eir574, on 04/09/2008, -0/+3Yes. Have nation building and/or colonization for the sake of the population of a country without the consent of that population ever been a good idea?
          • Wrangler76, on 04/09/2008, -2/+0Yes, sometimes it IS a good idea. If you saw some random country that was based on slavery because its population was basically one gigantic cult, admit it, it would cause some outcry in the world as well. As long as China had nothing to do with it of course.
          • eir574, on 04/09/2008, -0/+2In that case, one might be able to obtain the consent of the slave population. But, going in uninvited and imposing your will on the people is still not a good idea. Helping to end a despotic regime in a country and turning control back over to them is not the same thing as long term occupation without a plan to return sovereignty to the country.
          • StaticThunder, on 04/09/2008, -0/+2China should be next to the last country to be promoting human rights in a sovereign nation on ethical grounds. If the UN wanted to "liberate" Tibet, and let them decide whether to become part of China that might be a different story, but to go in and make them part of China by coercion? Thats not doing it out of the goodness of your heart out of concern for the poor Tibetan slaves.
          • Wrangler76, on 04/10/2008, -0/+0Obtaining the consent of a slave population with little education, knowledge of the outside world, and that is brainwashed by religion? I don't think that's going to happen anytime soon. Anywhere. A long term occupation that has lasted for hundreds of years in the past? Haha, most people wouldn't call that an occupation anymore, just like how people don't say that all Westerners should get out of NA because they're "occupying" native lands. And nope, a sovereignty that is returned to uneducated monks is not a good idea. Making the CHinese leave, who form most of the skilled worker base is not a good idea. I figure that most of the TIbetan population would agree that returning to have a lower life expectancy and less rights than a sub-sahara african countries is not a good idea.
          • mtmozart, on 04/10/2008, -0/+1David Li (Wrangler76)
            A 31 year-old male from Canada (CA) who just joined Digg on March 18th, 2008
  • laserblazer, on 04/08/2008, -3/+19I cheered when they doused the torch. Mighty China couldn't stop it, even with all of their brute force.
    • GothAlice, on 04/08/2008, -0/+5Uhm... you've never seen the official 'real' torch, which the relay torches are lit from. They keep it quite secure. Hell, it's in a sealed small box… you can't even see the flame.
      • laserblazer, on 04/08/2008, -2/+3I don't believe in leprechauns.
      • madhouseradio, on 04/08/2008, -0/+6Its called the Mother Flame and its kept in the Mother Box and fed with Mother Fuel aka Mother Oil (olive oil from Greece)
    • Takfam, on 04/08/2008, -3/+3What in the blue hell are you talking about? You think the Chinese army is going to escort the torch with several full regiments just to protect it from people who's idea of a protest is to metaphorically ruin the party by ***** in the punch bowl?

