"Of course, we want our wonderful fans to celebrate responsibly, right boys?"
"Right."
In case you missed it, the Lakers won another NBA title last night. As predicted, their fans went on another rampage outside the Staples Center, which is now an annual custom. Fights broke out, cars were attacked, a taxi was torched, and one cop was sent to the hospital with a broken nose after being hit with a projectile.
The below YouTube video shows a car being set on fire with accompanying narration by a future Eyewitness News anchor.
By the time I went to bed last night, there had been 12 arrests. Today's OC Register only devoted a few lines to the disturbances. (What a rag!)
All this happened in spite of LA playboy Mayor Tony Villaraigosa showing up on TV in front of the Staples Center saluting the Lakers and hoping that there would be no problems. Of course, that's what Villaraigosa does; he shows up at big sporting events and makes some grand proclamation as mayor-then gets in free to watch the games. Of course, somebody pays for Tony's seat, but when it was recently revealed that he has been accepting tens of thousands of dollars in tickets for big events in LA, his spokeshole informs us that Tony is attending on official city business, which consists of handing out an award or making some dopey comment in front of the cameras.
But before I really get my readers angry, let's go back to the riot. This is precisely why I pull against the Lakers. Go back to their last 5 titles and what you see is five riots. Not that I have anything against the players themselves. By all accounts, Derek Fisher is a class guy, and I'm sure that most of the others are as well. Of course, that guy Artest is certifiably nuts and Bryant, for all his greatness as a player, was never completely vindicated from that little mess in Colorado a few years back. Yet, he still has enough swagger to make a classless comment about Shaquille O'Neil after last night's game.
To make things even worse, in all liklihood, there will be another one next year in the "City of Angels".
This reminds me of the riot by Italian Americans in San Francisco some years back when Italy beat Germany in some soccer match -- maybe even the World Cup, I can't remember. A police officer saw a man jumping up and down in the hood of a Mercedes. The man said "I don't care how much it costs me, I just had to damage something German to celebrate." The cop asked "Cost you?" The man replied "Yeah, this Mercedes is MINE."
ReplyDeleteSan Francisco? You should be in Italy every time Italy wins a world cup match.
ReplyDeletePS:
ReplyDeleteI also have a mercedes. Maybe I can do thaqt when the Cubs win the world series. On second thought, I probably won't be able to jump when that happens.
Or breathe.
That's one think I like about you Gary. At least you've seen something of the rest of the world.
ReplyDeleteAnd you're a Cubs fan. My cousin says that's good preparation for life.
You call being a Cub fan "life"?
ReplyDeleteThanks for the real compliment. Most of the people I encounter on university campuses have a life's experience that consists of where they got there degrees and where they've taught. Do a little homework and it's not hard to handle them.