The Portrait of a Petty and Boring "Olympic Host" -- Hong Kong greets
the torch

-- Micky's humble opinion: The Chinese government has turned the Olympic
games into a purely political and Chinese nationalistic event, what a
mockery to the Olympic spirit ! --

Bowring: Hong Kong greets the torch

By Philip Bowring
Thursday, May 1, 2008

HONG KONG: Hopes that China would not rise to the bait of politically
motivated Olympics protests have come to nothing - at least to judge by
this supposedly autonomous city.

The Olympic torch arrival is being marked by feverish efforts to raise
patriotic zeal, with a massively publicized torch relay on May 2 and
bans on the entry of several foreign critics of China. Both run contrary
to the territory's liberal and internationalist traditions. So much too
for the protestations by Beijing - and International Olympic Committee
President Jacques Rogge - that sports should not be mixed with politics.