In about 5 minutes, the Olympic Torch will make it’s only North American appearance in San Francisco. As you’ve probably seen on the news, the whole Torch Relay thing this time around has caused riots in several cities. Protesters are protesting against alleged human rights violations in Tibet, which China claims sovereignty over.

The police have been expecting massive riots here, since the city has both a reputation for political activism and a sizable Chinese community, so police have been out on force all morning to make sure everything goes as smoothly as possible. The planned route was supposed to begin near the ballpark and make it’s way along the Embarcadero (the city’s waterfront) before turning and coming back again. Violent clashes this morning have meant that the cops are considering changing the route of the torch relay to deviate away from protesters.

The SF Chronicle is doing a pretty good job of covering it.

Olympic officials are going to meet this week to discuss if the relay is really even worth continuing since it’s whole purpose is to promote peace. I went to grab some lunch from Safeway, near my office, and the police were sealing off everywhere like it was some sort of crime scene. I saw some protesters carrying signs but it seemed rather calm compared to what’s going on closer to the ballpark.

Here’s a piece of trivia you might not know: Do you know who started the whole Olympic Torch Relay thing? Adolf Hitler!

In other news, I am going to Guitar Center after work today to see Joe Satriani do a session on guitar playing. He’s going to play some stuff and then talk about his gear and other guitar stuff. I hope that all those who were jealous I met Satch before are now even more jealous. Ha!

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