Quote:
Originally Posted by PR_Glen
those aren't even hockey fans.. they are just thugs who are taking advantage of being in a crowd and using it as an excuse to steal shit...
fucking embarrassing is what they are.
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That's probably right, and it's certainly the opinion of a lot of people, but the problem is that this rioting/looting crap has been going on in Montreal for many decades. In the mid 50's during the Rocket Richard years they did the same thing. After the habs wins in the 70's it happened again. Once in the 80's, yet again. And after their win back in the early 90's? You guessed it -- burning, smashing, looting and pillaging. If I recall correctly cars got turned over. A lot of storefronts and vehicles, basically stuff that doesn't belong to the mindless crowd, got damaged.
Is it the same group of assholes showing up every time? I doubt it. Is it always because the cops show up in riot gear? No, that's a dumb assumption. They know by now that rioting is going to take place whether they're there or not. They're there to keep things in order, not bother the actual hockey fans, but once any damage/thieving starts happening they are going to move in and get physical in order to stop it. If you're just a hockey fan out trying to celebrate and you see that kind of shit going on you best get yourself far away from it fast. Cops can't tell if you're legit or one of the assholes who is suddenly pretending to "blend in" with the legit fans. Once violence breaks out there's not time to decide who "looks okay", if you're near the shit you risk getting injured. Getting only shoved around a little is getting off lucky.
I can think of several cities whose pro teams won championships and there were no riot police needed, just celebration. Was there looting and pillaging and tear gas in Pittsburgh last year? How about in Tampa when the Lightning won it a few years back? Edmonton, during the Gretzky years when they won it like 4 times in a row? I don't remember so much as a store window being spit on.
I have no idea why it continues to happen over and over in Montreal, all of it mosly centered around hockey, spanning so many decades. There seems to be a lot of mindless people there, passing their mindless ways down to their kids I guess. If the Habs happen to win Lord Stanley I'm sure St. Catherine's St. will become a war zone once again.
Maybe they SHOULD try it Smokey's way and not send any cops at all and see what happens.
