I'm Going To The Olympic Torch Relay ... What Could Possibly Go Wrong?

The San Francisco Board of Supervisors recently announced the route that the Olympic Torch will take through The City this coming Tuesday; a waterfront jaunt beginning at AT&T Park's McCovey Cove and ending at Justin Herman Plaza. Since I'm going to be in that neck of the woods anyway, I'm going to check it out. I see absolutely no way this could end badly.

At City Hall, Supervisor Chris Daly, who introduced the resolution critical of China, encouraged the audience that packed into the Board of Supervisors' chambers Tuesday to be on the streets and show disdain for the Chinese government during the torch relay. "The eyes of the world will be on San Francisco, and, let's be honest, if there is not alarm and there is not protest in San Francisco when the torch arrives here, that too would be news, and that would make San Francisco complicit in the human rights violations that are happening in China and around the world."

It was a wise, wise move by Olympic organizers to choose San Francisco as the only North American city to play host to the Torch Relay. In other cities — say, Denver or Dallas — officials might urge citizens to be civil and respectful, and do their utmost to avoid trouble. In San Francisco, the police beat you if you're not protesting. Plus, a third of San Francisco's population is Chinese American, so it should be fun!

Of course, the SF Supes could have voted to keep the torch out of their city entirely, but that would have denied them the opportunity to blast the Chinese government with a strongly-worded resolution! (That'll show 'em).

The route, where at some point I will quite possibly be set ablaze by monks:

Torch Route Published: Supes Critical Of China [SF Gate]