Baltimore Riots

[BoaterGuy]

Not sure if this is national news yet but they are rioting and looting in Baltimore City because of the death of Freddie Gray.

This is really close to me as I'm in the outer suburbs of Baltimore County.

While this riot might seem to be race based, it is my belief that this is an economic issue with race being the catalyst.

On Saturday during the Orioles game they attacked fans outside the stadium when they were leaving.

Today they are spread out all over the west side of the city. (It's typically the worst area of the city)

***DISCLAIMER***
THIS THREAD IS NOT INTENDED TO START A DEBATE ABOUT RACE OR POLICE. THIS IS SIMPLY AN AWARENESS THREAD.

From the O's game:

Live stream of whats happening now:

 

[justason]

Hey @RobA i started catching up on this story last night. Hell ina handbasket.

it's all levels of loosing for a while now. Hope you stay safe...and well "protected"

 

[txav8r]

Stay safe Rob. Don't get it, but just stay safe.

 

[Wayloncle]

I've never understood how people can think that tearing a place up is going to make anything better or make others think "oh, you know they are correct"

But, I guess the ones that are doing that really aren't interested in making anything better or changing minds, they just want to tear stuff up:-/

Actions like this are a disgrace to humanity.

 

[BoaterGuy]

Thanks, they just set their own CVS on fire. They are destroying the stores they shop at.

I'm more than prepared for anything that may come of this, but I dont expect it to expand to the burbs....yet..

 

[Jim Robeson]

Stay safe @RobA ... saw this on the national news tonight. Not good, looks like Ferguson, MO all over again.

 

[biglar155]

Oh man. Stay safe brother.

 

[CFD3Captain]

It's all too much to comprehend! I just don't understand it. Even IF the man that died was because of police abuse....WHY THIS! Throwing rocks at firefighters and cutting their hoses while PROTECTING your neighborhood! This makes me so sick and sad

 

[GTBRMC]

Stay safe, @RobA

Mobs are scary things. Just stay clear to the extent you can.

 

[biglar155]

It's all too much to comprehend! I just don't understand it. Even IF the man that died was because of police abuse....WHY THIS! Throwing rocks at firefighters and cutting their hoses while PROTECTING your neighborhood! This makes me so sick and sad

Very sad. And in the end it only makes things worse. Will the fire department bother to come on the next call? Why risk themselves to save what cannot be saved? Will any SANE business owner rebuild? Sure, maybe some local "Mom and Pop" with "faith in the people of the city" (and good insurance) might, but the big chains like CVS are not about to take that risk again. So there will be fewer jobs, fewer services, fewer opportunities in an already depressed area.

 

[jawsf16]

It's just an excuse for scumbags to steal and destroy stuff. The political message was forgotten long ago... Sad.

 

[Ronnie]

We had similar experiences when oscar Grant was killed and when his killer was acquitted. I was also living in scal when the Rodney king riots happened. In both instances it was determined that those who caused the most damage were not even residents of the neighborhood. They just came in on a special trip intent on doing damage not just to protest peacefully. In the oscars grant situation my company told everyone to be out of the Oakland offices before 2p. That's thousands of people getting paid for going home early and is just one of many companies impacted by things like this. I would stay home until this blows over.

 

[BoaterGuy]

I'm going to keep a close eye on this. Some of the things that are being said from officials are very questionable to me. It's almost like they are letting this happen on purpose.

Like they just imposed a curfew... Tomorrow night??? National guard on standby but not utilized? Cops are outnumbered. The people who started these protests against the police now are criticizing that they are now not protecting them?

This is spreading to the other side of the city where I have friends that live there. No one in this city will sleep well tonight.

I appreciate all of the well wishes from everyone.

 

[Julian]

My wife and daughter were going to visit Baltimore next weekend, but I think they'll be cancelling this trip due to the unrest...... Mob mentality is insane

 

[BoaterGuy]

Yes stay the hell away!

 

[Julian]

Especially as they were going there to go. Downtown to Orioles games!

 

[007]

Sure, squeaky wheel gets the oil, but all this lawlessness/destruction does is hurt everyone in the area and make problems that did exist even worse. Living in St. Louis, I can tell you it will be scary for awhile, but then sane people of all walks of life will say "enough is enough" and then they will take their community back. It will be slow. It will hurt tourism, business and the economy. I am sad for my city and yours too, be safe tonight...

 

[msavold]

If only we could corral the "professionally offended" crowd and keep them away from all this. Damned news media does its best to foment all this too. Even though we're just south of Baltimore ("Charm City" - where the HELL did they get that moniker?) in Columbia, I'm avoiding the news - my blood pressure can't take it.

It baffles me that looting and setting fire to your own neighborhood is a good thing. And then people ask how areas defined as "food deserts" [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Food_desert] can come about. Well, let me see, if I'm a grocery chain or, in this case, CVS, will I think twice before dropping several MILLION to build and stock a store some asshole is going to loot in the name of "justice"? Um, hell no. And the spiral continues and gets worse.

Sigh.

 

[Craig]

Pure stupidity...
I'm sick to death of the lack of personal responsibility these days and how so many are willing to lay blame elsewhere.
I don't know the circumstances of the Gray arrest, but regardless, these folks are too ignorant to realize that their actions are simply hurting Baltimore's economy and will likely have long term effects. Violence is seldom the answer and certainly not in this situation. We have become a society that is so concerned about being politically correct that we are willing to bypass common sense. The fact that most of the rioting started with high school age children is even more disappointing.

But on a lighter note, apparently a mother of a rioter doesn't approve of his participation...lol

 

[Noko]

The Media should share the blame for a lot of whats going on. The Media is blowing the race issue way out of proportion. I just wonder how many other cases of a cop unjustly shooting someone are not reported because it won't be newsworthy. I travel a lot and I just don't see all the race issues that the Media hypes. I try to treat everyone the same and with respect and I usually get the same in return. I think there is a silent majority of all races in the US that just can't believe this is happening. Stay safe RobA