Sam Smith - Above are just a few of the photos posted by Boston.com
of a riot in Keene NH during its annual Pumpkin Fest. Some 30 people
were reported injured by those the site called "partiers." The Daily Beast, which
prefers young Americans to kill and maim those overseas. said, "Today
the city of Keene, N.H., faces a massive cleanup following a spate
of riots that raged throughout much of the day Saturday and into the
early morning hours of Sunday as parties celebrating the annual Keene
Pumpkin Festival turned into violent chaos, adding that "the rioters
seemed to delight in destruction."
Keene, incidentally, recently got a $286,000 Bear Cat armored vehicle because of threats "far reaching and often
unforeseen." The Keene police also delight in destruction but it didn't seem to help much.
Although youthful riots are far from unknown, the the size and force of
this one was striking, and brings to mind the thought that America is
moving towards increasingly anarchistic anger. As one 18 year old
participant put it, "It’s fucking wicked. It’s just like a
rush. You’re revolting from the cops. … It’s a blast to do things that
you’re not supposed to do.”
As we try to make sense of the rebels in the Mid East for whom we can't
even agree on a name, it is worth remembering that America, too, can be
broken into conflicting cells whose major common ground is anger. For
decades, liberals have given the young no conceptual alternative.
Progressive activists have tried, but their causes have been too
specific to create a general counterculture. If you are growing up in
this society you can easily realize that much is madness, but where do
you turn for help? Without friends, without a face for the future, it is
easy to turn to fury.
