Oh Boy, A Riot, Call The Gang!
link Vandals mar summit protests in Toronto – Yahoo! News.
This feels like we’re going over old ground, but the events in Toronto over the past few days just begs for comment. First of all, this statement from the article,
“…These images are truly shocking to Canadians…”
clearly makes no sense, since for many weeks in advance, they were already pegging the cost of security at the summit near the one billion dollar mark and even if it’s Canadian dollars, that’s a lot of police protection for nominally 20 people. They could have listened to me, http://asiftimes.com/2010/05/28/billion-dollar-bureaucrats/ and had the conference in Labrador. That way we could have saved money, avoided numerous burnt police cruisers, broken shop windows, looting and the odd cracked skull. In addition, the professional protestors would all be stuck in the ferry lineup trying to get to Labrador. This of course is a failing by the sitting Conservatives, supposedly the sane party of the ones offered to Canadians. It remains to be seen whether the results of the expensive pow wow will materialize into anything of use since really, the whole thing could have been handled by a day long skype call.
The interesting angle of this event is how the media portrayed the protests.
“…Saturday’s protest march, sponsored by labor unions and dubbed family friendly…” As if. Why would families be interested in marching and protesting along with black clad and masked protestors armed with bricks, sharp sticks and bottles filled with unknown fluid suspiciously capped with cloth wicks? What would they be protesting? More pay for less work? More holidays since 4 weeks is inadequate? It’s pretty much a stretch to imply that average Canadians were all up in arms over what was being discussed at the summit, since most don’t even know what the topics were. More likely, well funded and organized professional protestors were inciting mob sentiments and trying to cause the police to beat upon some innnocent to elicit public sympathy. The media falls for it and next thing you know, they’re all tsk tsking the governments for putting down the regular folk.
It’s even a mystery as to what the protestors are against. Apart from Canada’s notionally conservative government, most or all of the nations represented at the summit are from left leaning/socialist regimes, the U.S. included. Their guys are already in office! If the socialists are already in office, you’d have to be pretty nervous about sympathizing with whatever approach the black clad protestors are trying to push. They seem to be ready to unleash violence at the drop of a peace sign. Most of them are paid jerks who have no ideology but who enjoy the thrill of mayhem. In fact, some may be just upset at not being able to afford to fly to the world cup in order to wreak havoc.
Violence seems to be the default calling card of any organization not able to rationally expouse their views. They depend on media to support their particular point of view which is, typically about enforcing their point of view. In this way, a small group can use media to leverage up their visions of nirvana and then to extort the general public to concede some turf. This is a time tested technique and is standard operting procedure for all fringe groups, political and social. There seldom is nobility in their causes or justification for their actions.
Throwing tantrums by terrorizing the general public is their only tool. Like small kids who act out, they should be dealt with accordingly.
You sure come down hard on the spoiled American kids. I totally agree. When my son was in grade school and summer came around, my friends overwhelmed me with a startling array of camps, activities and sports that are apparently mandotory on this area. I remember feeling pissed and squished. Pissed because people were dictating to me and squished because I felt like I was caught between a rock and a hard place. Like a lemming I robotically signed up for every waking moment of my sons life to be occupied with these mandatory “activities”. I felt a gutless puppet, but what was I to do? Let my child suffer the odious position of being the “odd man out”.
Same with football. Any doctor will tell you it’s the worst thing for a kid to play, given his stage of physical devolpment. But what brave parent will suffer the ostracism of letting his kid be the “odd man out”. And confronting a defiant, miserable, dejected son who rages against you, hates you and feels friendless, devastated and “out of the loop”. Well that’s the clincher. No one. Nada. Dad’s feel like football is the greatest thing since beer and mother’s can’t deal with agony of an unhappy child.
I’m guilty on both counts, so what right do I have to spout rightous opinons?
Ms. Chicken “….”