      You doused a flame. Whoop-de-goddamn-doo. I'm sure an oppressed Tibetan is living comfortably because of it. Good job.
    • globaltracker, on 04/08/2008, -5/+0You won't have the last laugh. China will. Like it or not, China is becoming a power to be reckoned with on the world stage. Demonizing China is not going to help anyone or any country. Speaking of brutal force, have you been living on Mars the last few years? Millions of people are being displaced and/or killed as a result of the Iraq war. Have you protested about it? Maybe you have, but I doubt it.
      • StaticThunder, on 04/08/2008, -2/+1What, now you are making threats? Look up tu quoque sometime.
  • crushtheenemy, on 04/08/2008, -3/+17i'm sick of the olympics.
    • girlpirate, on 04/09/2008, -0/+2try living in Vancouver. its only 2008 and Im already sick of the 2010 Olympics. nothing but a load of ***** and a waste of money. and really. Have you seen our mascots? Oy.
  • slstsang, on 04/08/2008, -9/+3It's should be about the sports and the athletes! people need to separate politics from the olympics, when you're invited to someone's home for a party, you don't picket in front of their lawns and talk trash about the host. There's too much money involve, no country is going to boycott the olympic and pull out.
    • MasteRR, on 04/08/2008, -2/+5The murders of innocent people for religious reasons goes far beyond politics. This is about more than just politics.
    • StaticThunder, on 04/08/2008, -1/+3Most people wouldn't go to a party held at a murderer's house, no matter how important or politically connected he was, or how great the appetizers and open bar would be.
      • antonycao, on 04/08/2008, -1/+0Ugh...I am pretty sure in that case, you don't have any party to go....all those parties are held in murderer's house!
        • StaticThunder, on 04/08/2008, -0/+2Then don't go. You don't have to have an olympics. And you don't have to hold it in a country thats made a habit of killing political dissidents, exporting poison products and creating environmental nightmares.
  • itsfini, on 04/08/2008, -1/+9I'm more interested in how farcically it's gone so far - didn't the French extinguish the torch 5 times or something like that?
    • logicalnoise, on 04/08/2008, -0/+2the torch yes but not before igniting a safety lantern with the torch(thereby continuing the "flame").
  • gglynn07, on 04/08/2008, -2/+11I lit a cigarette with the Olympic Torch...The flame lives on!!!
    • lilsis, on 04/09/2008, -0/+1dug for king of the hill reference, intentional or otherwise
  • InspectorGadget, on 04/08/2008, -11/+6I don't give a ***** about the Olympics and I don't plan to watch them, but protests to interfere with something this attenuated from China's human rights abuses are pointless. Because they interfere with something that people revere for whatever reason - the carrying of the torch - the protestors come off as childish and irrelevant. "Free Tibet" bumper stickers have been around since I was a child and they've accomplished nothing.
  • Hetman, on 04/08/2008, -7/+15How about we start by freeing Illinois, New York, and California from the christian religious conservatives that is american politics. And then we can talk about tibet.
    • StaticThunder, on 04/08/2008, -2/+2No! All one Jesusistan! Two systems, one religious autocracy! (/hyperbole)
  • kurtwinter, on 04/08/2008, -2/+11The IOC is marking its own death here. Instead of avoiding running the torch through areas of the world that allow freedom of speech, how about putting the games in one of these places instead? Better still, how about just ***** off all together? We don't need to spend any more public dollars, any where, to appease a bunch of overgrown children whose inability to move on from childhood games has become a cultural phenom. Olympic Villages are huge wastes of money that could be better spent on upgrading infrastructure, not building more stadiums.
    • girlpirate, on 04/09/2008, -0/+2myself and many British Columbians agree whole-heartedly. there are far more important things that Vancouver needs to spend money on without wasting it on dumb *****. but then again, I recall these wicked fast ferries we spent a ***** ton of money on a few years back. Seems this is just how we roll.
  • max420, on 04/08/2008, -6/+9The Beijing olympics should be boycotted. Besides, it will probably be HAZARDOURS TO THE ATHLETES HEALTH to compete there, with all the damn polution in the air.
    • mdude85, on 04/08/2008, -4/+6Yeah, like Los Angeles is much better.
      • dbalaski, on 04/09/2008, -0/+2Um -- actually, LA worst air pollution day would be a 1000x improvement if it was in Beijing!

        LA's pollution hasn't been cited like Beijing's pollution which is said to cause "400,000 premature deaths a year." -- just google "Beijing air pollution" and see what you get.
        Beijing's pollution is far far worse!
    • Hetman, on 04/08/2008, -2/+5Please look up facts before you reply. Im not saying that california has the greatest air quality in the world but their are no regulations in China for coal burning fuel plants. They can be as envirmentally hazzardous as possible as long as they are making energy. And secondly a lot of the pollution in California is drifting across the ocean from China.
      • antonycao, on 04/08/2008, -2/+1Yeah, those chinese workers pollute their air and work their ass off just to make sure you have clothes to wear.
        btw, many american multinational corporations are contributing members of the poor air quality. I heard that they are moving to Vietnam and India recently, so let's expect f*cked up air and water there in a few years.
        • StaticThunder, on 04/08/2008, -1/+2I really don't think they are working their ass off just to give me clothes. They are working their ass off to make a buck and buy food to put on their family's table. Please don't try to make this into something its not. Nobody is doing any favors here.
        • dancingdeer, on 04/10/2008, -0/+1yes, to make a few bucks to feed their families. do you have any clue how many western companies treat Chinese factory workers?
          They are so proud to pay 100 bucks a month and tell loudly what a great salary it is. But today even in China it is barely possible to live from so little money. Factory workers often have to work 7 days per week, 10-14 hours per day. they get two 5 minute breaks for toilet and if they take longer they loose an insane amount of their salary such as 3 days worth of work. they get one or two days off per month.

