Protesters Are Savagely Attacked ... Er, Fanned

A grand total of seven protesters--all foreign--have been arrested thus far in Beijing. Four protesters were arrested in a pro-Tibetan demonstration yesterday as the torch arrived in Beijing, and three protesters were taken into custody following a tiny, loud demonstration at Tiananmen Square.

The actual purpose of the protest had something to do with the Chinese government running over people with tanks in Tiananmen Square in 1989, I think. Or with human rights. Or Tibet. I couldn't tell, really. This is a common problem among protesters: they really need to work on messaging, since even a simple anti-war rally can get out of hand as the libertarians, flat-taxers, and hippie anti-globalization types all start fighting for sign space and make you forget why you came there in the first place. It can all get a bit like the backdrop of ESPN's College Gameday, but with all the HERBSTREIT FOR HEISMAN signs replaced with FREE MUMIA signs. (Oh, and minus Lee Corso and any sense of humor whatsoever.)

The Chinese just seem embarrassed here by the three screaming laowai hollering in the middle of their square, including the officers, who rush in to beat them senseless, strip them naked, and then throw them into solitary confinement in a Siberian gulag at the end of the clip. Pardon us: that's "politely arrest, question in well-spoken, clearly enunciated English, and then release a few hours later." We apologize for the error.

Check the end of the clip for something really and truly wonderful, though.

We meant that part about wonderful. The woman, complaining about brutal treatment, is being fanned by a complete stranger trying to cool her off in the sweltering heat of Beijing.

This post originally appeared on the Sporting Blog. For more, see The Sporting Blog Archives.