Wow, how about this shit in Greece? No one says "Fuck da po-lice" like the Greeks!

[HEyHEY]

http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5ivHldFPiSfMJIKf4a3oFNFIqWJCg

I heard this morning that the law says the fuzz isn't allowed to go into educational instututions... that's kinda cool, but also a bit of overkill.

[progressive_realist]

1. Exarchia?

They have a neighborhood called "outside the law"? That's bad-ass.

[RedCappedBandit]

3. Sounds like quite the 'hood

[Odin2005]

20. And the name just sounds awesome.

God, I feel jealous, the Greeks have what is got to be one of the most awesome languages in the world. The language of Socrates and Plato, as well as the language of the Average Joe (or would that be Ionnes?) Athenian, all at the same time!

[RedCappedBandit]

2. Peace.. i'm goin to Greece

[malaise]

4. They don't joke

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/7772456.stm
<snip>
BBC's Malcolm Brabant in the capital Athens said police appeared to be powerless to prevent rioters from attacking symbols of wealth and prestige.


Rioters in Athens' central Syntagma Square, Greece (08/12/2008)

The city's giant Christmas tree in central Syntagma Square was set on fire and windows were smashed on hotels, banks, government buildings and departments stores.

Police used teargas against protesters throwing petrol bombs and setting fire to buildings, vehicles and rubbish bins.

"Rage is what I feel for what has happened, rage," said a student taking part in the protests.

"This cop who did it must see what is to kill a kid and to destroy a life."



More pix
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/in_pictures/7770189.stm

[Silent3]

5. Are you cheering on looting and vandalism?

Nothing says "Fuck da po-lice" like the cars of non-policeman being burned, stores owned by non-policemen being looted, hotels owned by non-policemen being trashed. :eyes:

[HEyHEY]

7. Yes, then I'm going to cheer on rape and child abuse... it's just an observation.. run along

[JVS]

29. That's like the Reese's PB cup of crime

Two great tastes that go great together.

Obligatory :sarcasm: for the dullards.

[katsy]

14. Link:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taser_safety_issues

Quote: " The head of the U.S. southern regional office of Amnesty International, Jared Feuer, reported that 277 people in the United States have died after being shocked by a Taser between June 2001 and October 2007, which has already been documented. He also noted that about 80% of those on whom a Taser was used by U.S. police were unarmed. "


If only the Greeks just followed the example set by us when the state sanctions the murder of our fellow man, our neighbors, fellow citizens of the world. Yes. If only those hoodlums over there did nothing just like us.

I'm Greek. I say more power to the students, the leftists and the anarchists. No state and no police force should be allowed to murder it's citizens. None. Property be damned... make the government and police forces respect the people first.

[Silent3]

17. So you think those are the only choices?

The only way to make sure the police don't get away with things they shouldn't get away with is to act like assholes, causing harm, financial and possibly physical if things get out of hand, to people who weren't responsible for what the police have done? Actually worrying about who you harm equates to docile compliance?

Acting like assholes who don't worry about the aim of their rage will somehow earn "respect"?

[Art_from_Ark]

26. Really

What's the difference between this and the Los Angeles riots?

[Thorandmjolnir]

34. Maybe you have a suggestion as to

have to react in situations like this.

Maybe you can provide examples were your methods have worked in holding the police accountable?

[Silent3]

35. Peaceful protest has worked.

Voting out corrupt police commissioners has worked. Do you disbelieve that and want me to hunt down historical references?

Has that kind of thing been 100% effective? Of course not. However, I rather doubt that you can show me me any evidence that random violence by rioters has been that much more effective than peaceful approaches in trying to make police departments more responsible and accountable.

And then of course there's the question of whether the ends justify the means. No matter how desirable it is to reduce police corruption and to hold the police accountable for abuses of power, that doesn't mean that any and every possible method for trying to achieve that goal is justified.

[JVS]

28. LOOT LOOT LOOT!

YAY!!!!!

[Nederland]

6. I never understood that

Why do people loot stores and set fires to hotels to demonstrate that they are angry with their government? If you are angry with your government, shouldn't you be, you know, burning down the government's shit, not stuff belonging to other people that probably had nothing to do with the crime?

[HEyHEY]

8. "Burning down the government's shit" he he

That was funny. Anyway, yeah, I agree... tell all the post office employees to buzz off then wreck it or something like that.

[RedCappedBandit]

9. Violence is just wrong..

but there is still *something* admirable about the fact that there is a large amount of people in Greece willing to stand against police brutality.
It's too bad their anger is so misdirected, though.

[katsy]

16. A 15 year old boy - unarmed was murdered.

Nothing and no one is blameless when that is allowed to happen. Here in the U.S. it's appropriate to mind your own business and move along when someone outside of your own is murdered by police or the state. But that is not so in other cultures. The shopowners will rebuild and be okay. The boy will stay dead. The guilty will pay dearly.

[Nederland]

18. I'm sorry but you are wrong

There are some people that are responsible and many people that are not. This bullshit about "everyone" being responsible is just an excuse for not doing the right thing: bringing the guilty to justice. It's really hard to hold back your anger at an event like this and not lash out at any old target, but its the right thing to do. Looting and burning random stuff is the easy way to make yourself feel like you're making a difference when in reality all you are doing is destroying shit.

