Jo’s Cafe

Rioting … from the Dictionary, means:

1. A wild or turbulent disturbance created by a large number of people.
2. Law. A violent disturbance of the public peace by three or more persons assembled for a common purpose.
3. An unrestrained outbreak, as of laughter or passions.
4. A profusion: The garden was a riot of colors in August.
5. 1. Unrestrained merrymaking; revelry. 2. Debauchery.
6. Slang. An irresistibly funny person or thing: Isn’t she a riot?

Now clearly the events going on in France right now have nothing to do with numbers 4, 5, or 6.

Number 3 fits in there I guess, but it is numbers 1 and 2 that fit the mold.

Why do people riot? Who knows — I’ve never felt in such a way as to want to do something like what is going on over there.

But my question has always been when events like this happen:

“What does it accomplish?”

This post has been sitting in my que for 3 days because I can’t answer that question.

As I see it, rioting as is being done in France, as was done in Ohio, and after the Rodney King verdict, accomplished nothing.

From the ABC News story:

ACHERES, France Nov 5, 2005 — Youths armed with gasoline bombs fanned out from Paris’ poor, troubled suburbs to shatter the tranquility of leafier towns, torching 900 vehicles, a nursery school and other targets, police said Saturday, in the worst wave of arson since the urban violence began more than a week ago.

Gasoline bombs.
Torching 900 vehicles, including a nursery school.

Does tossing gasoline bombs into nursery schools prove anything related to the reason for the riot? No, because as I understand, this had to do with two boys fleeing the police — and I don’t believe they were in a nursery school at the time. And what did the owners of said 900 vehicles have to do with the situation for them to have suffered this destruction?

As Tyler from T. Longren says in his post titled “France: To Hell in a Handbasket“:

Nine nights of muslims rioting in the streets so far. All due to a couple kids who got in trouble by the cops and fled to a power station. Do cops in Paris just chase people for the hell of it? I doubt it.

Nine nights because a couple kids didn’t want to get arrested and were electrocuted.

Where is the outrage “why” they were fleeing and did not obey the orders of the police?

What’s worse than 900 cars and a nursery? How about a defenseless women being “set ablaze”. Michelle Malkin notes the story here.

Again that brings me back to the question:

“What does it accomplish?”

Nothing.