As a relatively new immigrant to Canada, I was appalled at the carnage and destruction of property that took place in Vancouver after the Stanley Cup final match.
How can a country that can field an effective fighting force in Afghanistan, half way around the world, allow a riot of this magnitude to take place in a major city.
Yes, I appreciate that the police are responsible for law and order within the country, not the military and that is as it should be if the police can handle it.
I find it extremely difficult to accept that the national characteristics and that led to the development of this great country have been so eroded by laws that seem to punish law-abiding citizens yet frequently allow criminals to go free on technicalities.
What is even more concerning is the reluctance of the police to use force to protect property, especially if there is the faintest concern that the “rights” of politically sensitive groups might be infringed. Never mind that other groups are then forced to remain cowed into submission as their property values and safety are affected. The disgraceful performance in Caledonia, Ontario, a few years ago is the most glaring example.
In most countries, the right to protect one’s property is as sacrosanct as the right to protect one’s life and those of one’s family. Unless I am seriously mistaken, it appears that in Canada, should I use any weapon, even one as inoffensive as a broomstick to prevent my wife getting raped or killed or some thug stealing my property, I will be in more trouble than the criminal.
The reason that the riots got out of hand was that the participants knew that there would be few if any consequences for their vandalism. This was reinforced after the G8 summit when the police have been subjected to endless investigations, and portrayed as the bad guys. But little action has been taken against the troublemakers and great concern expressed that their right to peaceful protest has been affected.
Sorry, but when your right to peaceful protest results in my property being damaged, my freedom of movement affected and my taxes increased to pay for it, then that is undemocratic.
If the troublemakers knew that there was a good chance they would be shot for destroying public or private property, the damage would have been minimal. It’s time to wake up and realise that unless the forces of law and order and law-abiding citizens take a stand, riots like these will happen again and innocent people will suffer.
The reason that civilizations have been largely successful over the last 2000 years is that they have been structured to prevent anarchy, not encourage it.
If the politicians and the police who we pay with our taxes to protect us don’t have the stomach for it, then arm and indemnify private guards to protect property at potential riot scenes. Allow law-abiding and responsible private citizens to own and use firearms for property protection.
Any one who burns a police car or even causes a huge increase in police overtime pay by their criminal actions is stealing money from every tax payer. The argument that private property damage is covered by insurance does not hold water either. That just results in higher insurance premiums for all of us.
For civilized life to continue in a democratic society, there must be consequences for those who choose to behave like anarchists.
Before readers suggest I go back to where I came from, I would were it not for the fact that my country has degenerated into almost complete anarchy largely due to the well-meaning but disastrous interference of Western governments.
I have seen what happens when law and order are not enforced or subverted for the benefit of a few. It is the start of an insidious slide into chaos, wholesale government sponsored theft of property, denial of basic human rights and economic ruin.
So you may well be asking what this has to do with Social media or marketing.
Two things:
Knowing that there will be consequences for less than our best efforts in our marketing activities keeps us on our toes. There are consequences for every action and every inaction. If the consequences are artificially reduced like with rioters not getting punished, then other consequences arise like anarchy, increased taxes and insurance premiums.
Secondly, the one good thing that came out of the riots was the amazing response by law-abiding citizens using social media to assist the police in identifying and tracking down the criminals responsible for the destruction.
Wishing you success in all your endeavours.
