True Fans are Not Rioters

Saddened. Shocked. Shamed. As news media around the world parade the images of Vancouver like vultures looking for meaty news, the beautiful city of Vancouver is forever tarnished. As Vancouver Police Chief has said, these rioters are no Canucks fans. They are 'criminals, anarchists, and thugs.' The photos say it all.

Photo Credit: National Post

You can see more shocking images here. There are many Youtube videos that show the senseless destruction of a city, under he guise of being a Canucks fan. One of them below shows how sickening it can get.

As I watch the news and listen to the radio, I am convinced that the majority of the troublemakers planned these rioting beforehand. According to some eye-witnesses, the rioters came prepared with sledgehammers, bandanas, fire-starters and many kinds of home-made weaponry. Obviously, they had a plan regardless of the results of Game 7 hockey game. In other words, they were already prepared to riot whether the team wins or loses.  One bus driver even overheard that her passengers in the bus were conspiring about what targets to hit as they were traveling downtown. These people are not true hockey fans.

Unfortunately, these rioters don the Vancouver Canucks jerseys as they go around damaging public and private property. They have shown the world that they are thugs ready to cause trouble, hurt property and people. These are definitely not Vancouver Canucks fans.

I feel sad that a few bad eggs have damaged the reputation of a beautiful city. After all the wonderful reviews in last year's Olympics celebrations, this year has not only erased all the goodwill. It created more bad taste in all, both local and overseas. I am ashamed. Utterly ashamed. Yet, there is hope. Hope that the majority of the city dwellers are peace-loving, and good respectful hockey fans. They may be sad, but they know how to lose graciously. I believe that the media ought to highlight the news of Vancouver in proportion. For example, a few hundred people riot downtown yesterday. This morning, thousands more people volunteer to help in the cleaning up. You do the math.

Vancouver is still a beautiful place, and I am proud to be living in this world class city. Do not let these minority 'criminals, anarchists, and thugs' destroy the majority image. Here is a snippet of images of real Vancouver Canucks fans. These people volunteer at their own time and expense. They mop. They cleanup. They restore as much as they can. These are the true Canucks fans. These fans are true blue Canucks and they are not rioters.

Photo Credit: Maurice Li

Check it out here.

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