Olympic Politics on Mount Everest

After extreme weather on the face of Mount Everest damaged several of the base camps, the Chinese climbers attempting to take the Olympic torch to the peak's summit will be underway again. Chinese media are promoting the event and plan to include live television coverage of the ascent itself. But there is more to the story than simply a challenging human feat and a statement of unity to the world. Some may, in fact, argue the opposite. Not too long ago, the American William Holland summited Mount Everest and unfurled a tiny "Free Tibet" flag for a picture at the peak. During his descent, he was detained by the Nepalese government, deported and banned from the country for two years. The action, in part, stems from China's ambition to bring the torch to the peak and to prevent any other form of propaganda from marring the event, nobody else is permitted to summit higher than Base Camp 2 nor are any foreign press allowed onto the mountain.