Monday, June 20, 2011

Fun Exchange


Anonymous Jeff Taylor said...

David, if you want to see the real reason our society is in so much trouble, please take a moment to read this blog written by a young woman whom recently came out from behind the riot's shadows. I couldn't believe what I was reading !

http://camillecacnioapology.wordpress.com/2011/06/19/dear-vancouver-i-am-sorry/#comment-436

June 20, 2011 12:13 PM

Delete
Blogger David Berner said...

Dear Jeff Taylor,

I have read with interest the blog post you quoted above and I have watched the video of her running out of the store with STOLEN GOODS, and I must say that I don't buy one word of it.

There is something essentially wrong with this young woman's character.

After her apology, she might try paying for the window and the STOLEN GOODS and cleaning up the city streets every night for a month or two.

She is like so many people sitting on the bus next to us.

She wears the easy veneer of civility, while not far below the surface she is a savage.

The worst thing about global warming is the loss of ice flows.

8 comments:

Anonymous said...

'The aftermath has been a tough ordeal and I let my emotions get in the way of my original apology.'

I wondered about her 'original' apology, and found this, which is really no apology at all -- I guess she got a little push back on the original and felt some doctoring was in order.

http://www.straight.com/article-399862/vancouver/ubc-student-apologizes-role-vancouver-riot-criticizes-social-media-mob

Mo.

Jeff Taylor said...

Hi David, just wanted to let you know that tonight (Monday) I re-visited this young woman"s blog and wouldn't you know it - she EDITED her blog ! Long gone is her 'defensive tone', 'endless excuses' and the shots she took at her friends for not standing by her. It's all magically disappeared ! I guess she's found herself a good lawyer and took their advice !

Anonymous said...

I haven't read the 'EDITED' version and don't intend to waste my time.

I didn't 'buy' the first version expecting the general public to 'understand how people can be caught up in mob mentality'......no way Jose!!!

There's the simple lesson of 'right and wrong' that should be instilled in one when young.

It was disheartening to see the utter disrespect for others' property and disregard/disrespect/taunting of police forces on the front line.

Empathy and responsibility was sadly missing in the character of these young people.

I was happy to learn that London Drugs and ICBC will be filing civil suits. A severe financial hit might jolt some of these 'hooligans' into realizing the scope and severity of their senseless actions.

Anonymous said...

David! I thought that you had retired this blog ages ago. What made you decide to come back?

Evil Eye said...

What gives the right for anyone to loot a store?

This is our new age, our great Canadian moral attitude - steal what you can and blame others.

It works for our politicians, so I guess it should work for the rest of us peons!

We live in an age of universal deceit, fueled by universal avarice, based on "Do it to others before they do it to you".

I am looking for a tar pit to crawl into and............

Robert W. said...

Dear David, Jeff, et al:

The full text of the original apology can be found here. If you haven't yet read it, it is well worth it, especially to understand the full voracity of Jeff's earlier assertion: "if you want to see the real reason our society is in so much trouble".

I published my thoughts, including a priceless quote from Camille's mother all here.

Finally, are all of you fellow "online mobsters" aware that *we* are now the problem?! Yup. At least according to the likes of Barbara Kay, Charles Adler, David Eby, and a whole host of lawyers. We, the law-abiding citizens of Metro Vancouver are the problem ... at least in this Kumbaya Twilight Zone we live in. :-(

Anonymous said...

The on-line mobsters ARE a problem.

I don't agree with what the rioters did. I think that looting from a store is wrong (and I don't care if "everyone else is doing it" - my mum use to say "would you jump off a cliff if 'everyone else' was??..."

HOWEVER....

Let them be charged criminally. Let them have a civil suits filed against them. Do the time/pay the fine/pay for the damage/do community service - etc.

I don't think that punishing the perpetrators online and through social media for eternity is particularly reasonable.

I find it interesting that the one rioter/looter in question got fired from her job at a car dealership (due to public pressure). So now we have an unemployed person who will have a great deal of difficulty being hired in any capacity due to her face plastered and being lambasted continuously on-line. Multiply this by many, many people. If the same people had been caught shoplifting (charged and convicted) in a situation other than the riot - most would NOT have lost their jobs/scholarships, etc.

What good does a bunch of unemployed/difficult to employ people do for society? It won't deter others in the future from doing stupid things. People have been doing stupid things for hundred (if not thousands) of years.

If any of the rioters/looters have lost their jobs/scholarship and have young children of the own - the children will also suffer as their parent will not be able to provide support. Again - what good does this do society?

Before Facebook, cell phone cameras and blogs, people still did foolish things. They used bad judgment. The difference is - in my day and generations before- they had an opportunity to learn from mistakes, make amends and grow up and become better citizens.

I'll paraphrase from the movie "Social Network" - things posted on the internet are written in ink, not pencil. The rioters images (as disturbing as they were) are in the "cloud" forever. Future employers, schools, friends, acquaintances will be able to easily enter their names into any search engine and come up with their moments of utter stupidity for the rest of their lives. It will take a strong person to be able to look at one of the rioters in a few years and say, "You know ... what you did was wrong - but that was 2/5/10/20 years ago - I know that people have the capacity to grow and change - let's see what you are made of now."

Enough is enough already. Let justice be done by letting the courts do their job. Let the people who took part in the riot learn and move on.

The bloggers, on-line commentators and social media users need to move on as well.

Michael Powers said...

It's a darkness that lies within all of us (yourself included, Mr. Taylor). She made an apology. It's your prerogative if you choose not to accept it. But that speaks more of your civility than hers.