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G20: BARRY INVOLVED
Fun times at yesterday’s Victorian leftist demento-fest:
Violent anti-G20 protesters unleashed mayhem in Melbourne yesterday, rioting in the streets and attacking police as pedestrians fled in fear.
A hardcore mob wrecked police vehicles, smashing windows and panels with rubbish bins, bottles, rocks and steel signposts.
Police are braced for more clashes as the economic summit ends today.
State police commissioner Christine Nixon blamed anarchists from Europe (peaceful, civilised Europe?) and interstate. One of them—ominously—calls himself Barry:
An Arterial Bloc spokesman, calling himself Barry, said: “We wanted to make it clear that the streets are our streets. We wanted to show the world, united as a bloc, that we oppose the G20 and to show police we are not scared.”
Protester Sam Quilty, 13, said at the rear of the Hyatt: “It’s big business taking over small family businesses which I don’t think is fair.”
Sam wanted to say more, but it was nap time:
The Age’s superbly named Chantal Rumble reports:
A splinter group of hardcore protesters, their faces masked and wearing white anti-chemical suits, fought an afternoon-long series of guerilla skirmishes with police during yesterday’s anti-G20 demonstration.
They called themselves Arterial Block and by some reports left 30 police battered and bruised, one with a broken wrist. They attacked a police truck near Flinders Lane, pulled down barricades, assaulted a television journalist and graffitied the ANZ bank.
Korgmeister, who posts an excellent picture essay, happened to witness the truck incident:
During the attack on the truck, a blonde woman from the peaceful part of the protest was having a heated argument with a couple of the anarchists. I could not hear what she was saying, only the anarchists responding by accusing her of being patronising and that if they respect her right to protest peacefully, she should respect their right to protest violently.
Click for video of the attack, which wasn’t condemned by protest organisers:
A spokeswoman for the protest, Nicole Peach, said the violence was not representative of the majority of the crowd. However, she did not condemn the actions of the minority, saying it was an individual choice for people as to how they demonstrated.
“People feel very strongly and very passionately about the way this group of people, the G20, dictate the way the rest of the community lives in an unsustainable way,” Ms Peach said.
Try living under a 24/7 reign of idiot anarchists; it wouldn’t exactly be sustainable, Nicole. Nor would life under half-ant, half-human global reclaimers:
Among other protesters:
You’ll always find such folk at an anti-capitatalism protest. One television report last night featured a youthful activist explaining his mask as something required during the current era of police oppression. In fact, the masked are simply concealing the fact that they’re pasty white private school boys named Jeremy and Tarquin. Note the Palestine supporter at left, gamely protesting capitatalism while simultaneously winning the 2006 Run Like a Girl championship:
What a chin he has! Mugley captured a whole gallery of these losers, including the mandatory Crazy Old Man:
Also a neatly-dressed Bob Ellis:
And a water-wasting hosewad:
Lefty blogger randombrainwave wasn’t amused:
What is it with hippie protesters giving the left a bad name? Do they really think that dressing up in costumes and storming buildings where ordinary people are trying to do their jobs is going to achieve anything? They aren’t in charge. They are average people trying to earn a living.
Average people are as nothing compared to the protestorial might of big giant puppets:
Leftwrites.net inactivist Jeff Sparrow attended the protest, but didn’t notice anything amiss:
The Age reports clashes with police. If they took place, they weren’t anywhere near me.
In comments, Jeff notes that the main story was avoided:
The ‘violence’ seems a bit of a beatup, though I haven’t really seen the news footage yet. The more intersting point seems to me that the demo was significantly larger than might have been predicted.
I think Korgmeister may have photographed Jeff here:
Gee Tim, that wouldn’t happen to be a pair of Nike Air Force Ones at the bottom of the first photo, would it?
http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y7/-Ed/AirForceOnes.jpg
From Oxfam’s NikeWatch:
Many people are living in poverty – even though they have paid jobs. They earn low wages, endure poor working conditions and are denied their basic human rights. And when these workers try to organise unions to campaign for better wages and conditions, they often face dismissal and even violence.Oxfam Australia believes the payment of decent wages and respect for labour rights play a key role in reducing poverty. We advocate on labour rights issues through our NikeWatch campaign and our work with other international organisations where we seek to persuade sports brands to respect workers’ rights. Issues include low wages, long hours, verbal abuse, dangerous working conditions, denial of trade union rights and high levels of sexual harassment (80% of sportswear workers are women).
That’s a funny thing for an anti-globalisation, anti-business protestor to be wearing.
A better title for this post might be “Asshats On Parade”.
Posted by The_Real_JeffS on 2006 11 18 at 05:13 PM • permalinkI’ve really missed Bob Ellis lately. Ever since I dubbed him ‘Fairypetal’ - plagiarising from Mark Steyn’s daughters, I admit - he’s been keeping out of sight.
Well, talk about a stylish comeback! Lovely earrings, Fairypetal. And the nail polish matches that little streak of colour over your ear, too.
