It was a day that I dreaded seeing the pictures. Today was a day it got quite ugly over here in London.
I've been here a week---on unrelated stuff. It's been about two years since I have been back-under much happier circumstances.
All week local news channels have been whipping us up into a frenzy over the torch relay route. It came less than half a mile from my hotel but gut feeling told me it was going to get nasty-and it did. It's a preview of what is to come for the additional cities on the route (San Feancisco take note.)
And if today's pictures on BBC1 are anything to go by, it's going to be a rough one. And a necessary one.
Jacques Rogge was on ITV last night and continued to spiel the usual about how politics and the torch relay should be separate. I still maintain that if he dealt with these issues in the beginning, none of what we saw today in London would have happened.
On one side, it saddens me. This could have all been avoided...but ignore it and it will still be there the following morning. And the day after and the day after.
It could also spell trouble for London 2012 if the talk around town is to be believed. Something along the lines of "when it is tine for our torch relay, we will remember the events of Spring 2008 and how we were treated." Tessa Jowell who is the Olympics Minister here gave a subtle support to the protest, saying it "was the great British tradition" of how life is here.
She gets it. Hey Tessa, how about a trip to Lausanne to educate others who need it?
Bravo!