[katsy]

36. I'm not sure what would have happened if Greece didn't have this

right wing government right now. Waiting to hear from family over there over the next week or so.

Would the police have been as aggressive against innocent people without the government condoning their actions... I don't know.

It was also my impressions that the targets were more representative of bigger moneyed interests who benefit from rw policies.

As to this statement you made: "Looting and burning random stuff is the easy way to make yourself feel like you're making a difference when in reality all you are doing is destroying shit."

Let's see what happens. Students brought the military junta to their knees back when in Greece. They destroyed shit... yes. They also freed a country. These students were not thieves. They didn't covet material things. It wasn't looting or destruction for the sake of destruction. The people wanted change and they got wrestled power away from the military junta. Since my dad was one of the people deeply hurt by those military criminals... I just have a soft spot in my heart for the students.

[Hotler]

10. Throwing rocks at cop cars, what a hoot.

Huummmmmm! Maybe we should practice up on our rock throwing.

[HEyHEY]

11. Practice makes perfect!

[Posteritatis]

12. Greek students and Greek police have a bit of a history

There's a reason the Greek constitution bans police from campuses. People are still pissed at how they behaved under the colonels.

[Fireweed247]

13. After all the cops have done to people in this country

from the mindless shootings to tazering innocent people for not moving fast enough...one has to wonder what the hell is wrong with US?? Is everyone on drugs(prozac, soma, TV) or something? Why do we allow our government to have us living in fear? In Greece all is right, 'a government should be afraid of the people' not the other way around.

[davidthegnome]

27. Good questions

Personally, I'm on zoloft. I blame bad parenting and the mental health institutions.

You might be surprised how much a very common medication like zoloft can deaden your passion, overall quality of life, and will to live. You might be surprised at the hell you may have to face to even try coming off of it.

Indeed... our tendency to over-use mind-altering drugs may just be more of a problem than most of us realize. Our tendency to condone the use and overuse of which the psychiatric institution is guilty....

Right, I'm rambling.

Go Greece!

[katsy]

37. Like Sean Bell and Diallo?

What the hell is wrong with the U.S.? Where shall I begin?

Well, it's not nice to break "things". Property is "king". It's horrible to bring up class wars in any discussion. Rich people are rich because they are worth more than your sorry ass. Pull yourself up by your bootstraps. Let's bailout the bankers and throw Americans out on the street. Death penalty - state sanctioned murder. Abu Gharaib, it can happen here. Let's hide the poor and get the homeless off Main Street! For profit prisons. America... luv it or get the fuck out. Give peace a chance. Four dead in Ohio... that's just a catchy tune. USA USA USA USA USA USA USA USA USA

Living in fear is acceptable so long as we mind our fucking manners. Didn't you get that memo?

I've had about all the tsk-tsking and hand-wringing that anyone can handle from this thread. More power to these students. How pathetic we have become to never understand that there are times people will take up sticks against their common enemy. Good for them.

[warren pease]

15. From a prior Athens police riot; a brief moment of justice interrupts the usual robocop violence...

So... How's it feel, bastards?


wp

[awoke_in_2003]

21. Like that pic,

nothing like a circular firing squad. Not quite as funny, though, as when a Dallas cop accidently tasered himself:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uOVku86WfVg

[Selatius]

19. A large segment in Greece exhibit very strong anti-authoritarian tendencies.

They have low tolerance for authority figures as it is. With the death of the 15 year-old, their tolerance essentially dropped to zero.

[Odin2005]

22. The Greeks don't put up with BS!!!

:yourock:

[bdamomma]

31. Right you are,

they do not hold "officials" or "police" on a pedestal like we do, hopefully that will change.

[Edweird]

23. I fail to see heroism in the the act of destroying others lives. Sorry.

Burning cars and looting businesses only hurts the owners of those cars and businesses, not the police. If you do that, you are not a hero; you are a dick.

[HEyHEY]

24. Why the fuck are people on this site so god damned preachy all the time?

I'm not saying they're heroic. I'm making a comment, albeit off-colour.

[BreweryYardRat]

30. Yup. If they wanted to make a statement, they should have lynched the "officer" who shot the kid.

Mind you, that's only if the Greeks have the same problem as here, where officers who've committed gross brutality and abuse of authority routinely get off the hook in court.

Country-wide rioting instead of, say, people from all over the country showing up en masse to drag the cop out and lynch him, doesn't make the kid any less dead, and it's fucking up the lives of innocent people.

[KillCapitalism]

25. Yeah, it reminds me of 1992.

Back when we had the Rodney King riots in LA, but it looks like they are worse than that in Athens...wow.

[Caria]

32. The situation is more complex

First, there have been other police brutality cases in Greece recently.

Second, there is a general anger at the government. There have been some big scandals, including the odd Vatopedi Monastery land swap. Unemployment and inflation very high, and investigative news reports have shown that Greek food products actually cost more in Greece than in Germany. 20% in Greece are living below the poverty line.

[LeftHander]

33. Someone was killed in Greece a few years ago....

Not really but Greece has the lowest crime rate in the region.