          so lets start to talk about human rights but not just for Tibet, but for Chinese workers in western factories.
    • globaltracker, on 04/08/2008, -3/+0Did you know that the U.S. is the single biggest polluter per capita or otherwise? China has gone through its own version of industrialization in a little over a decade. It took the West more than a century. How much pollution has the West emitted? China is actually doing the world a big favor.
  • frogman54, on 04/08/2008, -3/+4I think to further the protest, all of the racewalkers that aren't Chinese, half way through the track, should start running.
  • Donoram, on 04/08/2008, -3/+6Congratulations protesters!
  • tisk, on 04/08/2008, -4/+6I love how embarassing this has to be for the honor conscious society of the chinese
    • feonixphlame, on 04/08/2008, -2/+2indeed XD
    • sheebz, on 04/08/2008, -1/+4You act as if the people know whats going on. I'm sure the China's ministry of propaganda is working overtime right now.
      • bowdie, on 04/08/2008, -1/+3Yup, here's a translated Chinese news story about how well everything went in London on Sunday. In another story there they actually use the line "a few "pro-Tibet independence" activists attempted to sabotage the torch relay in London today"

        http://english.sina.com/sports/p/1/2008/0406/15341 ...

        A few? It looked like every other person was having a go.
      • soccerbud, on 04/08/2008, -0/+2the average Chinese netizen is pretty tech savy, proxy servers anyone?
      • lilsis, on 04/09/2008, -0/+2i live in china, shenzhen. a few people know, but they would be the most liberal, who go to read news from foreign sites, and use proxies to sidestep the great firewall. the average citizen is clueless.
    • antonycao, on 04/08/2008, -0/+1yeah, your true purpose exposed.
      anti-chinese or anti-chinese government? hype!
    • globaltracker, on 04/08/2008, -3/+2Unfortunately you are dead wrong on this. You just didn't realize it. What happens so far achieved only one thing, that is to unite the Chinese people. When the Chinese feel like their back is against the wall, there is nothing to fear for, nothing to lose, and nothing to be embarrassed with. It is a wake up call for Chinese. Now they see clearly the true colors of the ignorant, arrogant, and hypocritical west.
      • StaticThunder, on 04/08/2008, -1/+3Thats right. China should get to make all the same mistakes the West did. That will make everything all right. Once everyone is miserable to the same degree, and blames everyone but themselves for it, that will fix everything. He robbed a bank and burnt down a church once, that means I should get to do the same. Is that the logic? Did I get it right? Seem like I did. Noone should have the gall to point out that I'm an amoral bastard, since somebody else was doing it too! Especially when I'm on the world stage trying to look pretty.

        Your persecution complex is showing.
  • TitanX13, on 04/08/2008, -3/+15i thought it was stupid in the first place to have the olympics in china. the host city has extremely polluted.
    while i think the olympics and politics should be separetes, but i don't disagree with the protest for china is dispicable for they way they treat their people.
    i am disgraced though for what the protesters did. why attack the damn torch or the person carrying the torch? the only thing that will prove is your an *****.
    • Hetman, on 04/08/2008, -1/+3Besides the pollution they do not even have enough toilets. Not that im going to china for the olympics but I would never drink their water either.
    • reaper527, on 04/08/2008, -3/+5i agree. haven't these people ever heard of don't attack the messenger? these protesters are just as bad as the chinese government. if they want to stand on the street and hold signs, thats one thing, but physically getting involved with the ceremony is a disgrace. every one of those protesters who laid a finger on the torch should be tossed in prison.
      • StaticThunder, on 04/08/2008, -1/+3Yeah, a "fire" deserves protection from assault. Extinguishing a fire, or interfering in a public event, is symbolically more important than a couple months of someone's life. Putting protesters in prison just does more to validate what they are doing. A fire, is the same as snuffing out a human life for saying they want a different government.
      • antonycao, on 04/08/2008, -0/+1well, what if messengers become violent?
        http://youtube.com/verify_age?next_url=/watch%3Fv% ...
    • asskicker32, on 04/08/2008, -5/+1maybe we like being ass holes. Did you ever stop to think about that?


