(In this photo alone, there are at least 25 crimes taking place…most of them involve God-awful $45 t-shirts and shirtless grown men holding signs or covered in body paint.)
Remember when Vancouver City Council demanded that the UFC shell out the cash to pay for additional policemen and the big news was that the promotion had told them to get bent?
Well, it turns out the money would have been a big waste.
The city’s police service are reporting that there were no major incidents reported following Saturday night’s event.
“They didn’t report in any incidents of note,” Jana McGuinness, a Vancouver Police Department media relations officer told The Vancouver Courier Tuesday. “There was good dialogue with the police and the community since last year and their concerns were brought forward and we responded with increased patrols.”
According to one Vancouver man, however, who took it upon himself to personally sniff out any wrongdoing by UFC fans, there actually was some depravity and defilement that took place after the fights.
“They mostly seemed to head up to Granville, where I’m sure it was a rambunctious night,” said Sean Bickerton of the Crosstown Residents Association, referring to the infamous Granville strip, where MMA-style clothing has been banned by bars and clubs as it was felt that such clothing begets violence. “The sides of buildings and sidewalks reeked of urine around here yesterday though from all of the public micturition after the event. If UFC had paid to provide porta-potties and the extra police as we requested, we wouldn’t have that problem. But thankfully, no violence I’m aware of.”
Of course Bickerton must have done a walkabout following Friday night’s Vancouver Canucks NHL playoff game, during which he no doubt personally whiffed each wall and sidewalk for comparison’s sake after UFC 131. A trained nose can distinguish between the piss of hockey fans and MMA fans, but it’s a skill set not many possess.
What’s funny is that the VPD announced last month that an increased police presence and portable toilets placed around the arena would be utilized to dissuade fans from seeking relief and running wild in the streets.
I wonder why Bickerton, whose bio describes him as ”a community activist and arts entrepreneur who moved back to Vancouver in 2006 in order to marry his life-partner Tom after 20 years in New York” and states that he is a failed 2008 Vancouver City Council candidate who “has immersed himself ever since in the issues affecting his city and neighbourhood in North East False Creek,” didn’t comment on the revelry of Canucks fans in the city during this year’s Stanley Cup playoffs, but felt the need to get “pissy” about UFC fans he alleges urinated on a few buildings.
A Canadian Press story points out that a few arrests were made after the very first game of the team’s current series.
“By 10:30 p.m., police hadn’t reported any major problems. Some fans had set off fireworks, and officers rescued a woman who became trapped in a porta-potty with a broken lock.
After Game 1 last Wednesday, Vancouver police said they made only a few arrests, mostly for public intoxication, and broke up a few fights.
The Vancouver Police Department expects to spend up to half a million dollars on crowd control during the final round of the playoffs.
The city is still living with memories of the riots that followed the Canucks’ Stanley Cup loss to the New York Rangers in 1994, causing $1 million in damage, injuring 200 people and leading to charges against more than 150 revellers.”
Some background on the 1994 melee:
The game the Canucks lost didn’t even take place in the city of Vancouver, but fans who had watched their beloved team’s disappointing loss took to the streets to take out their frustrations on parked vehicles, businesses and each other.
Here’s a recap from another Canadian Press story:
“It’s been 17 years but images of the Stanley Cup riot of 1994 still haunt the city, where thousands of people went on a rampage following the Canucks’ loss to the New York Rangers. Drunken and disappointed fans smashed windows, threw bricks and looted downtown stores.
Cars were overturned and police made 150 arrests in a matter of hours. Another 200 people were injured and what was largely known as the laid-back cultural capital of the West was left with a legacy of restrictive rules aimed at preventing any embarrassing repeats.”
And yet, this dude seems to think the real problem is with MMA, and more specifically, the UFC?
Well, it turns out Bickerton, who is once again running for city council, has a personal vendetta against the sport and its number one promotion.
Here’s a quote from his website:
“Last year, after a gay-bashing of good friends in my neighborhood following the last UFC fight at Rogers Arena, I worked with my good friends Patsy McMillan and Fern Jeffries to organize a community meeting with Police Chief Jim Chu and David Negrin, President of Rogers Arena, to address public safety issues and work out positive steps to help ensure it doesn’t happen again.”
What’s interesting is that the Vancouver Police, who arrested and charged the two men responsible for the attack, have stated publicly on numerous occasions that they have no proof that the assailants had attended UFC 115 last June.
Here’s one such quote from Straight:
“At today’s news conference, McGuinness said that at this point, police have not uncovered any information linking the two brothers to the UFC event.
‘So far, nothing has come to light to make that connection for us,” she commented. ‘We left no stone unturned.’”
Politics….how do they work?
Oh yeah, ignore the truth and persuade people to believe what you have to say as if it’s much more important, am I right Bob Reilly?