“Flash mob” of gangbangers organized By twitter shoot man on Venice, California boardwalk as “human tidal wave” flees in panic
Mark A. sends the
article from the
Los Angeles Times, highlighting this excerpt:
Simone Shellmire, 23, a model who lives in North Hollywood, said the attack made her uncomfortable, but would not keep her from a scene she’s enjoyed since she was a young girl.
“This is my sweet spot,” Shellmire said. “The cool music on the beach, the drum circle…. It’s diversity. I love coming here.”
Miss Shellmire is evidently an adherent of the George Casey School of Ethical Philosophy, which teaches that diversity is a higher value than life.
Mark Jaws sends the same article, with this comment:
There must be something comparable to “Sudden Jihad Syndrome” among the gang-banging class. Perhaps “Sudden Savage Syndrome” would be apt.
Here’s the article:
‘Flash mob’ on Venice boardwalk ends in shooting
A young man was in critical condition after being shot in the head and side, police say. The gathering was apparently organized via Twitter.
A man was in critical condition after a shooting Saturday on the Venice boardwalk that sent hordes of onlookers running pell-mell into the streets, police said Sunday.
“It looked like a human tidal wave,” said Spencer L. Sirlin, 27, a Hollywood booking agent who witnessed the attack.
The victim, in his mid-20s, was struck in the head and side and taken to Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center, said Los Angeles police Sgt. Felipe Vasquez, of the Pacific Division’s beach detail.
The man’s name and updated condition were not available Sunday evening. No arrests have been made, Vasquez said.
The shooting occurred amid a “flash mob” crowd that was organized at least in part over Twitter, Vasquez said.
Alexandria Thompson, a member of a neighborhood watch group called Venice311, said she notified police midmorning Saturday of the online effort to pull together a “flash mob” at the shoreline basketball courts along Ocean Front Walk.
“Venice beach bball ct going up tomorrow,” read the Twitter alert, which was retweeted with embellishments over and over as the day progressed, Thompson said.
Vasquez said he called in reinforcements as the crowd, including young men in gang attire and tattoos, swelled in the late afternoon. About 6:30 p.m., six to eight shots rang out at 17th Avenue and Ocean Front Walk, Vasquez said. The victim ran half a block to an alley where he collapsed, Vasquez said.
The crowd scattered through the neighborhood, with some hiding in nearby shops. The bus stops were mobbed with people trying to flee by public transportation, said Jessie Lieberson, a clerk in a vintage clothing store.
Thompson, 43, said some in the mob ran away backward so they could continue to watch the action.
“They were laughing. It was all part of the event for them,” she said. “There’s a kind of free-for-all down here. Everybody is trying to get away with as much as they can.”
Vasquez said it was not the first flash mob assembled at the boardwalk through social media. A false report that a major hip-hop star would be shooting a video drew a gaggle of break dancers and onlookers earlier this year. The other incidents did not end in violence, he said.
But some business owners said disturbances have been escalating. And they feared the trend would scare off the visitors who have made Venice one of Southern California’s most popular destinations.
Lieberson doubted the latest incident would tarnish Venice’s louche charm.
“The tourists are coming from overseas; they like the legacy of dropouts and hippies,” said the 23-year-old London native. “Our business has been really good lately.”
Simone Shellmire, 23, a model who lives in North Hollywood, said the attack made her uncomfortable, but would not keep her from a scene she’s enjoyed since she was a young girl.
“This is my sweet spot,” Shellmire said. “The cool music on the beach, the drum circle. … It’s diversity. I love coming here.”
- end of initial entry -
Julian C. writes:
The comments section has a number of people castigating the LA Times for omitting the race of the perpetrators. For example:
G Dude at 11:39 AM April 18, 2011
So the description of the bad guys was, tattoos and gang attire. Now were this white gang bangers, black gang bangers or latin gang bangers? Why does the LA Times soft pedal this. You did the same thing with the description of the thugs who beat up the guy at Dodger Stadium. It was days before you finally said “shaved headed latin”.
Mark A. writes:
With respect to Julian C.’s comment, in Philadelphia, during the peak of its flash mob problem last summer, I noticed that at first the news stories would have hundreds of comments about the fact that the “flash mobbers” were all black and the mayor (black) wouldn’t do anything about the problem. After about the fourth flash mob, I noticed that the local newspaper websites started to disable comments. What a fascinating world our liberal elite live in. Do they really think that by disabling comments they are going to keep certain white people from “catching on?” If you asked the average white Philadelphian, regardless of political party affiliation or age, they would undoubtedly agree that the flash mobs consisted of young blacks. It would be akin to asking them if the sky were blue.
Remember the anti-drug posters from the 1980s that said:
This is your brain (picture of an egg). This is your brain on drugs (picture of egg being cooked).
We need a new poster:
This is your brain (picture of a white person). This is your brain on liberalism (picture of a young white lady at Venice Beach waiting for a flash mob).
April 19
Ferg writes:
Mark Jaws wrote: “There must be something comparable to “Sudden Jihad Syndrome” among the gang-banging class. Perhaps “Sudden Savage Syndrome” would be apt.”
I think Mark is right in this. A reading of old letters and reports from colonial times in Africa and South America would tend to support this. There was a reason for that old business about the natives being “restless.” It often meant they were about to go on a rampage.
LA to Ferg:
You are going to get me in trouble with this! But it has the ring of truth, how can I not post it?
As I’ve often said, savages can often seem peaceful, even sweet. Then, suddenly, they’re not peaceful.
Ferg replies:
I figured it was too rough to post, but it does have a certain weight.
Truth is where you find it.
Good luck.
Posted by Lawrence Auster at April 18, 2011 04:53 PM | Send