This is simply hilarious:
IOC president Jacques Rogge said Thursday the turmoil surrounding the Beijing torch relay and the politically charged buildup to the Summer Games posed a "crisis" for the Olympic movement.
[...]
At the same time, the International Olympic Committee expressed relief that the San Franciso leg of the torch relay passed off without major incident and declared that the rest of the international route would not be cut short or canceled.
[...]
Rogge said the San Francisco relay had "fortunately" avoided much of the turmoil and disruptions that had marred the legs in London and Paris.
"Without major incident"? Turmoil and disruptions avoided? How did they accomplish that?
The San Francisco parade route was changed and shortened to prevent disruptions by massive crowds of anti-China protesters. The planned closing ceremony at the waterfront was canceled and moved to San Francisco International Airport, where the flame was put directly on a plane and not displayed.
YGBSM. The whole point of the torch relay and ceremonies is for people to line the streets or gather in plazas and cheer. Changing the route and canceling events so people can’t see the torch defeats the entire purpose. There’s a reason the phrase "secret parade" sounds oxymoronic, or merely moronic.
It’s rather telling, too, that the torch’s lone US appearance was in a city that aspires to a Chinese level of fascism.