      ...ass hole
    • globaltracker, on 04/08/2008, -0/+0I can digg that.
    • dancingdeer, on 04/10/2008, -0/+0Protesters using fire extinguishers and trying to rip away the torch. and everyone applauds like fools.
      http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ovWp8uks_ug&NR=1

      look how the person runs straight through the British security and only "the Chinese thugs" reacted to protect the torch bearer. how can they tell afterward that the Chinese security was not necessary?
  • bbqsalad, on 04/08/2008, -4/+12China's government sucks. Worse than our American Gov and that is hard to do.
    • jax1492, on 04/08/2008, -0/+4Your 100% right
    • antonycao, on 04/08/2008, -1/+0what about throwing the American gov to China and see how they are better than the chinese gov over there?
    • globaltracker, on 04/08/2008, -0/+1I can digg that. I am ok with people/things against the Chinese government. Anti-China or anti-Chinese, not!
    • Hangly, on 04/08/2008, -0/+1Nah, Bush is still worse. At least the CCP knows how not to spend itself nine trillion dollars into debt.
  • bffoley, on 04/08/2008, -2/+8Usually I don't watch the Olympics out of apathy. This year, I'll not watch out of support of the protesters. And apathy.
  • viciv, on 04/08/2008, -1/+2MAY BE ?
  • viciv, on 04/08/2008, -1/+4did u guys realize that it's gonna offend the chinese people, not their government? the chinese government actually benefits from it....
    • JointVenture, on 04/08/2008, -2/+2Perhaps if the chinese got off their collective ass and demanded reformation from their government they wouldnt have anything to lose face over.
      • DeathMote, on 04/08/2008, -0/+0If it was so easy to "reform your government", why is Bush still on his throne?
        • globaltracker, on 04/08/2008, -0/+0I second that!
          • JointVenture, on 04/08/2008, -0/+1You will always have a small penis, no amount of GDP is going to fix that.
      • globaltracker, on 04/08/2008, -0/+0What have you done to demand "reformation" from your government?
    • Xanadude, on 04/08/2008, -0/+4A large section of the Chinese population supports the crackdown in Tibet. I have no problem offending them, just as I have no problem offending anyone who supports the war in Iraq, whether or not they are a government official.
      • antonycao, on 04/08/2008, -1/+0yeah, your neighbor supports iraq war and cigerrette ban, then you should protest against ciggerette ban??
        no brainer...
        • JointVenture, on 04/08/2008, -0/+1You will always have a small penis, no amount of GDP is going to fix that.
        • antonycao, on 04/09/2008, -0/+0You have nothing but gigantic reproductive organs. But your population is still declining...Too much time touching yourself?
          BTW, pleasures don't come from size. If you bother to search on digg, you'll find studies showing that Americans are actually very bad at sex.
          • JointVenture, on 04/09/2008, -0/+1Thats why there are so many famous male chinese porn stars.
    • jellygraph, on 04/08/2008, -0/+1And why would the Chinese people not instead perhaps take the view that maybe their government should behave differently and that they should right their wrongs?

      I guess I'm being too optimistic here.
      • soccerbud, on 04/08/2008, -0/+2maybe b'c the average Chinese citizen think the current CCP government is doing a pretty d@mn good job with the economy. Lifting 400 million people out of poverty isn't a small feat. Sure, they know that the CCP is no saint. However, as long as the economy and their lives keep improving, they couldn't give a sh!t.

        An average person from a developed country might argue that freedom and human rights is the ultimate priority. However, when you are starving and don't know where the next meal is coming from, you couldn't give a crap.
    • webefools, on 04/08/2008, -0/+2the chinese people need to be aware of their government, and speak up and stand up too! Free the Chinese people!
  • slstsang, on 04/08/2008, -2/+25Boycott the event?
    Check with Nike, Addidas, Reebok and another other TV network for ads space.

    Boycott Chinese products?
    Please rip out all your major computer components, car parts, clothes, food..etc.

    Athletes boycott the event?
    Go and ask any 12-18 year old kid out there about politics, what do they know and why are we putting political burdens upon them?


