Apparently, the Chinese military is sending "torch attendants" along with the torch at every stop. These aren't touchy-feely charity guys, but para-military police (or "ninjas" as one SF politico described them, no doubt raising Ken's hackles.) During the Paris run, there were 12 of them surrounding the torch at all times, and as things degraded, one of them even went into the crowd after someone.

San Francisco officials were upset by what they had heard about these attendants, and would not let China have 12 of them. There were some bizarre negotiations, that led to only 2 following the torch (the rest were in a bus following the torch.) There were also issues, because the attendants didn't speak English, and only took orders from a Chinese official.

A side note: one of the torch bearers in SF pulled out a Tibetan flag as she ran. She was immediately pulled aside by the attendants and replaced on the route.

Last 5 posts by Ezra

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