Thousands of Buddhist monks, nuns, civilians, took to the streets of Rangoon, with the Army responding with tear-gas and live shots fired, over the heads of the protesters for the most part..
But.. it has escalated to a situation analogous to 1988, or 8/8/88, as it's remembered over there..
It's interesting, the reactions from the various hegemony's.. with Britain, the EU.. the States, all condemning the flagrant human rights ignored by a military government which, by rights, should not even be in power..
While China' deplores' the situation in Burma, it feels it has no right to step in to the realm of interfering with what is an 'internal problem'..
Now India's taking the same route.. and for the same reason..
Burma has vast oil and gas reserves.
It's easier to negotiate, and to keep in line, a corrupt military government, than it is to deal with a democracy..
China, then, is very much the key player.. but Beijing faces conflicting pressures. It has to weigh its energy and strategic interests against access to the Indian Ocean, for example.. with its desire for stability and its concern for its own reputation abroad, especially with the Beijing Olympics fast approaching.
Today's informal Security Council meeting served in part to gauge the Beijing government's current position.
China's UN ambassador, Wang Guangya, reaffirmed China's predictable position that this crisis was not a threat to international peace and that sanctions would not be helpful.
And that leaves the west in a moral cleft stick.
How deep are our convictions, when not tempered by economic incentive..
Now, the US has entered a new phase of sanctions of the Rangoon government..
But somehow, this always seems to filter down to cause more problems for the man on the street, than ever they do to those either in, or connected to the government..
Same problem facing us in Africa.
One has to shake ones head at times, at the number of people around this world who need to be 'saved'..
We know too much, and learn of it far too quickly..
And.. should it be Burma still..?
The ruling military junta changed its name from Burma to Myanmar in 1989, a year after thousands were killed in the suppression of a popular uprising. Rangoon also became Yangon..
Britain never recognised the right of the Junta to change the name of the country.. neither did the US..
But, China did.. as did India.. and that's how it's little label reads at the UN..
And the latest reports are, that government forces have conducted night raids on monasteries.. some 100 monks have been taken into detention..
The government has confirmed that in the demonstrations yesterday, at least three men were killed..
There are further reports of raids in the north-east of the country as well..
Seems the government is willing to take this to the level of 8/8/88..

Interesting, the state of British economics these days..
Housing prices are still on the rise.. the Northern Rock collapse hasn't been settled yet, with even speculative funds, who would simply liquefy the tangible assets, don't appear willing to put themselves any further in debt.. at least not yet..
But it's expected the Fed in the US is going to fall again.. and with the devaluation of the $AM against the £ and the Euro.. one might reasonably expect the American economy to implode temporarily.. sanctions against even favoured trading partners will needs be put into effect..
Add to that.. orders for durable goods, which include everything from washing machines to commercial jets, fell by a far larger than expected 4.9%.
So much is being built, to deliberately blow up, that this war, when it decelerates, is going to have drastic impact..
But here on this island.. our GNP is growing.. inflation has actually fallen in what the public sees as important sectors.. foodstuffs.. clothing..
We seem to be handling the over-inflation of real estate reasonably well.. with foreclosures not up appreciably..
In fact, banks and building societies said 'Thanks, but no..' to an auction of cash by the Bank of England.. The BofE was willing to inject £10 billion more into the money market, on short-term loans..
Mind you, they wanted 6.5% on it..
But, with a new Chancellor, and a new PM.. we're bound to have a fair honeymoon period..
There are serious problems to be faced, and they will take money..
It's the Euro/Dollar ratio that's a concern..
One has an inherent distrust of a currency which is undenyably tied to the nation which uses it with the lowest GNP.. the highest inflation rate..
And if selling American dollars appears to be the trend.. it indicates the US itself is absorbling more and more of it's own currency.. preparing to start a movement wherein it's too expensive for Americans to buy imports.. and better to 'Buy American' anyway..
This Euro may well have reached the point where it's priced itself out of the market..
Where's the incentive for American investment, when their $'s worth so little..?
Conversely.. where's the advantage in expanding business.. or enterprise.. in Russia or the Ukraine.. when the Ruble and the Euro can buy so much more, in the US..
And when the situation turns around, as in a few years it will, those same companies will be bought back by a resurgent greenback. For it's inconcievable, considering the foundation of the currency, that the Euro can maintain it's value for much longer.
Equally inconcievable, that the American dollar will abrogate it's position as a watermark..