    If China really gave a crap about freedom, Tiananmen Square Massacre would not have happen in 1989. Who's had the balls back then to stand up for the college students? NO ONE did. So trash talk all you want behind your computers, what do you really know about China? it's history, people and politics? It's all about money, we are all addicted to cheap labor and profits just like a crack addict.
    • WhistlinTom, on 04/09/2008, -1/+2How are you going to boycott China, when all your stuff from there. PLUS, all your DEBT was BOUGHT by the Chinese government. So you essentially are boycotting your own lack of discipline and debt.

      I'm sorry. I do agree that the Tibet thing should not go unlooked.... and I think that something DOES have to happen to all of that. But for people to say boycott China when they are JUST as guilty of perpetuating trade with that country as EVERYONE else in the US is a little confusing.
  • JointVenture, on 04/08/2008, -3/+3oh no, a billion chinese having to save face all at the same time.

    this is going to get ugly!
  • Jinekace, on 04/08/2008, -4/+5Chinese government should learn some lessons from all these protest
    1)treat your own citizen as equal as these foreigners, with the same human rights .
    2)Your air is unbreathable and your water is not safe to drink, so stop pollute your ***** environment and plant some ***** trees.
    3)Open your ***** biased media, let your people see the truth.
    4)STOP WASTING YOUR PEOPLE'S TAX MONEY! Do something good with it, like build more schools and hospitals.
    5)Last but not the least, don't ever, ever go for another Olympic before you got all the ***** above solved. Olympic is just a game, not some ***** holy ceremony; it won't make you better. You PEOPLE is more important than this overrated piece of garbage.
    • antonycao, on 04/08/2008, -3/+1who are you to say this? On behalf of the 1 bn chinese? Just clear up your mind and think for a sec, there are over 1.3 bn people in China. If they are this unsatisfied with the gov, would the gov still exist up till now?
      • Jinekace, on 04/08/2008, -0/+3So the problems i listed are not real? they don't exist?
        • antonycao, on 04/08/2008, -2/+1I am saying that, leave it to its citizens to decide what they want best. You are not in the perfect position to decide.

          When a poor chinese is forced to choose between food and clean air, guess what he wants best?
          • Jinekace, on 04/08/2008, -0/+4If a poor Chinese is forced to choose between food and clean air, then something is really wrong with the government. I have nothing against the Chinese people, they work hard, humble and nice in general. But Chinese government is another story.
          • PolishLogic, on 04/08/2008, -2/+1@ Jinekace

            Unfortunately for you the Chinese government is made up of Chinese people.
          • Jinekace, on 04/08/2008, -0/+2@PolishLogic

            Can average Chinese people decide to spend billion of Yuan on some glamorous government building, without being asked about where the money is coming from? Can average Chinese people express their anger and stress about the inflated prices on state controlled television? Can average Chinese become corrupted and steal millions from other average people? I don't think so.
          • PolishLogic, on 04/08/2008, -0/+1Hmm, seems I've heard those same criticisms about a few other non-communist countries as well.

            Particularly the last one.
        • antonycao, on 04/08/2008, -0/+0jinekace, if you read history, you'll find most western countries used to choose food over clean air.
          it's not a simple question. the US can move those polluting factories to China cuz there are poor ppl out there. What can China do? You have 1 bn people who want jobs, you have to create jobs for them, or you'll be dead meat.

