Not a Good Day to Be Leaving the Office

For those of you thinking about taking a little late lunch, maybe going for a stroll downtown, maybe this isn't a good day to do it. Because sometime this afternoon, the President of Taiwan, Chen Shui-Bian, is expected to do a little layover at the St. Regis hotel. Since Taiwan is the center of a bit of controversy between those who like it independent and those who like it part of China, expect there to be lots of protesting going on. Among other things, the Chinese are not happy about all this.

Chen is stopping over in SF on his way to Nicarauga for an inauguration. Seven months ago, he was denied a request to enter the U.S. and was told he had to do a lay-over in Alaska rather than his requested stops in San Francisco and New York (that whole "making the world safe for democracy" thing). Chen basically told the U.S. to shove it and went elsewhere.