And Jeff Sparrow says he didn’t notice the violence. Hmm. I think maybe Jeff just deletes images from his brain the way he deletes posts from his blog. If he doesn’t agree with it, it ain’t there.Posted by SwinishCapitalist on 2006 11 18 at 05:14 PM • permalinkI think it might be fun to wander the crowd with one of the short electric prods that we used to herd animals with. They were a bit more than 8 inches long, total, held 6 D batteries and would give you a hell of a jolt.
Then, when one of the asshats claimed the right to ‘protest violently’ I’d agree and give them a good shock.
Oh, and I’d have a backpack full of extra batteries.
Posted by JorgXMcKie on 2006 11 18 at 06:21 PM • permalinkThese pathetic losers are just sorry that they missed out on the Vietnam protests.
Generation Y kiddies livid that the Baby Boomers had all the fun.
On a more serious note, how come the Vic Government let the criminals run loose all day? What about a plan to clear that lot off the streets and put them in the cooler for a while?
And how credible are the people who refuse to condemn the violence?
CB: No, the violent anarcho-nihilists were definitely Australian. I didn’t hear any foreign accents amongst them. I distinctly recall during the attack on the police van them shouting something incoherent about how they were practising “Australian values”.
JorgXMcKie: Unfortunately, those are illegal in Australia, due to our myriad of Sissy Weapons Laws.
Posted by Korgmeister on 2006 11 18 at 06:40 PM • permalinkI sat across from the curly red-head kid in this photo (two people behind the masked idiot) in the tram yesterday evening. He had a t-shirt on under the ridiculous studded leather jacket that carried the oh-so-intellectual message ‘Fuck You, John Howard!’ Thought he looked like a likely suspect.
Suburban, middle-class, kids playing at ...what???
History? well maybe they *think* they are making history.
Politics? They certainly believe so, but their political impact can only be negative.
Fighting for a cause? What cause?
Mostly, it is about “me” and meeting others like me so I might get layed.
The hippies have much to answer for.
Posted by Wimpy Canadian on 2006 11 18 at 07:56 PM • permalinkYou know, if one did want to ruin a perfectly good protest, the way to do it would be to embed some troublemakers. Now that I think about it, I haven’t seen or heard from MarkL and a few other minions lately.
Posted by wronwright on 2006 11 18 at 08:41 PM • permalinkOne of the commenters at this site - (hmmm Blair?) predicted puppets with big heads at this protest days ago, and there they are.
Is this just a co-incidence, or an inside job?
Posted by Margos Maid on 2006 11 18 at 08:53 PM • permalinkThe Islamists are now on notice what will happen to them, should they decide to stage an intifada in Australia…
Can any Melbournians advise whether Police Commissioner Christine Nixon (photo) is taken seriously? I don’t know anything about her, but find it difficult to respect any police officer that looks like they’d struggle chasing someone up a short flight of stairs.
Wimpy Canadian: I can say that protest would be the last place I’d go looking for talent.
But then, maybe some guys have a thing for women who spend too much time in the sun and too little in the shower.
Posted by Korgmeister on 2006 11 18 at 09:43 PM • permalinkWith ‘powderpuff police’ thanks to Christine ‘Mrs Doubtfire’ Nixon, puppet and clown outfitted by protesters, vandalising and causing havoc for law abiding citizens. It really just shows how rediculous, law enforcement in the state of Victoria has become.
What this State needs is a police commissioner with real balls, not a NSW labor appointee, put here as a fovour for the ‘mates’ north of the border.For ordinary Melbourne citizens, it’s time for Take Your Cricket Bat To Work Day.
Posted by andycanuck on 2006 11 18 at 11:11 PM • permalinkPerth is hosting the Red Bull Air Race today, and 300,000 people are expected to attend. The police are saying right from the get-go that troublemakers will be dealt with: drunken and stupid behaviour will be rewarded with a ride to the lockup.
Safe bet that none of our men and women in blue will be requesting a fresh baton tomorrow, either.Posted by SwinishCapitalist on 2006 11 19 at 01:26 AM • permalinkAaahhh. Good times.
Reminds me of the days back in the early 70’s when the Vietnam moratorium marchers were out and about every weekend.
Me and my fellow Diggers (in civvies) would mix in with the unwashed mob and egg them on to “get the pigs, man”, and urge them into hand to hand combat with the cops. Then we would stand back and watch the wallopers do they what they do best, especially in Qld and SA, beat hippies mercilessly on the head with their batons, and doing our civic duty by occasionally assisting the more timid protesters forward into the battle lines.
Queen Street, Brisbane, and Rundle Street, Adelaide 1970-71, should be marked as the unofficial Battle Honours of the Royal Australian Regiment.
Posted by Pedro the Ignorant on 2006 11 19 at 08:01 AM • permalinkPeter F
Now you have been activated, await orders from Subaltern Minion commander wronwright re assignment.
Tip: For first timers, it usually involves something repulsive, such as listening to Kim
Bassinger_Philby_Jong-il_Beazley’s speeches for a week and reporting back toKarlRove.Posted by Stop Continental Drift! on 2006 11 19 at 08:34 AM • permalink
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Great pictures and even greater captions! It’s Blair’s Law run extravagantly, dizzyingly, rampantly amuck.