          Or let's imagine, what about move half billion to the US and see what'll happen?
    • DeathMote, on 04/08/2008, -1/+1Instead of being so concerned with internal affairs in a foreign country, how about fixing things here? Why don't you try to improve your own country first before meddling elsewhere..
    • WhistlinTom, on 04/09/2008, -0/+2This is silly. The chinese gov't. wants the Olympics just like everyone else, because of the BILLIONS of dollars in revenue. There's nothing wrong with wanting to make money, or a gov't. wanting to be profitable. I DO see your point about benefiting your citizens... but you seem to forget, they're still a one party DICTATORSHIP
  • TommyBoy919, on 04/08/2008, -3/+4Hmm, maybe this is a hint and a half that the Olympics shouldn't have been held in China this year. The IOC is a disgrace to the event that it is supposed to represent.
  • Kenzan, on 04/08/2008, -5/+2Hmmm...10 of millions of people massacred horribly in Africa over the last 20 years, with the largest per capita ratio of despotic regimes, AIDS and other killer diseases the world has ever seen, and yet there's really no global outrage.
    I think I'm seeing a pattern here.
    • Hetman, on 04/08/2008, -0/+4The pattern is people only care about things that affect them. China effects us because we are now economically dependent on them. The middle east effects us because we are dependent upon their oil. What do we depend on Africa for... Nothing. It has nothing to do with race it only has to do with affects our lifes. And unfortunatly for the Africans they do not have an effect on our lifes.
      • Kenzan, on 04/08/2008, -1/+3If you really think Africa has no impact on lives in the West and American lives, you may not understand the powerful impact of Globalization.
        The issue is indeed not only about race, but also about Western mindlessness, and acceptance of apathy.
        The whole "Free-Tibet" thing is "in" right now because of the Dali Lama and his fashionable marketability.
        This is not to downplay the plight of the Tibetan people, but only to point out that Westerners seem to only get whipped into action by "sexy" causes.
        The real causes are hard, so real, so in your face miserable that no one really wants to deal with them realistically, and in terms of the West, that means marketability.
        You can sell the "Free Tibet" concept in a variety of ways, and it is being done.
        But it's hard to sell the stark reality of human misery that is the daily lives of more than two thirds of the human race.
    • StaticThunder, on 04/08/2008, -1/+1Again, plenty of outrage. Don't know where you live, but I am consistently frustrated by the U.S. governments actions towards Africa, such as tying African AIDS assistance funding to abstinence only programs.

      If we liberate Iraq from a despotic monarchy, then why not Angola? Anyone? Anyone? Oh yeah, not enough oil. Outraged? Yeah. Plenty.
      • Kenzan, on 04/08/2008, -1/+1I live in a Major U.S. city.
        Problems in other parts of the world don't get nearly the attention as fashionable issues such as Tibet.
        • StaticThunder, on 04/08/2008, -1/+2And that makes it WRONG, correct? People aren't free to choose what matters to them even if it doesn't make sense to you. Ok, comrade.
          • Kenzan, on 04/08/2008, -0/+1Since when is expressing a point of view about forcing choice?
            My point is that beyond the media, the evidence shows that when push comes to shove, the West does not really care about the elimination of suffering.
            They only want their own neighbors to *think* that they do.
    • jellygraph, on 04/08/2008, -1/+2So you are suggesting that no one ever did anything to help African nations and people in trouble? Now you got to be kidding!
      • Kenzan, on 04/08/2008, -1/+1Do you see public events being disrupted in protest of atrocities in Africa?
        Is it plastered all over the public media? Sold in stores?
        I don't think so.
  • antonycao, on 04/08/2008, -3/+1Idiots...The Chinese are pretty supportive of this Game. There is a 90 something percent approval rate. If you are against Beijing Olympics, you are against 1 bn Chinese people's will. Do whatever you want to the government, but not to the poeple!!
    • madhouseradio, on 04/08/2008, -3/+1But its the PEOPLE's Republic of China.
      • antonycao, on 04/08/2008, -2/+1Don't you think the 1.3 bn people are more than capable to overthrow the gov if they are not happy? Anything more powerful than that?
        • CedEx, on 04/08/2008, -1/+3The majority of that population is poor and likely survive on less that $100USD a month. Americans have long since been unhappy with their own government and with 300M population that has more wealth, you still don't see much action. Overthrowing governments is a thing of the past, you'll see less and less of this happening as laws are made to prevent you from evening starting that process.
        • DeathMote, on 04/08/2008, -1/+0Overthrow the government? And replace it with what overnight?

          China is changing and improving a lot, but it's not an instant process. It will take many years for these issues to get worked out.
      • globaltracker, on 04/08/2008, -1/+1It is like saying the American PEOPLE supported the invasion of Iraq. How brain dead can you be?
        • madhouseradio, on 04/08/2008, -0/+1Hey buddy, it was a play on words. Go rub one out and breathe some canned air.

          P.S. - Its not the People's States of America
    • antonycao, on 04/08/2008, -0/+0deathmote, obviously many people who comment here didn't get that.
    • Hangly, on 04/08/2008, -0/+2That's because 90% of Chinese people don't follow politics.
  • thearrowz, on 11/14/2008, -2/+1Can't help but admit the world relies on China because so many things we use and take for granted everyday come from there. And I agree with what someone else said, it's only going to offend the people, not