[click picture]San Francisco stations: KTVU, KRON, KPIX, and KGO all have live coverage on the internet.
The first half of this TED talk will give you an idea about what everyone is so het-up about.
1:50pm: The torch just showed up somewhere, not where the crowds are waiting, an hour late and people are pissed and they keep changing the route... cops, poor sods.
2pm: THE RUNNERS ARE SURROUNDED BY ALL KINDS OF VEHICLES AND SECURITY AND THEY ARE RUNNING VAN NESS INSTEAD OF THE EMBARCADERO, WHERE THE CROWDS ARE WAITING FOR THEM.
2:07pm: Runners are jogging north on Van Ness with lines of motorcycle cops on both sides of them, lines of cops on bicycles on both sides of them, lines of cops on foot on both sides of them, and a clutch of ununiformed thugs surrounding them. I'm not kidding. The crowds assembled to see it are on the other side of town.
Unbelievable.
2:05pm: Two torch runners are at a dead stop with an army of cops around them. News anchors are all giddy about not knowing if the protesters are monitoring them and will find out where the torch runners are.
2:11pm: I'm losing my cookies over aerial shots of OVERWHELMING security around the relay WALKERS. What a travesty. Good thing I'm not there or there would be some broken glass....
Of course, it could be the fascist shill tv coverage I can hear that's pissing me off this badly. Maybe I'd be more understanding if I didn't have to listen to these evil little whores.
2:17pm: People have been bussing in to the Embarcadero SINCE FIVE IN THE MORNING and they moved the relay to Van Ness without telling anyone, plus put up this fantastic security for no crowds, sneaking it past everyone on the streets.
2:20pm: Bunch of Free Burma protesters are at Vista Point by the Golden Gate Bridge.
2:23pm: KPIX has a bunch of video clips up of their coverage today, where you can see the planned route, and the mobs... and I'm guessing the actual route at some point.
2:26pm: I'm just going to sit back and listen to people flipping about this trick. Woman griping about no respect and no honor right now. PEOPLE CAME FROM ALL OVER THE COUNTRY TO SEE THIS. They didn't get to see it.
2:32pm: Mobs on the Embarcadero don't know that the torch isn't coming past them yet. They're still waiting.
2:34pm: Some protesters have knocked over police barriers, trying to get to where the new route comes closest to the planned route. Hundreds of protesters heading for Bay and Van Ness to see the runners... probably not going to make it....
2:37pm: News anchors trying to say they think the torch will get to Bay Street and turn toward the Embarcadero and Justin Herman Plaza where everybody's waiting. Right.
Word is getting out about the ruse, and more protesters are hightailing it for the real route.
2:40pm: Nope. Torch "runners" [read crawlers] just turned left on Bay, which means they're heading for the Marina, NOT Fisherman's Wharf. Yeesh. Thousands of pissed off people in the offing.
Everything happening because of fear. Protesters have not done anything violent. The fear thing from the administration of this event is very likely to turn it into violence though.
2:43pm: People hand-picked by the Chinese Consulate were let through the barriers at Justin Herman to see the closing ceremony of the torch run... even though the torch run is not going there... it's on its way to the Golden Gate Bridge via the Marina.
2:45pm: Huge crowds at Justin Herman Plaza... if this doesn't get really ugly, it'll be a miracle.
2:50pm: Big FREE TIBET banner has caught up with the torch at Fort Mason. Running along beside. Looks like a melee, but cops, CHP, say it's all going smoothly.
2:55pm: Banner is down; bike cops swarming all around; Chinese flag is up... at the Marina Green right now.
Oh, duh, sorry, here's a map.
3pm: Plan is to take the runners by boat back to Justin Herman Plaza... tricky, tricky, tricky.
The mobs are waiting on the right side of this map and the torch is running toward the left side of this map. Somehow they are going to move the runners by boat, or truck, over to the Embarcadero...?3:12pm: Interviewing ecstatic torch runner, waxing moronic about the flawless execution of this ruse.... Mentioning "gala celebration" later... sheesh. Just shoot me.
3:15pm: Torch runners are up onto Doyle Drive [freeway approach to the bridge] now.
3:17pm: "Rowdy situation when they made the turn left on Bay instead of right toward the Embarcadero..." Yuh, I guess.
3:19pm: CANCELED JUSTIN HERMAN PLAZA CEREMONY... even more fucked up than the ruse so far....
3:23pm: Just reported about some protesters rushing a charter bus in an intersection earlier and spray painting "FREE TIBET" on it, but nobody was arrested or hurt. Not enough cops at the protests. They're all swarmed around the torch. They are not afraid of violence in the protests, as earlier mentioned. Obviously.
3:27pm: Hand-picked celebrants are being bussed out of Justin Herman Plaza... toward unknown destination of real ceremony.
3:28pm: Doyle Drive traffic at a standstill... runners done and gone... plan to take the torch to the airport... maybe ceremony to be held at SFO.
3:32pm: I'm bumming that none of the commentary seems cognizant of the travesty of this situation. They're all focussing on the "public safety" issues.... Golden Gate Bridge still closed, pending getting the torch to the airport.
3:38pm: Torch motorcade moving toward 19th [Park Presidio] off Doyle to, presumably, SFO. Traffic on bridge and freeway starting to move now. People at Justin Herman still clueless.
3:44pm: Anchors wondering why nobody's told anybody at Justin Herman about the change of plans. DUH, THEY'RE WAITING TO GET THE COPS THERE FOR THE ANNOUNCEMENT, DUDE.
3:48pm: Motorcade is off Park Presidio and onto 19th, heading toward SFO....
3:50pm: Band member at Justin Herman announced the runners weren't coming, not an official, and huge groan went through the crowd.
People have been filing in to the plaza and environs since 5am this morning to see this... and reporters are asking how they feel about it.... It's eerily placid coverage....
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