I was amused to read of a protester who threw his shoe at the Chinese Prime Minister. Is this not the same action a protester used against President Bush during his visit to Iraq last year? I wonder, is this the new form of protest? Should I be going out and buying spare shoes just in case. One never knows and it is best to be ready. These are serious issues against which people, rightly, protest. I'm neither in favour of the war in Iraq, nor the plight of our brothers in Tibet. However, it was interesting to see that the shoe thrower in the Bush case sought asylum in Switzerland, and it spawned a massive surge in orders for the shoe manufacturer, Bayden Shoes, and led to art on the matter in Tikrit. The sculpture was, sadly, torn down the following day on order of the authorities. It was placed in an orphanage and felt not suitable matter for children, that being it was a political statement. Shock that children may form views of their own not in keeping with the authorities!
So, what might we expect from Mr Wen's shoe thrower? The mind boggles. It is Britain, after all, so we might perhaps see some new recipe from Delia or the like.
As for Mr Wen, well perhaps in the future, as he tours around the world, he might like to be accompanied by a dozen or so highly discreet gaurds in tracksuits. It worked for the olympic torch.
Truly we live in a topsy-turvey world.
